Windows Defender Notifications Not Working — Even After Clean Installs, BIOS Reset & Full Repairs
Hi everyone, I’m facing a strange and persistent issue with Windows Defender notifications, and I’m hoping someone here may have encountered something similar. During routine system maintenance, I noticed that Windows Defender has completely stopped showing notifications — no scan completion alerts, no threat‑found pop‑ups, nothing at all. Troubleshooting I’ve Already Done To rule out corruption, configuration issues, or hardware‑related causes, I’ve carried out extensive testing across multiple clean installations: Reinstalled Windows using the Media Creation Tool → still no Defender notifications Reinstalled Windows again using Rufus → same result Reset BIOS / cleared CMOS Installed an older Windows 11 build (offline, before updates) → still no notifications Deleted all partitions on every reinstall (full clean install) Verified all Windows Defender notification settings, including Enhanced Notifications Checked Windows notification settings to ensure Windows Security is allowed Ran SFC Performed DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth Confirmed no registry or Group Policy entries suppressing notifications Reinstalled Windows Defender components Scanned with third‑party tools and Microsoft MRT — no issues found Ensured Windows Push Notification System Service is running Despite all of this, Defender notifications never appear on any fresh installation. Microsoft Support I opened a support ticket with Microsoft. One engineer performed an in‑place repair install Another advised me to post the issue here for deeper investigation Ticket reference: 710148747 Additional Technical Findings 1. Notifications are not being suppressed No GPOs applied No Intune configuration profiles No registry entries modifying notification behaviour Local notification settings fully enabled Defender notifications fully enabled It’s not a profile corruption It’s not a user hive issue It’s not a local DB issue It’s OS‑level 2. Windows Notification Platform (WNP) appears to be the root cause Across multiple clean installs: ShellExperienceHost exists on disk. Focus Assist toggle produces no toast (not sure it does) other apps like mail, Logitech, steam can toast notification, i don't see defender toasting any scan notification. WNP is partially working Defender is partially registering The scan‑completion channel is failing specifically This behaviour is consistent and reproducible. 3. Defender functionality validated using EICAR I manually created the EICAR test file and ran a scan: Defender detects and removes the file correctly Detection appears in Protection History A threat notification appears Scan completion notifications do NOT appear This confirms: Defender itself is functioning The notification delivery layer (WNP) is not working question at MS QA- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5864084/windows-defender-notifications-not-working-even-af
Battery stuck at 44% after Windows update (HP laptop)
My HP laptop battery is stuck at 44% even when plugged in for over an hour. It shows charging, but the percentage doesn’t increase. When unplugged, the battery drains normally. This started after a recent Windows update. I’ve already tried restarting, reinstalling battery drivers, power reset, and checking BIOS settings, but nothing worked. Any solution for this?How to find out what's taking up space on a C drive in windows 11?
My Windows 11 laptop is showing that the C drive is almost full, but I have no idea what is actually taking up all the space. I don’t store many large files like videos or games, so I’m confused about where the storage went. I checked "This PC" and saw the used space bar, but that doesn't tell me which folders or files are using the most storage. Is there a built-in tool in Windows 11 that can easily find out what's taking up space on a C drive? Or do I need to use third-party software? I'm not very experienced with advanced system settings, so simple steps would be really helpful.
Problem with Windows Copy Plus in Windows 11?
I have been trying to update a position of a location on a website but could not make sense of the methodof adding the location. I have been sent some instructions but they use Windows Copy Plus, I am not seeing the 'Copy Plus Code' as shown in an example sent to me. Whilst searching I see some suggestions of problems with Copy Plus Code on some installations. I tried a few suggested ways of getting it to appear but not working. Any suggestions of way to get Windows Copy Plus Code to appear?Windows 11 25H2 SMB Client Directory Cache Regression
- QUERY_DIRECTORY Increased 95x, "dir" ETW Events Dropped to Zero - Hi SMB Team, I've identified a significant performance regression in the SMB client on Windows 11 25H2 affecting network file share operations. I have comprehensive data from a controlled comparison between clean installations of 23H2 and 25H2. Environment - Two clean-installed PCs (23H2 vs 25H2) connected to the same file server on the same network - Application: Python-based tool loading .py files from SMB file shares - Both PCs have identical SMB client configuration defaults for all cache-related parameters Measured Impact | Metric | 23H2 | 25H2 | Ratio | |--------|------|------|-------| | Application startup time | 26 sec | 80 sec | 3.1x slower | | Total SMB2 packets | 12,544 | 227,796 | 18.2x | | QUERY_DIRECTORY packets | 1,128 | 107,382 | 95.2x | | READ packets | 586 | 570 | ~1.0x (identical workload) | | PerfMon Metadata Requests/sec (avg) | 87.10 | 1,185.52 | 13.6x | The READ count is virtually identical (586 vs 570), confirming the actual workload is the same. The 25H2 client is issuing 95x more directory enumeration requests to the server for the same set of files. Root Cause: ETW "dir" Cache Events Dropped to Zero I captured ETW traces from the Microsoft-Windows-SMBClient provider on both systems and extracted cache-related events. This is the definitive finding: | ETW Event Type | 23H2 | 25H2 | |----------------|------|------| | file | 151,667 | 185,365 | | dir | 93,917 | 0 | | performance | 0 | 106,557 | On 23H2, the SMB client generated 93,917 "dir" events, indicating active directory cache usage. On 25H2, this event type is completely absent — zero occurrences. A new "performance" event type (106,557 occurrences) appears in 25H2 but does not serve as a cache mechanism. This indicates that the directory cache code path in the SMB client driver has been removed or disabled in 25H2. SMB2 Command Breakdown (Wire shark) | SMB2 Command | ID | 23H2 | 25H2 | Ratio | |--------------|----|------|------|-------| | CREATE | 5 | 3,278 | 56,536 | 17.2x | | CLOSE | 6 | 2,274 | 54,462 | 24.0x | | READ | 8 | 586 | 570 | 0.97x | | QUERY_DIRECTORY | 14 | 1,128 | 107,382 | 95.2x | | QUERY_INFO | 16 | 4,284 | 8,846 | 2.1x | | IOCTL | 11 | 10 | 0 | — | | CHANGE_NOTIFY | 15 | 0 | 0 | — | | Total | | 12,544 | 227,796 | 18.2x | 99.7% of all 25H2 SMB2 traffic is file discovery overhead. Only 0.25% is actual data reads. Additional Verification: Minimized Search Path (25H2) I also tested a minimized configuration on 25H2 using explicit path specification to reduce directory traversal: | Pattern | Startup | Total Packets | QUERY_DIRECTORY | |---------|---------|---------------|------------------| | 23H2 default | 26 sec | 12,544 | 1,128 | | 25H2 minimized paths | 30 sec | 119,153 | 57,888 | | 25H2 default | 80 sec | 227,796 | 107,382 | Even with minimized search paths, 25H2 generates 9.5x more packets than 23H2 and the ETW "dir" events remain at zero. This confirms the issue is in the OS driver, not the application. SMB Client Configuration (Identical Defaults) All cache-related parameters are identical between 23H2 and 25H2 at clean install: - DirectoryCacheLifetime: 10 (both) - DirectoryCacheEntriesMax: 16 (both) - FileInfoCacheLifetime: 10 (both) - FileInfoCacheEntriesMax: 64 (both) - FileNotFoundCacheLifetime: 5 (both) - FileNotFoundCacheEntriesMax: 128 (both) I also tested increasing all cache parameters significantly (DirectoryCacheLifetime=60, FileInfoCacheEntriesMax=65536, etc.) with no improvement. Additionally, setting RequireSecuritySignature=False (changed to True by default in 25H2) had no effect. Affected Driver Versions | Driver | 23H2 | 25H2 | Size Change | |--------|------|------|-------------| | mrxsmb.sys | 10.0.22621.6133 (685 KB) | 10.0.26100.8246 (931 KB) | +35.9% | | mrxsmb20.sys | 10.0.22621.6133 (333 KB) | 10.0.26100.8115 (390 KB) | +17.2% | | rdbss.sys | 10.0.22621.6133 (505 KB) | 10.0.26100.8115 (562 KB) | +11.4% | The 35.9% size increase in mrxsmb.sys suggests substantial implementation changes beyond routine patches. Questions 1. Is the removal of directory cache events ("dir") in 25H2 an intentional design change or a regression? 2. If intentional, what is the recommended mitigation for applications that perform heavy directory enumeration over SMB? 3. Is there a hotfix or upcoming update that addresses this behavior? Thank you for your time.
The best way to create Windows 11 USB installer?
Hello all! I recently encountered problems when trying to make a Windows 11 installation USB flash drive, and realized that most of the methods found on the internet don't seem to work properly in 2025 for the latest Windows 11 24H2 ISO. , Either prompts driver incompatibility or reports an error during installation. Even after trying the latest version of the software, I still can't launch the installer successfully. What is the right way to create Windows 11 USB installer in 2025? My system environment is as follows: CPU Intel i7 SanDisk Extreme Pro 256GB RAM: 16GB Graphics: MSI Geforce 3070 Ask for help: Is there an updated USB flash drive creation method for Windows 11 24H2? Are there tools or drivers recommended that are compatible with the new system requirements? Are there any special configurations or permissions required to complete the creation? Thanks for any guidance from the tech gurus! Please feel free to advise if further information is needed!
How do you delete app from macbook that won't delete from Launchpad
Hi everyone, I am trying to remove an app from my MacBook, but it will not delete from Launchpad. I clicked and held the app like usual, but there is no delete button, or nothing happens when I try to remove it. I am a beginner with Mac, so I am not sure if this app has to be removed in a different way. Is there a safe method to delete app from macbook that will not delete from Launchpad? I would also like to know how to remove any leftover files if needed. Thanks for any help.How can I mirror Android phone screen to pc wirelessly or via usb without root
Got a new Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra smartphone, fully stock (no root, not planning to root). I'm trying to mirror my phone screen to my Windows 11 PC, but having no luck so far. I don't just need file transfer or media casting, only need full screen mirroring (see my phone screen on the PC and interact if possible). I tested the built-in Phone Link app. It connects, I can do calls, messages, photos, but no screen mirroring option shows up (even after enabling "Display" in settings). What I need (mirror android phone to pc): Wireless preferred, but USB is fine. No root. Low latency (not gaming, but need to demo apps smoothly). Does anyone with an S25 Ultra have screen mirroring working to Windows 11? Any help appreciated. This is driving me nuts that my older Samsung works but the newest one doesn't. Thanks!
