Can’t download anything on your Windows PC

Hello and welcome to How To Speed Up PC Startup where we will explore how to make your PC boot-up system faster. When your computer gets older, you'll see a decrease in your PC's load time. This can be very annoying and frustrating, especially if you're not accustomed to exercising patience. Your computer's boot time does not need to be sluggish, even if it's old. While there are reasons why your computer is acting up and giving you the 'slow' sign, there are ways that you can optimize how fast your PC starts up at the beginning. Once you start speeding things up, you’ll never look back!

Start With your BIOS

You may need to tweak your PC’s start-up menu. Since the majority of issues encountered on your PC might not be related to the software running in the back end, you can focus on your computer's hardware. The ideal way to speed up your PC startup is to access your computer's BIOS when booting up. This can be accessed by holding the DEL key or whichever button is used to tap into your BIOS. You can change where your computer boots from. You can opt to put your hard disk right at the top which would elude searching for CDs and other storage media devices when your PC starts up.

Tweak Startup Programs

There are many programs that execute when your computer starts up. These programs normally run in the back end. Most times back-end programs are unnecessary and do not contribute to the productivity or performance of your computer when in use. Instead of allowing these programs to execute when your PC boots up, why not disable them?  By deactivating these programs, you'll be reducing the amount of CPU usage which will accelerate your PC performance. Additionally, there are some installed programs that you never use. Instead of leaving these programs to occupy needed space on your computer system, you can uninstall these to create more room on your computer. This actually increases your PC startup speed.

Put Malware on a Leash

Malware and spyware can cause problems for your start-up. A slow computer is an indication that your computer is plagued by malware. This affects your computer's boot time and whether or not it'll startup as quickly as you intend it to. If your computer gives you the 'virus alert', you need to download an antivirus program that will be able to eradicate all virus threats. Be mindful of where you download antivirus programs since many of them are viruses or have viruses attached to them. Some viruses are tough on your computer. This means that if an antivirus works for your best friend, it may not work for you. Since malware differs in functions and the havoc they cause, it's best to know what you're up against by doing research.

Clean Your Registry

You should also clean out your registry. The fewer unused registry keys you have lying around on your computer, the faster your computer will go. Getting a good registry cleaner from a clean source can help tremendously, but be careful; registry cleaners have the potential to be very dangerous so make sure you backup everything on your computer and only download registry cleaners from a reliable source. By implementing the above tips, you'll see quick improvements when using your computer.

The Event Viewer in the Windows operating system is used to troubleshoot any computer issues. It is one of the most useful tools that keep logs of both security and system events. It also monitors for both software and hardware problems in the computer. This tool is the only one with amazing features that maintain logs about everything that’s going on in the computer system. It keeps track of all the information to the point where going over them will take a lot of time. Luckily, the Event Viewer tool now allows users to create custom views where you can set the filters and sort the data recorded to limit the information details to only what you’re interested in seeing. For instance, if you want to troubleshoot with one hard drive, you can just create a special custom view to display only the hard drive warnings in the security logs. This will save you hassle and time. Take note that the logs in the Event Viewer are divided into two main categories namely the Window logs and the Application and Services logs. You can just set the filter to the logs by their event id, specific date, and many other events when you have to troubleshoot some problem in your computer. So if you are trying to troubleshoot a problem in your Windows 10 computer and you’re checking the Event Viewer, read on as this post will guide you in creating custom event views in the Event Viewer. To get started, refer to the instructions given below. Step 1: Go to the Start menu and in the search box, type “event viewer” and then click on Event Viewer from the search results to open it. Step 2: After opening Event Viewer, click on Custom Views located in the left pane of the window. Step 3: Next, click on the Administrative events under the Custom View to create special log views. Step 4: Then on the right side of the window, click on Create Custom View to open the Create Custom View window. Step 5: There is a logged drop-down list under Filter. From there, you have the option to choose an appropriate predefined time or use a custom time range for your Custom log views. Step 6: After that, select an appropriate event level for your custom view. You have fine entry-level options to choose from such as critical event level, error, warning, information and verbose.

• Critical – select this if you want to see the events that require your immediate attention in the custom view.
• Error – select this if you want your Event Viewer to display the events that are less critical but hints at the problems.
• Warning – select this event-level if you want to see the event with the potential problem but may not bound to happen.
• Verbose – select this if you want to see detailed information about all the events.

Step 7: After you’ve selected the event level, you now have to select how you want the events to be filtered. They can either be filtered By the log or By the source.

• By the log – you can select two options called Windows log and, Application and Service logs. The Windows logs allow you to filter the logs created during events like setup, security, applications, and system events. While the Application and Service logs filter the log created by the installed applications in your system.
• By the source – select this if you want your Custom View to search for information in event sources. It allows you to view events in detail for various applications and devices.

Note: You have the option to further customize the event logs with more filters like Event IDs, task category, keywords, User, and Computer. Using these additional filters, you can choose to filter the events in the special views by specifying event id numbers in the Event IDs, entering predefined Windows words in the Keyword, specify the user accounts in the User field, as well as choose the system from the server to maintain logs in the Computer field. Step 8: Once you’re done customizing the log filter, click on OK to apply the changes made. Step 9: After that, a Save Filter should be displayed in the Custom View window. Just enter the Custom View name and select the Event Viewer folder where you want to save the Custom view. The folder name should be Custom View by default. And if you want, you can also create your own folder if you want your custom views to be visible to all the system users. Step 10: Next, check all the Users box located in the lower corner of the window and then click the OK button after you’re done. You should now see the customized filter you just created on the left side of the window. Just click on it to check your filtered events in the center of the Event Viewer window. And for you to save the custom view logs, simply right-click on the Custom views you created and then click on Save All Events in the Custom View As from the drop-down menu. Then put a name on the file and select the appropriate location where you want to save the logs and click on the Save button. Note that the log file is saved with the “.EVTX” file extension and when you double click on it, it will open the file in the Event Viewer.

The issue with the abrupt system reboots to force Windows 10 updates on a computer has been lessened with Active Hours. This feature keeps a record of the hours during which a system remains active and prevents the installation of updates during such hours. For example, when a system restart is needed to complete the installation of an update, Active Hours delays the update and allows you to finish what you’re doing on your computer. Thus, if you haven’t heard of this feature, then now is the time you do, read this post to configure and use Active Hours in your Windows 10 computer. There are three ways you can configure Active Hours. The first one is for general users, whereas the rest of the two methods are for users who knows their way about the Windows Registry and Group Policy. To get started, refer to every given option below.

Option 1 – Configure Active Hours via Windows 10 Settings

• Go to Settings > Update & Security. From there, click on the “Change active hours” option under the Windows Update section.
• Next, you can select a time (“Start time” and “End time”) during which the restart can occur.
• After that, click on the Save button and exit.

Note: Keep in mind that the values you’ve entered indicate the hours during which your system is in use, namely, ACTIVE. It is important for your active hour’s interval period and it can be anything between 1 and 18 hours since you can’t go beyond 18 hours. In addition, there is no option to configure different active hours on different days and you can’t specify different active hours for weekends and weekdays as well. On the other hand, Windows 10 also offer users an option to override Active Hours. All you have to do is go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Restart Options. From there, you can choose a custom restart time when your computer will restart to install the updates but this is only a one-time setting.

Option 2 – Configure Active Hours via Registry Editor

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run utility and type “Regedit” in the field and tap Enter or click OK to open the Registry Editor.
• Next, navigate to this registry path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsUpdateUXSettings
• In the given registry path, you can choose to change “ActiveHoursStart” and “ActiveHoursEnd”.

Note: There are no extra settings available in the Registry Editor but you can change the remote computer’s Active hours settings using the Registry Editor.

Option 3 – Configure Active Hours via Group Policy

Note that this option is available for the Windows 10 Pro and Educational or Enterprise versions. It is mostly used by computers in Business or through remote access. To get started, follow these steps:

• Tap the Win + R keys to launch Run and type “gpedit.msc” in the field and tap Enter or click OK to open the Group Policy Editor.
• Next, navigate to this group policy setting: Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Updates.
• From there, look for a policy labeled “Turn off auto-restart for updates during active hours” and double click on it. This will open a new window.
• Click on the Enabled radio button to enable Active Hours. You also have the option to choose active hours just like in the first given option above. It works just fine except when the following policies don’t override:
  • No Auto-restart with logged-on users for scheduled automatic updates installations.
  • Always automatically restart at the scheduled time.

• Since Group Policy allows you to reduce the range of active hours, you can configure it if you want it to be less than 18 hours. Just find the policy setting labeled “Specify Active hours range for auto -restarts. The minimum is 8 hours”.
• After you set the Active Hours, click the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made.

Blizzard is one of the most beloved game company which brought some of the most and greatest titles in PC gaming. Blizzard has released its own launcher in which you can launch games, sadly sometimes launcher does not want to work and fails to connect. If this happens to you be sure to:

1. Reset your network devices to make sure your router hasn't become flooded with data.

   Power cycling your modem and router allows them to reset and re-establish a connection to your ISP. Follow these steps to completely power cycle the devices in your network connection:Note: If your modem has a battery backup, you will need to take the battery out or use the reset button on the modem.

   1. Shut down all computers connected to the modem/router.
   2. Power down and unplug the modem and the router if you're using one.
   3. Allow to sit for 60 seconds unplugged.
   4. Plug in and turn on the modem and router, and allow them to completely boot up until the front panel connection lights on the modem show a steady connection.
   5. Start the computer and allow it to completely boot up.

2. If you're using a wireless connection, optimize your internet connection to rule out a connection issue.

   If you're experiencing issues with your low-speed or wireless internet connection, follow the steps below to troubleshoot the problem.

   1. Try plugging your computer directly into your modem.
   2. Shut down other programs that access the internet, such as other games or download programs.
   3. Satellite, mobile phone, and WiMax internet connections are not stable connections and may cause further connection issues when playing Blizzard games. If possible, consider switching to a more stable connection.

3. Update your drivers and operating system to resolve any compatibility issues.

   Out-of-date drivers and operating systems can cause a variety of issues and are one of the first things to check when a game is having problems. The instructions below will help you check and update your drivers.

   • Even new computers can have out-of-date drivers and operating systems because updates are released routinely.
   • Some games and programs might run fine on a system with old drivers, but outdated drivers can still create technical issues with specific games or programs.
   • Check our supported video cards articles to make sure your hardware is compatible:
     • World of Warcraft
     • Hearthstone
     • StarCraft II
     • Diablo III
     • Heroes of the Storm
     • Overwatch

   Refer to the steps below to update drivers and software for your operating system.

4. Release and renew your IP and flush your DNS to resolve any network conflicts.

   1. While on the desktop, press Windows Key and type CMD.
   2. Right-click Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
   3. Type ipconfig /release in the command prompt.
   4. Wait a few seconds for a reply that the IP address has been released.
   5. Type ipconfig /renew in the command prompt.
   6. Wait a few seconds for a reply that the IP address has been re-established.
   7. Type ipconfig /flushdns in the command prompt.
   8. Close the command prompt and attempt to make a connection.

5. Close all other applications to resolve software conflicts and free up resources.

   Before trying the steps below, close unnecessary programs and restart your computer. Identify Problematic Startup Items

   1. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open the Task Manager.
   2. Click More Details.
   3. Select the Startup tab.
   4. Right-click on each item and select Disable.
   5. Restart the computer.

   If this resolves the issue, enable the startup application one at a time to determine which one is causing the problem. You will need to restart between each application you enable. Note: To re-enable startup applications, follow steps 1-4 and select Enable.

6. Delete the Battle.net Tools folder to automatically rebuild outdated or corrupt files.

   1. Close Blizzard processes.
      1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to bring up the Task Manager.
      2. Click the Processes tab.
      3. Select all Agent, Blizzard Battle.net desktop app, and game processes, and click End Process.
   2. Navigate to the folder containing the Battle.net directory:
      1. Press Windows Key + R to open the Run dialogue.
      2. Type C:\ProgramData\ into the Open field and press Enter.
   3. Delete the Battle.net folder.
   4. Run Battle.net and update the game to see if the issue persists.

   If the error persists after you try these steps, another program may be causing the problem. Restart your computer and delete the Battle.net folder one more time.

   Note: The above steps may cause the Blizzard Battle.net desktop app to forget game install locations. If your games can’t be found, you will see Install on the Blizzard Battle.net desktop app game tab instead of Play. To find your installation, click Locate this game or run the game launcher.

Despite popular belief, there are a lot of users running Linux OS. Linux offers great security and working environment and 96.3% of the world's top 1 million servers run on Linux. 90% of all cloud infrastructure operates on Linux and practically all the best cloud hosts use it. But gaming on Linux is limited, enter Steam proton a Valve’s gaming solution.

What is Steam proton?

Proton is a WINE fork with some extra capabilities, to play games and run applications not native and not made to run natively under Linux OS. It is supposed to bridge the Gaming issues for PC users and let them more freedom in choosing an operating system to game on.

Find out if your game supports Proton

Although there are a lot of titles that nowadays run natively on Linux some will still need proton in order to run at all and sadly some of them will not be able to run on Linux even via proton but seeing how Valve is busy and it is trying to push its ideas and technology slowly this gap is closing. In order to see how the game you want to play performs and behaves on Linux and proton environment visit https://www.protondb.com/ and find out. As soon as the site loads you will be greeted with statistics and a search option to find out the status of the desired game with one of the given statuses: Borked, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Native. As you probably guessed native means that the game will work on Linux out of the box and borked will probably not work at all. Platinum and gold status means that game will run on proton without any input or tweaks from the user while silver and bronze means that it will work but might need some tweaks in order to make it work.

How to get Steam proton?

In order to run games under proton inside Linux, you will need firstly a Steam client which luckily works naturally on Linux. Unlocking/activating Steam Proton on your Linux-based system is easy. Just head over to Steam > Settings > Steam Play and toggle the option “Enable Steam Play for Supported Titles”. Valve has tested and fixed some Steam titles and you will now be able to play those titles. However, if you wish to go even further beyond, and play titles that even Valve has not tested, toggle the option “Enable Steam Play for all titles”.

Conclusion

Even we are not there yet, native gaming on Linux is gaining a foothold each day. Will Steam’s OS with proton technology be one that will turn the tide from Windows or some other tech we cannot tell but one thing is for sure, more choices mean better products so I am hopeful for a bright future.

Installing or updating Google Chrome does not always go smoothly as there are times when it also encounters some errors like the error code 0x80072EE7. This kind of error in Chrome is most likely caused by the Windows Firewall or third-party Firewall (if you’re using one) that blocks the installation or update process. Aside from this known culprit, there are also other factors to consider such as corrupted or incompatible installation files or it could also be caused by some issue with your internet connection. If you face this kind of problem when installing or updating Chrome, you will see the following error message on your screen:

“An error occurred while checking for updates: Unable to connect to the Internet. If you use a firewall, please whitelist GoogleUpdate.exe. (error code 7: 0x80072EE7 — system level).”

Whatever the cause of this error is, you need to use the options prepared below to fix it.

Option 1 – Whitelist the “googleupdate.exe” in Firewall

If the issue is really caused by the Firewall, you need to whitelist the googleupdate.exe program to fix the error. To do that, follow these steps:

• Tap the Win + E keys to open the File Explorer.
• Next, copy and paste the following location in the address bar and tap Enter to go there.

Control Panel/All Control Panel Items/Windows Defender Firewall/Allowed apps

• After that, click on the Change Settings button, and from the given list, look for Google Chrome.
• Now check both Private and Public connections for it and then click on OK and see if it fixes the error or not.

Option 2 – Disable the proxy server for LAN

If the problem has something to do with your internet connection, then you can try disabling the proxy server for LAN and see if that helps.

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
• Then type “inetcpl.cpl” in the field and hit Enter to pull up the Internet Properties.
• After that, go to the Connections tab and select the LAN settings.
• From there. Uncheck the “Use a Proxy Server” option for your LAN and then make sure that the “Automatically detect settings” option is checked.
• Now click the OK and the Apply buttons.
• Restart your PC.

Note: If you are using a third-party proxy service, you have to disable it.

Option 3 – Check your VPN

If you are using a VPN application, then this option should apply to you, if not, skip this option and proceed to the next one. There are times when VPN software causes some issues like this error. If that’s the case, you can try to disable your VPN temporarily and see if the error is resolved or not and if turns out that your VPN is the culprit, you have to uninstall it and install a new one or its latest version. To uninstall it, follow the steps below.

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box
• Then type “appwiz.cpl” in the field and hit Enter to open the Programs and Features in Control Panel.
• From there, look for the VPN service you are using, select it and then click on Uninstall to remove it.
• After that, restart your computer and try to install the latest version of the program again. It should work now. If not, proceed to the next available option below.

Option 4 – Try to run the Chrome Cleanup tool

You might want to run Google Chrome’s built-in Malware Scanner & Cleanup tool as it could also help in getting rid of any unwanted ads, pop-ups, and even malware, as well as unusual startup pages, toolbars, and anything else that might overtake the network and could affect the performance of the browser.

Option 5 – Reset Google Chrome

Before you proceed, make sure that the Chrome browser is not running anywhere in the background via Task Manager. Once you’ve made sure that it’s no longer running, refer to these steps:

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
• Then type “%USERPROFILE%AppDataLocalGoogleChromeUser Data” in the field and tap Enter to open this location.
• From there, look for the Default folder and then tap the Shift + Delete button and if a confirmation prompt appears, click on Yes.
• After deleting the Default folder, open Google Chrome and click on the three vertical dots icon located in the top-right corner to open the menu.
• Next, click on Settings and scroll down and then click on Advanced to open the Advanced Settings.
• Then scroll down until you see the “Reset and clean up” section and click the “Restore Settings to their original defaults” option.
• After that, you will see a confirmation box and from there, click on the Reset settings button to reset your Google Chrome browser.

If you are trying to connect an external device to your computer but you suddenly encounter an error that says, “Device requires further installation”, then you’ve come to the right place as this post will guide you on how exactly you can fix this error. In most cases, USB sticks, headphones, speakers, and other external devices, install drivers automatically once you connect them to your computer which means that the drivers are downloaded and installed in the system as soon as the external device is plugged in. However, if the driver has become corrupted or outdated, you might encounter an error like the

“Device requires further installation”

Aside from corrupted or outdated drivers, the error could also be caused by pending updates, an incorrect version of the Intel PROSet Wireless driver, or checking the wrong event. Whatever the cause is, this post will provide you with some potential fixes that can help you resolve the problem. But before you troubleshoot the problem, ensure that your Windows 10 computer is updated to its latest version and you must also not forget to check that you’re checking the correct event on the Event Viewer. Once you have these things covered, proceed to the instructions below.

Option 1 – Try to update the device drivers to the latest version

One of the most likely root causes of the “Device requires further installation” error is either outdated or corrupted drivers in your computer. This kind of problem is more common on several devices like scanners and printers for which the drivers are provided with them.

• First, boot your computer into Safe Mode.
• After that, tap the Win + R keys to launch Run.
• Type in devmgmt.msc into the box and tap Enter or click OK to open the Device Manager.
• After that, a list of device drivers will be displayed. From there, look for any outdated device drivers and click on each one of them.
• After that, right-click on each entry of the device drivers and select the “Uninstall Device” option from the menu.
• Now restart your computer.
• After restarting your computer, go to the Settings app and Check for Updates in the Windows Update section.

Note: You also opt to download the latest versions of the device drivers directly from the website of the manufacturer. Once you’ve downloaded them, you can install them into your computer right away and then try connecting the external device again. On the other hand, you can also try to reinstall the device drivers.

Option 2 – Try to install the latest version of the Intel PROSet Wireless driver

A lot of users who experience the problem reported that their wireless driver wasn’t also working properly and it was then found that it was caused by the outdated Intel PROSet wireless driver. Thus, to fix the problem, you need to install the latest version of this driver from the intel.com website and install it on your computer. When you download the driver, make sure that your computer is running an Intel system and then download the correct driver depending on whether your computer is a 64-bit system or a 32-bit one.

There is various Blue Screen of Death errors that you can encounter as you use your Windows 10 computer and some of these Stop errors have something to do with the win32kbase.sys file. This post will guide you in fixing the BSOD errors related to the win32kbase.sys file.

• A problem has been detected and Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer. The problem seems to be caused by the following file: Win32kbase.sys.
• Your PC ran into a problem and needs to restart. If you would like to know more, you can search online later for this error: win32kbase.sys.
• SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION (win32kbase.sys)
• STOP 0x0000000A: IRQL_NOT_LESS_EQUAL – win32kbase.sys
• STOP 0x0000001E:

KMODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED – win32kbase.sys

• STOP 0×00000050:

PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA – win32kbase.sys

The win32kbase.sys file is a Windows operating system Base Win32 Kernel Driver file located in the System32 folder so if it ends up getting corrupted or if it went missing, your computer will throw up Blue Screen error. To fix BSOD errors that have something to do with the win32kbase.sys file, here are some possible fixes that could help. Worry not for these possible fixes are not complicated.

Option 1 – Run the Check Disk or CHDSK utility

One of the first things you can try to resolve the win32kbase.sys Blue Screen error is running the CHKDSK utility. If your hard drive has issues with integrity, the update will really fail as the system will think that it’s not healthy and that’s where the CHKDSK utility comes in. The CHKDSK utility repairs hard drive errors that might be causing the problem.

• Open Command Prompt with admin privileges.
• After opening Command Prompt, execute the following command and hit Enter:

chkdsk /f C:

• Wait for the process to be completed and then restart your computer.

Option 2 – Run SFC or System File Checker scan

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 to good system files. To run the SFC command, follow the steps given below.

• 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.

 Restart your PC.

Option 3 – Try to run the DISM commands

You might want to repair potentially corrupted files in your system as having them could also trigger the win32kbase.sys Blue Screen error. To repair these corrupted system files, you can run the DISM commands:

• Tap the Win + X keys and click on the “Command Prompt (Admin)” option.
• 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 dxgkrnl.sys Blue Screen error is now fixed.

Option 4 – Try to run the Blue Screen Troubleshooter

As you know, the Blue Screen troubleshooter is a built-in tool in Windows 10 that helps users in fixing Blue Screen errors related to the win32kbase.sys file. 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.

SD memory cards have surfaced as standard cards for digital cameras and microSD as phone standard memory cards. Most people have and use at least one daily, so naturally copying files and even formatting SD cards is a natural thing to do, but what if you cannot copy files or format SD cards? Fear not because we had this issue and tried several things in order to overcome the problem and after some time here is a list of what can you do if you are facing this exact issue. The list is written from most simple solutions to more complex ones and it is advisable to follow it as presented. That being said, let's dive into solving the problem.

1. Remove Write Protection on SD card

First and in my experience the most usual thing preventing deleting, copying files, and formating SD card is due to write protection. Take an SD card out of the laptop, camera, or card reader and visually inspect it. On side of almost every SD card, there is a hardware lock switch and mark where it needs to be positioned in order to be locked. Even if the switch is positioned on unlocked state, switch it to locked and then back to unlocked. Sometimes this easy moving of switch can resolve some contact issues and the card will start working normally. Another type of lock that could be turned ON is a software one. If for any kind of reason data protection has been turned ON, you will need to turn it off in order to be able to format an SD card. In order to do this follow this guide:

1. Press ⊞ WINDOWS + R to open the Run dialog
2. In run dialog type in diskpart and press ENTER
3. Once diskpart is opened in command prompt type in: list disk and press ENTER
4. Locate your SD card and type in select disk x, where x is disk number followed by ENTER
5. After the SD card is selected type in: attributes disk clear read-only and press ENTER

This process will clear the software lock on the SD card, after following this method try to format the card again, if the problem still exists go to the next solution.

2. Format SD card using Command prompt

Command prompt is a great tool and can perform some commands that are not been able to be completed using file explorer or another tool inside Windows.

1. In the taskbar search box, search for cmd and select the Command prompt
2. On the right part select run as administrator
3. If needed click on YES on UAC prompt
4. Inside command prompt type in diskpart and press ENTER
5. type in list disk followed by ENTER
6. Select your SD card by locating its number in the list and typing select disk X, where is X SD cards number in list and press ENTER
7. Once SD card is selected type in format fs=ntfs quick and press ENTER

This should format SD card but if for reason even this step is provided as unproductive, go to the next solution.

3. Format your card with the Disk Management tool

1. Go into the taskbar and search for Disk Management and open it
2. Select SD card partition that you wish to format
3. Right-click on the partition and select format
4. After the format is done, enter the volume label, file system, and allocation unit size. Confirm with OK
5. Press OK again to confirm the formatting process.

If you have not managed to format your SD card even with this method go to the next solution.

4. Repartition card with Disk part

If all previous solutions have failed there is a chance that the SD card has bad sectors on it. If this is the case that we will need to partition cards in order to isolate bad sectors and use healthy ones.

1. Press ⊞ WINDOWS + R to open the Run dialog
2. In run dialog type in diskpart and press ENTER
3. Once diskpart is opened in command prompt type in: list disk and press ENTER
4. Locate your SD card and type in select disk x, where x is disk number followed by ENTER
5. Type in Clean and press ENTER
6. Type in Create partition primary and press ENTER
7. To select a new partition type select partition 1 followed by ENTER
8. Make partition active by typing active and pressing ENTER
9. Format the drive by typing format fs=ntfs label=SDCard quick followed with ENTER
10. Assign a letter to drive by typing assign letter=h followed with ENTER
11. Type exit to close Command prompt followed again by ENTER and open File Explorer to check if the drive is active

5. Try a dedicated SD card formating fool

If anything failed so far, one last thing you could do is to download and try a dedicated SD card formatting tool. One that I would recommend is SD Memory Card Formatter, which is free software make specifically for formatting SD memory cards.

Same as in previous Windows versions, Windows 11 will also use certain applications as default ones for opening certain file types and file extensions. And yes, same as in previous versions it will come preconfigured for certain file types and associated applications like for example photos for pictures. Of course, users usually have their own favorite applications for certain file types and much more prefer to open them inside the application of their choice instead of the default one. We can change the default application like in previous Windows versions but this time there are two ways and overall more control of this process. Windows 11 has settings for choosing default file type applications and default file extension applications giving you more control of this process.

The opening setting for apps

Whatever you wish to change default application or default extension application you will need to open settings for default application. Follow steps to quickly go into it.

1. Press ⊞ WINDOWS + I to open settings
2. Select Apps on left
3. On the right part select Default Apps

Now you are in settings for choosing default applications

Choosing default application by file type extension

This is considering by Microsoft as a typical way to set default applications inside Windows 11. Once you are inside the settings app there is a box labeled Enter a file type or link type. Inside the search box, type in file extension that you wish to associate the application with like .JPG, .TXT, or other. If the file extension is not associated with any application you will be presented with a Choose a Default button, if however, the file extension is already associated with the app, you will need to click on the app box itself. In any case, a pop-up will appear and ask How do you want to open YOUR FILE EXTENSION files from now on? Choose Application from the list of presented ones and click on OK.

Choosing default file type

Another method is to select the default application by file type selecting application for it. In the settings screen, under the search box, you will have a list of installed applications. Choose the application that you would like to associate a file type with and click on it. On the next details screen scroll down and select the file type that you want to associate with the selected application and click on OK.

Other/third method

There is also the third method for choosing the default application for file type but it includes some surfing on your hard drive and it can be more time-consuming for first-time settings. But it is fairly quick when you need to only use it once on some new file type (for example you have a new application installed and want to switch just one file type extension to that application). Locate the file that you want to associate with the application and right-click on it. Select Open With from the menu and then Choose Another App. Pop up will appear, select the application that you would like to use, and check the box beside Always use this app to open CHOOSEN EXTENSION files followed by clicking on the OK button.