Windows update broke Wi-Fi and taskbar disappeared
Hello, after the latest Windows updates my PC started to have serious problems. On January 30, 2026, Windows installed an update and Wi-Fi stopped working completely. To try to fix this, I installed the latest available updates, but the problem remains. After this update, I also noticed that the taskbar has completely disappeared. Details: Wi-Fi does not work at all Ethernet connection still works correctly The PC seems to work normally If I open programs using Command Prompt, they run correctly The taskbar is completely missing Network settings problems: In Control Panel → Network and Sharing Center, the network status shows “Unknown” The page also shows the message: “The service to detect this status is disabled.” If I click “Change adapter settings”, nothing happens (no window opens) Only “Change advanced sharing settings” and “Media streaming options” links work All other links in Network and Sharing Center do not respond Additional important test: I uninstalled the latest Windows update. The taskbar reappears, but Wi-Fi still does not work When I reinstall the update, the taskbar disappears again Because of this, I cannot view, enable, or modify any network adapters. What can I do to restore: The Wi-Fi connection The taskbar / Windows Explorer Thank you for your help.
Windows 11 on Unsported Harware Not Getting Updates
Hi, I trust someone can help. I have unsupported hardware, no TPM or secure boot. I used the Rufus method to update Windows 10 Pro to Win11 (24H2) in January 2025. All worked well until fairly recently updates failed to install i.e. "Windows 11, version 24H2 (repair version) Failed to install on 14/01/2026 - 0xc1900200". When I try to fix this I get the message that I have unsupported hardware. I have just used the enablement package (KB5054156) and successfully updated from 24H2 to 25H2. However when I check for latest updates this still fails and get the same message that my hardware is unsupported. Can anyone suggest how I can solve this to successfully get updates. Would doing an "in place" install using the Rufus method sort this problem i.e. reinstalling 25H2 over the existing 25H2? All help gratefully received.
Windows 11 23h2 update or in place upgrade to 24h2 or 25h2 fails on reboot
For quite some time, I was trying to upgrade my home computer to 24h2, and it would always fail on reboot after reaching 100%. I received the standard stop code that points to a bad driver. Boot failed in the safe_os phase 0xc1900101. I've kept my system up to date, driver-wise, and none of them are ever listed as problematic. Secure Boot, Core Isolation, Memory Integrity, etc. are all active and have been for years. Now I'm trying to do an in place upgrade to 25h2, and, to no one's surprise, it is failing in the same manner. The system starts to boot, then either spits me into the recovery environment, where I have to uninstall the latest update, or it rolls back to 23h2 on its own. The only drivers I have that are older are for my HighPoint SSD7505s, and they're still the latest versions available. I built this system about 4 years ago, and it should be compatible with the latest version of Windows 11 Pro. The RTX3090 Ti and Samsung 850 Pro are left over from older systems. The basic specs are: Asus WRX80E Sage Wifi II AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro 5965wx 256GB 3200MHz DDR 4 RAM Nvidia RTX3090 Ti 8x 2TB Seagate Firecuda 530 NVME in a RAID10 across two Highpoint 7505s (currently empty after using it for bulk storage for a few years, as I intend to migrate my programs over to it and turn the D7 into bulk storage, instead - swap things around.) 2TB Seagate Firecuda 530 (current boot drive) 6.4TB Intel D7 P5620 u.2 (most programs) 400GB Intel DC 5800x u.2 (page file, scratch disk for Adobe programs) 1TB Samsung 850 Pro SATA3 I am running Bitdefender Antivirus Plus, though I have uninstalled it and rebooted before attempting updates, either the online Windows Update path, or Upgrade in Place. I make sure to disconnect all unnecessary peripherals before attempting the update/upgrade. I have to use a USB2.0 extender cable for my mouse and keyboard, as the system is located in a different room. It has no driver, and is merely an actively-powered cable. I have no devices listed as problems, uninstalled, or disabled in Device Manager. Event Viewer does not contain any driver-related warnings or errors. I am running the most current BIOS revision for the motherboard. The system is not overclocked, and I have over 1TB free on the boot drive. I've run DISM and SFC commands, and have found no corruption or errors. The Windows Update troubleshooter is useless, as it provides no actionable information. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!The constant decline of Windows 11
As already reported in many articles, blog posts and community fora, 2025 has been the worst year for Windows 11. I have been using Windows 11 since day one and I always tried to keep a positive eye on updates, glitches and peculiar features. But I think I have had enough. I see no reason why I should put up with updates that break things instead of fixing them and welcome features that I never asked for and literally offer no true value to my work with Windows whatsoever. One notable example, is how taking screenshots sometimes works and sometimes does not. Right now, the notification of the captured image only shows up at the fourth attempt and I neither know why nor how to fix it. It used to work for some time. Another example is the badly designed and heavy and slow Windows applications like the new Outlook and Teams. Both are good examples of poorly implemented applications with confusing and cluttered interfaces, lack of features and inconsistent behavior. Finally, the updated Start menu is a total mess for me. I do not like it at all. To be honest, I much prefer the Spotlight feature of macOS since the Start menu was never of true value to me. I liked the classic layout of Windows 7 but now it is a cluttered feature, badly designed with low efficiency and it has become sluggish, too. I could go on with the Settings mess, the worthless updates, the unwanted AI features etc, etc. Instead, I'll just say I am reverting back to Windows 10. I am looking forward to a chores-free weekend to roll back. I wish Microsoft would change course and come up with a modern, efficient and robust operating system in the near future.
What to do if I failed to install security updates since Dec 2025?
So back in December the security update KB5072033 failed to install in my computer repeatedly. The update was said to force AppXSVC to autorun and eat up RAM, which causes lags that I don't want to happen, so I was waiting for further updates to change this. Now I'm hearing news that not installing that previous update will make the computer unstable, and will malfunction if I install the January update KB5074109. So what am I supposed to do now? Wait for future updates to fix this? Try to install KB5072033 again?
Windows Chat support,Microsoft Store & Windows activation Issues.
The Microsoft Store app on my freshly installed Windows 11 Pro 23H2, is not opening since I could not activate my Windows 11 using my digital signature which was connected to my previous version of Windows 10 that subsequently updated to Windows 11 Pro 23 H2. Neither online chat support is accessible nor their phone callback is working though I have placed three callbacks out of which one was cancelled after 3 days! In the meantime, I am unable to activate Windows 11 though I have tried several methods including buying a new activation key! The new activation key also failed to connect to my digital account. Different types of Errors are coming. Although I have purchased a new product key, an error saying the product key was used on another device. Searching for any such device left me blank as no such devices could be traced! Hence, I am unable to activate Windows 11 for which I wanted to contact support, but that also failed! What is going on and what is the solution to my problems? I have also tried to activate with my old product key which I used for my Windows 10 PC for the first time. I have made no hardware changes while upgrading to Windows 11 Pro 23H2. Then what is the problem I cannot understand!
Bluetooth driver disappears after every restart/sleep on Windows 11
Dear Support Team, I am writing this complaint out of sheer frustration after enduring a critical Bluetooth driver issue on my Windows 11 laptop for an unreasonably long time. Every single time I restart my system or wake it up from sleep, the Bluetooth driver completely disappears from the system. It is not just disabled — it is gone. Bluetooth vanishes from Device Manager, settings, and system controls as if the hardware itself never existed. The only way to restore Bluetooth functionality is to reinstall the driver manually every time. This issue occurs: After every restart After waking the system from sleep Randomly during normal usage The frequency is so high that I have been forced to keep a Bluetooth driver installer shortcut permanently on my desktop — something that feels absolutely absurd for a modern operating system in 2025. Let me be very clear: This is not a user error This is not a one-off bug This is not acceptable behaviour for a premium Windows device I have tried: Reinstalling drivers multiple times Using official OEM drivers Updating Windows fully Disabling power management options Troubleshooting through Device Manager Running system diagnostics None of these provides a permanent fix. The core issue is painfully obvious: Windows 11 (or its driver/power management stack) is failing to reliably retain or initialise the Bluetooth driver across restarts and sleep cycles. This is a basic OS-level responsibility. As a long-time Windows user, I find it shocking that in a system where I spent a considerable amount, I am dealing with an issue that feels more appropriate for an unstable experimental build, not a consumer-ready operating system. To be completely honest, this experience has pushed me to the point where I am seriously considering abandoning Windows altogether and switching to macOS, despite having used Windows on my personal machines for years. The idea of paying that amount again just to escape such basic reliability problems is becoming more appealing than continuing to fight my own laptop daily. This is not just a “bug report” — this is a usability failure that affects: Work productivity Meetings Audio devices Input devices Everyday usability I expect: A clear acknowledgement of the issue A concrete explanation of why this happens A permanent fix, not temporary workarounds Or an official statement admitting the limitation I am documenting this issue publicly and will be sharing it across relevant forums and feedback channels unless a meaningful resolution is provided. Windows users should not have to reinstall core drivers every day to use basic hardware features. I look forward to a serious response. Sincerely, A very frustrated but still hopeful Windows user
How to update Teams without logging in
I am responsible for some thirty Windows 11 PCs and laptops. They all have Teams installed, I presume because that is what Windows does, but only about five users - not including me - have Teams accounts. So how do I update Teams? In particular, I am concerned about this vulnerability: https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2025-53783 I am using ESET Protect to tell me whether the vulnerability is present on a device. The advisory itself has no security update, and just links to an article that says Teams will update itself. That has not happened. Windows Update is no help. There has been one feature update and four quality updates since that advisory came out, and none have resolved the issue. On some installs there is a three-dots button on the toolbar, and I can go to settings, and update from there. But the vulnerability is still there. Is it because Teams is installed on a per-user basis, and I am only updating one user? Most installs do not have the three-dots button, and I would need to log in to do an update, which I cannot do without a Teams account. Teams runs in the background, so users who have no Teams log in, who never use Teams, are (I assume) still vulnerable, because the out-of-date software is always running. So how do I update Teams?Windows updates, can't view PDFs in preview pane
Every windows update I've gotten since about October has disabled my ability to view certain PDFs in the preview pane of Windows explorer on both my computers. The computers are different and all the updates are different. I was keeping track of the update file numbers as I was uninstalling them, so I was keeping track. Why is the happening? Will I never be able to keep an update ever again? I have to uninstall the updates multiple times a week! This is insane. Both computer are running windows 11.Why oobe\bypassnro Not Working for Windows 11 25H2
Hi all, I managed to install windows 11 with a local account by applying the oobe\bypassnro trick. It worked like a charm in the past with Windows 11 22H2, 23H2 and 24H2 installation as far as I have tried. However, it seems this bug was patched by Microsoft and oobe\bypassnro not working for Windows 11 25H2. Is there any other methods I can try in order to install Windows 11 without a Microsoft account? Thank you
