Old Posted News

Place you can talk about other things not related to autopatcher.
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Microsoft Reportedly Pulls Updates Causing PCs to Get Stuck on “Configuring Windows Updates”

Post by Whatacrock »

Microsoft Reportedly Pulls Updates Causing PCs to Get Stuck on “Configuring Windows Updates”
KB3020370, KB3045645, KB3020269, and KB3013531 blamed for the issues experienced after this month's Patch Tuesday

One or more of the updates that were rolled out this month by Microsoft as part of its Patch Tuesday cycle are causing havoc on plenty of Windows 7 computers, causing them to get stuck on a screen saying that the OS is “configuring Windows updates.”

This issue has already been confirmed by plenty of users, but Microsoft is yet to provide a workaround, so it's still a big enigma which of the updates released this Patch Tuesday is at fault for this trouble.

A report by Woody Leonhard of InfoWorld blames KB3020370, KB3045645, KB3020269, and KB3013531 for this “Configuring Windows updates” issue, but for the moment, it's unclear whether they're indeed the ones responsible for this issue or not.

Interestingly, some of our users reported that these updates are no longer available via Windows Update, which could be a sign that they were the ones leading to installation problems on Windows 7.
Microsoft yet to update KB pages

But although Microsoft might have found an issue with these updates, the company is yet to update the official KB pages to publicly acknowledge the problems.

KB3045645's page, however, states that “Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the 'Applies to' section,” which includes Windows 7 too. KB3045645 is an update supposed to enable UAC prompts when a customized SDB file is created in Windows.

All these four updates can be downloaded manually via the Microsoft Download Center, but there's no doubt that many users would actually refuse that at least until the company confirms whether there's a problem or not with any of them.

In the meantime, if you're also experiencing issues with this month's updates, you might want to hit CTRL + Alt + Del to get back to the login screen
and start using Windows as before (updates won't be installed though).

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Microsof ... 1262.shtml
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Re: Microsoft Reportedly Pulls Updates Causing PCs to Get Stuck on “Configuring Windows Updates”

Post by Whatacrock »

How to Fix Windows Stuck on “Configuring Windows Updates” Error
Here's a very simple workaround to get back into Windows.


Patch Tuesday is becoming a nightmare for many users out there because some of the updates that Microsoft rolls out the second Tuesday of each month breaks down their computers and sometimes blocks them from logging into Windows to do their work.

This is the case of the May 2015 Patch Tuesday, as some of the updates that were released this month got plenty of computers stuck on a screen saying that Windows is “configuring Windows updates,” thus leaving users with no option to get back on their desktop.

Rebooting the system made no difference, booting into Safe Mode was useless too, so how could you login again into Windows despite these broken updates?
Just pres CTRL + Alt + Del

At this point, nobody can tell for sure which are the updates that are causing so many problems on Windows 7, but suggestions coming from users who reportedly tried everything to get back on their desktop are pointing to a rather simple workaround.

When your computer gets stuck to the “Configuring Windows updates” screen, just press Control + Alt + Delete and the PC should show the login screen. Updates, however, won't be installed, but at least you can continue doing your work just like before.

Needless to say, this is just a temporary workaround until Microsoft fixes the broken updates or at least provides a more effective solution, and keep in mind that without these updates, your computer is theoretically unprotected in case of exploits.

But for the moment, this seems to be the only way to fix an issue that's impacting thousands of Windows 7 computers out there.

In case you came across a different solution, make sure you drop us a line in the comment box after the jump to help other users who are getting this error fix their computers too..

http://news.softpedia.com/news/How-to-F ... 1264.shtml
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Botched Windows Update Alert: SFC Cannot Fix Corrupted Files in Windows 7

Post by Whatacrock »

Botched Windows Update Alert: SFC Cannot Fix Corrupted Files in Windows 7
More trouble caused by this month's updates.

Patch Tuesday is slowly becoming a nightmare for Windows users, given the number of botched updates that land on their computers, and now we're hearing that one of the fixes rolled out this month is causing SFC not to work properly and fix corrupted files.

Once again, Windows 7 appears to be the only affected Windows version, and posts on Microsoft's Community forums confirm that, after installing this month's updates, repairing corrupted files no longer seems to work properly.

It appears that the source of the problem is KB3022345, an update that Microsoft shipped this month to enable the Diagnostics Tracking Service in Windows.

“This update enables the Diagnostics Tracking Service in Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1), and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1. This tracking service collects data about functional issues in Windows,” Microsoft explains.

Up until now, Microsoft hasn't said anything about any potential issues that might be experienced by users who install KB3022345, and its official page has no known issues section for the time being. What's more, the update is still available via Windows Update for those who are now checking for new fixes, so it might not be a widespread issue for the time being.
How to fix SFC issues

If you're one of the many users who are having a hard time running SFC because of this month's Patch Tuesday cycle, there's a very easy way to fix it.

All you need to do is go over to Control Panel, open Windows Update, click on “View installed updates” and look for KB3022345. Remove the update from your computer, reboot it, and SFC should be working fine.

There's one big problem, however. Doing this basically leaves you without the fix that Microsoft developed for your version of Windows, so you must turn to this workaround only temporarily, until an official fix is provided.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Botched- ... 1268.shtml
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Re: Botched Windows Update Alert: SFC Cannot Fix Corrupted Files in Windows 7

Post by Whatacrock »

Windows patch KB 3022345 triggers apparent sys file corruption

Like the proverbial bad penny, the Diagnostic Tracking Service patch KB 3022345 appears to be corrupting Windows files -- or at least, convincing Microsoft's System File Checker SFC /scannow command that there are corrupt files -- and the corruption occurs in at least three (and probably all four) of its versions.

Are we absolutely sure the files are corrupt? No. What we know for sure is that Microsoft's tool for detecting corrupt system files, SFC, is reporting they are corrupt.

If the KB number sounds familiar, I've written about it before.

The patch first appeared three weeks ago, on April 21, as part of a big rollout of non-security patches. The first version was for Windows 8.1, RT, and Server 2012 R2 only.

On May 5, we got version 2, which appears to be Windows 7-specific.

On May 6, Microsoft rolled out version 3, targeting both Windows 7 and 8.1. Microsoft confirmed to me that it had to re-release the patch because the old version was keeping people from getting additional updates.

On May 12, version 4 appeared as part of the hundred-or-so Black Tuesday patches.

On May 13, the KB article was revised to version 5. It now includes this note:

The current version of this hotfix, Version 2, was published on May 6, 2015. The previous version of this hotfix was Version 1.005. Both versions provide the same functionality and protection except that Version 2 includes a minor update to support devices that do not contain U.S. English language files. However, the current hotfix is not a compatible upgrade to Version 1.005 and may cause an error (800F0922) if it is installed over the old version. We recommend that you install this hotfix if you have not already installed it. If you have installed the original version of this hotfix and you want the added functionality, we recommend that you wait for an upcoming version that will be a compatible upgrade to either version.

With me so far?

Looking back on some correspondence with reader CA, I noticed a troubling trend. This is what CA said about version 3 (using my version numbers):

After installation of the updated patch, I experienced explorer.exe crashes (once after installing the patch and once today) which I had never experienced before. I couldn't see how this patch could be related, but I decided to run:

SFC /scannow

The diagnostic said "Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them." So, I checked the log (C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log), ran the usual diagnostics (chkdsk, cleanup, etc), but was still unable to repair the bad files.

I was aware of corrupt payload problems with this patch and Windows 8, but this last update apparently has borked Windows 7 as well. I also know that this patch may not uninstall properly (at least on Windows 8), so I don't want to attempt it with Windows 7.

According to the log, there are eight bad files, all involving the KB 3022345 "telemetry client" (nice phrase for spyware).

Reader CA then referred me to a post by Alex on The Tech Cookbook, which describes a similar problem. In fact, Alex found the same problem twice, http://thetechcookbook.com/windows-7-up ... upt-files/, and http://thetechcookbook.com/windows-8-up ... upt-files/. The timing of the posts leads me to believe that Alex hit the problem with versions 1 and 2 (again, using my numbers).

There are additional threads and details all over the Web now, most notably on the Windows http://www.sevenforums.com/windows-upda ... 4ab9664550 and http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/wind ... 5e0dddb5be.
In many cases it isn't clear which versions of KB 3022345 caused the problems. But there's no doubt at all that KB 3022345 is causing SFC to detect corrupt files that it can't fix.

CA wrote back to me with an update:

Had explorer crash again today so I decided to take a chance and uninstall KB3022345 on one of my other Win 7 Ultimate machines (this machine also manifested unrepairable SFC errors due to the May 5 issued KB3022345).

Uninstall results in the following:

1) Removes "Diagnostics Tracking Service."

2) Cold boots without issue. No errors/warnings in the event viewer.

3) SFC now reports "Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations."

4) KB 3022345 reappears in the update chute.

It appears the uninstall was successful and resolved SFC corruption errors.

I've since received independent confirmation about this behavior from many sources, including reader Canadiantech, who apparently is working with version 4.

Without any real description from Microsoft, speculation has run rampant that KB 3022345 is yet another piece of unwanted Windows 10 spy-and-or-nag-ware. I've found nothing to contradict that conclusion, and quite a bit in support.

With four versions in three weeks, most -- if not all -- of them triggering corruption errors, and yet another version apparently on the way, you really have to wonder who's minding the store.

http://www.infoworld.com/article/292232 ... o-fix.html
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Re: Botched Windows Update Alert: SFC Cannot Fix Corrupted Files in Windows 7

Post by Whatacrock »

After reading through the various forums and posts regarding these updates I decided to remove the update from Windows 8.1 x64/x86 releases..

If any one uses Windows Update/Microsoft Update for any reason it would be advisable to hide this update, also KB3035583 be hidden also. This applies to both Windows 8.1 and Windows 7.

Just one other you may consider hiding is KB2876229 Skype for Windows Desktop (have no use for this piece of software).
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Re: Botched Windows Update Alert: SFC Cannot Fix Corrupted Files in Windows 7

Post by Whatacrock »

Windows Update KB3022345 Said to Be Causing “USB Device Not Recognized” Errors

If you’re an avid Microsoft watcher, you’ve probably heard that this month’s Patch Tuesday was quite a fiasco, with several updates causing trouble on computers installing them.

This time, we’ve come across a bug that appears to exist on several of our machines here at Softpedia and that has already been confirmed by other users on Microsoft’s Community forums.

KB3022345, which is one of the updates revised and released as part of this month’s Patch Tuesday, is causing “USB device not recognized” error messages on the desktop whenever you plug in a USB device, such as a phone or a flash drive.

We’re getting this error in Windows 8.1 and everything seems to be working fine in Windows 7. Removing the update doesn’t solve the problem, so for the moment, the only way to fix it is a system restore that could get the computer to a previous state, when the update is not installed.
Unable to fix the issues

Needless to say, performing a system restore isn’t quite the method that comes in handy to many of you, so we’re still waiting for some official statements from Microsoft to find out whether KB3022345 is indeed at fault for these issues or not.

KB3022345 is an update released to enable the Diagnostics Tracking Service in Windows, and on its official page, Microsoft acknowledges that there might be some issues when installing it.

“The current version of this hotfix, Version 2, was published on May 6, 2015. The previous version of this hotfix was Version 1.005. Both versions provide the same functionality and protection except that Version 2 includes a minor update to support devices that do not contain U.S. English language files. However, the current hotfix is not a compatible upgrade to Version 1.005 and may cause an error (800F0922) if it is installed over the old version,” it states.

The company goes on to say that you should only install this if you haven’t deployed a previous version. Otherwise, if an existing version of KB3022345 already exists on your computer, you’re recommended to wait for a future release that should fix all problems.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Windows- ... 1632.shtml
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
parkd1
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 333
Joined: Tue Jan 07, 2014 4:33 pm

Microsoft updates KB 3057110, KB 3045171 cause Windows 7 PCs to crash

Post by parkd1 »

Microsoft has issued an acknowledgment that MS15-044/KB 3057110 and MS15-051/KB 3045171 -- both massive font driver updates that fix TrueType font handling in Windows, .Net Framework, Office, Lync, and Silverlight -- can cause Windows 7 and earlier PCs to freeze.

The official warning goes like this:

After you install this security update, you experience crashes when you use Windows GDI+ to create text outline-based path objects on a computer that is running Windows 7 or an earlier version of Windows. We are aware of this issue and will address it in the near future.

[ For all the latest updates on Microsoft's operating system, see "Where Windows 10 stands right now." | Stay up on key Microsoft technologies with the Microsoft newsletter. ]

Golden Software has a detailed description on its website:

(May 13, 2015) Microsoft released a series of updates. Two of those affect Golden Software products. Attempting to create maps or graphs containing symbols, opening files containing symbols, or drawing symbols results in a GsDraw error.

Surfer Error / GsDraw error (1): GenericError / Module GsDraw, File Path.cpp, Line 953

The company's immediate fix is to uninstall KB 3045171 and, if that doesn't take care of the problem, to uninstall KB 3057110.

GsDraw has a permanent fix posted on its KB 1957 page. There's no indication whether the Fix-it file works for all instances of the bug, or GsDraw only. The page has additional instructions for manually installing specific GsDraw fonts.

http://www.infoworld.com/article/292411 ... crash.html
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

How to Remove the Windows 10 Upgrade Notifications on Windows 7 and 8.1

Post by Whatacrock »

How to Remove the Windows 10 Upgrade Notifications on Windows 7 and 8.1
Microsoft has started advertising Windows 10 upgrades

As we told you in the past, Microsoft quietly downloaded and installed a Windows 10 upgrade notification tool on all computers running Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, and as of this morning, this application started displaying messages to entice users to reserve their free copy of the new OS.

While this is quite a great tool for those who want to make the switch to Windows 10, it’s not that awesome for users who want to stick to Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 for a little longer, so how on Earth are we supposed to get rid of these notifications showing up on our desktops every once in a while?

Well, it’s all because of the update that Microsoft installed on our PCs. So to remove the notification tool, all we have to do is remove this update completely.

To do this, launch Control Panel, click on Programs > Programs and Features, and in the left side of the screen hit the “View installed updates” section.

Look for KB3035583 in the list, right-click it and hit the remove option. If you don’t want to be bothered again in the future, just hide it and no other notifications will be displayed because the update won’t be installed again on your PC.
What’s KB3035583?

According to Microsoft, KB3035583 is an update that “enables additional capabilities for Windows Update notifications in Windows 8.1 and Windows 7.” The company, however, isn’t saying anything about Windows 10, so it’s hard to consider it an upgrade notification for Windows 10.

Windows 10 is projected to launch in just a couple of months, so it might be a good idea to get rid of the update if you don’t want to see the same notification over and over again for the next two months.

But, on the other hand, if Windows 10 is on your upgrade list for 2015, it’s better to just reserve your free copy of Windows 10 from the notification showing up on your desktop and just wait for the new OS to become available.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/How-to-R ... 2872.shtml
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

Microsoft Will Quietly Download Windows 10 on Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 PCs

Post by Whatacrock »

Microsoft Will Quietly Download Windows 10 on Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 PCs
If you reserve your free upgrade, Windows 10 will be installed in the background before July 29 launch date.

Microsoft yesterday started showing Windows 10 upgrade notifications on Windows 7 and 8.1 PCs, allowing users to reserve their free upgrade to the new operating system, but it turns out that there’s more to know for those who actually do that.

If you reserve your free copy of Windows 10, which means that once the new OS becomes available, it’ll be automatically downloaded and installed on your computer, Microsoft will actually pre-deploy the necessary files on your PC before Windows 10 actually launches, so when it becomes available, you’ll get it instantly.

Bit by bit, Windows 10 will arrive on your computer between the date you make your reservation and July 29, the day when the new OS is set to make its public appearance. Since all files will already be on your computer, Windows 10 should start installing on July 29, so Microsoft will make the new OS available to everyone during the same day, with no concerns of server issues or delays across the world.
You can’t block this behavior

Right now, there is no option to prevent this behavior from taking place on your computer, so if you reserve your free Windows 10 upgrade, you basically agree with it.

Here’s a small explanation in the Q&A section on the Windows 10 page:

“When you reserve, you can confirm your device is compatible with Windows 10. Between reservation and when your upgrade is ready, the files you need for the upgrade will be downloaded to your PC to make the final installation go more quickly. Then, when your upgrade is ready after July 29, 2015, you get a notification that lets you get started with your upgrade.”

In the meantime, it’s no surprise that many actually want to stick to Windows 7, so they are looking for ways to disable that notification and avoid getting messages to upgrade every once in a while. Learn here how to disable the Windows 10 upgrade notifications for Windows 7 and Windows 8 .1.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Microsof ... 3004.shtml
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
User avatar
Whatacrock
Release Maintainer
Release Maintainer
Posts: 1967
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:47 am
Location: Australia
Contact:

How to Prevent Windows Hibernate from Eating Up Disk Space

Post by Whatacrock »

How to Prevent Windows Hibernate from Eating Up Disk Space

Since Windows can run on several types of devices, some of which strongly depend on battery life, different power plans are available to use. Some can even be used to save your entire session for when you log back in.

However, after a long time of using the computer without caring after it, you can end up with little free disk space, but no sophisticated or large programs installed. In your search to free up more space, there’s a chance you came across an incredibly large file called hiberfil.sys in the drive where Windows is installed.

Its size is due to the amount of data it keeps together so you can start from where you left off when your computer enters hibernation. Just like others around the web believe, we too consider that Hibernate is a power option you can easily live without.

Windows is going to try and prevent you from removing it, but here’s what you can do to get rid of it.
Removing the hiberfil.sys file

Step 1: Press Win + S to look for the settings to Change what the power buttons do.

Step 2: Click the link in the first section to Change Settings That Are Currently Unavailable.

Step 3: Scroll down to the Shut-down settings and make sure Hibernate is NOT checked.

Step 4: Open up Windows Explorer and access View Options.

Step 5: Switch to the View tab and disable the entry to Hide Protected Operating System Files.

Step 6: Navigate to the Windows root drive and identify the hiberfil.sys file.

Note: Don’t rush to delete it, because Windows does not allow you to.

Step 7: Open Command Prompt with administrator privileges (right-click, then run as administrator).

Step 8: Write down powercfg -h off and press enter.

Step 9: Close Command Prompt and notice that hiberfil.sys is no longer there.
To sum it up

Bottom line is that you never know when and how quickly disk space can fill up. In most cases, it’s done with files and because of features you don’t use and need. In this situation, it’s better to save your work more often rather than occupy precious space through hibernate.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/How-To-P ... 3088.shtml
"Now if you Sons of B*@ches got anything else to say, NOW'S THE F@#%ING TIME!!"
Post Reply