If you use Realtek Bluetooth drivers, you may be having issues with updating your Windows 10 operating system. That itself is due to the safeguard hold that was put into place in May of 2019 by Microsoft because of outdated driver versions. Microsoft states, “You will need to update to driver version 1.5.1012 or later to remove this safeguard hold. Any earlier version of the driver is affected by this issue.”

On November 15th, however, Microsoft removed the hold with affected versions, according to their statement on Microsoft Docs. And you can install Windows 10 after updating the Realtek Bluetooth drivers. This process can take up to 48 hours, so don’t be discouraged if you’re not able to install right away.

If you need to download and install the drivers manually to disable the compatibility hold, here’s the step-by-step process:

• Download both of the Realtek Bluetooth radio drivers to your preferred folder: Driver 1, Driver 2. Note: We recommend downloading them to your Documents folder.
• Open File Explorer. If there is no file explorer icon in the task bar, select the search box and enter file explorer and select it.
• Within File Explorer, go the the Documents folder or the folder you downloaded the drivers to.
• Find and double click or double tap on the file named 068de0d6-6ac2-473a-8cbd-bd449cd5c97c_942eec5828662eecc6b98cc2706658bf2433717c.cab
• Select CTRL+a on the keyboard. This should select all of the files
• Right click or long press on any of the files and select Extract.
• Select the New folder button and rename it Realtek Bluetooth.
• Select the Extract button.
• In File Explorer, select the back  button to go to the location you downloaded the drivers into.
• Find and double click or double tap on the file named f2748416-7753-49c6-9185-56f4986f490b_e98e0d664b7e874011b8e3752046ca61f3475295.cab
• Select CTRL+a on the keyboard. This should select all of the files
• Right click or long press on any of the files and select Extract.
• If you are in the folder named Realtek Bluetooth, then select the New folder button and type Realtek Bluetooth 2.
• Select the Extract button.
• In the search box on the taskbar, enter device manager, then select Device Manager.
• Find Bluetooth and expand it.
• Find the Realtek device and right-click or long press on it.
• Select Update Driver from the context menu.
• Select the Browse my computer for driver software button.
• It should default to your Documents folder, if this is where you saved the drivers then just select the Next button. If you did not save the drivers to your Documents folder, select the Browse button and find the folder you downloaded the drivers to and select OK.
• It should now find the updated drivers and install them. Wait for this to complete and select Close.

Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Frisco Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Frisco, TX please call or text the local office at (469) 299-9005.

Yesterday, Brandon LeBlanc from Windows Insider Program announced a new release of PowerToys v0.12.

If you’ve never heard of PowerToys, LeBlanc states that, “it’s a set of utilities for power users to tune and streamline their Windows experience for greater productivity.” Apparently PowerToys was revamped from Windows 95 and is specifically for Windows 10 on GitHub.

Microsoft received lots of feedback from the Windows Insiders for this particular feature and seem to be eager to see how it all pans out for the public.

One certain PowerToy is the PowerRename. This allows you to group a handful of files and rename them in a short amount of time.

LeBlanc finishes the blog post with two more utilities, FancyZones and Dark Mode Support. He states, “The next big improvement is with FancyZones, a window manager that’s designed to make it easy to arrange and snap windows into efficient layouts for your workflow. We made the editor multi-monitor aware, targeted globalization bugs, and corrected other high priority issues. Lastly, we’ve started to add in support for Dark Mode where appropriate.”

I can definitely see businesses applying these utilizations to their workload. You’re able to choose your layout and adjust according to what works best for you. It just makes things easier.

If you’d like to install PowerToys, head over to GitHub and download the PowerToysSetup.msi installer.

For help updating, restoring or dealing with any Windows 10 issues, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Denver Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Denver, CO please call or text the local office at (720) 441-6460.

Windows slipped up a little again this week. Microsoft released an update that included an improvement to Windows Autopilot devices. However it was sent to the wrong version.

According to Chris Merriman, an associate editor at the INQUIRER:

For anyone that doesn’t know, Autopilot is a system from the company’s InTune imprint, used to roll out Windows in a business environment. If you’re not in a business environment, and at the IT admin end, you’re usually never going to see it. In fact, according to the notes for the patch:

“Windows Autopilot update is not installed on Windows 10 Pro or a later version when the device is not registered or configured for Windows Autopilot deployment. Windows Autopilot update is never offered to Windows 10 Home.”

Thing is, it was. In fact, it was sent to Home devices and Pro devices that weren’t registered for Autopilot.

The issue has apparently been found and dealt with, but it is urged that you don’t install it unless it’s necessary – which it probably isn’t.

Microsoft Docs says this in regarding adding devices:

“Before deploying a device using Windows Autopilot, the device must be registered with the Windows Autopilot deployment service. Ideally, this would be performed by the OEM, reseller, or distributor from which the devices were purchased, but this can also be done by the organization by collecting the hardware identity and uploading it manually.

If an existing device is already running Windows 10 version 1703 or later and enrolled in an MDM service such an Intune, that MDM service can ask the device for the hardware ID (also known as a hardware hash). Once it has that, it can automatically register the device with Windows Autopilot.

For instructions on how to do this with Microsoft Intune, see Create an Autopilot deployment profile documentation describing the “Convert all targeted devices to Autopilot” setting.

For help with Windows 10 issues, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Mesa Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Mesa, AZ please call the local office at (480) 240-2950.

Just a few weeks left until the new Windows 10 November update comes out, and now the Windows Insiders are testing it in the Fast Ring. Update 20H1 build 19008 remedies were shared on the Windows Insiders Blog. These pre-released builds sometimes contains bugs and Insiders can submit feedback.

Brandon LeBlanc, Senior Program Manager of the Windows Insiders program shared a bulletined list of fixes and known issues:

“General changes, improvements, and fixes for PC

• For Insiders that were experiencing their PCs getting stuck on restart and shutdown on Builds 18999-19002: A fix for this was included with the update to Build 19002.1002, but in case you didn’t see it, including a note here too. If you didn’t install Build 19002.1002, you may need to use the workaround in order to upgrade to this build.
• We fixed an issue where, when optional updates were available, Insiders with the Settings header might see the Windows Update indicator in a warning state, although the main page of Windows Update Settings showed that everything is up to date.
• We fixed an issue resulting in sometimes not being able to bring Settings back up after minimizing the window.
• We’ve done some work to improve the launch speed of the taskbar jump lists.
• We fixed an issue resulting in the Program Compatibility Assistant popping up for some Insiders
• We fixed an issue resulting in Windows Hello unexpectedly showing an error message periodically saying “Can’t turn camera on” on recent builds.
• We cleaned up some UI in the Mouse pointer settings in Ease of Access.
• We fixed a bug in Narrator where Narrator was not reading link text in the proper language in the Chrome Browser.

Known issues

• BattlEye and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues due to changes in the operating system between some Insider Preview builds and certain versions of BattlEye anti-cheat software. To safeguard Insiders who might have these versions installed on their PC, we have applied a compatibility hold on these devices from being offered affected builds of Windows Insider Preview. See this article for details.
• We’re investigating an issue where initiating “Reset this PC” with the cloud download option isn’t working on this build or the previous one when started from Windows RE.
• We’ve heard that Settings still isn’t available outside of launching via the URI (ms-settings:) for some Insiders and are investigating.
• When using dark theme, the hardware keyboard text prediction candidate window is unreadable due to black text on a dark grey background.
• Bluetooth devices may not reconnect as expected after closing the device lid for certain devices. We’re working on a fix, but in the meantime, you can toggle Bluetooth off and back on in the Settings app or reboot the device and that should resolve the issue.
• Some Insiders are still reporting that after successfully updating to a new build, the Windows Update Settings page may show the same build needs to install. You can verify the build was successfully installed by checking the build number in the corner of the screen or going to Win + R, typing winver, and confirming the build number. We’re investigating this issue.
• Some Insiders are still reporting that when viewing Optional drivers in the new section on the Windows Update page, there may be older drivers showing as available for download. If accepted, they will attempt to install and fail to do so. We’re investigating this issue.”

If you have any operating system update issues, or have any questions, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Lakewood Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Lakewood, CO please call or text the local office at (720) 441-6460.

One handy feature that Windows 10 includes sharing pictures, documents, and other attachments with nearby devices. This can be arranged by using bluetooth, which is a requirement and running version 1803 or later of Windows 10.

Here’s how to get there:

• Start Menu
• Settings
• System
• Shared Experiences
• Turn on toggle of Share across devices
• You can choose either My devices only or Everyone nearby

To share a file, simply open File Explorer, right click on your chosen file, and scroll to Share. The Share box will come up and will show you if any devices nearby.

Please note that Nearby Sharing will only operate within computers you have signed into with the same Microsoft account if you choose My devices only.

For any Windows 10 feature inquiries, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Arvada Computer Repair Service, if you need better SEO or computer repair in Arvada, CO please call or text the local office at (720) 441-6460.

Just days after the October 15th cumulative update for Windows 10, Microsoft urged users not to install the update.

KB4520062 (OS Build 17763.832) was available to install on Tuesday, and added bug fixes and improvements. But the Windows Support blog post pertaining to the update shared a security concern with it on Thursday. This certain issue seems to only affect businesses who heavily rely on the Microsoft Defender ATP.

0xc0000409 Error

They stated, “After installing this update, the Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) service might stop running and might fail to send reporting data. You might also receive a 0xc0000409 error in Event Viewer in MsSense.exe. At this time, we suggest that devices in an affected environment do not install this update.We are working on a resolution and estimate a solution will be available in mid-November 2019.”

This certain issue seems to only affect businesses who heavily rely on the Microsoft Defender ATP. Windows Support is quick to encourage users that before installing updates, they install the latest servicing stack update for their OS beforehand. The SSU minimizes possible update issues, while enhancing “the reliability of the update process”.

If you are needing help with Windows 10, please give us a call at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities.  This blog post is brought to you from our staff at the Plano Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Plano, TX please call the local office at (469) 299-9005.

There has been a leak in the release of the new Windows 10 1909 update. Named ’19H2′ as of now, Zac Bowden, a senior editor of WindowsCentral, tweeted this yesterday:

Although November 12th is the predicted release date, Zac did explain that plans have the ability to change. But this was what he had heard from sources.

This update is also said to be a very quick download, as it is small in comparison to other past updates. So in comparison, it’s like Patch Tuesday.

What’s in the new update?

Plenty of these new features within this new update incorporate a number of enhancements, improvements, and additions. Some of them include:

• create an event straight from the Calendar flyout on the Taskbar
• Start Menu navigation panes expand so you know where you’re clicking
• improvements on battery life and performance on certain processors in PC’s
• added Windows Defender Credential Guard for ARM64 devices
• “Manage notifications” button to the top of Action Center
• turn off playing sound when notifications pop up option

For help with Windows 10 issues, call us at 1-800-620-5285.  Karls Technology is a nationwide computer service company with offices in many major cities. This blog post was brought to you from our staff at the Mesa Computer Repair Service, if you need computer repair in Mesa, AZ please call the local office at (480) 240-2950.