Best online learning websites for everything

The Windows 10 operating system utilizes a variety of measures in order to track your app launches so that it can boost both your start and search results. It can personalize the start menu based on the apps that you use the most on the Start menu as well as the search results. This way, the App Launch Tracking is definitely useful especially when you want to access your favorite and frequently used apps quickly in the Start menu and search results on your Windows 10 computer. On the other hand, Windows 10 provides users with the ability to control their privacy settings in order to protect the privacy of users. Windows 10 users can either opt to enable the app launch tracking to improve the start menu and search menu or opt to disable the app launch tracking in order to prevent the Windows operating system from tracking that you open if you really value your privacy that much. Whichever setting you prefer, you need to change the privacy control settings as well as make some tweaks in the Windows Registry in order to turn on or turn off the app launch tracking feature.

Option 1 – Turn off or turn on app launch tracking via Settings

• Go to Settings and click on Privacy.
• After that, toggle On the “Let Windows track app launches to improve Start and search results” option on the right side of the page under the General Settings to enable the app launch tracking feature.
• And of course, if you wish to disable the app launch tracking feature, simply toggle Off the “Let Windows track app launches to improve Start and search results” option on the very same page under General Settings.
• After that, close the Settings window.

Note: Keep in mind that when you disable the app launch tracking feature, the “Show most used app” setting will either be grayed out or labeled as “Disable” on your Windows 10 computer. Thus, if you want to keep viewing the most used apps, just re-enable the app launch tracking feature if you have disabled it.

Option 2 – Turn off or turn on app launch tracking via Windows Registry

Before you proceed, make sure to create a System Restore point

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
• Then type “Regedit” in the field and hit Enter or click OK to open the Registry Editor.
• Next, navigate to the following path:

HKEY_CURRENT_USERSOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerAdvanced

• After that, right-click on the Advanced folder and then click on New to create a new 32-bit DWORD value.
• Name the newly created DWORD as “Start TrackProgs” and set its value to “1” to enable the app launch tracking feature.
• If you want to disable the app launch feature, set “0” as the value instead of 1.
• Now click OK and restart your computer.

Take note that you still have to create a 32-bit DWORD value even if you are using a 64-bit Windows computer.

In this post, you will be guided on how you can fix error 0x80070013 while executing various operations in your Windows 10 computer like System Restore, Windows Backup, or Windows Updates. When you encounter error 0x80070013, you will see the following error messages. For System Restore, it states:

“System Restore did not complete successfully. Your computer’s system files and settings were not changed. Details: System Restore failed while scanning the file system on the drive <Partition Letter> The drive might be corrupt. You might want to retry System Restore after running chkdsk /R on this disk. An unspecified error occurred during System Restore. (0x80070013) You can try System Restore again and choose a different restore point. If you continue to see this error, you can try an advanced recovery method.”

Whereas in Windows Backup, it states:

“Check your backup, Windows Backup failed while trying to read from this shadow copy on one of the volumes being backed up. Please check in the event logs for any relevant errors. The backup failed, The media is write protected (0x80070013).”

On the other hand, you will see the following error message in Windows Update:

“There were some problems installing updates, but we’ll try again later. If you keep seeing this and want to search the web or contact the support for information, this may help: (0x80070013).”

There are several suggestions you can check out to fix the error depending on where you encountered it. If you encountered it while running Windows Updates, then you can try to reset the Windows Update components or run the Windows Update Troubleshooter. And if you got the error when running System Restore, you can try to run a System File Checker scan or the DISM tool as well as the CHKDSK utility. Lastly, if you got this error when running the Windows Backup service, you can try to check its status in the Services Manager. Error 0x80070013 in Windows Updates:

Option 1 – Try to reset the Windows Update components

• Open Command Prompt with admin privileges.
• After that, type each one of the following commands and hit Enter after you key in one after the other.
  • net stop wuauserv
  • net stop cryptsvc
  • net stop bits
  • net stop msiserver

Note: The commands you entered will stop the Windows Update components such as Windows Update service, Cryptographic services, BITS, and MSI Installer.

• After disabling WU components, you need to rename both the SoftwareDistribution and Catroot2 folders. To do that, type each one of the following commands below, and don’t forget to hit Enter after you type one command after the other.
  • ren C:/Windows/SoftwareDistribution/SoftwareDistribution.old
  • ren C:/Windows/System32/catroot2/Catroot2.old
• Next, restart the services you’ve stopped by entering another series of commands. Don’t forget to hit Enter after you key in one command after the other.
  • net start wuauserv
  • net start cryptsvc
  • net start bits
  • net start msiserver
• Close Command Prompt and reboot your PC.

Option 2 – Run the Windows Update Troubleshooter

You might also want to run the Windows Update Troubleshooter as it could also help in fixing error 0x80070013. To run it, go to Settings and then select Troubleshoot from the options. From there, click on Windows Update and then click the “Run the troubleshooter” button. After that, follow the next on-screen instructions and you should be good to go. Error 0x80070013 in System Restore:

Option 3 – Try to run both Systems File Checker scan and DISM tool

Running the System File Checker scan as well as the DISM tool can help you resolve error 0x80070013 while performing System Restore. Refer to these steps to do so.

• Open the Command Prompt with admin privileges.
• After opening Command Prompt, execute this command to run a System File Checker scan: sfc /scannow
• Once the scan is completed, restart your computer and then see if the error is now fixed. If not, you can run the DISM tool.
• Open Command Prompt with admin privileges again.
• Then type in the following commands and make sure to hit Enter right after you type each one of them in order to properly run the DISM tool:
  • Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
  • Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth
  • Dism /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth
• Do not close the window if the process takes a while as it will probably take a few minutes to finish.

Option 4 – Run the CHKDSK utility

• In the Windows Search box, type “command prompt” and from the search results, right-click on Command Prompt and select “Run as administrator”.
• After opening Command Prompt, type this command and tap Enter: chkdsk <Partition Letter>: /f /r /x /b
• The command you entered will start to check for errors and fix them automatically. Else, it will throw an error message saying, “Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by another process. Would you like the schedule this volume to be checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N)”.
• Tap the Y key to schedule Disk Check the next time your computer restarts.

Error 0x80070013 in Windows Backup:

Option 5 – Try checking the status of the Windows Backup Service

• First, you need to tap the Win + R keys on your keyboard to open the Run dialog box.
• Next, type “services.msc” in the field and click OK or tap Enter to open the Windows Services Manager.
• After that, you will see a list of services and from there, look for the Windows Backup Service and double click on it to open its Properties.
• Then check if its Startup type is set to Disabled. If it is, then change it to “Manual”. Note that this service is essential as it provides backup and restores capabilities.
• Now click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made and then restart your computer. Check if the error is now gone.

You will notice the blurred background on the login screen right away when you start your Windows 10 computer that’s running the v1903 and up. This kind of blurred background is known as “Acrylic Blur Effect on Sign-in Screen”. This new feature delivers a beautiful experience to users by adding more focus to the login screen. However, no matter how nice this feature is and even if it only stays for less than a minute, not all users like it and if you’re one of these users, read on as this post will guide you in disabling the blurred background login screen in your Windows 10 computer. Disabling the blurred background in the login screen can be done in two methods. The first one is via the Registry Editor and the second one is via the Group Policy Editor. Before you proceed, make sure that you are using an admin account and you must create a System Restore point first. Once you have that covered, follow the options provided below.

Option 1 – Disable the Blurred background in the login screen via Registry Editor

• First, tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and type “Regedit” in the field, and hit Enter to open the Registry Editor.
• After that, navigate to this registry path: KEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftWindowsSystem
• Next, right-click on any empty space in the right pane and create a new DWORD (32 bit) and name it as “DisableAcrylicBackgroundOnLogon”.
• Once you’ve created the DWORD, double click on it and set its value to 1 to disable it and 0 to enable it.
• After you make the necessary changes, restart your computer. You won’t now see the blurred background on the login screen.

Note: No matter what option you select to change the background, it will stay blurred when you click on the login button. At the time of writing, there is no way to disable this feature in the Personalization section so the Registry Editor will have to suffice for now.

Option 2 – Disable the Blurred background in the login screen via Group Policy Editor

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run utility and type “gpedit.msc” in the field and tap Enter to open the Group Policy Editor.
• After that, navigate to this policy setting: Computer ConfigurationAdministrative TemplatesSystemLogon
• From there, double click on the “Show clear logon background settings” and since its default value is “Not configured”, set it to “Disabled”. You will see the following description under this setting:
  • “This policy setting disables the acrylic blur effect on the logon background image.”
  • “If you enable this policy, the logon background image shows without blur.”

• Now click on OK and then check the login screen.

Note: If you don’t configure or if you disable this policy, the logon background image adopts the acrylic blur effect. However, if it didn’t work, you have to restart your computer and then check.

Microsoft office has set itself as one of the most used and best suites for business use and MS Word as the most widely used word processor. But how even best are not immune to some small bugs and unexpected behaviors so is not Word. Word has stopped working is probably know to a wide audience of its users, I think I could safely say that each Word user has experienced this error at least once, luckily the error is not anything to worry about since it is an easily fixable issue.

Try automated solutions

There are some fully automated solutions that could fix any PC issues, some are available in free versions. If you prefer to do things manually however keep on reading and follow the instructions below.

Manual FIXES:

1. Update MS Word

   Make sure that you are running the latest build of Word in order to eliminate all bugs and to have a smooth running experience. Go to File > Account > Product Information > Update Options and click Enable Update and then select Update Now.

2. Check the file

   Corrupted files can cause this crash and this error, try opening another text file inside the Word to eliminate file corruption.

3. Run Word in safe mode and disable add-ins

   Did you know that MS Word has a safe mode like Windows? In this safe mode, Word will boot up just the application without any add-ins installed and in this environment, you can start one add-in by one to see which one is causing the issue. Press ⊞ WINDOWS + R to open the run dialog Inside run dialog type in winword /safe followed by ENTER to run Word in safe mode If MS Word works fine in Safe mode, disable all COM Add-ins (while being in safe mode) and restart Word. Re-enable the add-ins one at a time to identify the problematic one. Click on File and then on Options Click on Add-Ins from the options list Select COM Add-ins from the drop-down menu and click on Go Uncheck all the add-ins and click OK to confirm Close the Dialog Box and MS Word. Now try running MS Word normally and see if it works Repeat steps to enable the add-ins, one at a time, and check which add-in is causing this error

4. Repair Word installation

   Press ⊞ WINDOWS + R to open the run dialog In run dialog type in control panel and press ENTER Inside Control Panel click on Programs and Features Locate and click on Microsoft Office to select it Once selected click on change located on top of the application list Once Office Windows loads click on Repair Wait for the process to finish

5. Reinstall MS office

   If all the previous solutions failed next step would be to completely uninstall MS Office and install it again once the old one has been completely removed from the system. Go to the control panel as explained in the previous step and select Office Instead of Change this time click on uninstall and follow on-screen instructions Once uninstall is finished, install a new copy of MS Office.

Boost My PC is a program developed by 1.0.2.6. During setup, a scheduled task is added to Windows Task Scheduler in order to launch the program at various scheduled times (the schedule varies depending on the version). When installed, it will add a context menu handler to the Windows shell in order to provide quick access to the program.

Boost My PC presents itself as a legit PC speed-up utility, it scans your computer for problems and displays errors that need to be fixed. Upon accepting to fix these alleged errors, you are asked for a Payment in order to activate this product for a few months.

Many anti-virus scanners have marked this application as a Potentially Unwanted Program, and while Boost My PC is not so harmful on its own, it comes bundled with other Potentially Unwanted Programs that might harm your computer.

About Potentially Unwanted Applications

If you’ve ever downloaded and installed a software package via the internet (shareware, freeware, etc,), odds are high you’ve unwittingly installed unwanted programs on your computer. Potentially Unwanted Programs (PUP), also referred to as Potentially Unwanted Applications (PUA), are programs that you never wanted in the first place and sometimes come bundled with freeware software. Once installed, most of these applications can be hard to remove and become more of a pain rather than a benefit. It’s clear by the name – unwanted applications – but did not really constitute “malware” in the traditional sense. Much like malware, PUPs create problems when downloaded and installed on your machine, but what makes a PUP different is that you grant consent to download it – though the truth is vastly different – the software installation bundle actually tricks you into agreeing to the installation. Regardless of whether it is considered malware or otherwise, PUPs are almost always detrimental to the user as they could bring on adware, spyware, keystroke logging, along other dangerous “crapware” features on your computer.

Exactly how do unwanted programs look like?

Potentially Unwanted Programs appear in different forms and varieties, however, most times, these are typically adware programs that show annoying pop-up adverts and advertisements on web pages you drop by. PUPs that come as browser add-ons and toolbars are widely identifiable. These toolbars change your homepage and your search engine in the installed web browser, track your web activities, influence your search results with redirects and sponsored links, and eventually slow down your web browser and diminish your browsing experience. PUPs lie inside the gray part of the software spectrum. They may carry keyloggers, dialers, along with other software built right into them that might monitor you or send out your sensitive information to 3rd parties. Even if the PUPs aren’t inherently malicious, these programs still do practically nothing good on your personal computer – they will take valuable resources, slow your PC, weaken your device’s security, making your PC more susceptible to malware.

Tips on protecting yourself from PUPs

• Read the EULA carefully. Look for clauses that say that you ought to accept advertising and pop-ups or bundled programs from the company. • Choose the “custom” install whenever downloading a program. In particular, look closely at those tiny boxes that have been checked as default, where you might ‘agree’ to receive ads or install software bundlers. • Use an ad blocker/pop-up blocker; Deploy anti-malware products such as Safebytes Anti-malware. These types of applications will establish a wall between the computer and cybercriminals. • Avoid installing freeware software you will not make use of. Avoid installing browser extensions and applications you aren’t knowledgeable about. • Only download software from the original providers’ sites. Stay away from download portals because they use their own download manager to pack additional programs together with the initial download.

What you can do if Malware Prevents You From Downloading Anything?

Malware could cause all sorts of damage after they invade your system, from stealing your private details to deleting files on your computer system. Certain malware types alter web browser settings by including a proxy server or change the computer’s DNS configuration settings. In these cases, you’ll be unable to visit certain or all websites, and therefore unable to download or install the required security software to remove the infection. So what you should do if malicious software prevents you from downloading or installing Anti-Malware? Even though this kind of problem can be difficult to get around, there are a few steps you can take.

Download the application in Safe Mode with Networking

If any virus is set to run immediately when Windows starts, stepping into safe mode could block this attempt. Just the minimum required applications and services are loaded whenever you start your PC in Safe Mode. To start your Windows XP, Vista, or 7 computers in Safe Mode with Networking, follow the instructions below. 1) Press the F8 key continuously as soon as your system boots, but before the large Windows logo shows up. This should bring up the Advanced Boot Options menu. 2) Select Safe Mode with Networking with arrow keys and hit ENTER. 3) Once you get into this mode, you should have online access once again. Now, use your internet browser normally and navigate to https://safebytes.com/products/anti-malware/ to download and install Safebytes Anti-Malware. 4) Immediately after installation, run a full scan and let the software remove the threats it discovers.

Switch over to a different web browser

Some malware only targets specific web browsers. If this sounds like your situation, employ another web browser as it may circumvent the computer virus. If you’re not able to download the security software using Internet Explorer, this means the virus may be targeting IE’s vulnerabilities. Here, you must switch to another internet browser like Chrome or Firefox to download the Safebytes program.

Install and run anti-virus from a USB drive

Another option is to store and operate an anti-malware program completely from a Flash drive. Try these simple steps to clear up your infected computer by using portable anti-malware. 1) Download the anti-malware on a virus-free computer. 2) Plug the Flash drive into the clean computer. 3) Run the setup program by double-clicking the executable file of the downloaded software, with a .exe file extension. 4) Select the drive letter of the flash drive as the place when the wizard asks you where you want to install the anti-malware. Do as instructed on the computer screen to finish off the installation process. 5) Transfer the pen drive from the uninfected computer to the infected computer. 6) Double-click the EXE file to open the Safebytes tool right from the thumb drive. 7) Click on “Scan Now” to run a scan on the affected computer for viruses.

Ensure the Safety of Your PC by Installing SafeBytes Anti-Malware

If you’re looking to buy anti-malware for your computer, there are numerous brands and packages for you to consider. A few are very good ones, some are ok types, and some are merely fake anti-malware programs that could damage your personal computer themselves! You have to be very careful not to pick the wrong product, especially if you purchase a paid application. On the list of strongly recommended software programs is SafeBytes Anti-Malware. SafeBytes carries a very good history of top-quality service, and clients appear to be happy with it. SafeBytes anti-malware is a trustworthy tool that not only secures your system completely but is also very easy to use for people of all ability levels. Through its cutting-edge technology, this software protects your personal computer against infections caused by various kinds of malware and other threats, including spyware, adware, computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, keyloggers, potentially unwanted programs (PUPs), and ransomware.

There are plenty of wonderful features you’ll get with this particular security product. These are some of the highlighted features included in the software.

World-class AntiMalware Protection: Built on a highly acclaimed anti-virus engine, this malware removal application has the capacity to detect and get rid of several stubborn malware threats like browser hijackers, PUPs, and ransomware that other common antivirus programs will miss. Live Protection: SafeBytes gives you round-the-clock protection for your PC restricting malware attacks in real-time. It will regularly monitor your pc for hacker activity and also provides users with advanced firewall protection. Safe Web Browsing: SafeBytes provides an instant safety rating about the web pages you’re going to visit, automatically blocking risky sites and making sure that you are certain of your online safety while browsing the world wide web. Low CPU Usage: This program is lightweight and can run silently in the background, and that does not impact your computer efficiency. 24/7 Customer Support: SafeBytes provides 24/7 technical support, automatic maintenance, and updates for the best user experience. To sum it up, SafeBytes has created a meaningful anti-malware solution that is aimed to protect your computer against various malware. Malware problems can become a thing of the past once you put this software program to use. For top protection and the best value for your money, you can’t get better than SafeBytes Anti-Malware.

Technical Details and Manual Removal (Advanced Users)

If you don’t wish to use an automated tool and like to eliminate Boost My PC manually, you could possibly do so by going to the Add/Remove Programs menu in the Control Panel and deleting the offending program; in cases of web browser add-ons, you could remove it by going to the browsers Add-on/Extension manager. You will definitely also want to reset your internet browser. If you opt to manually delete the system files and Windows registry entries, make use of the following list to ensure that you know precisely what files to remove before executing any actions. Please remember that this is for skilled users only and may be challenging, with wrong file removal leading to additional PC errors. In addition, certain malware is capable of replicating itself or preventing deletion. It is highly recommended that you carry out the removal procedure in Safe Mode.

Blackouts are one of the most annoying things that can happen in the modern age. We have all learned to depend on electricity, maybe too much, so having a backup plan in these unpleasant situations is necessary. Here are some good gadgets for these kinds of situations.

Power Bank

The fully charged power bank is a great item that could fill up your phone or tablet. If it is a larger power bank it could fill them up all the way to the top several times and having charged phone or tablet can help greatly with some fun during dark times. The power bank can also be used to fill up other gadgets on this list so if the power outage is expected to last longer perhaps it would be wiser not to waste it on phone/tablet games.

Portable Generator

If the power bank is too short-lived for your needs, a portable generator is always a good option since it can provide power for longer time periods. The solar generator is what we recommend because it is much cheaper to produce electricity but it is limited if a power surge comes at night, one on gasoline is more stable and practical but it costs more to produce electricity.

Portable Solar Charger

One more electric-producing device on the list, this one however is aimed at charging your phone, tablet, or laptop by harvesting Sun's energy and turning it into valuable electricity for your devices. Fully silent and easy to operate this is a great tool for power outrage. It will not be able to produce electricity for smaller house appliances but for basic phone/tablet/laptop needs it will suffice.

Panic light

Self-sustained with its own battery, panic lights are great assets for lightning when power is not present. They can turn automatically when the circuit detects that power is missing but can be also manually switched on or off. There are many versions of panic lights ranging from the light they produce to how long can they work so picking the right one will depend entirely on your home size and needs.

USB Headlamp

If you lack panic lights USB headlamp is a great choice to light your way and it works even better than a flashlight, although a flashlight is also a great tool, a headlight will provide you with free arms to do various things that you would not be able to by holding a flashlight. Modern headlights come with LED lights so they provide a good amount of light with small power consumption and they can be recharged in a power bank, solar charger, or generator.

LED lantern

LED Lantern is a gadget sitting somewhere between a headlight and a panic light, it offers around the same light amount as a panic light but you can carry it around with you. Of course, it will drain its battery faster than a panic light and it will still need to carry around but it can offer some good options when you need it, like taking it with you to the toilet.

Electric Lighter

An electric lighter is also one of the things that you will need, it can ignite candles, paper, stoves, etc. Its battery is usually enough for extensive use and there are small chances that it will need to be recharged. Having matches is also smart, just in case.

Solar Oven

Great gadget when outbreaks last long or when you get hungry. Not all households have gas ovens so a Solar oven is a great tool to keep you full of food. Granted it will not be on par in speed and quality with a regular oven but when it is the only option it will suffice.

If you suddenly encountered the PDC WATCHDOG TIMEOUT BSOD Blue Screen stop error with a bug check value of 0x0000014F, then it’s probably due to a system component that has failed to respond with the allocated period which prevents the system from exiting connected standby. This kind of Blue Screen error could be caused by both hardware and software components. To fix this Stop error, here are some possible fixes you can try that might help but before you proceed, make sure that you create a System Restore point first and boot your computer into Safe Mode with Networking.

Option 1 – Try to rollback, update or disable drivers

The next thing you can do to fix the PDC_WATCHDOG_TIMEOUT Stop error is to roll back, or update, or disable device drivers. It is most likely that after you updated your Windows computer that your driver also needs a refresh. On the other hand, if you have just updated your device drivers then you need to roll back the drivers to their previous versions. Whichever applies to you, refer to the steps below.

• Open the Devices Manager from the Win X Menu.
• After opening the Device Manager, look for the device driver named “IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers” and expand it.
• Then look for the SATA AHCI Controller entry and right-click on it. If you haven’t updated this driver in a while, select the “Update Driver” option. On the other hand, if you’ve just updated this driver, then select the Uninstall Device option.
• Next, follow the screen option to update or uninstall it.
• Finally, restart your computer. It will just reinstall the device drivers automatically if you have chosen to uninstall them.

Note: You can install a dedicated driver on your computer in case you have it or you could also look for it directly from the website of the manufacturer.

Option 2 – Try to disconnect or disable newly installed hardware

In this option, you will have to disable or remove the hardware you’ve just installed recently since external devices could be the one that’s causing the Blue Screen of Death error to appear. To do that, just disconnect any external device that’s connected to your computer physically and then check if it fixes the PDC_WATCHDOG_TIMEOUT Blue Screen error.

Option 3 – Try running the Memory Diagnostic Tool

The Memory Diagnostic tool in windows can help resolve the PDC_WATCHDOG_TIMEOUT Blue Screen error by checking and automatically fixing any memory-based issues. To run it, refer to these steps:

• Tap the Win + R keys to open Run and type mdsched.exe and hit Enter to open the Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool.
• After that, it will give two options such as:
  • Restart now and check for problems (Recommended)
  • Check for problems the next time I start my computer
• Once your computer has restarted, perform a basic scan or you could also go for the “Advanced” options such as “Test mix” or “Pass count”. Simply tap the F10 key to start the test.

Option 4 – Try to update the BIOS

Updating the BIOS can help you fix the PDC_WATCHDOG_TIMEOUT BSOD error but as you know, BIOS is a sensitive part of a computer. Even though it is a software component, the functioning of the hardware depends on it largely. Thus, you must be careful when modifying something in the BIOS. So if you don’t know much about it, it’s best if you skip on this option and try the other ones instead. However, if you are well-versed in navigating the BIOS, then follow the steps below.

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
• Next, type “msinfo32” in the field and press Enter to open System Information.
• From there, you should find a search field on the bottom where you have to search for the BIOS version and then press Enter.
• After that, you should see the developer and version of the BIOS installed on your PC.
• Go to your manufacturer’s website and then download the latest version of BIOS on your computer.
• If you are using a laptop, make sure that you keep it plugged in until you have updated the BIOS.
• Now double click on the downloaded file and install the new BIOS version on your computer.
• Now restart your computer to apply the changes made.

Option 5 – Try running the Blue Screen Troubleshooter

The Blue Screen troubleshooter is a built-in tool in Windows 10 that helps users in fixing BSOD errors like PDC_WATCHDOG_TIMEOUT. It can be found in the Settings Troubleshooters page. To use it, refer to these steps:

• Tap the Win + I keys to open the Settings panel.
• Then go to Update & Security > Troubleshoot.
• From there, look for the option called “Blue Screen” on your right-hand side and then click the “Run the troubleshooter” button to run the Blue Screen Troubleshooter and then follow the next on-screen options. Note that you might have to boot your PC into Safe Mode.

As you know, each one of the applications that you use in your Windows 10 computer has its own set of permissions by default. These applications either allows or denies the interactions between a few other applications, depending on their own needs. This is why you might suddenly encounter a message that says,

“This app wants to access your pictures” or “This app wants to access your account info”

both of which are followed by two buttons that will ask you to Allow or Deny the action. You can always click on any of the given options. This will determine the permission of the application. Users in Windows 10 are given the option to either allow or deny applications in accessing their account information like name, picture and other account information. Thus, in this post, you will be guided on how you can change the Privacy settings of these apps to allow or deny them permission to access not just your account info but for all users, as well as specific apps in Windows 10. The user account information is part of the Privacy data in Windows 10 that you can control easily using the Settings app. In fact, you can revoke or grant access permission for your account information, all the users and specific applications to do that, follow each one of the instructions provided below carefully.

Allow or deny apps permission to account info for yourself:

Step_1: The first thing you have to do is open Settings. From there, select Privacy. Step_2: After that, scroll and look for Account info and select it. Step_3: Now turn off the toggle button for the “Allow apps to access your account info” option if you want to deny apps permission to your account info. But if you want to allow them access, simply turn the toggle button on. Keep in mind that when you allow access or permission, you can select which apps can access your picture, name, and other account info by simply using the settings on the page you’re currently in.

Now if you want to allow or deny apps to access your account info for all the users, here’s what you have to do:

Step_1: First, open Settings and click on the icon for Privacy. Step_2: Next, scroll down until you see the Account info located on the left side and then click on it. Step_3: After that, click on the Change button under the “Allow access to account info on this device” section. If you want to deny account info access for all other users, then turn the toggle button off. Doing so will automatically disable not just the account info access for all users but also for all the apps as well.

On the other hand, if you want to allow or deny account info access to specific apps, you can do so by following these steps:

Step_1: As you did earlier, go to Settings and click on the Privacy icon. Step_2: After that, scroll down and select Account info located on the left side. Step_3: Now turn on or off the toggle button under the “Choose which apps can access your account info” section if you want to deny or allow specific apps permission to access Account Info. If you’ve turned on the toggle button under the “Allow apps to access your account info”, all the apps get access permissions by default.

Signing in to a computer that runs a Windows 10 version OS is usually fast and straightforward. However, there are instances when signing in takes too long especially if there are a lot of programs in the Startup. So if many things are loading as soon as you log into your computer, it will slow down the sign-in process. Aside from programs in Startup, it is also possible that there are too many users that are logged in to the account. In such a case, you will most likely encounter an error that says, “Your computer is running low on resources, so no new users can sign in. Please use an account that has already been signed in”. If you’ve encountered such an error when you try to log into your computer, read on as this post will be guiding you on how you can fix it. Each time a user signs in to Windows 10, it will allocate resources in order to work smoothly. But, in many cases, the system is running low on resources which is why this error pops up and blocks a sign-in of a new user. To fix it, you can try to log out the existing users, or perform a Cold Boot, as well as run both the DISM tool and System File Checker scan.

Option 1 - Try to logout existing users

The first thing you can do is to log out the existing users. If you have a shared Windows 10 computer, you have to check if someone hasn’t logged out. It could be that some background task or there is an existing program that is still running under that account. So you have to make sure to ask the same user to log out in case there is some unsaved work. On the other hand, if that user is not around, then you reboot the computer right away.

Option 2 - Try Performing a Cold Boot

You could also try to perform a Cold Boot to fix the problem. A Cold Boot is a process that makes sure that the Windows 10 Kernel shuts down properly and releases all the resources held by any account. To perform a Cold Boot, just press and hold the physical power button on your CPU until it goes off. After that, boot your computer regularly and see if you can now log into your account without any error.

Option 3 - Try to run a System File Checker scan

System File Checker is a built-in command utility in Windows that helps in restoring corrupted files as well as missing files. It replaces bad and corrupted system files to good system files that might be the cause why you’re getting the error when you log into your computer. To run the SFC command, follow the steps given below.

• Boot your computer into the Advanced Recovery mode and from there open Command Prompt.
• After opening Command Prompt, type in sfc /scannow

The command will start a system scan which will take a few whiles before it finishes. Once it’s done, you could get the following results:

1. Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.
2. Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them.
3. Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.

 Now restart your computer and see if the problem is fixed or not.

Option 4 - run the dism tool

You might also want to run the DISM tool. This tool is known to repair potentially corrupted files in your system as having them could also system issues like the “Your computer is running low on resources, so no new users can sign in” error. To repair these corrupted system files, you can run the DISM commands:

• Go to the Advanced Recovery mode and select Command Prompt.
• After that, input each one of the commands listed below sequentially to execute them:
  • Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
  • Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth
  • Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

• Once you’ve executed the commands given above, restart your computer and check if the problem is now fixed.

Code 0xC1900200, 0x20008, What is it?

Error Code 0xC1900200, 0x20008 (Code 0xC1900202 – 0x20008)  is an error that occurs when you attempt to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 10, but the minimum requirements have not been met by your computer. You will therefore be unable to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 10 until your computer is updated or upgraded to meet those requirements. Common symptoms include:

• When attempting to upgrade a dialog box with Code 0xC1900200 – 0x20008 (Code 0xC1900202 – 0x20008) is displayed.
• Your computer is unable to begin the Microsoft Windows 10 upgrade process.

Solution

Error Causes

Error Code 0xC1900200 – 0x20008 (Code 0xC1900202 – 0x20008)  occurs when you are unable to begin the Microsoft Windows 10 upgrade because your computer does not meet the minimum requirements to run Microsoft Windows 10.

• You are unable to begin the upgrade because your computer does not meet the required system or hardware specifications.
• You are not running the correct version of Microsoft Windows to be able to begin the upgrade.
• You are not running the latest updated version of Microsoft Windows 7 SP1 or Microsoft Windows 8.1. Error Code 0xC1900200 – 0x20008 (Code 0xC1900202 – 0x20008) as stated, simply means your computer does not meet the requirements to update and does not indicate a permanent problem or inability to continue to use your computer. This error only means that you will not be able to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 10 until your computer is made to meet these requirements.

Further Information and Manual Repair

There are several solutions that the user can complete at home that should fix the problem resulting in a manifestation of Error Code 0xC1900200 – 0x20008 (Code 0xC1900202 – 0x20008). Below are several options that should resolve this error.

Method 1:

Verify what version of Microsoft Windows you are currently running, older, outdated, or no longer supported versions of Microsoft Windows are not able to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 10. If you are not running one of the following versions you will have to update before being able to upgrade.

• The most current version of Microsoft Windows 7 SP1
• The most current version of Microsoft Windows 8.1

Method 2:

Your computer's system specifications do not meet the requirements to be able to upgrade to and run Microsoft Windows 10. To check your system specifications do the following.

• Click on the start button in the bottom left corner, then locate the control panel on the menu, click on it to open.

• Once it opens, locate system and security on the menu and click to open, click on system and this will show you your amount of RAM and processor speed.

• Find device manager on the left-hand side click this then select display adapter, and it will show you your current video card.

• Click on the start button again, then click on the computer in the menu, this will show you your hard drive size, and available space.

If you have the option available you can simply run the get Microsoft Windows 10 app to check compatibility. Once you have your system specs make sure they meet or exceed the following.

• 1 GHz or higher processor or SoC
• 1 gig of RAM for 32 bit and 2 gigs of RAM for 64 bit
• 16 GB available hard drive space for 32 bit, 20 GB for 64 bit
• Minimum of DirectX9 that has 1.0 WDDM
• At least an 800x600 display

If your computer does not meet these minimum requirements, upgrade the components necessary to meet them. If you do not possess the technical expertise required to accomplish this yourself or do not feel comfortable doing so, download and install a powerful automated tool to get the job done.

Method 3:

Your computer might not meet the aforementioned requirements to make an upgrade because of insufficient hard drive space or resources. Learn how to create space on your computer.

Method 4:

Many people hold on to and use the same computer for a very long time. It is possible that your computer cannot be upgraded to meet the requirements, or that the cost to do so would be so high that a new computer would be cheaper. If that is the case, your only option may be to replace your computer.