New focus sessions in Windows 11

If you are visiting a single folder many times during the day it might be beneficial to place its shortcut on the desktop for easy access. But did you know that you can also set a keyboard shortcut for that same folder shortcut making it available simply by clicking desired key combination? In order to make a keyboard shortcut for the desired folder know that it is available only when you have a shortcut of the desired folder, it cannot be done on the folder itself, only on its shortcut. Now folder shortcut does not need to reside on desktop, you can place it anywhere you like, but it must be a shortcut. So the first step is of course to make a shortcut of the folder that you wish to have access via keyboard key combination and place it where you wish. Once you have done this step, right-click on it and choose properties. Inside properties at the top click on the Shortcut tab and then inside Shortcut Key, press the key combination that you wish to associate with this folder. Confirm with OK and start using fast folder access with your desired key combination.

Libvlc.dll Error Code - What is it?

Libvlc.dll error is a type of DLL file error. Libvlc.dll is a type of Dynamic Link Library file associated with 3rd party software developed by the Videolan Team for the Windows OS. Libvlc.dll file contains small programs similar to EXE executable files which allow multiple software programs to share the same functionality. It helps load and run certain programs developed by Videolan Team on your system. The Libvlc.dll error pops up when the file fails to load and run your desired program. This error is usually triggered during program installation while a Libvlc.dll related software is running on the PC or during Windows start-up or shut down. Libvlc.dll error code may appear on your Windows computer in any of the following formats:

"Libvlc.dll not found." "The file libvlc.dll is missing." "Cannot register libvlc.dll." "Cannot find C:WindowsSystem32\libvlc.dll." "Libvlc.dll Access Violation." "Cannot start Third-Party Software. A required component is missing: libvlc.dll. Please install Third-Party Software again." "This application failed to start because libvlc.dll was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem."

Though Libvlc.dll error is not a fatal error code but nonetheless it is advisable to resolve it immediately to avoid any inconvenience.

Solution

Error Causes

Libvlc.dll error code may occur due to several reasons including but not limited to:

• Corrupt Libvlc.dll registry entry
• Malware infection
• Hardware failure
• Deleted or missing Libvlc.dll file
• Another program overwrote the required version of Libvlc.dll

Further Information and Manual Repair

Here are some of the best and easy-to-work-around methods that you can try to resolve Libvlc DLL error on your system in minutes. Let’s get started:

Method 1: Re-install the Deleted Libvlc.dll file

Since DLL are shared files, sometimes the error code may pop up if it is deleted accidentally while uninstalling a program that is also run by the same file. In such a situation, to resolve the Libvlc.dll error all you have to do is re-install the deleted file by going into the recycle bin. If you find it reinstall, but if you don’t then simply download Libvlc.dll file from a reliable DLL file website and install. Hopefully this will resolve the issue. Alternatively, you can re-install VLC which should come with a complete copy of the libvlc.dll. However, if the error code still persists, then try other methods given below.

Method 2: Restore Points - Undo the Recent Changes

Another way to resolve Libvlc dll error is to restore your Windows system to an earlier point. System Restore can return your PC system files and programs back to a time when everything was working absolutely fine. This can help you avoid hours of troubleshooting headaches. This can be easily done by going to the start menu. In the search box type System Restore and press enter. Now click System Restore and enter administrator password if prompted. Follow the steps in the Wizard to choose a restore point and then reboot to activate changes.

Method 3: Repair the Registry

The Libvlc dll error can be triggered by invalid registry entries. To resolve, simply download Restoro. This is a user-friendly and multi-functional PC Fixer embedded with a powerful registry cleaner. It removes all the invalid files, repairs the damaged DLL files, and cleans the registry in seconds. Click here to download Restoro and resolve Libvlc dll error today!

Error Code 0xC1900101, 0x30018? - What is it?

Users, when upgrading to Windows 10 from Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1, or when upgrading to a new version, build, service pack, or major update of Windows 10, can encounter error code 0xC1900101, 0x30018. Windows 10 installation fails and stops or hangs. During the installation process, it will reach a certain maximum limit (normally at 6% or 32%) then reverts back to the previous version of the operating system and displays the following message:

We couldn’t install Windows 10. We’ve set your PC back to the way it was right before you started installing Windows 10.

0xC1900101 – 0x30018 The installation failed in the FIRST_BOOT phase with the error during the SYSPREP operation.

Solution

Error Causes

In attempting to fix Error Code 0xC1900101-0x30018, it is vital to know what causes this issue. The most probable causes of this error are:

• Incompatible hardware or driver
• Incompatible security programs or antivirus or incompatible utility software
• A device driver possibly stopped responding to setup.exe while on the installation process.

In some cases, you might be opened to other error messages when attempting to update to Windows 10, including error code 8007002c.

Further Information and Manual Repair

In fixing issues related to error codes, it is best to employ manual repair methods. Using these methods helps users pinpoint the root causes of the issue and apply solutions permanently to fix the issues. While most manual repair methods can be done by every Windows user, even those without technical abilities, there are certain cases where help from a Windows professional is needed. If you’re not up to facing risks in implementing manual methods yourself, consider getting help from a professional Windows technician or you can use a powerful automated tool. In fixing Error Code 0xC1900101-0x30018, you can repeat the same steps used for 0xc000021a (Method One) or you can try doing the following:

• Disable or uninstall your Antivirus program before proceeding to upgrade the system
• Ensure that the machine name is simple (having at least 8 characters) with no special characters like hyphens or dashes.
• Restart the device a few times then try again.
• Disable General USB Devices such as the Smart Card Reader.
• If you use an SCSI hard disk, ensure that you have available drivers you can use for your storage such as a thumb drive and make sure that it is connected. During the Windows 10 setup, select the Custom Advanced Option and use the Load Driver command to be able to load the suitable driver for the SCSI drive. If this fails, try switching to an IDE-based hard disk.
• You can now perform a clean boot. Restart your device then try again.
• If you are using the .ISO file for upgrading the system, you need to disconnect from the Internet first before proceeding to the setup. If you are connected to Wi-Fi or by Ethernet (LAN), make sure to disable both connections then you can proceed to set up again.
• If you’re performing the update through Windows Update, once the download reaches 100%, disconnect from the Internet, and then proceed with the installation.

NOTE: If this fails, if possible, you can try using the .ISO file in upgrading.

• Switch to a local account if the device is connected to a domain.
• Disconnect all external devices attached to the computer such as gaming controllers, printers, or USB keys.

If you’re using Windows Update in installing Windows 10, you can implement the following:

1. Open the Command Prompt window by pressing Windows Key + X. Select Command Prompt (Admin) from the menu.
2. Stop the BITS, Cryptographic, MSI Installer, and the Windows Update Services. In order to do this, Type or Copy and Paste the following commands one at a time:

NOTE: Don’t forget to hit Enter after every command.

net stop wuauserv

net stop cryptSvc

net stop bits

net stop msiserver

3. Rename the Catroot2 and SoftwareDistribution In order to do this, Type or Copy and Paste the following commands one at a time:

NOTE: Don’t forget to hit Enter after every command.

                        ren

C:WindowsSoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old

                          ren

C:WindowsSystem32catroot2 Catroot2.old

4. Restart the BITS, Cryptographic, MSI Installer, and the Windows Update Services. In order to do this, Type or Copy and Paste the following commands one at a time:

NOTE: Don’t forget to hit Enter after every command.

net start wuauserv

net start cryptSvc

net start bits

net start msiserver

5. Type Exit in the Command Prompt then close the Command Prompt window then restart the computer.

Can’t seem to put up with the long and technical manual repair process? You can still fix this error by downloading and installing a powerful automated tool that will surely get the job done in a jiffy!

If we are to believe news from Intel, new series of processors based on Alder Lake architecture are about to be released somewhere in October. Alder Lake is the 12^th Generation Core of Intel processors and it is meant to have all advantages of the current CPU structure. I9 is aimed to pack a punch against its competitors with technology including eight high-performance Golden Cove cores (P-cores) with Hyper-Threading and eight energy-efficient Goldmont (E-cores) equipped with a 30MB L3 cache and operating at high clock speeds. During the benchmark test, the new CPU outperformed all of Intel’s previous Rocket Lake structure processors which is logically expected but the big surprise came from results that indicate better performance than Apple’s new M1 processor even in single-threaded performance which is supposed to be best in that field. Another surprise was really beating AMD Ryzen 9 in each field. If we take into account that i9 has 16 cores in total and can process 24 threads against Ryzen 9 with 16 Cores and 32 threads this is an impressive feature. Now truth to be told Alder lake has massive L3 cache and microarchitectural advantages and consumes much more power but the results of performance are high. Also, note that this early CPU is not really a mass production one and maybe some things will still change but early results are very satisfactory. We will see what will price tag be since in this age of shortage and competition that will also play a big role in its overall success. Speaking of competition I eagerly await AMD’s response to this, in any way it seems that the CPU market is for some turbulence which is always a good thing for the final customer and I welcome it.

If you like to travel but you do not have a navigation device and a place where you are traveling does not have internet coverage do not worry, Windows offline maps are here to help. Traveling in today's world often requires that we have some sort of navigation system, wherever that be a dedicated navigation device, maps on your mobile phone, or something similar. Maps on mobile-phone are nice but they drain the battery of the phone fast and being on a road might require that we have access to our phone, just in case of an emergency call, and dedicated navigation devices often cost a lot of money. Lucky for us Windows comes with a maps feature where you can check local maps and orientate with their help and even if you are in an area where you do not have internet coverage you can still use maps via offline mas mode in Windows. This feature will require that you sacrifice little HDD space because you will need to download maps that you will need and some time preparing in order to find and download maps that you will need but in the end, it is worth it, you have a full map system completely offline and independent of the internet. So in order to prepare all maps that you will need, follow this guide step by step and enjoy your trip.

1. Select Settings from the Start menu.
2. Click System.
3. Select Offline maps.
4. Click the + button next to "Download maps".
5. Select the continent where your desired country is located.
6. Select the region you want to download. Depending on the area, you can download a whole country or you'll have to drill down to a smaller region (for example, with Canada and the USA).
7. Repeat for any additional regions you want to have as offline maps. You can download more maps while other maps are currently downloading.
8. Pack your bags
9. GO!

As you know, storage devices are an important part of the computer system for porting, saving, and extracting data files. And for you to differentiate between storage devices on your computer system, each one of the storage devices is labeled with a unique number referred to as Disk Signature for identification. The unique disk identifier is stored as a part of the MBR or Master Boot Record. Disk signature is used by operating systems in order to identify and set apart different data storage devices and hard disk drives in the computer for data access. These days, Disk cloning has become a regular practice in upgrading to larger hard disk drives. Drives are cloned in order to produce a similar copy to use both the original drive and cloned copy together. Moreover, lots of virtualization tools are being used to virtualize the physical hard disk drives to create virtual hard disk drives and several virtual machine clones that are created with the existing virtual hard disk drives. And since these are identical copies, chances these copies may have identical disk signatures. As a result, when you use both disks that have identical signatures at the same time you run into the Disk Signature Collision problem. This kind of problem does not often occur as the Windows system does not really allow two disks to function simultaneously when they have the same disk signature. When you encounter a Disk Collision problem in your Windows 10 computer, you may see the following error messages:

• The boot selection failed because a required device is inaccessible
• The disk is offline because it has a signature collision
• This disk is offline because it has a signature collision with another disk that is online

You can fix the disk collision problem by changing the disk signature which you can achieve using the command line utility diskpart in Windows PowerShell or Command Prompt or using Windows Disk Management utility. To fix the disk collision problem, you can make use of the command-line utility called diskpart in Windows PowerShell or Command Prompt to view and change the signature, or can make use of Master Boot record in the Windows Registry. You can also make use of Windows Disk Management Utility to change the signature. Simply follow the given options below to change the disk signature either way.

Option 1 – Change Disk Signature via Diskpart

• Type “command prompt” in the Windows Search bar and then right-click on the related search result and select the “Run as administrator” option.
• After that, type the “diskpart” command and hit Enter to open Diskpart.
• Next, type the “list disk” command to display all the disks available in the system.
• Next, take note of the problematic disk number with the status Offline from the list and then type the “Select disk x” command where x is the offline disk to select the offline disk. For instance, if you type “select disk 1”, it will display the “Disk 1 is now the selected disk” message.
• Now type the “Uniqueid disk” command to display the disk signature and to change the disk’s signature and set the disk online, type the “unique disk ID= (New signature)” where (New signature) is the new ID in hexadecimal. For instance, you can set the new id as “unique disk ID= 1456ACBD”.

Note: If you have given the wrong format ID, the command prompt will display the following error:

“The specified identifier is not in the correct format. Type the identifier in the correct format: in hexadecimal form for an MBR disk or as a GUID for a GPT disk.”

• After you’re done, the disk will be online, and then restart your computer.

Option 2 – Change Disk Signature via Disk Management Utility

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and then type “diskmgmt.msc” and hit Enter or click OK to open Disk Management.
• Next, right-click on the disk that is marked as Missing or Offline.
• After that, select the Online command from the drop-down menu.
• Then from the selecting option Online, Windows will generate a new disk signature.

If you have been using Windows for quite some time now then you’re probably aware of the BIOS or UEFI password. This password lock is the one that ensures you enter the set password even before your Windows PC boots up. However, there’s just one downside with the BIOS or UEFI password – there is no recovery option, unlike your Microsoft account. Worry not though for this post will guide you on how you can set or recover a BIOS or UEFI password on your Windows computer. The BIOS or UEFI passwords are stored at the hardware level which means that unless the OEM wants or has configured a way to recover the password, it is pretty much impossible to reset it. There are times when they are so strict that the only way to get through it by contacting customer care. Note that any Windows computer with this lock can’t be unlocked by trying to reinstall Windows. In this post, you’re going to have to remove the CMOS battery temporarily, clear unknown BIOS/UEFI passwords using the bios-PW website as well as call customer care. For more details, refer to the options provided below.

Option 1 – Remove the CMOS battery temporarily

In case you didn’t know, every motherboard comes with a CMOS battery which helps the computer system to keep the clock ticking and in making sure that the BIOS settings are not lost when the computer is powered down. Every time a computer is turned on, the CMOS battery ensures that the information is available for the computer to boot up. So when you remove the CMOS battery temporarily, say about 30 seconds or a minute, the settings will be lost. There are some motherboards that are built-in ways that when you remove the battery for long, it will reset everything including the password for the BIOS or UEFI.

Option 2 – Clear the unknown BIOS or UEFI passwords using a bios-PW website

If the first option didn’t work, you can try using this BIOS Password website at http://bios-pw.org/ to clear the password.

• When prompted by the BIOS, enter the wrong password a couple of times as doing so will lock you out of the system.
• After that, you will see a new number or code on the screen which will include a message about System Disabled [XXXXX] Service TAG [YYYYY].
• Next, open the BIOS Password website and enter the XXXXX code in it and make sure to tap the Shift + Enter keys or just enter.
• Now it will open multiple unlock keys which you can use to clear out the BIOS or UEFI lock on your Windows PC.

Option 3 – Call the customer care

If the second option still didn’t work, you have to call customer care and follow their suggestions for they will walk you through fixing the problem using the service tag or might suggest that you visit a service center to make things easier for you. Note: You also have the option to set a BIOS or UEFI password. Although it isn’t recommended, you still can do it if you really want to. Remember that the BIOS or UEFI interface varies from OEM to OEM so you must find something related to either PASSWORD or SECURITY. You will have the following similar options:

• Supervisor password – it’s the same as the master password that can change important system settings.
• User password – with this password, any user can change minor settings.
• Master password – you can use this password for a hard drive or as a general password.

There are several OEMs that offer micro-control where you have to enter the BIOS password. For instance, you’ll have the option to skip for a normal restart, or when you select a boot device while you might have to enter the password for unattended reboots or when your PC is powered on, etc. And if you are here to remove the password, you need to find a remove password option in the same section. You will be prompted to enter the set password once and if it’s correct, it will remove the BIOS password. After that, you have to save and exit the BIOS then restart your computer and check if the settings are properly applied.

We’ve already covered disabling Security Questions If you want to disable Security Questions on your Windows 10 computer then you’ve come to the right place as this post will guide you in doing exactly that. In this post, you will be disabling Security Questions using a PowerShell script. This PowerShell script is called “Update-AllUsersQA”. It is designed to remove or disable the security questions and answers for local users on a Windows 10 computer. It lets administrators take control of the security questions in the environment and at the same time minimizes the risk that comes with them. If a user has a Microsoft account that’s configured to sign in to Windows 10 then he will not probably notice the Password Recovery questions. On the other hand, if he has a chosen local account for installing Windows, he will e prompted to create three security questions that can be used to reset the password and log into the Windows 10 account in case there is any misfortune. However, if you do not have much use for these Security Questions, then you can definitely have them disabled using a simple PowerShell script which you can download from GitHub. For more details on how to disable security questions in a Windows 10 machine, refer to the steps provided below. Step 1: You need to first download the .ps1 file from the GitHub repository. Step 2: Once you’ve downloaded the file, open the PowerShell window with admin privileges. Step 3: After that, navigate to the folder where you had saved the .ps1 file. Then copy the address of the folder location. Step 4: Next, change the directory by using the following command:

cd "folder location address"

Step 5: After that, enter the following script to disable the security questions:

Update-AllUsersQA

Once you’ve completed the steps above, the Security Questions should be disabled and you will be notified with a message stating that the feature has been disabled. On the other hand, if you have a change of heart and you want to enable the Security Questions back, here are some steps you need to take: Step 1: First, open the PowerShell window as admin. Step 2: Next, run the same script with one more parameter such as:

Update-AllUsersQA -answer SecretAnswer

Step 3: And that’s about it. Do not forget to replace the Secret Answer with your preferred one and once you’re done, it will be set as the answer for all the Security Questions. Step 4: Now all that’s left to do is go to the Settings app to change the answer to the questions and you should be good to go.

In this post, we will discuss what the “ bootres.dll ” file is in the Windows 10 operating system and where it’s also located. In addition, you will also be guided on how you can replace or fix a corrupt bootres.dll file which may prevent you from booting to your Windows desktop and will display an error message instead saying, “Boot critical file resourcescustombootres.dll is corrupt”. There are times when this error might also boot your PC to the Automatic Repair screen. DLL files, also known as Dynamic Link Libraries are external parts of applications that run on Windows as well as other operating systems. Almost all applications are not complete in themselves and store code in different files so if there is a need for the code, the related file being called by a certain application is loaded into memory and used. If the software or the operating system is unable to find the concerned DLL file or if the DLL file ends up getting corrupted, you will most likely get an error message. In case you don’t know, the bootres.dll file is a critical system OS file, size 90KB, and can be found in the Windows folder. It is a part of the Boot Resource Library and portrays an important role in making sure that your PC boots properly. So if it ends up getting corrupted, your PC may fail to boot correctly and you’ll get an error message instead. To resolve this problem, here are some suggestions that might help. If your PC automatically boots to the Automatic Repair screen, you need to click on that option to run the Automatic Repair. If it doesn’t work, you have to boot into the Advanced Startup options to manually access and run the Automatic Repair. Once you’re in the Advanced Options, you will be able to:

• Run Automatic Repair
• Use System Restore
• Start Windows from an external device
• Access Command Prompt
• And use the System Image Recovery to restore Windows from a Factory image.

If the Automatic Repair fails to fix the problem, you may have to use System Restore or the Command Prompt to carry out further troubleshooting steps. Refer to the guide below to use these tools.

Option 1 – Try running the System File Checker in Safe Mode

Running the System File Checker is the safest way to fix DLL file missing or corrupted errors are thrown up by the Windows operating system as it could give you better results. System File Checker or SFC is a built-in command utility that helps in restoring corrupted files as well as missing files. It replaces bad and corrupted system files with good system files that might be causing the Machine Check Exception BSOD error. To run the SFC command, follow the steps given below.

• Boot your PC into Safe Mode.
• Tap Win + R to launch Run.
• Type in cmd in the field and tap Enter.
• 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.

Option 2 – Try running the DISM tool to repair the System Image

To repair the System Image, you need to use the DISM or Deployment Imaging and Servicing Management tool. The DISM tool is another command-line tool in the Windows operating system that could help users fix various corrupted system files. To use it, follow these steps:

• Open the Command Prompt as admin.
• Then type in this command: 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.

Note: The command you executed will check for Windows component store corruption and will restore its good health. The scan might take up to 15 minutes. Once it is done, you have to restart your computer.

Option 3 – Try to repair the MBR and rebuild BCD

To repair the MBR and rebuild BCD, follow these steps: The problem might boil down to the Master Boot Records since the previous case has already been isolated. There are times when the Master Boot Records can get corrupted and even though it is a serious issue, it can still be rectified by repairing the Master Boot Record.

• Tao the F8 key while booting the system to go into the Windows Recovery Menu.
• Next, click on Troubleshoot.
• Then click on the Advanced options to get into the Automatic Repair menu.
• After that, you have to use the bootrex.exe tool, so click on the command prompt and type in the following commands, one after the other:
• bootrec /RebuildBcd
• bootrec /fixMbr
• bootrec /fixboot
• Exit and then go ahead and restart your PC.

Option 4 – Try running the ChkDsk utility

One of the best options you must try is running chkdsk as it will check the disk for any errors and repair them automatically. To use it, follow these steps:

• Boot your PC to the Advanced Options menu and click on Command Prompt.
• Once you’ve opened an elevated Command Prompt, type in the following command and tap Enter to execute it:

chkdsk C: /f /x /r

Note: “C” is the drive root drive so it could be changed if you’re using a different one.

Option 5 – Try resetting your PC

Go to the Advanced Options > Troubleshoot > and select the Reset This PC option from the menu and then select Keep my files.