Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows tools

PowerToys v0.90 Adds Command Palette

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Here it is! The March 31 release of PowerToys v0.90 adds Command Palette to the mix. As you can see in the lead-in graphic — from the MS Learn cover article — “The Command Palette is intended to be the successor of PowerToys Run.” And it’s dead easy to use with the default keyboard shortcut WinKey+Alt+Space. (Note: on US keyboards these three keys appear in sequence at bottom, left.)

PowerToys v0.90 Adds Command Palette:
Use It!

All you need to do to open the Command Palette is to type the shortcut. All you need to do to launch something, is to start typing its name. It’s able to search for applications, files and folders. It can run commands, provide simple calculations, add bookmarks, switch among open windows on the desktop (formerly known as “Windows Walker), and more.

I’m still figuring out how to use it effectively, but it provides ready access to anything you might access via the Start menu, Windows Terminal (and various command shells), and the Windows desktop itself. When you update to PowerToys version v0.90, it’s ready to go: just type Winkey+Alt+Space and you’ll see your starting point (aka the Command Palette home page):

Lots of customizations are apparently possible, but I haven’t gone there yet. I’m still having too much fun playing with Command Palette’s default capabilities. Check it out: you’ll have fun, too!

 

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Insider stuff, PowerShell, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11

Remove Package Kills Spurious Reclaimables

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Over the past year or so, I’ve blogged 7 times about “spurious reclaimables” in Windows 11. They persist in the component store even after DISM /StartComponentCleanup. You can see this in the lead-in graphic. Right now, in fact, the current Beta and GA releases show this behavior. Indeed, it comes from older packages that the preceding DISM command can’t (or won’t) clean out. Reading the CBS.log carefully, someone at ElevenForum  figured out that a single remove package kills spurious reclaimables dead.

Running Remove Package Kills Spurious Reclaimables

A line in the CBS log file that caught long-time member and guru @Bree‘s eye. It showed up in the CBS.log via DISM … /AnalyzeComponentStore. It reads (in part):

Package_for_RollupFix~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~26100.1742.1.10] is a top-level package and is deeply superseded

In the component store, a top-level package is a primary package. It contains all the bit and pieces — namely files, resources, and instructions — to install or enable some specific Windows update or feature. It’s called top-level because it may contain (or be a parent to, in hierarchical terms) other, related packages and features.

What caught Bree’s attention was the “deeply superseded” phrase in the descriptive text. Normally, DISM /StartComponentCleanup doesn’t remove top-level packages from WinSxS. “What if,” he reasoned, “this were removed because of its obsolete status?” And indeed, it turns out that removing this package also removes a child package as well. And these two nogoodniks turn out to be the very same two packages that show up as spurious reclaimables when running DISM /AnalyzeComponentStore.

Doing Away With Deeply Superseded Package

If your Windows 11 still shows 2 reclaimable packages after a successful  DISM /StartComponentCleanup operation, try this DISM command to remove the deeply superseded package (if it’s not the cause, this command will simply fail but won’t harm the component store):

dism /online /remove-package /packagename:Package_for_RollupFix~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~26100.1742.1.10

It worked on all the Windows 11 systems I tried it on, including current Beta and GA releases (5 in all). You can also regain about 1.2-1.3GB of space in the component store by following up with a DISM /StartComponentCleanup command. Cheers!

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Cool Tools, Insider stuff, PowerShell, Recent Activity, Updates, WED Blog

Extirpating WinGetUI Requires Registry Cleanup

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Here’s an odd one. A few months back, I tried out a pre-release version of UniGetUI that still fell under the WinGetUI umbrella. The package info involved — as you can see in the lead-in graphic — was ID=MartiCliment.UniGetUI.Pre-Release Version=1.5.2. I thought I’d deleted same, and it showed up in none of Programs and Features, Settings > Apps, or Revo Uninstaller. Yet it kept showing up in WinGet‘s upgrade and list commands anyway. TLDR; extirpating WinGetUI requires registry cleanup to “make it go away.” Sigh.

Why Extirpating WinGetUI Requires Registry Cleanup

Apparently, adding packages to Windows leaves all kinds of traces in the file structure, as well as settings and pointers that get instantiated in the registry. Furthermore, it looks like WinGet relies what it finds in the registry to create its view of what’s installed on a Windows PC. Thus, I had to remove all registry entries that included the string “WinGetUI” and/or “UniGetUI” (except for stuff not related to the application or its package info, such as pointers to Word files I’d written about those tools).

And indeed, that did the trick. Neither WinGet Upgrade nor WinGet List Marti.Climent.UniGetUI,Pre-Release posits pointers to something I know isn’t there. The next screengrab provides visual proof. Good-oh!

After removing all WinGetUI references in the registry, WinGet no longer sees the older package.

It just goes to show that some uninstall facilities work better than others. For all its good features, it appears that WinGetUI/UniGetUI does not clean the registry upon uninstall deeply enough to tell WinGet that it’s gone, gone, gone. You’d think that wouldn’t happen with a WinGet-related and -focused follow-on tool. But here’s a counter-example that says otherwise.

That’s the way things go here in Windows-World, where not all is as it seems, not always works exactly the way it should. Sigh. When that happens, we clean up manually and keep on truckin’…

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Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11

New Key Provides Quick Pro Access

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I’m still working with — and on — my new Lenovo review laptop. It’s a ThinkPad T14s Gen 5. That’s a Copilot+ PC with an Intel Core Ultra 5 125u CPU, 16 GB RAM, 0.5 TB NVMe Gen4 SSD, and a snazzy touch screen (WUXGA: 1920×1200). Yesterday, I had to correct one of its few as-shipped deficits: it shipped with Windows 11 Home installed. Because I like to use Remote Desktop Access to work on Windows PCs here at Chez Tittel, I needed to switch to Windows 11 Pro. That’s OK: thanks to my MVP VS Subscriptions, a new key provides quick Pro access. How quick? Let me tell you…

How a New Key Provides Quick Pro Access

Windows 11 Home and Pro share the same core operating system files. Indeed, even in a Home installation, Pro features and functions are present if unavailable. That’s why providing a valid Pro key unlocks such features, with no need to download or install new files.

The process took all of 10 seconds, most of which involved communication with the Microsoft Windows activation servers. I typed “Activation” into Settings, then clicked “Activation settings.” This took me to Settings > System > Activation, where I clicked the Change button to the right of the Change product key option. After entering a MAK key for Windows 11 Pro (copied from my VS subscription), the legend immediately changed to Windows 11 Pro. That’s what you see in the lead-in graphic for this story.

The whole shebang took nearly no time at all. And now, I’m happily working with the T14s through Remote Desktop Connection on my left-hand monitor, as I’m typing this blog post in the right-hand one. Exactly what I wanted.

According to Copilot, the same speedy transition applies to other up-licensing as well. With the right key change, it’s just as fast to get to Windows 11 Education or Windows 11 Enterprise versions as well. And FWIW, Windows 10 works the same way. Good-oh!

 

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Benchmarking, Hardware Reviews, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11

ThinkPad T14s Gen 5 Intake & First Impressions

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Last August, Lenovo sent me a similar ThinkPad. Turns out, it was the Snapdragon X equivalent of what I’ve got now — namely, the ThinkPad T14s Gen 5. This time around, it comes equipped with an Intel Core Ultra 5 125U, 16 GB RAM LPDDR5 RAM, and a 0.5TB Gen4 NVMe SSD. It’s not quite as impressive as its Snapdragon counterpart, but it does come with an online price of just over US$1200 at the Lenovo Store. It showed up yesterday afternoon here at Chez Tittel. Here, I’ll share info about the Think T14s Gen 5 intake & first impressions. TLDR summary: nifty little biz laptop.

Detailing ThinkPad T14s Gen 5 Intake & First Impressions

It’s still a thrill to unbox new Lenovo computers these days, thanks to their all-paper packages designed for quick, easy access. The first thing I noticed was the boot time (after I plugged the 65W USB-C charger in: the unit was at 0% charge). On first boot, it takes less than 10 seconds to get from power on to spinning balls (Task Manager reports “Last BIOS time” at 11.4 second), and less than 10 seconds more to get to the desktop. Closing the lid puts the unit immediately to sleep, and it takes less than 4 seconds to scan me with its IR Windows Hello camera and log me back in when I open it. Good-oh!

My recollection is that the Snapdragon X model was a little bit faster than this Intel Core Ultra 5 125U CPU. That said, the unit is pretty darn snappy, and does everything I ask it to do with verve and dispatch. CrystalDiskMark reports top speeds of ~7 GBps read/~5GBps write from its capable Gen5 SK Hynix SSD (random 4K r/w performance is 409/334 [QD32] and 65/129 [QD1] MBps). That’s on par with my beefiest test laptop — the big and beastly P16 Gen 1 Mobile Workstation.

I used PatchMyPC Home Updater to get most of my typical collection of tools and apps installed. The T14s did a nice job throughout, and the whole process took less than 20 minutes to complete. Then, I went to update Windows 11 24H2, as I’ll recite under the next heading…

Updating Windows 11 24H2 Takes Time

For some odd reason, WU installed a boatload of stuff when I did my usual “first boot” update check — 2 CUs, 23 drivers, the most recent MSRT, and various Defender updates (signatures and platform). This took long enough that it reminded me of pre Windows-7 days when installing Windows took nowhere near as long as catching up the OS image on updates after that first step was over. This was unusual, but not unheard of.

And now, I’ve got this nifty little unit ready to rock’n’roll for further inspection, testing and use. I’m glad to have it because I want to compare OTA Ethernet and GbE network file transfer to Intel’s Thunderbolt Share application. This PC gives me my vital “second Thunderbolt 4 PC” so I can check that out. Stay tuned!

 

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Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows Update

KB5053643 Kills Mouse, Keyboard

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Last Thursday, I downloaded and installed a new Preview CU for Windows 10 — namely KB55053634. After lunch Friday, I finally got around to rebooting to complete that process. Eventually, it succeeded. But first, just to make things incredibly exciting KB5053634 kills mouse, keyboard — my vital USB peripherals — dead. Here’s the story of what I had to do to bring those devices back to life, and actually log in to Windows 10.

KB5053643 Kills Mouse, Keyboard: Now What?

Because I couldn’t get past the lock screen without a valid input device, that turned out to be a little more vexing than one might guess. So first, of course, I rebooted again. Still no joy: the keyboard didn’t respond to keypresses (a good test on my Comfort Curve 4000 is to toggle the Function Lock or Scroll Lock keys because those also toggle handy little green indicator LEDs). Nor did a mouse click open the PIN input box as usual.

So I tried again. Still no dice. Then I thought: “maybe the device needs a cold, hard boot?” That means powering off the PSU, waiting 1-2 minutes, powering back up, and pressing the power button. And indeed, that did the trick. Once I went through that maneuver, the hardware got completely reset, reinitialized and enumerated. It was enough to restore my key USB peripherals to working order.

What (Would Have Been) Next?

If the cold boot or hard boot didn’t work, I’d have had to jump into UEFI, turn off Secure Boot, and then target bootable repair media to get something running on that PC. I’ve done it many times before and will no doubt do it again. But hey: I was glad not to have to do it this time. Cold, hard boot did the trick.

Makes me feel like I dodged a bullet. Remember to give that a try if you find yourself bereft of mouse and/or keyboard after installing a Windows update or upgrade. If you’re lucky like I was, that will bring the USB drivers back into play, and let your PC get back to work. Cheers!

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Device drivers, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11, Windows Update

Ghost in the Machine Needs Printout

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I have to chuckle when I read about these kinds of things. For much of the week I’ve been reading online (see list of articles near the end) about printers waking up and printing stuff on their own. On  Windows 11 PCs running Build 2263.4825, it seems that those with specific printers may start printing garbage output spontaneously. ICYMI, “ghost in the machine” is a British philosopher’s shorthand phrase for Descartes mind-body dualism. In this case, I’m twisting that metaphor further to impute independent action to a Windows print driver gone wrong. That’s why I aver that the Ghost in the Machine needs printout.

Why the Ghost in the Machine Needs Printout…

Newer printers (mid-2010s and afterward) that support driverless printing technologies such as Mopria  (a printer maker alliance that includes Canon, HP, Samsun and Xerox) and AirPrint (an Apple technology widely used by printer makers, too) also support dual-mode printers. For the ghost to start printing on its own, such devices much support both USB print and IPP over USB protocols (IPP is the Internet Printing Protocol). After updating Windows via KB5050092 (release 1/29/2025) such printers may start spewing pages, no user print requests nor print spooler files needed.

You can read about this specral phenomenon from a plethora of sources including:

BleepingComputer Recent Windows updates make USB printers print random text (March 12)

Windows Forum Windows 11 Printing Glitch (March 13)

PC Gamer Haunted printers turning on by themselves and printing nonsense (March 12)

I’m not the only industry follower who’s picked up on the “ghost in the machine” metaphor, apparently. And you thought Windows was a brute and soulless beast, I’ll bet…NOT! Anybody who works with the OS for any length of time knows full well it’s possessed of a host of spirits that range all the way from the most angelic to the deepest of deviltry. I’ll let you decide how magnificent or malefic this particular haunt might be for yourself.

One more thing: the uber-cutesy graphic that starts off this blog post is Copilot’s response to a prompt that reads “show a PC printer possessed by a ghost.” Another clear case of you get what you pay for, IMO.

 

 

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PowerShell-Based Defender Commands

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The other day, my Canary Channel X380 Yoga hung up on Windows Update. In other words, after  some kind of WU download difficulty, it wouldn’t download from those servers. There are lots of ways to unstick WU, but one of the easiest is to get Windows Defender to update. Personally, I prefer to use a single PowerShell command with no arguments or parameters, rather than navigating into Windows Security to see if that might help. Indeed, there is a plethora of Defender controls in PowerShell. The one I used is just a single instance in a collection of over a dozen items.

Finding PowerShell-Based Defender Commands

You can see the command I used to ask PowerShell to update Defender in the lead-in graphic. It’s named Update-MpSignature, and it takes no mandatory arguments or parameters. What you’re looking at there, in fact, is the general PowerShell Module Browser at MS Learn. It’s dialed into Defender commands, shown in the breadcrumbs up top: Learn/Windows/PowerShell/Defender. As you will soon find out, there is a baker’s dozen of such things there under this heading.

Other Defender Commands get their own listings, but also appear in a handy-dandy table (simplified contents reproduced verbatim below). Indeed, each one also has its individual command reference, for which you find links in said table.

 

Add-MpPreference
Get-MpComputerStatus Gets the status of antimalware software on the computer.
Get-MpPreference Gets preferences for the Windows Defender scans and updates.
Get-MpThreat Gets the history of threats detected on the computer.
Get-MpThreatCatalog Gets known threats from the definitions catalog.
Get-MpThreatDetection Gets active and past malware threats that Windows Defender detected.
Remove-MpPreference Removes exclusions or default actions.
Remove-MpThreat Removes active threats from a computer.
Set-MpPreference Configures preferences for Windows Defender scans and updates.
Start-MpScan Starts a scan on a computer.
Start-MpWDOScan Starts a Windows Defender offline scan.
Update-MpSignature Updates the antimalware definitions on a computer.

As you can see there are lots of interesting and sometimes useful ways to interact with Defender in PowerShell. They’re worth exploring and getting to know. I used a simple one to unstick WU this week, but there are lots of other tools here, ready to help you manipulate Defender in Windows Terminal or via automation scripts. Have at it!

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Packing Portable Water-Cooled PC

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When I first started working in networking back in 1988, I carried a Compaq Portable III PC to customer consultations. The rig was unique at the time, because it could accommodate the full-length PC board needed to host the Excelan TCP/IP Ethernet adapter. (It ran the protocol stack on an 80186 processor to offload the 80286 CPU.) When I looked up that unit online I was amazed to see it weighed 9.8 Kg (~20 lbs)! What provoked my recollection? Reading about a new Kickstarter initiative at Tom’s Hardware, I wondered if packing portable water-cooled PC would be as vexing as that old Compaq model was back in the day.

What Would Packing Portable Water-Cooled PC Be Like?

Models discussed on the Kickstarter project page weigh in at 4.8 to 5.2 Kg — that’s around half the old Compaq model. Ditto for the dimensions, too. The Compaq measures about 41 x 19.2 x 24.8 cm. The new ultra high performance integration liquid cooled laptop (UHPILCL) measures out at 34x42x3 cm. It’s much more like a big, fat laptop than the portable sewing machine the Compaq resembled.

Indeed, I remember coming home from a trip after it had snowed and lugging the unit around while I tried to recognize my car under its white blanket. Hopefully, the UHLILCL won’t be quite as big a burden.

Who Would Want One, and Why?

The target audience for this mini-ITX based DIY luggable is gamers or other high-end users who need a high-performance CPU/GPU to take on the road. I can see it in the cards that it might host AI models or other high-end runtime environments for demos and such, as well as pushing frames fast for 3D games, CAD, and simulations that require speedy, complex rendering.

I like the idea that buyers might be able to choose their components, and populate such PCs with lower-end Xeon CPUs and up to 128GB of DDR5 RAM. Because the rig is water cooled and requires ionized water (the home page says nothing about how much water, exactly, it uses) I’m curious about how hard it is to fill and drain. Water and integrated circuits seldom mix well.

Details are still pretty scarce, including pricing and availability/timeframe. But hey, it’s an interesting proposition. And it gave me a nice jaunt down memory lane. And Kickstarter is nothing if it’s not a gauge of public willingness to back a proposition via funding. It should be even more interesting to see if this proposed project gets off the ground.

One More Thing…

As I think about this unit and what “laptop” typically means, I must observe that it will HAVE to plug into A/C to work. When people hear the l-word (laptop, that is) they usually think of something that can run — for a short time, at least — on battery. I don’t think that’s happening on a unit with a mini-ITX mobo and a high-end GPU. Notice in the specs, there’s nothing about battery capacity or life. I’m sure that’s deliberate…

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Insider stuff, Microsoft 365, Remote Desktop (RDP), WED Blog

Windows App Replaces Remote Desktop May 2025

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Based on other recent MS announcements, looks like May is “retirement month” for multiple apps and applications. The latest item scheduled for a retirement party (but no gold watch) is Remote Desktop. Yesterday, the Windows IT blog featured an item entitled “Windows App to replace Remote Desktop…” to announce the changeover. Interestingly, the same blog post also advises continued use of Remote Desktop Connection (RDC) for plain vanilla remote access. When the Windows App replaces Remote Desktop (May 2025), RDC remains a primary remote access tool.

Once Windows App Replaces Remote Desktop, Then What?

The kicker for some users — including your humble author — lurks in the tag line on the Windows App page in the MS Store. It reads “Requires work or school account,” which means not just a Microsoft Account (MSA) per se, but one with Entra ID capabilities and attributes. Indeed, most people get those through work or school (hence, the tagline) because it costs upwards of US$20 monthly for a properly-qualified Microsoft 365 subscription.

Those who want to use the Windows App must provide an appropriate and qualified MSA to use it. I’m still pondering whether I want to shoulder those costs. But when May comes and goes, none of us, across all MSAs, will have Remote Desktop to kick around any more.

Here in Windows-World, “plus ça change” (in English: “the more things change, the more they stay the same”) is not just a catch-phrase, it’s a way of life. That said, it looks like May 2025 will be a little more change-forward than other months this year. Cheers!

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