Proposal: Dedicated Windows “Repair Companion” Device for Automatic Deep System Recovery
I’d like to propose a new hardware‑assisted recovery solution for Windows that would dramatically improve system reliability and reduce catastrophic failures caused by deep OS corruption. Today, Windows can repair many issues on its own, but certain types of corruption — such as servicing stack failures, broken WinSxS manifests, failed migrations, or damaged bootloaders — require offline repair or manual intervention. These situations often force users into time‑consuming troubleshooting or full reinstallations. My proposal is a dedicated, consumer‑friendly “Windows Repair Companion” device that connects to a home network and provides a trusted, isolated environment for deep system repair. This would be similar in concept to enterprise out‑of‑band management, but simplified and designed for everyday users. Key Features: • A small hardware device (similar in size to a Surface Dock or streaming box) that plugs into a router or PC. • Contains a hardened, read‑only repair OS and clean Windows recovery images. • Supports automatic network boot (PXE/UEFI) when a PC detects severe corruption or cannot boot normally. • Performs offline repairs: DISM, SFC, CHKDSK, servicing stack rebuilds, WinSxS restoration, bootloader repair, and update rollback. • Provides a true “push‑button restore” experience without requiring user technical knowledge. • Could leverage existing Surface recovery technology, secure boot chains, and cloud restore infrastructure. • Offers a new potential revenue stream for Microsoft while significantly improving Windows reliability. Benefits: • Makes Windows effectively unbrickable for most users. • Eliminates many catastrophic update failures and servicing issues. • Reduces support costs and frustration for consumers and small businesses. • Provides a clean, consistent recovery path across all OEM hardware. • Bridges the gap between consumer Windows and enterprise‑grade resilience. This device would give users peace of mind and provide Microsoft with a modern, hardware‑assisted recovery model that aligns with the direction of Surface and Windows Core OS technologies. Thank you for considering this idea — I believe it could meaningfully improve the Windows experience for millions of users.Devices Not Working - File Explorer Not Working - Corrupted Files - Insider Program Beta Release
I started having this issue in December, and finally had a time to try and resolve it today. I contacted support and they said since I'm in the Windows Insider Program, the only support is through this forum. Camera and Audio In early December, my camera stopped working in both Teams and Zoom. Didn't think much of it at the time, but it is persistent, and now I'm doing all my video calls on my iPad. File Explorer - When I click on File Explorer, my display flashes for a second and doesn't do anything. I can get to my files by opening up Control Panel, and then hitting the up arrow to get to my folders. Corrupted Files - I ran a scan in the command prompt (sfc /snannow) and received the following messages (Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them. For online repairs, details are included in the CBS log file located at windir\Logs\CBS\CBS.log.) - I have the log from today Repair Not working - I went through a whole repair process and tried to reinstall the bad files, but that failed. I almost bricked my OS and lucky to be back where I am. Info: Device name JV-Yoga-2024-01 Processor Snapdragon® X Elite - X1E78100 - Qualcomm® Oryon™ CPU 3.42 GHz Installed RAM 16.0 GB (15.4 GB usable) Device ID A6F067C8-B7D9-4226-9850-46B50601CA0C Product ID 00330-80000-00000-AA099 System type 64-bit operating system, ARM-based processor Pen and touch Touch support with 10 touch points Windows Specs: Edition Windows 11 Enterprise Version 24H2 Installed on 8/14/2024 OS build 26120.1843 Serial number PF4VVG6K Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.26100.23.0 Insider Program: Installed Build: 26120.1843 ge_release All my updates are current. Please help if you can.
"Repair your computer" from media creation tool doesn't start
I've been having an issue with starting my windows today, as a result of the "reboot and select proper boot device today" error, to which I have already tried rearranging boot disk order in bios, not working. If anyone knows a way to fix that, that would be great, but that is not the relevant problem here. I'm trying to back up my C drive so I can fix a (presumably) corrupted windows booter, and I've used the media creation tool to put a windows installation on a USB drive, however when it starts and I try clicking on the "repair your computer" button, it just goes to a blue screen and does nothing. I've waited on this for around an hour and tried multiple times again, but it is still the same and never goes to the windows recovery environment as shown in https://youtu.be/6cboePzDwXU?si=wskJ35OlW0gWSfcF&t=207 video.
[LTSC] Windows Hello Facial Recognition - Installation OR Repair
Hello Tech Community, Recently, I discovered that Windows Hello Facial Recognition is either disabled or removed from Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2021 (21H2), and after a skim of the archives, could not find any method to install Windows Hello to these devices. Q: Are/Is the device(s) in question compatible with Windows Hello Facial Recognition? A: They are by the OEM, claiming that an IR module is specifically installed in each unit with compatibility guaranteed. Q: Are/Is the device(s) in question using the correct Windows Hello Facial Recognition-compatible driver? A: The drivers have been installed in full, and Windows prompts users to set up Windows Hello Facial Recognition rather than reporting that no compatible device is installed. Q: Are/Is the device(s) in question affected by any OEM/user modifications which could inhibit Windows Hello's ability to function properly? A: Microsoft Edge has been uninstalled (using the built-in uninstaller bundled with LTSC 2021) from the device(s), however no non-standard (including Enterprise-specific) settings/programs have been altered outside of that. Q: What issue is occurring when attempting to configure Windows Hello Facial Recognition on the device(s)? A: The introduction to Windows Hello Facial Recognition simply force-stops/crashes when Get Started is pressed, as if an application is not present. This may also be a missing Universal Windows Program (.uwp), as no other UWPs are present in this install, as far as I'm aware. My question to you: Is it possible to install or repair Windows Hello (the combined package, preferably) to this installation of Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC? Thank you, Makeineer
access to OS Disk without Windows running
Has anyone figured out a way to gain low-level access to the OS Disk without Windows getting in the way? In non-Azure environments, you would use recovery mode and command prompt to touch the files of the disk, and windows is not running (and thus, not interfering). In Azure, Windows Server 2019 recovery mode doesn't have Command Prompt option, so even if you jump through all the hoops of taking a snapshot, making a disk copy, booting that disk in a nested hyper-v, etc, etc. you still can't
Windows 10, unable to mount boot volume
Past day, I accidently deleted a file or folder from a partition. Now, Windows 10 is showing Error Code (0x0000225): Cannot mount boot volume. It also shows and error code with QR code. What I did? • I burn Windows 10 image and choose; 'repair your computer'. But, it's returning back to previous menu after few seconds. "Windows has error; do chkdsk /F for fix". Did it, still no luck! • No Automatic repair option in live ISO • I'm sure that I *didn't do anything with EFI partition*. It's some other files coruppted. What's the scenario here and solution? Can I fix this without reinstalling again? Thank you all! • Photos attached!
Corrupt Files
Hi group, I have a handful of corrupt excel spreadsheets. They are corrupt because these are copies of original files that were over written with old data (reverted to older versions of themselves). Is it possible to repair these files with your experience? I have tried most everything I have found online - If this is possible, it will likely take some sort of deep repair utility or process.
