Out-of-band updates for serious Windows Codecs Library vulnerabilities available via the Microsoft Store
Microsoft has released two off-schedule patches for serious vulnerabilities in the Windows Codecs Library affecting Windows 10 and Windows Server.
With the updates, which have been released through the Microsoft Store, the company is addressing the "critical" CVE-2020-1425 and the "serious" CVE-2020-1457. Both are Remote Code Execution vulnerabilities, and both have been addressed with little fanfare from Microsoft.
Microsoft releases PowerToys v0.19.0 with dozens of fixes, stability enhancements and improved installer experience
Microsoft has been making incredible progress with the return of the much-loved PowerToys utilities for Windows 10. Over a series of releases, the company has given tweakers and power users all manner of useful toys to play with.
Now PowerToys v0.19.0 is here, and Microsoft has gone on a bug-fixing rampage, fixing more than 100 issues. This release also sees improvements to the annoying installer.
Microsoft Edge caught importing data from other browsers without permission
Microsoft may be eager for everyone to switch to the new Chromium-based version of Edge, but there are a few issues that may put people off. There have been reports that the update that adds the browser to Windows 10 is causing computers to slow down, but there are also more worrying privacy-related reports.
Eagle-eyed folk installing the browser have noticed that Edge is grabbing data such as bookmarks from other installed browsers before permission has been granted to import such data.
The KB4559309 update for Windows 10 could be slowing down your computer
Microsoft recently started to push out the new, Chromium-based version of Edge to all Windows 10 user via the KB4559309 update. But in addition to bringing a new browser, the update brought problems for some people.
Rather than leading to crashes or restarts, or causing error messages like some previous problematic updates have done, some people are complaining that their computers are noticeably slower after installing KB4559309.
Get back deleted data with Microsoft's new Windows File Recovery tool
Microsoft has released a new data recovery app which can be used to retrieve files that have been deleted, or get back documents from drives that have been formatted or have become corrupt.
Windows File Recovery is a free app in the Microsoft store which can be used to recover data that has been lost for a variety of reasons. The command line tool can be used to retrieve data from local hard drives as well as removable media such as USB drives and memory cards.
Microsoft announces 'new approach to retail' -- closing all of its physical stores
The coronavirus pandemic has hit many traditional companies hard, and when things finally get back to normal -- whatever the new normal will look like -- we may be without various big name firms.
Microsoft, like Apple, has had physical retail stores for years, albeit on a smaller, less successful scale. If you want to try a product first hand, you can visit one of these locations, try the hardware out, and buy and leave with it, if you’re happy with your experience. But that’s all about to change as Microsoft is closing its physical retail stores globally, and focusing instead on online sales.
How to encrypt your entire system -- or just removable media -- with BitLocker in Windows 10 Professional
Your computer almost certainly contains a large amount of sensitive data, whether it is data related to work, or personal information. Computer security is often thought of in terms of keeping hackers and viruses at bay, but you also need to think about the fact that other people could gain physical access to your machine.
It could be that your computer is stolen; it might be that someone finds your computer unattended and decides to access your data; or you might sell your computer and forget to wipe the hard drive. None of these scenarios present a security risk if you use the BitLocker feature of Windows 10 Professional to encrypt your entire system -- there's also BitLocker To Go which can be used to encrypt removable media such as USB drives.
Best Windows 10 apps this week
Three-hundred-and-ninety-two in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 on the Microsoft Store in the past seven days.
Microsoft revealed screenshots of a redesigned Start Menu on its Microsoft 365 Facebook account this week. The new Start Menu looks a lot cleaner than the old, but it is unknown if it will land in a future version of the company's Windows 10 operating system.
Microsoft has removed the option to defer feature updates in Windows 10 May 2020 Update
If you've upgraded to Windows 10 May 2020 Update (or Windows 10 version 2004), you will have noticed various changes, and perhaps encountered a few issues along the way. One thing that some system administrators are noticing is that it is no longer possible to defer feature updates for up to a year.
Instead, the only option available is to pause all updates for a maximum of 7 days.
Microsoft releases Windows 10 Build 20152 to the Dev Channel
Last week, Microsoft changed how future Windows 10 builds are served up to Insiders, with the Slow ring becoming the Beta Channel, and the Fast ring turning into the Dev Channel.
Today, the software giant releases its second flight to the Dev Channel. Build 20152 doesn’t come with any new features, but rather focuses on making general improvements.
Microsoft's redesigned Windows 10 Start menu is a big improvement
Windows 10 has been around for five years now, and although Microsoft has introduced a number of big changes over the years, the Start menu doesn't look hugely different from how it was when the OS debuted back in 2015.
That’s all about to change though. Microsoft is planning to overhaul the menu, and it’s released a number of new images to give us a clearer idea of how it will look.
June update for Windows 10 is causing c0000008 errors and restart issues
The June update released for Windows 10 this last Patch Tuesday is causing problems for some people who have installed it.
Users who are affected by the issue after installing KB4557957 or KB4560960 see an error message with the status code c0000008, and Windows then forces them to restart their computer. Microsoft is aware of the issue and is working on a fix, but in the meantime, you'll have to make do with a workaround.
Microsoft's Windows 10 antivirus now available for Linux
Microsoft is increasingly showing love to Linux, with the most obvious example of this being the inclusion of Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) in Windows 10.
Today, the software giant announces the general availability of Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) for Linux systems.
Windows 10's Mail app is deleting Gmail users' emails
An update from last month seems to have introduced a bug into the Mail app which is causing problems with Gmail accounts.
The bug causes sent emails to be deleted, meaning there is no way to check past correspondence. While numerous people have used Microsoft Answers to report the issue, Microsoft is yet to acknowledge the problem. There are, however, a couple of workarounds you can try if you are affected.
Microsoft flushes more money down the toilet by killing Mixer
Microsoft has a lot of successes, but also, the company has countless failures. With that said, failing in a business venture isn't entirely a bad thing -- it means you at least tried something. A company like Microsoft needs to take risks, but damn, sometimes it just feels like the company flushes cash down the toilet.
Case in point, back in 2016, Microsoft bought a game-streaming service (a Twitch clone) called "Beam." In 2017, the Windows-maker renamed that service to what it is known as today -- "Mixer." The company even paid millions of dollars to popular video game players to get them to stream elusively on the service. Hell, it was less than a year ago that Microsoft signed popular player "Ninja" for more than $20 million! And now, in 2020, Microsoft has killed Mixer, essentially burning many millions of dollars. Yup, the company announces that it will shutter Mixer on July 22 and then move all of its users to the Facebook Gaming platform.
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