The New Start Menu Is a Perfect Example of Microsoft Forcing Unwanted “Features” on Users
I’m posting this because I’m beyond fed up with the direction Microsoft is taking with Windows, and the latest Start Menu redesign is really unwelcomed. Whoever decided to implement the new “All” section with forced Categories, Grid/List views, and a permanently attached app list seems to have completely forgotten something fundamental: this is my Start Menu, not theirs. I’ve already turned off every bit of clutter I can — Recommended, recent files, “suggestions,” all of it. Yet Windows still insists on injecting an enormous block of UI I never asked for and will never use. I don’t care whether it’s Categories, List, or Grid. I don’t want any of it. I want the Start menu to show ONLY the pinned items I chose, nothing else, the same way it worked for years. But now? Microsoft has deliberately removed the ability to collapse, hide, disable, or eliminate this lower “All” section entirely. It wastes space, disrupts workflow muscle memory, and provides zero value for users who already know exactly what they need. It’s an unwanted visual and functional takeover of the one UI element that should be the most personal and customizable. This is exactly the type of “change for the sake of change” that pushes long‑time Windows users away. It feels like decisions are being made by people who never actually use Windows for real work, and who believe their design experiments matter more than respecting users’ preferences. I’m tired of being forced into UI experiments I never opted into. I’m tired of updates that remove more choice than they add. And I’m tired of Microsoft ignoring the most universal feedback users keep giving: Stop shoving new UI elements in our faces and give us back full control over our own operating system. If Microsoft wants people to stay enthusiastic about Windows instead of increasingly frustrated with every forced redesign, then we need true user‑controlled customization — not “pick between three unwanted layouts,” not “view modes,” not scripts, not policies, not third‑party hacks. Just a simple, basic ability to hide what we don’t want. Give us the Start Menu we choose, not the Start Menu you decide we should have.How to Install or Uninstall RSAT in Windows 11
Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) is an essential tool for Windows administrators. This tool is designed to help administrators manage and maintain the servers from a remote location. Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) are used by IT administrators to handle Windows Server roles and features. It was introduced in Windows Server 2008 R2. Viewing Remote Server Administration Tools List in Windows 11 Open the Command Prompt App with Administrative Privileges. Type the below command and press Enter key. Get-WindowsCapability -Name RSAT* -Online | Select-Object -Property DisplayName, State You'll get a list of all RSAT features and their current state whether installed or not present. Related: (external link removed by moderator) Installing Remote Server Administration Tools in Windows 11 Launch the Windows 11 Settings app. Select Apps from the left pane. Choose Optional features. Read More At: (external link removed by moderator)
Windows explorer bug: renaming files highlights file name while editing, removing entire name
This has been a problem for several years with Windows explorer. If you work decently fast editing a file name, either by clicking on it or pressing F2, and then start typing immediately, Explorer automatically selects the whole name after about a second. This is really annoying since it removes the entire name if you're typing when this happens.¿Cómo Buscar archivos duplicados en Windows 11/10 de forma rápida y segura?
Estoy buscando una forma rápida y sencilla de encontrar y eliminar archivos duplicados en Windows 11/10. Mi disco duro se está llenando y sospecho que tengo muchos archivos repetidos (fotos, documentos y descargas), pero no sé exactamente cómo empezar ni qué método es más seguro para no borrar nada importante. He leído que se puede Buscar archivos duplicados usando herramientas integradas de Windows o programas gratuitos, pero no tengo claro cuál es la mejor opción para un usuario sin experiencia. ¿Alguien podría recomendar un método fácil paso a paso o una herramienta confiable para Buscar archivos duplicados y eliminarlos sin riesgo en Windows 11 o Windows 10? ¡Gracias de antemano por la ayuda!
Among Us Always Imposter - Windows 11 Family Safety Question
Hi everyone, I'm a parent hoping to get some advice from the community regarding Windows 11's Family Safety features. My son has been playing a lot of a game called Among Us on his new Windows 11 laptop. Recently, I discovered he installed a modification for the game. He calls it the "Among Us always imposter" mod, which apparently lets him be the imposter in every round. My main concern is not about him cheating in a game, but about the safety of the files he's downloading. It wasn't from the Microsoft Store, and I'm worried about malware. I'm trying to use the built-in Windows 11 Family Safety tools to manage and block this kind of software, but I'm not technical enough to know what I'm dealing with. He told me this is the website where he got the files from. I am sharing the link below honestly, not to promote it, but because I'm hoping someone here can tell me what to look for. https://modhello.com/among-us/ My questions for the community are: Based on that link, does this "Among Us mod" seem like a security risk? Does Windows Defender typically catch things like this? What's the best way in Windows 11 Family Safety to block the execution of specific game files or mods that aren't from the official store? Is there a way to see a log of all programs my son has installed? I want to make sure this among us always imposter for PC tool is the only thing he's added. I feel a bit lost trying to keep up with this stuff. Any simple, step-by-step guidance on how to use Windows 11's features to handle this would be a huge help. Thank you so much for your time.Cross-device clipboard not working on Windows 11 25H2 (Phone Link connected, sync enabled)
Hi everyone, I’m experiencing an issue with cross-device clipboard sync between my Windows 11 laptop (Version 25H2, Build 26200.7840) and a Samsung S25 Ultra. What is already working: Phone Link shows the phone as connected, Bluetooth pairing is successful, Clipboard history is enabled in Windows, Sync across devices is turned on with automatic sync selected, the option to allow this PC to access mobile devices is enabled under Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Mobile devices, the phone is signed in using the same Microsoft account, and cross-device copy and paste is enabled in Link to Windows on the phone. The problem: Even with all required settings enabled, the phone does not appear under Mobile devices, copy and paste between the phone and PC does not work, and no errors are shown in Phone Link or Windows settings. Additional observations: The system is running Windows 11 25H2 (Build 26200+). Some legacy sync services used in older builds are no longer present. This appears to be a device registration or cross-device platform issue rather than a configuration mistake. Troubleshooting already attempted: Re-linking Phone Link from scratch, signing out and back into the Microsoft account on both devices, clearing Link to Windows app data on Android, restarting related Windows services and rebooting both devices, verifying clipboard sync settings multiple times, and installing the latest Windows updates available for this build. None of these steps resolved the issue. Question: Is this a known issue with Windows 11 25H2 / Build 26200+ that affects cross-device clipboard registration? If anyone has a confirmed fix, registry or feature-flag workaround, or official confirmation from Microsoft, I would really appreciate the guidance. This could also help others using newer Windows builds. Thanks in advance.
Urgent: Stop the "Security Theater." UAC Needs Parent Process Visibility NOW.
Subject: Urgent: Stop the "Security Theater." UAC Needs Parent Process Visibility NOW. To the Windows Shell & Security Team, I am writing to demand a critical rectification in the User Account Control (UAC) design. The current implementation of UAC is not just outdated; it is fundamentally broken and fosters dangerous user habits due to a lack of transparency. The Core Problem: Context is Everything Your current design only answers "WHAT is running" (e.g., cmd.exe executing netsh winsock reset), but it deliberately hides "WHO requested it." This obfuscation renders the security prompt useless. Let me give you a simple analogy: If someone tells me to "Go home" at night, my reaction depends entirely on the speaker. If it is my father, it is an instruction of care. If it is a stranger in the shadows, it is a threat. Right now, Windows is that stranger in the dark. It throws a command in my face without identifying the source. When a generic system process requests high privileges, how is a user supposed to distinguish between a legitimate driver update and a malicious script? The "Safety" Excuse is Invalid Do not hide behind the excuse that "Parent Process ID (PPID) can be spoofed." Even a potentially spoofable path is infinitely better than a complete blindfold. By hiding the call stack, you are forcing users to play Russian Roulette with their "Yes/No" buttons. You Are Training Users to Be Vulnerable Because you refuse to provide the "Source" context, users have learned that they cannot verify the prompt. Consequently, they are conditioned to blindly click "Yes" just to make the annoying window go away. This is Security Theater at its worst. You are not protecting the user; you are confusing them. The Demand We are in 2026. The technical barrier to displaying the "Initiating Process" in the UAC dialog is non-existent. 1. Show the Parent Process: Display clearly which application triggered the UAC request (e.g., "Initiated by: Steam.exe"). 2. Show the Hierarchy: Give advanced users the option to expand the process tree right there in the dialog. Stop being lazy. Stop assuming users do not need to know. Give us the information we need to make actual security decisions. Disappointed and Expecting Change, A Windows User who refuses to click "Yes" blindly.Rule‑based filtering for the Windows “Send To” menu (user‑defined filetype → program mapping)
Hello :) I would like to propose a feature for Windows Explorer that would significantly improve productivity for power users: Feature Request: Rule‑based filtering for the “Send To” menu The current “Send To” menu shows all registered targets, regardless of file type. For users with many custom tools, this becomes cluttered and inefficient. Proposal Allow users to define rules such as: file extensions (e.g. *.rx, *.tif) wildcard patterns (e.g. ix*.001, ix*.*) associated Send‑To targets (e.g. custom tools like PrepareTif.exe) When a file is right‑clicked, the “Send To” menu would dynamically show only the relevant entries based on these rules. Why this matters Many professional workflows rely on custom tools that Windows cannot automatically associate with file types. A rule‑based filtering system would: reduce menu clutter prevent irrelevant entries speed up workflows give users full control over their context menu Implementation idea A simple UI where users can define: IF filename/extension matches → show only these Send‑To entries This would modernize the Send‑To menu and align it with context‑aware UX principles. Thanks for considering this feature. :)What is the best screenshot tool for pc on Windows 11/10?
Hi all, I'm trying to find a reliable screenshot tool for my Windows 11/10 PC and could really use some suggestions. I take screenshots quite often, so I'm hoping for something fast, lightweight, and simple, with options to capture selected areas, full screen, or specific windows, plus a bit of quick editing if possible. There seem to be many choices out there, both built-in and third-party, and I'm not sure which screenshot tool for windows is worth using long term. If you've found a screenshot tool that works great for you, I'd appreciate hearing what you like about it.
Windows 11 23H2 → 25H2 in-place upgrade fails in SAFE_OS / MIGRATE_DATA
I'm trying to in-place upgrade a Windows 11 23H2 system to 25H2 and consistently get a rollback in the SAFE_OS / MIGRATE_DATA phase with 0x8007042B – 0x2000D. After a lot of analysis (Panther logs, SetupDiag, DISM, etc.), the failure always points to migration problems around Microsoft-Windows-TPM-Driver-WMI (CCSIAgent) and, secondarily, Microsoft-Windows-DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client (adammigrate.dll). I'd like to confirm whether this is a known 25H2 migration issue (especially on Education) and if there is any supported workaround short of a clean install. --- ENVIRONMENT - OS: Windows 11 Education 23H2, Build 22631.6276 - Edition: Education (confirmed via winver and Settings → System → About) - Target: Windows 11 25H2 (26200.6584, "2025 Update") - Upgrade method tried: - Windows Update feature enablement - Windows 11 Installation Assistant - Official 25H2 ISO (26200.6584.250915-1905.25h2_ge_release_svc_refresh_CLIENT_CONSUMER_x64FRE_en-us.iso) mounted locally → setup.exe - Hardware: - Motherboard: Gigabyte Z690 AORUS PRO (BIOS F31) - SSD: WD_BLACK SN770 NVMe (firmware 731130WD, WD Dashboard reports "Healthy", no errors) - TPM 2.0: Intel PTT (firmware TPM) enabled - Secure Boot: Enabled - BitLocker on C: OFF (fully decrypted) --- SYMPTOM Every full in-place upgrade attempt (23H2 → 25H2) behaves as follows: 1. Setup runs, copies files, reboots to SAFE_OS phase. 2. During MIGRATE_DATA, setup fails and rolls back to 23H2. 3. Message on screen: "0x8007042B – 0x2000D The installation failed in the SAFE_OS phase with an error during MIGRATE_DATA operation" In C:\$WINDOWS.~BT\Sources\Panther\setuperr.log / setupact.log, the failure is always in SAFE_OS / MIGRATE_DATA and includes: V2VArbitrate: Source migration unit <System>\Microsoft-Windows-TPM-Driver-WMI (CCSIAgent) is not supported on the destination machine and it will not be restored V2VArbitrate: Source migration unit is critical, arbitration will fail V2V Arbitration failed. Last error: 0x00000032 pSPExecuteApply: Apply operation failed. Error: 0x0000002C Apply (machine-independent apply, offline phase): Migration phase failed. Result: 44 ExecuteOperations: Failed execution phase Safe OS. Error: 0x8007042B On some runs, just before the TPM arbitration failure, there are also errors related to DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client: Failure while calling IPostApply->ApplySuccess for Plugin="Microsoft-Windows-DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client\adammigrate.dll"… Error: 0x80070002 Error READ, 0x00000002 while gathering/applying object: apply-success, Action,CMXEXmlPlugin, C:\$WINDOWS.~BT\Sources\ReplacementManifests, Microsoft-Windows-DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client\adammigrate.dll… However, the ADAM plugin errors are logged as "ignore" in some traces, while the actual rollback is always tied to the critical TPM-Driver-WMI migration unit. --- WHAT I HAVE ALREADY TRIED I've tried to rule out all the usual suspects and a bit more: 1. Health checks & storage - sfc /scannow → no integrity violations - DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth / CheckHealth / RestoreHealth → clean - chkdsk C: /scan → no file system / bad sector issues - WD Dashboard extended test → drive healthy, no SMART warnings 2. Drivers, TPM, AV, services - TPM: - Device: "Trusted Platform Module 2.0" (ACPI\MSFT0101\1) - Driver provider: Microsoft (inbox TPM driver), no OEM TPM drivers - pnputil /enum-drivers | findstr /i tpm shows only Microsoft TPM entries; any OEM/TMP-related oem*.inf were removed. - Legacy / problematic drivers: - Removed old Intel CougarPoint USB driver (oem25.inf) via pnputil /delete-driver oem25.inf /uninstall /force. - Antivirus / security: - McAfee WebAdvisor fully uninstalled. - Kaspersky products uninstalled via standard uninstallers and then cleaned with Kaspersky's kavremover in Safe Mode. - No Kaspersky services, drivers, files, or uninstall entries remain. - Currently only Microsoft Defender is active. - Telemetry: - Connected User Experiences and Telemetry (DiagTrack) service set to Manual and Running to avoid telemetry-related cancellation (0x800704C7). 3. Upgrade artefacts / component cleanup - Deleted: - C:\$WINDOWS.~BT - C:\$GetCurrent - C:\$WINDOWS.~WS - C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download - Ran: - DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup /ResetBase - Then again DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth and sfc /scannow 4. ISO & media verification - 23H2 ISO: Win11_23H2_English_x64.iso (official multi-edition ISO, SHA-256 verified). - 25H2 ISO: 26200.6584.250915-1905.25h2_ge_release_svc_refresh_CLIENT_CONSUMER_x64FRE_en-us.iso (official 25H2 ISO, SHA-256 verified). - Both mounted locally; upgrade run via setup.exe from the ISO (no third-party media tools). - Tried with Dynamic Update enabled and disabled (/DynamicUpdate Disable). 5. Compatibility scan vs full upgrade behavior - Running from 25H2 ISO: setup.exe /Compat ScanOnly /DynamicUpdate Disable → completes WITHOUT logging the earlier TPM-Driver-WMI / MIGRATE_DATA critical failures. - However, when running a FULL in-place upgrade (same ISO, same environment, DynamicUpdate disabled, "Keep personal files and apps"), the upgrade still fails in SAFE_OS / MIGRATE_DATA with the same TPM-Driver-WMI critical arbitration error and rollback. So, compatibility scan looks clean, but the real SAFE_OS/MIGRATE_DATA phase still hits the TPM-Driver-WMI migration problem. 6. ADAM / DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client state - DISM shows DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client feature as Disabled. - The ADAM migration plugin (adammigrate.dll) logs 0x80070002 during IPostApply->ApplySuccess on some runs. - As suggested in other cases, I have tried: - dism /online /enable-feature /featurename:DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client /norestart → reboot - dism /online /disable-feature /featurename:DirectoryServices-ADAM-Client /norestart → reboot - The ADAM error sometimes disappears or is logged as "ignored", but the TPM-Driver-WMI critical arbitration error persists and still causes rollback. 7. Attempt to repair TPM-Driver-WMI as a package (failed) Following the idea that TPM-Driver-WMI might be a partially removed servicing package, I: - Ran: DISM /Online /Get-Packages | findstr /i "TPM-Driver-WMI" → NO ENTRIES. There is no Microsoft-Windows-TPM-Driver-WMI-Package~… installed as a standalone package. - Mounted Win11_23H2_English_x64.iso as G: and searched for *TPM-Driver-WMI*.cab: → No such cab found anywhere in the ISO. - Mounted install.wim (index 4, Education) read-only and inspected Windows\servicing\Packages, and ran offline DISM /Image:... /Get-Packages | findstr TPM: → No Microsoft-Windows-TPM-Driver-WMI package or mum/cab. Only the component payload exists in WinSxS (amd64_microsoft-windows-tpm-driver-wmi_31bf3856ad364e35_10.0.22621.1...), but there is no installable package to feed into DISM /Add-Package. So there is NO STANDALONE TPM-Driver-WMI package that I can re-add or repair via DISM; it appears baked into the base image. --- CURRENT SITUATION - TPM driver: Microsoft inbox, no OEM TPM drivers. - AV: only Defender. - Component store: DISM /RestoreHealth and sfc /scannow are clean. - Storage: healthy. - Telemetry service: running. - ADAM client: "enable → disable" cycle tried. - 25H2 compatibility scan: now passes without TPM migration errors. - Full upgrade: still fails in SAFE_OS / MIGRATE_DATA with: - Source migration unit <System>\Microsoft-Windows-TPM-Driver-WMI (CCSIAgent) is not supported on the destination machine and it will not be restored - Source migration unit is critical, arbitration will fail - V2V Arbitration failed. Last error: 0x00000032 - pSPExecuteApply: Apply operation failed. Error: 0x0000002C - ExecuteOperations: Failed execution phase Safe OS. Error: 0x8007042B At this point, the only remaining options I can see are: - In-place repair install of 23H2 using the 23H2 ISO (setup.exe → keep apps & data), to rebuild the whole servicing/migration stack, and then retry 25H2; - Or clean install 25H2 from scratch. Before I go down that path, I'd like to know: --- QUESTIONS 1. Is this a known migration issue in Windows 11 25H2 (especially for Education) involving Microsoft-Windows-TPM-Driver-WMI (CCSIAgent)? In other words, is the "not supported on the destination machine" for this migration unit an expected symptom of a current 25H2 bug or a misconfiguration on my side? 2. Is there any supported way to reset/repair/ignore the TPM-Driver-WMI migration unit on the source side, given that: - there is no standalone Microsoft-Windows-TPM-Driver-WMI-Package~*.cab in the 23H2 ISO, and - DISM /Get-Packages does not list such a package? 3. Is an in-place repair install of 23H2 the recommended next step in this scenario, or is the official guidance to perform a clean install of 25H2 when SAFE_OS / MIGRATE_DATA fails on a critical migration unit like this? 4. Is there any known difference between consumer vs Education/volume 25H2 media that could affect whether the TPM-Driver-WMI migration manifest is present on the target image? Any official guidance or confirmation (e.g., "this is a known issue; wait for an updated 25H2 image or cumulative update" vs "your 23H2 install is irreparably corrupted, clean install recommended") would be very helpful before I commit to a wipe-and-reinstall. Thank you in advance.
