11/22/2018
Updating to the most recent Windows 10 update comes with its problems - so much so that Microsoft pulled the October 10 version due to terrible bugs.
Whether you're stuck with the newer version, as you installed the update it before it was pulled, or you have an equally-messy previous version, you could easily be the victim of bugs and problems. They affect users who updated from previous versions of Windows or bought devices with the operating system pre-installed alike, and can range from small annoyances to massive errors that ruin your experience.
Thankfully, if you're not in the Microsoft Insider programme you likely won't face Windows 10 update problems from the newest version (of which there are many). But that doesn't mean these others won't affect you.
Here are the most common problems with Windows 10 and how you can fix them forever, leaving you with a PC that has all of Windows 10’s new features and fewer of its frustrations.
How do I stop Windows 10's automatic updates?
Automatic updates have been a thorn in the side of Windows users for years. Unprompted, unexpected restarts to install important updates can take users by surprise, leading to wasted time. Things are just as problematic in Windows 10, not least because the first round of updates was riddled with errors: users complained about updates partially installing then stalling. Updates were then rolled back, users’ systems rebooted, and the whole process started again.
You could be forgiven for taking your PC’s health into your own hands. Choose Settings in the Start screen, then “Update & security”. Choose Advanced Options, then “Notify to schedule restart”. This won’t stop updates from downloading, but will at least prevent Windows acting on its own initiative when you pop downstairs for a cup of tea. Moreover, true control freaks can opt to defer upgrades. This doesn’t stop security updates downloading and installing, but does put the brakes on everything else.
Do I need antivirus software with Windows 10?
Windows 10 comes with antivirus software in the form of Windows Defender. Tightly woven into its host operating system, it’s updated regularly and monitors your PC in real-time, as well as giving you the option to run manual scans if you suspect something’s amiss. As out-of-the-box software goes, it’s usable, easy to navigate and stops a reasonable proportion of threats.
How do I stop Windows 10 installing updates when I shut down?
Often when you go to shut down your PC, you see a yellow exclamation mark icon on the ‘Shut down’ button. This basically means that Microsoft has downloaded Windows updates in the background and will apply them to your PC as soon as you click the ‘Shut down’ button. Depending on your Windows version and the size of the downloaded files, the time required for your PC to update and shut down can vary from a few seconds to several minutes.
There’s a simple way to bypass installing these updates and shut down your PC immediately. This method can be a lifesaver if your laptop battery is low or if you’re in a hurry to shut down. The updates will then get deferred to the next time you switch on your PC.
First, save any files you’re working on and close all the programs on your PC. Now press the Windows key+R to open your Run dialogue box, type cmd into it, then press Enter to open your Command Prompt. Type the following into it: shutdown –s –f –t 00 (see screenshot below). Here, ‘s’ means shutdown, ‘f’ is the command to forceclose any open programs (including ones in the background) and ‘00’ refers to the timedelay after which the command should be executed (instantly). Press Enter and your PC will shut down.
How do I stop Windows 10 using my 4G data?
One of Windows 10’s biggest problems has been invisible internet use. Even before it was released, users spotted that Windows 7/8 PCs were automatically downloading Windows 10 in the background, to the chagrin of users with metered connections. This continues after Windows 10 is installed: background updates often weigh in at several hundred megabytes. That’s inconvenient on forgiving home broadband connections, but a potential disaster on mobile internet accounts. To stop Windows 10 sucking down data in the background, go to Settings, then Network & Internet. Choose Wi-Fi and then Advanced Options. Toggle “Set as metered connection” to on, and Windows will stop getting non-essential updates, as well as turning off some app updates and Start screen tiles.
Puzzlingly, this doesn’t work on PCs that connect to the internet via an Ethernet port, which is worth remembering if you’ve got several PCs wired to your internet router. One decent-sized update and you could find yourself over your data limit.
How do I stop Microsoft getting all my personal info?
Windows 10 handles more personal information than ever. Its ability to sync your browser history across devices will be valued by anyone with a desktop PC, a laptop and a Surface device, while Cortana’s uncannily accurate speech recognition is a useful, futuristic touch. Meanwhile, OneDrive, Microsoft’s Dropbox-beating cloud storage and document service, weaves pervasive online storage throughout the OS.
The bad news is that all this involves sending data to Microsoft. Syncing browsers across different devices involves transmitting your browsing history, bookmarks, favourites, saved website passwords and your wireless networks’ names and passwords to Microsoft. Cortana collects data from your calendar and email, as well as your Bing search history.
There are deeper problems if you’ve taken the time to read Microsoft’s user agreement. It’s firm about its right to “access, disclose and preserve personal data” in order to “protect [our] customers”, and the eagle-eyed will have spotted that Windows 10’s advertising engine is based on “your likely interests or other information that we learn about you over time using demographic data, search queries, interests and favourites, usage data, and location data”.
If that’s made you nervous, head to Settings, then Privacy. Feel free to uncheck as many of the boxes as you like. Cortana can be put out to pasture by clicking the search box in the taskbar and then choosing the Settings icon (the cog).
Slide Cortana to off. Finally, sync settings can be found in the Accounts section of the Settings panel, and can be turned off completely or individually.
How do I log in automatically in Windows 10?
As Windows and Microsoft’s personal accounts – whether you came to yours via Hotmail, Live, Outlook.com or Xbox – do more and more, security becomes more important. If, when you installed Windows 10, you gave it your Microsoft account details, your PC will already hold plenty of data. That’s why, when you come to log in, you’re asked for your password each time.
In practice, this can be a bit irritating. There’s nothing like turning on your PC and going to boil a kettle, only to find you still need to log in and wait for your computer to load your startup applications. The medium-security solution is to go to Accounts in the Settings menu and choose Sign-in Options, then add a PIN number. These need to be at least four characters long. The lowest security option is to have your Windows 10 PC start without a password. Microsoft has buried the option to do this, but it is there.
Click the search bar and type CMD to load a prompt. Type “control userpasswords2”, and uncheck “Users must enter a username and password to use this computer” in the resulting dialog box. Click OK and a new window will appear, into which you’ll enter your existing password twice. Click OK and your computer will start up and log in automatically in the future. We’ll leave it to your better judgement to decide whether this a wise move or not.
What’s this about my WiFi password being shared in Windows 10?
If you’ve skimmed the Windows 10 headlines, you might have caught wind of how Windows 10 automatically shares your Wi-Fi password with all your contacts. The feature in question is called Wi-Fi Sense and will be familiar to anyone with a Windows Phone device. Every time you connect to a wireless network, the password you use is encrypted and stored on a Microsoft server. It’s then shared, either with your contacts on Outlook.com, your Skype contacts, your Facebook friends, or all three groups simultaneously. The idea is that, if a friend from your contact list pops round, their Windows device will automatically connect to your wireless network without you needing to dictate an unwieldy password.
Network administrators will be hyperventilating at this point, and with good reason. For one thing, the average contact list in the Alphr office is stuffed not only with trusted friends and colleagues, but PR contacts, business associates, plumbers, local restaurants and so on, and Microsoft admits you can’t choose which contacts do and don’t get to access your wireless networks. Microsoft protests that the shared Wi-Fi passwords, apart from being encrypted, will only allow guests access to the internet, rather than your shared folders and networked devices, but the cautious will still recoil in horror, as will those on internet connections with a bandwidth cap.
You can opt out of Wi-Fi Sense by unchecking “Share network with my contacts” when you first connect to a wireless network, but unless you lean over the shoulder of every Windows 10-using visitor to your home to make sure they do the same, permanently opting out is the only option. This is achieved via the horrendous fudge of changing your Wi-Fi network’s SSID to include “_optout” at the end, which achieves the twin effect of stopping your Wi-Fi password being shared, and forcing you to reconfigure every device in your house so it automatically connects to your newly christened network.
