Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 10

Fixing Windows 10 WinKey-X

October 12, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

I don’t remember anymore how I shot myself in the foot this particular time. All I know is that I somehow removed all traces of PowerShell from the WinKey+X menu on my Windows10 production PC. The lead-in graphic shows that menu from my ancient Surface Pro 3, also still running Windows 10. Recently, I’ve found myself fixing Windows 10 Winkey-X because I want it to show Windows Terminal.

After Some Fumbles, I’m Fixing Windows 10 WinKey-X

If you search on “customizing WinKey+X menu” you’ll find lots of information and advice available. Initially, I was beguiled by Sergey Tkachenko’s WinX Editor. I should’ve known better: it hasn’t been updated since 2017.

A key ingredient in modifying the WinKey+X menu, as it turns out, turns on using the latest version of Rafael Rivera’s hashlnk.exe program. Basically, it creates hash values and associated them with menu shortcuts, so the OS treats the entries in the following path correctly:

%LocalAppdata%\Microsoft\Windows\WinX

The sub-folder “Group3” is where my specific shortcut had to go. But it didn’t work without using the latest (2.0) version of hashlnk. And because WinX Editor doesn’t use that version, it doesn’t work, either.

TenForums to the Rescue

As with many other topics in the Windows world, I found my fix in the TenForums Tutorials. This particular one is called Add Custom Shortcuts to Win+X Quick Link Menu in Windows 10. I followed its guidance, step-by-step, and got an admin version of Windows Terminal installed in my WinKey+X menu without undue difficulty.

As is often the case in fixing Windows issues, it took much longer to find the right solution than it did to implement it. I think we’re talking about an hour-plus of fumbling around and failed attempts before I turned to my unusually reliable and intelligible TenForums resource. Sigh. That’s the way things go around here sometimes….

Here’s what my Winkey+X menu looks like now, with my desired entry up top.

After going through the motions I get a Windows Terminal entry with admin privileges (reads “Term (Admin)”).

I have long been a proponent of Ten Forums and ElevenForum tutorials. This doesn’t change that stance at all. In fact, it strengthens it!

Backup/Restore, Hardware Reviews, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Uncategorized, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11

HDDs Still Have Their Uses

October 11, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Hmmmm. Just saw a fascinating story at Neowin.net. It provides links to some low-cost deals for hard disk drives (HDDs) that range in size from 3 to 14 TB, with prices from US$60 (3TB) to US$210 (14 TB). I’m not endorsing the brand (WD) or the deals (listed from Amazon and — in some instances — Newegg). But I am amazed at just how cheap conventional hard disks can be today. And because HDDs still have their uses — particularly for archiving and spare backups — buying may make sense.

Economics Also Verify That HDDs Still Have Their Uses

I’m struck by the contrast between HDD and NVMe prices, especially for 4 and 8 TB devices. Looking at Amazon, I see that 4TB NVMe drives go for US$460 and up, with most top-end devices just below or over US$600. When you can find them (not easy), 8TB devices cost from just under US$1,200 to around US$1,500 or so.

The comparison to HDD is pretty stark. The Neowin story cites prices of US$70 for 4, and US$130 for 8 TB. Do the math to figure out the ratios. The 4TB NVMes cost between 6.57 and 8.57 times as much as their HDD counterparts. 8TB models run between 9.23 and 11.53 times as much.

Of course, denser solid-state devices are much more expensive to make. Though higher-capacity HDDs have more platters, achieving denser storage doesn’t magnify costs anywhere near as much. In fact, the HDD cost increment for going from 8TB to 10TB is US$30, and from 8TB to 14TB US$80. That clearly shows the incremental cost of storage is much, much cheaper for HDDs than SSDs.

But given the mind-blowing costs for higher capacity NVMe devices, they’re not going to replace HDDs completely any time soon. They simply cost too much to justify wholesale switchovers. Nobody’s going to use HDDs for serious, real-time workloads any more. They have no place as system drives, either. But for other applications where high capacity trumps I/O performance, they still have a vital role to play. And that explains why I still have over 40TB of spinning storage myself, much of it idle as “backups for my backups.”

Cool Tools, Hardware Reviews, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11

ThinkPad Universal Thunderbolt4 Dock

October 10, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

It must be because I asked Lenovo for gear to test Thunderbolt4 and USB4. Last week another unexpected and unnanounced device showed up at the door. This time, it was a brand-new ThinkPad Universal Thunderbolt4 Dock. From what I’ve seen so far it has a lot going for it — especially price (relatively speaking, that is).

Why Is TB4/USB4 Gear So Costly?

Before I dig into the details on the mostly excellent ThinkPad Universal Thunderbolt4 dock, I must rant a bit. I’ve got 3 TB4 docks here at the house right now. The Lenovo unit is the cheapest by US$70-plus (that’s a good thing). But all of them cost over US$300, and two of them are at or over the US$400 mark. That stings!

I’ve been looking at a lot of NVMe enclosures that support USB4 lately, too (they work with TB4 controllers, BTW). These puppies cost even more. That means US$80 – 100 more than the cost of decent-to-high quality USB3.1 NVMe enclosures. I’m talking US$30-50 versus US$130-160. That’s a big difference!

One usually pays a premium to climb onto the bleeding edge of technology. And right now, TB4/USB4 is as fast as external devices get. Given a PC that supports these interfaces, I still don’t understand why climbing aboard this latest technology wave incurs such a hefty buy-in. Sigh.

More About ThinkPad Universal Thunderbolt4 Dock

Now that I’ve set the stage for describing and exploring this device, more of what I have to say should make sense. Indeed, this Lenovo dock is a relative bargain among all the TB4 docks I’ve tested so far. That is, with an MSRP of US$322, it costs US$77 less than the Belkin Pro Thunderbolt 4 dock. It enjoys the same price differential when compared to the CalDigit TS4 dock but that device keeps selling out, and is only immediately obtained on eBay for US$500-600!

Thus, the Lenovo Device has a definite price advantage in this very narrow product niche. See this Amazon Search for a fairly good list of the whole product range right now. From what I can tell, Lenovo offers the best price currently available for these kinds of devices.

Here’s a short list of ThinkPad Universal TB4 Dock features and functions (see product page for complete specs):

Handles up to 4 external monitors, up to 8K total resolution (1x8K display @ 30Hz or 4x4K display @ 60 Hz via 2xfull-size DP 1.4, 1xfull-size HDMI 2.1, 1xUSB-C)
2 40Gbps Thunderbolt4 ports (one for computer in, one for other uses)
4xUSB-A 3.1 ports and 1xUSB-C (may be used for video, as already indicated)
135W external power brick, up to 100W available for charging
RJ-45 GbE (Intel I225-LMvP circuitry)
Audio mini-jack for headphones or external audio hookup
Universal computer lock port for attaching locked cable
Dimensions 220x80x30 mm (8.66×3.15×1.18″)

The Lenovo dock even downloads and handles its own Windows drivers with reasonable aplomb and dispatch. I found it loaded up its own USB Audio driver (under Sound, video and game controllers). It also updated the local Thunderbolt controller driver to a newer version after hook-up.

Stacking Up the Hubs

My testing so far puts all 3 docks — Lenovo, CalDigit, and Belkin — into the same overall performance range for USB4 and Thunderbolt 4 devices. That said, the CalDigit device offers 18 ports including GbE and 2.5 GbE RJ-45 networking hook-ups and SD flash device slots. If you can find one and need that extra functionality, that may make it worth the extra cost. Likewise, the Belkin device also supports a full-size SD slot and dual USB-A 2.0 slots, which may or may not make a different.

By comparison, I’d give the Lenovo device a “Best Buy” rating right now. If you don’t need SD support or lots of (different) USB-A ports, it can handle what you need. I have no difficulty using it as a docking station for a Lenovo X12 hybrid laptop with external mouse, keyboard, and two or three external storage devices. It also works well with HDMI or DP to drive an external Dell U2717 monitor.

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Remote Desktop (RDP), WED Blog, Windows 11

Recent 22H2 RDP Mystery Widely Reported

October 7, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

For a while there, I was wondering if I’d done something wrong. I’d just gotten RDP working on my P360 Ultra. But after upgrading to Windows 11 22H2, it stopped working again. Annoyingly, it showed the same symptoms I’d just been able to fix — connection briefly made, then dropped. But nothing I tried was able to return it to work. In frustration, I switched to TeamViewer free (which worked properly no sooner than installed on client and server PCs). Now, I’m reading my recent 22H2 RDP mystery widely reported in the Windows media. Here’s a taste, from MSPowerUser.

Info on Recent 22H2 RDP Mystery Widely Reported

As I read the symptoms described in reporting on the 22H2 RDP issues, I thought to myself: “This sounds familiar.” And indeed, the error message shown strongly supports one of the possible outcomes to which that language leads:

installing the update caused their Remote Desktop on Windows 11 system to fail to connect (or connect only to disconnect or freeze later).

For the P360, the connection would briefly appear as the RDP title bar at the top of my second monitor. It would, however, stay black. In 10 seconds or so, the error message from the lead-in graphic would pop up. Sigh.

Why Did I Drive Myself Crazy?

The funny thing about this error message — and it’s definitely not funny, ha-ha — is that it’s the same darn one I had just fought through and fixed the week before. In that case, it turned out to be a registry hack that fixed my problem.

I jumped to the erroneous conclusion that my old problem had come back, and spent a good 2-3 hours trying to fix it. I knew it had to be something in the registry, but I couldn’t figure out what. Then, recognizing it was taking too much time to troubleshoot, I simply switched over to TeamViewer.

As it turns out, that was exactly the right strategy. Apparently a LOT of people are having RDP troubles with 22H2. So that workaround comes recommended for others who might find themselves in the same boat. OTOH, the MSPowerUser story suggests another reghack that may see some users clear to restored RDP access. I might have to try it, and see if it works for the P360 Ultra.

And that’s the way things sometimes go, here in WindowsWorld. If and when this gets fixed, I’ll report back. Stay tuned!

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

WU Starts Windows 11 22H2 Delivery

October 6, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

OK, then. When I made the rounds of my PCs this morning, the Lenovo X1 Extreme got the offer through Windows Update. That’s right: for me, WU starts Windows 11 22H2 delivery right now. You can see what that offer looks like in the lead-in graphic.

When WU Starts Windows 11 22H2 Delivery, Then What?

Even though WU reports that “You’re up to date” as shown, a “Download & install” button is provided for 22H2. After clicking said button, it took about 5 minutes to download. The GUI-based install took another 25 minutes. It took 2 minutes to cycle through update processing before the first reboot. Post-GUI install took 6 minutes more, and then 2 added minutes to get to the intial desktop. At 35 minutes in all, that’s longer than I remember the Windows 10 to Windows 11 upgrade taking.

At the end of the process, Winver shows me running 22H2, Build 22621.521. A quick follow-up check for updates shows a Defender item, and KB5017271 (.NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8.1 CU). I run those, after shooting this screencap:

Windows 22H2 Status at Chez Tittel

What about my other production Windows 11 PCs? The Lenovo P16 Mobile Workstation is still on safeguard hold (Intel SST Audio drivers). I’d already force-upgraded the P360 Ultra, the Ryzen 5800X PC, and the Lenovo Yoga 7i. That means all my production 11 PCs are as upgraded as they get for the moment. It’s a good place to be. I think I’ll enjoy it for a short while, at least…

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

P360 Ultra Gets Second NVMe

October 5, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

A couple of days ago, I praised the interior design of the Lenovo P360 Ultra SFF PC (link). I just had to remove the GPU to access the second NVMe slot on an Asrock B500 Extreme4 motherboard last week. Let’s just say it wasn’t incredibly easy (and some expletives were involved). That really made me appreciate an install that required less than two minutes all the way around. But now that the P360 Ultra gets second NVMe, I want to report on the results.

When P360 Ultra Gets Second NVMe, Speed Abounds

What you see as the lead graphic for this story is a pair of CrystalDiskMark results. To the left, the internal C: furnished with the PC (a Samsung 1TB OEM drive: MSVL21T0HCLR). To the right, the internal D: I installed (WD Black SN850).

First, let’s look at those results. The Samsung drive enjoys an 18% edge on the sequential read (queue depth 32, single thread) and a 33% gain on random read (queue depth 1, single thread). The WD Black comes out ahead on all other readings.

That’s not surprising, given that the WD Black SN850 is a newer, more capable drive. But those results also speak to the notion that one should definitely populate open NVMe slots if speedy storage is helpful to the workloads a PC must handle.

Same WD Black drive in a USB4 external NVMe enclosure: much slower.

Internal vs. External NVMe

The preceding screengrab shows CrystalDiskMark results for the same drive, but housed in an external NVMe enclosure. It happens to be a USB4 enclosure, and represents as much speed as I’ve been able to get from an external NVMe drive. It’s significantly slower across the board, but still not bad.

If I drop the same drive down to a USB 3.1 enclosure, it runs at standard UASP speeds (at or under 1000 in the top 4 cells). Interestingly the bottom four cells don’t change much for either USB4 or USB3.1. Backup speeds don’t change that much, either. That’s why I’m not convinced the USB4 enclosure is worth a $100 premium (it improves backup speeds by 30 seconds, give or take).

One More Thing…

If you’re buying an NVMe drive for an external enclosure, there’s no need to spend big on a fast, capable storage device. It won’t be able to run full out because the USB link (either 3 or 4) can’t keep up with top-end NVMe speeds. As the preceding CrystalDiskMark chart shows, you can’t come near the 6-7 GBps or so performance that top-end NVMes deliver these days.

On the other hand, if you’re going to put that device into an M.2 slot INSIDE the PC or laptop, that’s a whole ‘nother story. Then, you should buy as fast as you can stand to pay for — assuming, that is, that the PC or laptop can make full use of those capabilities.

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11

Advanced Sharing Settings Leaves Control Panel

October 4, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Here’s an interesting observation. It’s consistent with Microsoft’s long-term migration of functions from Control Panel into the Settings app. I first noticed it on the P360 Ultra (running version 22H2). And I just confirmed it — and took the lead-in screencap — on an X380 running Dev Channel build 25211.1010. Indeed, it shows that Advanced Sharing Settings leaves Control Panel, and runs within the Settings app.

Why Advanced Sharing Settings Leaves Control Panel

As a further point of confirmation, if you click “Change advanced sharing settings” in Control Panel in 22H2 versions, the old control is nowhere in evidence. It now opens the Settings-based pane instead. Looks like this functionality is entirely gone from Control Panel now.

On the plus side, you can expand all three types of sharing options (Private, Guest or Public, and All Networks) at the same time. That’s what’s showing in the lead-in screencap, in fact.

Looking at the old-style Control Panel equivalent in Windows 10 right now, the functionality of old (CP-based) and new (Settings-based) incarnations seems otherwise unchanged.

Could This Change Be News to Some?

Here’s where things get interesting. I searched Google for “advanced sharing settings now in Settings app.” I see no mention of this move online anywhere just yet. I must admit, it came as a surprise to me, too.

It does not apply to Windows 10 at all, nor to Windows 11 21H2 or earlier versions (I checked). Feel free to check your own installations. If you see anything interesting — or different from what I’m reporting here — please post a comment.

But time marches on. And so, apparently, also does the steady migration of functionality from Control Panel to the Settings app. What’s next, I wonder…

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

P360 Ultra Is Beautiful Inside

October 3, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Holy mackerel! I just popped open the Lenovo P360 Ultra to check out its interior. I’m completely blown away. Starting with a protracted period for Tom’s Hardware in the early 2000s, I built and reviewed several dozen PCs for them. Over the years, I’ve laid hands on the insides of dozens of other PCs, and as many laptops. When I say the P360 Ultra is beautiful inside, I mean it. I’ve never seen a PC — full-sized or SFF — as well engineered for easy interior access as this one.

What P360 Ultra Is Beautiful Inside Means

The only tool I had to use when accessing anything inside the P360 Ultra was a pair of needle-nosed pliers. But a pen would have done just as well. To mount a second NVMe SSD, I had to pop a retaining clip. It required modest, well-directed force, but was easy to do.

The unit opens easily with a single lever release on the back. That release is boxed in red in the lead-in graphic for this story. Pull it down, and use it to pull the interior free of the case. That’s it.

Inside the case, customers have easy and immediate access to two of its four SODIMM memory slots. Getting to the SSD cooler is equally easy. There’s a nice YouTube video that takes a visual tour of the whole interior. Better still, Lenovo has a whole series of maintenance videos that show all the important stuff, item by item.

Where Did I Just Go Inside the P360?

I checked out all the stops along the way. Indeed, it would be dead easy to add two more memory modules to the current configuration (which has a single 32GB SODIMM). I popped up the cooler from the SSD area with a single catch release. I watched the Lenovo video to learn how to release the retaining pin from the second, open SSD slot. Then I inserted the WD Black SN850 I bought last week, returning the retaining pin into its closed position and buttoned the case back up.

The cooler that covers the side-by-side SSD slots comes loose with a single catch (fingertip barely showing at mid right). Pop the clip, drop in the drive, and repeat in reverse. Took me about 30 seconds, all told.

I’m happy to report that new drive came up instantly on the next reboot. The BIOS obligingly beeped to let me know something had changed, but the whole process was dead easy. Tomorrow, I’ll write about the amazing results from using the WD Black drive internally.

A Usability Triumph

As I said earlier, I’ve stuck my hands in a lot of PCs and laptops. That includes numerous SFF PCs, of which I’ve built several for use here at Chez Tittel. My wife uses a Dell 7080 Micro as her daily beater, in fact. I’ve NEVER seen a PC as well engineered for access and upgrade as this one. It’s amazing. Watch the aforelinked videos; you’ll see exactly what I mean. Astounding!!

My hat’s off to the P360 engineering team. While they marvel at my bald, gleaming head, I’m still marveling at their great work.

Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Networking, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11

Advanced IP Scanner Worth Using

September 30, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

For years now, I’ve been a huge fan of Nir Sofer’s software tools. Along the way, I’ve often used his NetBIOS Scanner (NetBScanner). It shows me which IP addresses Windows PCs occupy. Two weeks ago, I noticed PatchMyPC supports a tool named Advanced IP Scanner. I’ve now tried it out. I can say I totally find Advanced IP Scanner worth using. It appears as this story’s lead graphic, in fact.

This NetBScanner output shows only Windows and other devices with NetBIOS names; Advanced IP Scanner (top) shows EVERYTHING IP.

If Advanced IP Scanner Worth Using, What About NetBScanner?

Once I started using the former, I immediately saw the limitations of the latter. Simply put, NetBScanner shows only 8 entries; Advanced IP scanner shows 18. It even includes devices that lack NetBIOS names but participate in the LAN (e.g. my ASUS WAP, my thermostats, and my TV). Better still, it shows the IP addresses that some of my PCs (laptops, mostly) use for Wi-Fi and GbE, along with which one is live at present and which one is unused (e.g. X380).

There’s more: as I was troubleshooting my PING and RDP issues earlier this week, I learned to make use of the right-click tools it offers for devices whose IP addresses it shows. You can access its maker’s own Radmin utility to jump directly into its version of remote administration of anything showing.

To me, though, the right-click Tools menu is both interesting and helpful. Shown above this paragraph, it lets you run a variety of commands in a cmd.exe window against the highlighted item. I used it to run PING tests point-to-point on my LAN and eventually got everything working. It also turns out to be a handy way to launch RDP as well.

Remember: Cools Tools Rule

I’ve come to like this free, informative and easy-to-use utility enough to add it to my top tier Windows tools collection. I call these “Cool Tools.” For me, they are essential items in my administration and troubleshooting toolbox. If you try Advanced IP Scanner out, I predict you’ll want to add it to your lineup, too.

Cool Tools, Insider stuff, USB devices, WED Blog, Windows 11

WD Black SN850 SSD Heatshield Bites Me

September 29, 2022 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

It’s sometimes said: “It’s the little things that get you.” Boy, was that true for my latest SSD purchase. Alas, as shown in the lead-in photo, I accidentally ordered a version with heatshield. It’s pretty impressive. Formed of solid aluminum, it’s least 5mm tall. It upped the cost by US$30, too. Even so, the WD Black SN850 SSD heatshield bites me — or my deployment plans — right in the hindquarters.

How WD Black SN850 SSD Heatshield Bites Me

Why is this a problem? Well, I’d planned on emplacing the SSD in an NVMe enclosure. Such enclosures, however, only accommodate circuit boards, not massive (and thick) heatshields.

What I needed, in fact, was the barebones version (image above). Costs US$99.50, and fits an NVMe enclosure just fine. I guess that’s what I get for giving into techno-lust. Amazon’s one-click ordering gave no time for thought. Sigh. I blame the government…

We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Heatshield…

A little poking around online showed me that I was not the only buyer so surprised. Another party confirmed the heatshield would come off (but only destructively). Caution was my watchword.

Armed with a pair of needle-nose pliers, I carefully bent the heatshield away from the PCB. Next stop: Disk Management, for new drive setup. Worked! Happily, here are the results in File Explorer from my cheapo new NVMe enclosure.

Live and learn, I hope. Going forward, I’ll read my product details more carefully. Gosh, perhaps I can avoid the same mistake in future. We’ll see!