There is No Sleep Option in Power Menu

If the Sleep option is missing from the Power Menu then this could be caused by the power settings, local group policy configuration, etc. in your computer. Based on the reports of users who experience the same problem, the issue occurred after they’ve updated or upgraded their Windows 10 computers.

As you know, the sleep mode is quite useful in certain cases and is utilized by most users. If you put your computer in sleep mode, it actually minimizes the power usage of your computer while at the same time keeps your current session running. So if sleep mode is suddenly missing, then that could be a problem but worry not for this post will give you possible fixes to resolve the issue. Make sure to follow each one of them carefully to achieve good results.

Option 1 – Check the Power settings

As mentioned, one of the reasons why the Sleep option is missing could be the power settings in your computer. To check this possibility, make sure that you’ve enabled the sleep mode in the Power options setting window. How? Refer to these steps:

  • First, go to the Start menu, and from there open Control Panel.
  • Next, set the View by Large icons and select the Power Options.
  • After that, click on the “Choose what the power buttons do” option on the left-hand side.
  • Then click on the “Change settings that are currently unavailable” option and make sure that Sleep is checked under the Shutdown settings.
  • Afterward, click on Save changes.

Option 2 – Modify the Local Group Policy

If the Power setting isn’t the cause of the problem, then you might want to check the Local Group Policy and modify it. There is a dedicated policy for showing the sleep option in the power menu and if this policy is disabled, then it’s no wonder why you don’t see the sleep option in the power menu. To change this policy, refer to the steps below.

  • Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
  • Then type “gpedit.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open the Group Policy Editor.
  • Next, navigate to this path: Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> File Explorer
  • Look for the “Show sleep in the power options menu” option from the right-hand side pane and double click on it.
  • Now change it to Enabled and click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made and restart your computer.

Option 3 – Try to turn on Standby

Standby, also known as InstantGo, is a feature in Windows 8 and 10 that allows users to maintain network connectivity after a computer has been put into sleep mode. Thus, if this feature is disabled, it can cause the Sleep option to disappear from the power menu. To turn it on, follow these steps:

  • Tap the Win + R keys to open Run.
  • And type “Regedit” in the field and tap Enter to open the Registry Editor.
  • Next, navigate to this path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlPower
  • From this path, look for the “CsEnabled” key on the right-hand side of the pane and double-click on it.
  • Set its value to “1” and click OK to save the changes made.
  • Now reboot your PC.

Note: If you were not able to find the CsEnabled key, then this indicates that your computer does not support the Standby feature. And if that’s the case, proceed to the next given option below.

Option 4 – Try to install a Video Card driver

On the other hand, some users reported that the problem was caused by the video card driver. And if your computer lacks the video adapter driver, it can also cause the same problem. Windows 10 typically install the video card driver on its own, however, there are rare cases when it doesn’t which is why you have to do it yourself manually. All you have to do is go to your manufacturer’s website and look for the video card driver, download it and then install it. Once you’ve installed the video card driver, reboot your computer and check if it has fixed the problem.

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Windows Clock is missing, invisible or black
Although the Windows Updates do bring in new features and improvements, there are times when they also introduce issues as well. The main cause for these arising bugs is the incompatibility between the old and new software components. One of the issues brought in by such bugs is Clock is missing, invisible or black This problem was experienced by users after they recently installed a feature update. This particular bug can make the Windows clock in the taskbar appear to be black or invisible which makes it hard for users to read the time on their computers. According to experts, this bug has something to do with the Windows Themes and Aero styling. To fix this issue, here are some suggestions that could help but before you get started, you have to restart Explorer first and see if it can help in resolving the problem – if it didn’t, follow the options given below carefully.

Option 1 – Try to disable Custom Theme

It could be that the reason behind the black or invisible Windows Clock can be an old or an incompatible theme. You might have a custom theme in place and it became incompatible after an update. Thus, you can try switching to one of the default themes and then recreate your custom theme afterward. To do so, follow the steps below.
  • Right-click on your desktop and select Personalize.
  • Next, select Themes from the left menu and then select Windows 10 as your theme.
  • After that, you can delete all the other custom themes and create them again from scratch. This should fix the black or invisible Windows 10 Clock.

Option 2 – Try to edit your existing themes

If you don’t want to get rid of your existing themes, there is an alternative solution you can try to fix the missing Windows 10 Clock albeit it’s a bit of a complex one. Follow the given steps below to modify the existing themes and fix the missing or black Windows Clock.
  • First, you need to save your existing theme. Just simply right-click on your desktop and select Personalize and select Themes from the left menu.
  • Next, click on the Save Theme button below your custom theme to save it. You can name the theme anything.
  • After that, you can now modify the saved theme by going to C:/Users/UserName/AppData/Local/MicrosoftWindowsThemes.
  • From there, look for the file with the theme name you just saved, and then right-click on the file and open it with notepad or any other text editing app.
  • Now you have to look for the line that says, “Path=%SystemRoot%resourcesthemesAeroAeroLite.msstyles” and change it to “Path=%SystemRoot%resourcesthemesAeroAero.msstyles” and then save the file and rename it with some other name.
  • Afterward, go back to themes and select the new theme you’ve created. This should resolve the Windows Clock issue as well as other Themes and Taskbar issues.

Option 3 – Try disabling the small icons in Taskbar

This option should help you fix any Windows Clock cases. So if your Windows Clock is nowhere to be found, you can try to disable small taskbar icons on your Windows 10 PC.
  • Go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar.
  • From there turn off the toggle button for the “Use small taskbar buttons” option. Note that this solution is only a temporary one and it may or may not work in some cases.
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Computer boots to the BIOS when you turn it on
A number of users reported lately that their Windows 10 PCs automatically boots into the BIOS whenever they start their computers. And when they tried to exit the BIOS and restart their computers, it still boots into the BIOS. If you are one of the users who experience the same problem, worry not for this post will walk you through what you can do to resolve the problem. Each time a Windows 10 computer boots, it goes through a lot of processes and one of them is where it checks the computer for any hardware issue such as hard drives, peripherals, as well as external devices. So if it finds some issue, the computer will halt the boot process and will boot into the BIOS. To fix this, there are several suggestions you can try. You have to check if you’ve pressed any key, especially the F2 or F12, or Del keys. You also have to check the peripherals and external devices in your computer or update the BIOS or reset it. For more information, make sure to follow each one of the options laid out below.

Option 1 – Try to check for any pressed key

The first thing you can do is to check for any pressed key. This might not make any sense but a pressed key can actually cause this problem. So you have to check if you have the F2 or F12 or Del buttons pressed since these are hardware keys that are usually set by the OEM to boot into the BIOS.

Option 2 – Try checking the physical device connections

You might also want to try checking if there are other devices that are connected to your PC. This is because the configuration of the BIOS or UEFI might be configured in a way that any external device connected to the computer has a higher boot priority compared to the hard disk.  And if it’s really the case, the externally attached disk might be the drive your computer is trying to boot into and not the hard disk. In such cases, Pen Drives, USB storage devices, CDs, DVDs, and so on, are included in this category of physical device connections.

Option 3 – Try to set a proper boot device

If the Boot Manager wasn’t able to locate a proper boot device, then it could be the reason why your computer boots into the BIOS when you turn it on. Thus, you have to check if there is an available proper boot device. You can usually find it under the Boot priority section. However, if you’re unable to locate your hard drive or SSD under the Boot device, then you have to change the hard drive but you have to check first if it is properly plugged in and that it works on other computers. If it works on other PCs, then the problem lies in the motherboard of your computer, and in that case, you have to consult its manufacturer.

Option 4 – Try to update the BIOS

Updating the BIOS can help you fix the issue 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.
Note: If updating the BIOS didn’t help, you might want to consider resetting it instead.

Option 5 – Try resetting the BIOS/UEFI configuration

You might also want to reset the BIOS configuration which will lead to arranging the boot configuration since it is intended by the manufacturer. Note that this will get rid of any blockage in the boot process. All you have to do is take out the CMOS battery for a couple of seconds and then put it back again. After that restart, your computer and will be booted directly into Windows. Resetting the BIOS would also get rid of any password set for BIOS and you need to change your CMOS battery in case it didn’t work.
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Windows can’t stop your Generic volume device
One of the issues with external storage devices is that unplugging them right away without using the “Safely Remove Hardware” feature is not safe and doing so could lead to data corruption and data loss. However, in some cases, even when you use the “Safely Remove Hardware” feature, you could get an error that says:
“Windows can’t stop your ‘Generic volume’ device because a program is still using it. Close any programs that might be using the device, and then try again later.”
It is possible that the system is still using the external device – for instance, a copy operation might still be in progress, or Windows is still indexing the contents of the drive in the background or it could also be that the drive is not configured to be quickly removed. To fix this error, there are a couple of suggestions you can try. You can try to close all the open programs and file explorer windows, or you could also configure the Device Removal Policy or change its file system to FAT32. In addition, you can also try to change its drive letter or use the DISKPART utility to get the drive to be offline or simply manage the hogging process that prevents it from being safely removed. Follow each one of the given potential fixes below to resolve the error when using the Safely Remove Hardware feature.

Option 1 – Close all the open programs and File Explorer windows

The first thing you have to do to resolve the error is to close any open programs as well as File Explorer windows. This is because there are some programs and File Explorer instances that could be using the external device in the background which explains why you’re getting the error when you try to safely remove your device.

Option 2 – Try to configure the Device Removal Policy

The next thing you can do is to configure the Device Removal Policy. How? Refer to these steps:
  • Open File Explorer and right-click on the drive where you encountered the error.
  • Next, select Properties from the context menu.
  • After that, navigate to the Hardware tab and select the disk drive where you got the error under the “All disk drives” section.
  • Then select Properties under the Device Properties section. This will open a new mini window and from there, select Change Settings on the bottom portion of the window.
  • Now navigate to the Policies tab and select the “Quick Removal (default)” option under the Removal Policy section.
  • Click on the OK and Apply buttons to save the changes made and then see if the error is now fixed.

Option 3 – Try to manage the hogging process

You could also try managing the hogging process to get rid of the error.
  • Tap the Ctrl + Shift + Esc key combination to open the Task Manager.
  • Then look for the running processes and programs that are hogging your USB storage device. If there is a program that’s using your device, it will hog on some Disk or CPU while transferring data and interacting with the device which is why you’re getting an error when you safely remove the device.
  • Next, select the concerned processed and right-click on each one of them, and then select the End Task or End Process option. You can also restart the Explorer.exe process and see if that helps.

Option 4 – Try to change the drive letters

  • Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run utility and then type “diskmgmt.msc” in the field and click OK or tap Enter to open Disk Management.
  • Next, look for your USB storage device using the drive letter that’s assigned to it. Right-click on your device and select the “Change Drive Letter and Paths…” option.
  • This will open a mini window and from there select the drive letter you want to change and click on the Change button.
  • After that, another smaller window will appear where you’ll have to select the new drive letter from the drop-down menu.
  • Click OK and if you got a warning prompt, just click on Yes.
  • Now restart your computer.

Option 5 – Try using DISKPART utility to get the drive to be offline

The next thing you can try to resolve the issue is to use DISKPART. Refer to the given steps below to do so.
  • Tap the Win + R keys to launch Run and then type “cmd” in the field and tap Enter or click OK to open an elevated Command Prompt.
  • Next, type and enter this command to execute it: diskpart
  • The command you entered will initiate the DISKPART utility. After that, type and enter this second command: list disk
  • Next, type and enter this third command: list volume
  • The commands you just executed will help you in either listing all the Disk connects or all the partitions on those disks formed and from there, you need to select one command depending on the “list” command you entered. You can execute either of the two following commands:
    • select disk #
    • select volume #
  • After that, it will select the Disk or Partition you want to select.
  • Now type either one of the following commands:
    • offline disk #offline volume #
  • The command you entered will mark the selected disk is Offline. Afterward, try to safely remove your USB Storage device. Just remember that when you plug it back in again, you have to carry out the same method except for the last given command as this time you will have to enter either of these commands in order to get your USB storage device back online:
    • online disk #
    • online volume #

Option 6 – Try to change the file system to FAT32

If you keep getting this error on a particular USB device, you might have to format the disk and change its file system to FAT32. Make sure that you copy its contents safely into another location before you format the disk. Keep in mind that formatting the disk will remove all the contents of your drive.
  • Open File Explorer and right-click on the drive where you got the error and then select Format from the context menu.
  • Next, in the newly opened mini window, select the FAT32 (Default) option from the drop-down menu under File System.
  • Now check the Quick Format checkbox and then click on the Start button to start formatting your drive.
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How to Fix Windows 10 Error Code 0xc0000142

Error Code 0xc0000142, What is it?

Error code 0xc0000142 is an error code that affects Windows 10 users. It often occurs when users attempt to run Windows applications. The message in the application error box allows users to recognize the error as it states that “the application was unable to start correctly (0xc0000142).” Common symptoms of this error code include the following:

  • Inability to start applications
  • Inability to completely run Windows applications
  • The appearance of error code 0xc0000142 message box

Error Causes

Error code 0xc0000142 in Windows 10 is often caused by issues related to startup programs, corrupted files or other applications. To address this issue, the source of the issue needs to be located. But how will users be able to do this while the error code is present?

Further Information and Manual Repair

To fix error code 0xc0000142 users will need to employ at least one manual repair procedure. This may include checking your system for corrupt files through tools like Microsoft’s System File Checker (SFC). If you are uncertain of your skills or prefer to get professional support, contact a Windows repair technician to assist you.

The top three methods to resolve error code 0xc0000142 include the following:

Method One: Perform a Clean Boot

A clean boot is one of the most basic procedures you can run to solve a Windows-based error code of this nature. It works by identifying whether or not conflict among startup programs is preventing Windows applications from running properly. This occurs through a clean boot process involving Windows using a minimal set of drivers and startup programs when you reboot.

Here is what you’ll need to do:

  • Step one: Go to Start and type msconfig
  • Step two: Right-click and select System Configuration
  • Step three: Select Service tab and click Hide all Microsoft Services then click Disable all.
  • Step four: Click Startup tab within the System Configuration dialog box.
  • Step five: Select Open Task Manager
  • Step six: Within the Startup tab of Task Manager, select Disable for each Startup item, then close Task Manager.
  • Step seven: Click OK on the Startup tab of System Configuration.
  • Step eight: Restart your computer.

This method resolves software conflict arising when you attempt to update, run a program or simply use your operating system. However, if error code 0xc0000142 remains unresolved after you restart your machine, follow the next step below.

Method Two: Run a System File Checker Scan

System File Checker (SFC) is a utility tool built into the Windows 10 operating system, as well as other versions of Windows, to detect and repair corrupted system files. Since corrupted system files can result in error code 0xc0000142, run this tool by following the steps below:

  • Step one: Go to Start and type Command Prompt or CMD.
  • Step two: Right-click and select Administrator
  • Step three: Check for and repair corrupted system files. Simply type sfc /scannow. (Be sure to place a space between “sfc” and “/scannow”).

Once these procedures are followed, the System File Checker tool will automatically scan your machine, and find and repair corrupted files. If this is the source or underlying cause of error code 0xc0000142 on your system, the error code will be resolved. However, if the source of the issue is not due to corruption in our system or is simply a more complicated issue try the next method highlighted below.

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Repair Error Code 0x80070715 in 3 Simple Steps

What is Error Code 0x80070715?

Seeing obscure error codes like 0x80070715 on the screen again and again can be annoying simply because you have no idea why it keeps popping up? What does it mean? Well, for beginners you don’t have to decode it, we’ll make it simple for you. This error code indicates missing .dll files in the system or a corrupt registry. Due to this, you get locked from accessing and running applications on your system.

Solution

Restoro box imageError Causes

This error occurs largely because of two reasons:
  1. Disk damage due to cluttered registry
  2. The system gets infected by malware or a virus(es)
The error code 0x80070715 creates hurdles in the functioning of the applications. If this error is not repaired immediately it can result in serious damages like system crash and failure.

Further Information and Manual Repair

Many people pay hundreds of dollars to technicians to resolve this issue on their systems. Is it worth it? Not exactly!

How about we tell you a time and a money-saving way to fix the error code 0x80070715 on your PC?

The best way to resolve this issue on your system in seconds and also for free is to install Restoro. This is an advanced, powerful, and multi-functional system repair and a PC optimizer tool. It is smoothly integrated with numerous performance-driven utilities like registry cleaner, privacy error detector (anti-virus), Active X and Class error, and system stability detector. With this helper, you can resolve not only the error code 0x80070715 but also other types of PC-related errors. Whether the cause of the error code 0x80070715 on your PC is malware or cluttering cluttered disk, Restoro can be used to resolve them all. Its powerful and intuitive registry cleaner scans the registry and repairs it successfully. It removes junk files, internet history, temporary internet files, invalid entries, and also the files from the uninstalled programs still saved in the system’s registry. It wipes out all the clutter on your hard disk and cleans it in seconds freeing up plenty of space. It repairs the registry resolving the error 0x80070715 quickly. Nonetheless, if the error 0x80070715 is triggered due to viral infection or malware it removes them too. By downloading unknown files, accessing malicious websites, and opening phishing emails viruses can enter your PC. You may not be aware of these until error code 0x80070715 pops on your screen. It is wise to remove viruses right away because these give hackers access to your system which often results in data breaches and exposes users to system security threats. Restoro also works as a powerful antivirus. All malware, spyware, and viruses affecting your PC are scanned with the help of the advanced built-in privacy error detector utility. This utility embedded in the system detects viruses and malware in your system and removes them from your system successfully. Restoro is an easy-to-use repair tool. It has a simple layout and a user-friendly interface. It is easy to navigate through the repair tool, scan for errors and repair them without any hassle. Users of all levels, novice and experienced can use this tool with ease. You don’t need to be technically sound to work around this tool. Here's how to Install and run Restoro PC Fixer: In addition to this, you can run it on any Windows version. It is compatible with practically all versions. No matter what the cause for error code 0x80070715 maybe, you don’t need to get into the nitty-gritty of it and find a specific tool to resolve the issue. All you have to do is install this multi-functional Restoro on your system. Here are the 3 simple steps that you need to follow for successful repair:
  1. Click here to install Restoro.
  2. Scan your PC
  3. Press the Repair Tab to fix the issue right away
To ensure your PC is error-free, registry clean and your system runs at its optimum speed, scan your PC with Restoro regularly.
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Potential issues with DRM and Alder Lake
We are all waiting for the release of Intel’s Alder Lake series of processors and real-world results on its performance. Sadly lately it came to our attention that some games might have issues with the processor. alder lake cpuNow before you go on the bandwagon on bashing Intel itself take note that it is not Intel’s fault at all. The issue that arises is mostly due to DRM software and how it works. As you might know or not, Alder Lake has two sets of cores, standard performance cores, and power cores, and with Intel’s Thread Director on-chip right cores will be used for the right tasks, and here lies the issue. DRM software might detect Thread Director as something suspicious and malicious, and then cut access to the game because of this. Intel, of course, has reached DRM manufacturers and places documentation about how software should be developed with this hybrid technology in mind. Of course, newer games will be updated if needed and everything will work fine, also games on GOG will work fine because of GOG’s policy of no DRM store but some older ones might be left in limbo. They could work fine but DRM might be triggered and prevent them from loading, usually, game developer itself removes DRM protection after some time but that is not really always the case and there is a chance that some games might simply just not work on Alder Lake CPU only because of DRM protection.

Conclusion

I will admit that I have not been a great fan of DRM in general, I understand that game developer want to protect themselves from piracy but how it looks they were not really successful with it. Even today single-player games get pirated on the day they are released and legally bought ones always make trouble for people that actually paid for them. I remember times when DRM was awful and you could install a game a limited number of times, luckily this was removed but it seems that many old habits still remain sadly and DRM is present even today in various forms. GOG is proof that people will buy DRM-free games and that they will support this kind of model. Maybe it is time to forget about fighting against piracy, you will not make it go away and people who do not want to buy games will not buy them, on other hand many users that do buy games, if they cannot use them they will rest to pirated version since that one will work. It is sad to see that pirated software can work better than a legal one and offer a more pleasant experience.
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Windows 11 vs Windows 10: Main Differences

Still sitting on the fence about upgrading to Windows 11 because you don’t know what to expect? Interestingly, the new edition somehow manages to be both a total revamp and still very similar to its predecessor in many ways. It’s really something to experience for yourself.

We do want to give you a sneak peek, though. So here’s an overview of the biggest changes Windows 11 brings to the table.

What’s different in Windows 11?

1. Visual changes

The first thing anyone will notice after switching to Windows 11 is the striking visual difference. The entire interface is smoother, cleaner and more minimalistic than on Windows 10, even resembling the macOS in some instances.
Perhaps the most obvious change in appearance is the Start menu and Taskbar location, which is now at the bottom center. It’s actually very neat, but if you’re someone who loves familiarity, don’t worry, you can move it back to the left.

Centralized Taskbar and Start menu
Centralized Taskbar and Start menu

Moreover, you’ll notice that the Taskbar includes a Microsoft Teams icon by default (which you can, of course, remove) and that Live Tiles are gone. The News and Interests section has also been removed - or, shall we say, replaced. As opposed to Windows 10, news, weather forecasts and other information are now displayed as widgets.

To add to the cleanliness of the UI, Microsoft also enhanced the ‘Snap Layouts’ feature to help you better organize your windows and maximize screen real estate. It’s similar to app grouping on your smartphone. In Windows 10 this feature is slightly restricted, as it requires some manual resizing and dragging. In Windows 11, you can just hover over the minimize/maximize option on a window, select a layout and throw the windows in there. 

Snap Layouts
Snap Layouts

2. New accessibility features

Microsoft has certainly paid attention to accessibility with Windows 10, but Windows 11 takes this to a whole new level.

One of the ways Windows 11 has taken things up a notch is by adding the long-awaited ‘Live Captions’ feature and advanced Narrator options.

Live Captions apply both to media played on your PC as well as your own speech when you’re using the microphone. Keep in mind that, as with almost all kinds of subtitles, you have to be prepared for a potential delay. However, it’s barely noticeable and doesn’t take away from the usefulness of this awesome new feature whatsoever.

As for the Narrator, there are three new voice packs to choose from. Microsoft has tried to put emphasis on a more natural voice than we are used to. So, now you can choose between Aria, Jenny and Guy, who will read pretty much anything off your screen out loud. Aside from this, Microsoft has also expanded the list of braille displays supported by the Narrator feature. 
For users with anxiety or trouble concentrating, a welcomed addition is the Focus app, which is no longer part of the Clock app. It’s now separate and called ‘Focus Sessions’, automatically triggering the Do Not Disturb mode when activated. It blocks all pop-ups and flashes and lets you work in peace until you’re ready to switch it off.

3. Android apps

Android users may rejoice! Windows 11 supports the use of your favorite applications now. 

Microsoft has done this by integrating the Amazon Appstore to the Windows 11 Microsoft Store. From there, you can download your favorite Android apps and use them on your PC in a smartphone-like window.

Windows Subsystem for Android™️
Windows Subsystem for Android™️

Unfortunately not too many apps are supported at this time, but Microsoft is working on making the emulation possible for many more. Also, the option is only available in specific regions at this moment - check out if you’re one of the lucky ones.

4. Improved gaming performance

Avid gamers will be happy to hear that Microsoft has put some effort into streamlining Windows 11 for their gaming needs.

To give gamers a supreme visual experience, Windows 11 offers the ‘Auto HDR’ feature. As long as your monitor is HDR-compatible, this feature will automatically adjust the colors, brightness and contrast of games without any input from you. 

Another update is DirectStorage, which we were introduced to in Windows 10 already. In Windows 11, it’s been improved to tweak loading times and overall gaming performance efficiency even better. The predisposition for it to work optimally is that your device has an NVMe SSD. 

The Xbox Game Bar also helps gamers towards a smoother experience. It allows in-game screenshots, viewing processes that are running (similar to the Task Manager), monitoring the CPU and GPU performance and frame rate, integrating the Xbox App and more. There’s also a number of widgets you can now use with the Game Bar, for example the Spotify widget.

Xbox Game Bar
Xbox Game Bar

Another cool addition is the Xbox Game Pass, which unlocks hundreds of games to play on your Xbox App, with new additions coming in every month.

5. Smart App Control

Aside from a sleek new look and better accessibility for all users, Windows 11 also comes with a security power-up. Bear in mind that this feature is only available on clean Windows 11 installs. 

Smart App Control (SAC) is an AI-powered new feature designed to protect your PC from potential threats. It blocks untrustworthy apps and adware and helps detect potentially unwanted apps, maintaining your PC’s performance and keeping your system safe.

It comes with an ‘Evaluation’ mode, which you should definitely select when running SAC for the first time. That way, the app monitors your usage and assesses whether you’re a candidate for SAC. Some users need it to be on all the time, for others it might be too distracting. Evaluation mode will turn SAC on or off based on your usage.

Don’t disable SAC again unless you’re absolutely sure you don’t need it, since reenabling it will require a fresh install. We recommend you don’t turn it off, as it is a neat feature protecting your data and files from malware at all times.

Summary

Have we piqued your interest in trying Microsoft’s latest OS? It’s a pretty exciting new iteration, but we’ll let you find out for yourself. We hope you like it!

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Reliability Monitor is not updating or working
In case you don’t know, there is a built-in tool in Windows 10, known as Reliability Monitor that provides a day-to-day snapshot of the health of your system. It warns users of any looming issues or disasters before your computer breaks down finally. So obviously, Reliability Monitor is useful, however, there are times when it could behave incorrectly. For instance, it might fail to show you any updates even when they are installed. Thus, if you experience any malfunctions with the Reliability Monitor tool in Windows 10, read on as this post will guide you in updating or working in Windows 10. To fix the problem with the Reliability Monitor, there are several fixes you can check out. You can try to enable the data collection for Reliability Monitor or reset it, as well as put your computer in a Clean Boot State. For more information, refer to each one of the options given below.

Option 1 – Try to enable the Data Collection for Reliability Monitor

The Reliability Monitor tool uses data provided by the RAC Agent scheduled task and it will start to display a Stability Index rating and specific event information 24 hours after the system installation. The RACAgent scheduled task, by default, runs after the operating system is installed. And if it is disabled, it must be manually enabled from the Task Scheduler snap-in for MMC or Microsoft Management Console. Thus, you need to enable the Data Collection for Reliability Monitor to fix the problem.

Option 2 – Try to reset the Reliability Monitor

The next thing you can do to fix the issue with the Reliability Monitor might want to reset it to resolve the problem. If the Reliability Monitor is already open, you have to close it and open it again. After the reset is done, it may take up to 24 hours for the Reliability Monitor to display results again. This should fix the problem.

Option 3 – Troubleshot the problem in a Clean Boot State

There are some instances that some conflicting programs installed in your computer might be the one that’s causing the Black border issue. To identify which program is causing the problem, you need to put your computer in a Clean Boot State. To do so, follow the steps below.
  • Log onto your PC as an administrator.
  • Type in MSConfig in the Start Search to open the System Configuration utility.
  • From there, go to the General tab and click “Selective startup”.
  • Clear the “Load Startup items” check box and make sure that the “Load System Services” and “Use Original boot configuration” options are checked.
  • Next, click the Services tab and select the “Hide All Microsoft Services” check box.
  • Click Disable all.
  • Click on Apply/OK and restart your PC. (This will put your PC into a Clean Boot State. And configure Windows to use the usual startup, just simply undo the changes.)
  • From there, start to isolate the problem by checking which one of the programs you installed recently is the root cause of the problem.
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Disable Privacy Settings Experience at sign-in
Creating a new Windows 10 account comes with options related to privacy. For instance, you will see the options to disable or enable Speech recognition, Find my device, Location service, Inking & typing, and many more. And if you often have to create a test account in Windows 10 v1809 and you don’t want to give this option, you can just disable the Privacy Settings Experience at sign-in on your Windows 10 PC using a couple of instructions given in this guide. To disable the Privacy Settings Experience, you can use the Registry Editor and the Group Policy Editor. But before you get started, you need to log in as an administrator. Moreover, it would also be better if you create a backup copy of the Registry files as well as create a System Restore Point before you make any changes. After you have those things covered, refer to the steps given below to disable the Privacy Settings Experience at sign-in on your Windows 10 PC. Since there are two ways to get things done, choose one option that you prefer.

Option 1 – via Registry Editor

  • 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.
  • Next, navigate to this path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftWindowsOOBE
  • From there, look for the OOBE value and if you can’t find it there, you can just create it. To do so, right-click on the Windows key and select New > Key, and then name it “OOBE”.
  • After that, right-click on the OOBE value and select New > DWORD (32-bit) value, and name it “DisablePrivacyExperience”.
  • Then double click on DisablePrivacyExperience and set its value to “1”.
  • Now exit the Registry Editor and restart your PC for the changes to take effect.

Option 2 – via the Group Policy Editor

  • Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
  • Then type “gpedit.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open the Group Policy Editor.
  • After that, navigate to this path: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > OOBE
  • Next, look for a setting named “Don’t launch privacy settings experience on user login” located on your right-hand side and then double click on it and select Enabled.
  • Now click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made.
  • Restart your PC.
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Fix 0x0000007c (ERROR_INVALID_LEVEL) in W11
0x0000007c error inside Windows 11 is a printer error that is manifested when Windows users are trying to connect to a shared network remote printer. Error is displayed by the message:
Windows cannot connect to the printer. Operation failed with error 0x0000007c.
If you are experiencing this type of annoyance, fear now we are providing you with several solutions to this problem.

0x0000007c (ERROR_INVALID_LEVEL)Update Windows 11

  1. Open the Start menu, click on the settings app
  2. Select Windows update tab
  3. Click on Check for updates
  4. Click on Advanced options
  5. Inside select Optional updates
  6. If there are optional updates click on Download & Install

Run the printer troubleshooter

  1. Press ⊞ WINDOWS + I to open settings
  2. Click on Troubleshoot navigation on the system tab
  3. Select Other trouble-shooters
  4. Click on the Run for printer troubleshooter
  5. If the error is found click on Apply this fix

Restart the Print Spooler Service

  1. Right-click on the Start button
  2. Click on RUN
  3. Type in services.msc and press OK
  4. Right-click on Printer Spooler service and select Restart

Clear the Print Spooler

  1. Open services like in the previous step
  2. Right-click Print Spooler and select STOP
  3. Open File explorer
  4. Navigate to: C:\Windows\System32\spool\drivers\x64\3 (64-bit Platform) C:\Windows\System32\spool\drivers\W32X86\3 (32-bit Platform)
  5. Delete everything inside folders
  6. Go back to services, right-click on Print Spooler and select RESTART

Reinstall Driver for printer

  1. Right-click on Start and select device manager
  2. Double click on the Print queues category
  3. Right-click on the printer and select Uninstall device
  4. Click on Uninstall on prompt
  5. Right-click on the Print queues category and select Scan for hardware Changes
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