Fix: My Alienware Laptop is Not Recognizing Headphones

Posted on by Henderson Jayden Harper

Alienware laptops are ranked some of the best laptops in the market, and it is because of the features incorporated into them.

However, users recently complained about Alienware laptops not recognizing headphones or not playing sounds from the headphones. Users also complain about Dell laptops not recognizing headphones in Windows 11.

Furthermore, users may encounter Alienware not playing sound from headphones due to various factors. These factors can be audio output issues, audio driver issues, Realtek audio driver problems, and lots more.

Likewise, these causes of the Alienware laptop not recognizing headphones may differ in various laptops.

Hence, this article will discuss some of the best fixes to help you get rid of the Alienware laptop and other laptops not recognizing headphones issues.

Why is my laptop not detecting headphones?

  • Outdated audio driver: Users may encounter many problems with audio-related components such as device detection, audio output selection, etc. if the audio driver is outdated. It indicates that your computer lacks the patches and updates to fix bugs affecting its audio system.
  • Boot errors: The Alienware laptop may encounter many errors during startup that can impede its smooth operation. It can cause the computer’s essential components to become inactive because they cannot function properly due to boot errors.
  • Problems with running Realtek drivers: Realtek audio driver is the sound driver responsible for managing how audio components on your Windows devices work. It’s essential for audio device detection. Hence, users may encounter issues with their laptops recognizing headphones if the Realtek drivers are outdated or corrupt. It can cause Realtek not to detect headphones on your Alienware.
  • Faulty or broken headphones: Alienware laptop not recognizing headphones may be due to defective headphones. So, the PC may have difficulties processing the headphone or detecting it. A broken headphone may cause the Alienware headset mic not to work.

It’s possible that you also encounter Windows not playing any sound. Check out our article on how to fix it.

How do I fix my laptop if it’s not detecting headphones?

1. Restart your computer

  1. Click on the Start button on your screen.
  2. Select Power options.
  3. Click on Restart and OK.

Restarting your computer will help fix startup errors that may prevent your laptop from recognizing headphones.

2. Update the audio driver

  1. Right-click on the Start button and select the Device Manager option.
  2. Select your audio device and right-click on it.
  3. Select Update driver from the options and choose the Search automatically for drivers.

If there are any updates, the installation wizard will install them automatically. Restart your computer after the installation is complete and check if your Alienware can recognize headphones.

You can also try to use a specialized program that will help you accomplish this process automatically. Outbyte Driver Updater performs an in-depth scan of your device for outdated drivers and chooses the latest update for them to improve your PC’s condition.

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3. Uninstall Realtek drivers on your computer

  1. Press Windows + R keys simultaneously to prompt the Run window.
  2. Type devmgmt.msc in the search space and press Enter.
  3. Navigate to the Sound, video, and game controllers option and double-click on it.
  4. Right-click on the Realtek High Definition Audio device and select Uninstall. (Confirm any additional prompts that pop up)

Restart the computer. Windows will have the proper drivers installed on the next startup.

4. Set headphones as the default output device

  1. Press the Windows + R keys to prompt the Run window.
  2. Type the control panel in the search space and launch the Control Panel.
  3. Select Hardware and Sound, then click on Sound.
  4. Click on the Playback tab to check if the Headphone device defaults.
  5. If it’s not set as default, click and tap the Set default option.
  6. Click OK to save the changes on your computer.

Setting headphones as the default output should help your laptop play sound through it.

5. Use another headphone for your Alienware laptop

Users can switch to another headphone to check if the problem is really from the computer. A broken headphone won’t work on Alienware, so it may be impossible to detect it.

For users connecting devices with Bluetooth, we recommend you read about how to fix Bluetooth not detecting devices on Windows 10/11 for solutions.

Why is the headphone jack not working?

The headphone jack on your computer may not work if there are issues with audio and sound components like audio drivers.

Hence, we recommend you run Windows audio troubleshooting to find out where the concern is rooted.

Nonetheless, we recommend you read through our guide on how to fix Windows 11 if it’s not recognizing wired headphones.

Also, check our comprehensive guide on how to fix a laptop not using a headset mic if you’re faced with a problem.

Do not hesitate to let us know which solutions worked for you in the comments area below.

5 Quick Ways to Fix Your Third Monitor when It’s Flickering

Posted on by Henderson Jayden Harper

Connecting external devices like monitors to your computer allows you to multitask. However, users can encounter many problems using these external devices, especially monitors.

Many users complain about the third monitor flickering when connected to the computer. Due to the unstable display screen, it is hard to focus on the monitor.

Moreover, many things may be responsible for the external monitor flickering issues and may differ on different PCs. Cable issues, refresh rate issues, and others are the most common causes of this problem.

Nonetheless, the third monitor flickering issue is not a grievous matter; you can fix it with just a few steps. Hence, this article will discuss the steps to fix the problem and other screen flickering issues.

Why is the third monitor flickering?

  • Cable issues: Connecting an external screen to your computer with a cable that has a problem can cause many problems. Whether an HDMI cable or a VGA cable, you can encounter issues if the cable is not correctly connected or is faulty. Likewise, not plugging the cable into the appropriate port can make it malfunction and result in the VGA monitor flickering.
  • Outdated graphics drivers: The graphic driver is responsible for creating a stable display for your computer. However, the graphics driver may not function when outdated because it lacks patches and updates. So, external screens can flicker if the graphics driver is not up-to-date.
  • External screen refresh rate: The third screen refresh rate of the third screen may be low and may differ from that of the computer. Screen refresh rate determines how many times per second the monitor updates with a new image display. As a result, users may encounter issues with the third monitor if its refresh rate differs from your computer.
  • Broken monitor: A broken monitor can cause problems with your display. It can cause flickering on the monitor, making it impossible to see the screen content. Likewise, if the monitor is not correctly connected to power, it can cause issues with its display.

Readers can check how to fix an external monitor not working correctly on a Dell laptop in a few simple steps.

How do I fix the third monitor when it’s flickering?

1. Check your cable

The first thing you should do if the third monitor is flickering is to check whether there are any issues with the cable. Likewise, check the connection port to see if the cable is connected to the appropriate port.

Furthermore, we recommend you switch to a new and quality cable to check if the cable is faulty. It’ll help you decipher where the issue is prompting.

2. Update the graphics driver

  1. Press on Windows + R simultaneously to launch the Run window.
  2. Type the following into the search space: devmgmt.msc, and click the OK button.
  3. Click on the Display adapters from the search results, select the driver from the drop-down, and then right-click on it.
  4. Click the Update driver Software option, then select Search automatically for drivers.

Restart your computer after the updating process is complete. Updating your graphics driver will fix the monitor flicker issues.

Alternatively, you can use specialized software to update your GPU drivers automatically. Outbyte Driver Updater is ​​a tool that scans your PC for outdated drivers and updates them to the latest version.

Outbyte Driver Updater uses its database of over 18 million driver files to find the latest versions of all outdated drivers and safely install them.

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3. Change the third monitor’s screen refresh rate

  1. Right-click on any space on the desktop and select Display settings.
  2. Select the monitor experiencing the mouse lagging issue at the top of the screen.
  3. Select Advanced display settings and click on Display adapter properties for your selected display number.
  4. Navigate to the Monitor tab, then Monitor settings.
  5. Change the Screen refresh rate to match the main screen’s refresh rate.
  6. Click on Apply, then OK to save the changes.

Restart your computer and see if the third monitor flickering issues persist. It is also a good fix for the second monitor flickering.

4. Check the power supply to the monitor

Monitors can affect their displays if power cables connect to them loosely or supply low currents.

Hence, check if there’s any problem with the connection. If the cable is broken or the connection is loose, adjust it correctly.

5. Change your monitor

We recommend you get a perfectly working monitor and check if the flickering issues persist. So, it’ll save you the stress of battling a bad monitor.

If the monitor is faulty, there’s no point in keeping it with you. Just get a better working option to have the issue fixed.

You can also learn how to fix cases where only part of your laptop display flickers by reading our detailed guide on part of laptop screen flickering.

Do display port cables matter?

The straight answer is yes. Display port cables differ in transmission speed, color depth, resolution, refresh rate, etc. So, it would help if you considered buying a quality display port cable to enjoy a stable cable connection.

Some recommended articles that can help you with screen flickering issues include how to fix Windows 11’s second monitor flickering issues and duplicate three monitors on Windows 10 PCs.

Also, you can read through our guide on how to fix external monitors not detected after sleep when it’s not in use.

Kindly leave your suggestions and questions in the comments section if this article has been helpful to you. We’d like to hear from you.

5 Ways to Fix Packet Loss & Ping Spikes on BT Smart Hub 2

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Data is sent and received across a network in small units known as packets in any network environment. This is true for everything you do on the internet, including emailing, uploading or downloading images or files, browsing, streaming, gaming, and even voice and video communication.

BT Smart Hub 2 packet loss occurs when one or more of these packets are interrupted during their journey.

Ping is your connection’s reaction time, or how quickly you receive a response after sending out a request. A low ping indicates a more responsive connection, which is particularly important in real-time applications such as gaming and voice and video calls. Milliseconds are used to measure ping (ms).

Why am I all of a sudden getting packet loss on BT Smart Hub 2? 

There are a couple of reasons why you are getting BT Smart Hub 2 packet loss. One of them is network congestion. Congestion on the network is the most common cause of network packet loss. Since all networks have space constraints, network congestion is very similar to peak hour traffic.

Another major issue for your network is the rate at which hardware becomes obsolete or redundant these days. Firewalls, routers, and network switches consume a lot of power and can significantly weaken network signals.

Software bugs are another reason you are getting BT Smart Hub 2 packet loss. Bugs or glitches in your system can sometimes cause network performance to degrade and packet delivery to fail.

Hardware reboots and patches may be necessary to resolve bugs. Other reasons include security threats and overtaxed devices. 

How do I fix packet loss on BT Smart Hub 2?

1. Do a ping test

  1. Click the Windows Start button, type Command Prompt, and click on it to open the Command Prompt.Start CMD - bt smart hub 2 packet loss
  2. Type ping, space, and then enter an IP address, for example, 192. XXX. X.X.
  3. Examine the ping results to see the issue with your BT Smart Hub 2.Ping command

2. Use a VPN

Packet loss is generally created by an unstable connection to the server. Whether you have internet issues or the server is not working properly, you might encounter packet loss or ping spikes.

With a VPN you can connect to a different server that works better. It’s completely safe and it also makes you untrackable for online threats. Our recommendation is ExpressVPN for its amazing features.

Here is how to download and connect to a VPN (we’ll be using ExpressVPN as an example):

  1. Visit the provider’s website and download ExpressVPN.
  2. After the download ended, install the VPN then open it.
  3. Click on choose location and select from the list the server you want to connect to.
  4. After you connect to the server, feel free to check if any spike drop appears again.

ExpressVPN is as simple as above, the connection is made in a few moments and it won’t affect your internet speed or PC performance. It has servers in over 90 countries so you are sure to find the right one for you.

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3. Restart your router

  1. Remove the modem and router from the power supply.Unplug - bt smart hub 2 packet loss
  2. Wait at least 15 seconds before proceeding.
  3. Plug the modem back into the power outlet first, then wait 1-2 minutes before turning it on.Connect to power
  4. Wait for all of the panel lights on your cable modem to turn green before testing your internet connection.

4.  Check the physical connections

  1. Make sure that all of the device connections are made appropriately.
  2. Connect all ports to the devices appropriately using the necessary cables. Packet loss will happen if the cable connections are incorrect and the connection is loose.Hub ports - bt smart hub 2 packet loss

5. Use a wired connection

  1. Connect a laptop to the back of the Hub using a network cable.Cable connection - bt smart hub 2 packet loss
  2. Launch your browser and visit a website of your choice.
  3. If this works, restart all your devices and then connect them again.

6. Check BT Broadband status

  1. Disconnect your phone from the Wi-Fi network.Wifi - bt smart hub 2 packet loss
  2. Connect it through mobile data to establish if there could be a problem in your area.Mobile data
  3. If there is a problem, you can contact support or revert to a fiber optic cable and ethernet instead of Wi-Fi. 

How can I improve my broadband quality?

You might need to switch to a new deal or provider if the speed you’re now receiving is far below what you require.

However, there are a few things you may do to boost the speed if you’re normally at ease with it. 

They include placing your router in a centralized location, choosing a wired connection over Wi-Fi, trying a wireless booster, giving your computer a spring clean, turning off Wi-Fi on all of your unused gadgets and if you are working from home you can switch your conference calls to audio-only.

Packet loss is a relatively common network issue that can be caused by simple problems with the system software and cables, among others.

It cannot be totally eliminated; it can only be reduced by measures and the use of various instruments for network testing and monitoring. The fixes discussed above will help you deal with packet loss without any problems.

You can also use dedicated network monitoring tools which address owners of medium to large networks, as well as business clients. Let us know which one worked for you in the comments area below.

5 Ways to Fix Your AMD GPU If It’s Not Being Fully Utilized

Posted on by Loredana Harsana

When users upgrade their graphics card in their system for a better experience while playing games, they noticed that the GPU in the AMD system is not being fully utilized.

Due to this, they are facing quite a lag and problems while playing the games or using the system in general. A few users also faced no AMD graphics driver installed error in Windows 11 system.

Why is my GPU utilization so low?

There are certain reasons why GPU is not being fully utilized on the system and they are listed below.

  • Corrupted system files – When any system files get corrupted, it will create problems like this
  • Graphics settings – A game’s graphical settings may need to be changed if it is frequently producing this problem
  • Heavy applications running in the background – There is an issue when several large apps that are not needed are operating in the background

Now that we know where the problems arise from, here is how we can fix the AMD GPU issue.

How do I force my AMD GPU usage?

1. Disable all startup programs

  1. Press the Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys together to open the Task Manager.
  2. Click the Startup tab on the left side and right-click on a startup app listed.
  3. Choose Disable from the context menu.
  4. Do the same to disable all the startup apps listed under the Startup apps tab.

2. Run the SFC scan

  1. Press the Windows key and type cmd.
  2. Right-click on the Command Prompt app and select Run as administrator from the context menu.
  3. Click Yes on the UAC prompt on the screen.
  4. Now type the below line in the command prompt window and press the Enter key:
    sfc /scannow
    run command sfc /scannow
  5. This will scan for all the corrupted files and then repair them.

3. Update the chipset driver

  1. Open the Run console by pressing the Windows and R keys together.
  2. Type msinfo32 in the run console and press Enter.
    msinfo32
  3. In the System Information window, select the System Summary option on the left side.
  4. Then check for the BaseBoard Product option on the right side and note down its value, which is the chipset model.
  5. Now visit the AMD website and search for your chipset model and download its drivers.
  6. Finally, install the drivers on your system.

Alternatively, a fast and simple solution is to use a third-party tool to automatically scan for outdated drivers and update them safely.

4. Change the graphics settings

  1. Press the Windows key and type graphics settings and press the Enter key.
  2. On the graphics page, select the application or game that is causing the GPU issue and click Options.
  3. In the Graphics preference window, choose High performance and click Save.
  4. This will change the graphics settings for that application on the system.

5. Update the graphics driver

  1. Press the Windows + X keys together and then press the M key to open the Device Manager app.
  2. Expand the Display adapters option by double-clicking on it.
  3. Right-click on the graphics driver and choose the Update driver option from the context menu.
  4. Click the Search automatically for drivers option to start updating.
    Search automatically for drivers
  5. Once done updating, you can close the device manager window.

How do I know if my CPU is bottlenecking my GPU?

To determine whether your CPU is bottlenecking GPU, you will have to check both CPU and GPU usage under the Performance tab in the Task Manager app.

If the CPU is utilizing around 90% or more and probably higher than the GPU load, you can conclude that your CPU is bottlenecking your GPU. This can be improved by underclocking the GPU safely.

Did you manage to resolve the GPU usage problem on your Windows 11 PC? Let us know more about it in the comments area below.

5 Ways to Fix Outlook When It’s Not Inserting Your Signature

Posted on by Henderson Jayden Harper

Several users have recently complained of Outlook not inserting signatures. This can be annoying to most users as it can be redundant to write out your name and contact information manually every time.

Email signatures enable people to get in contact with you as well as it also adds some polish to your writing.

When you have your signature saved automatically, it reduces the stress of repeating it after every response.

If you encounter the Outlook not adding signature automatically problem, you can read further into this article to find the best fix just right for you.

Why is my signature image not showing in Outlook?

  • The recipient’s email client is at fault: Some email clients do not automatically download media files which the signature image. Hence, if your recipient’s email client falls under this category, the signature image may not display to them. There is almost nothing you can do then for your recipient to specifically instruct their email client to download the images attached to your emails.
  • New update code issue: The problems with the signature feature are found mainly in the new update of older versions of MS Office. What’s best to do in this instance is to update or install the more recent version of MS Office.
  • Outlook on the web policy: While sending email via Outlook on the web, there is an OWA policy that may make you get the Outlook web not inserting signature error. You will have to enable the signature image to use it. Unfortunately, only registered organizations are allowed to view or change the policy. Hence, making it inaccessible to users with a personal MS account.

How do I fix the Outlook signature not working?

1. Add a new signature

  1. Open Outlook and click on File.
  2. Click Options to open the Outlook dialog box.
  3. Click Mail on the left pane.
  4. Select the Signatures in the right pane labeled as Create or modify signatures for messages. (After clicking it, you should be able to add your customized signature)

2. Change to Plain text format

  1. Open the Outlook account on the web.
  2. Click on Settings.
  3. Select View All Outlook Settings.
  4. Under Mail, tap on Compose and Reply.
  5. Click your signature, then locate the Message Format.
  6. Click on HTML on the Compose messages in HTML format, then a drop-down menu will appear.
  7. Select Plain text and click on Save.

This changes the format of your signature to plain text, which is readable on all devices. Hence, it fixes Outlook not inserting the signature problem.

3. Double spacing in email signature block

  1. Create your email signature block in a Word processor.
  2. Copy and paste the email signature you created into the signature editor.
  3. Make your final adjustments if there are any.
  4. You can then Save.

The double-spacing problem could be solved using the Shift + Enter keys combination.

Although this alternative may sometimes cause the signature to appear as text in a one-liner, it’s better to follow the first solution above.

4. Fix OWA policy blocking

  1. Access your Office 365 exchange admin center.
  2. Go to the Permissions section on the left lane.
  3. Select the Outlook Web App policies tab in the top menu.
  4. Select the policy in action (OwaMailboxPolicy in this example) and edit it.
  5. Go to the features tab, and click More options at the bottom of the window.
  6. Look under the User experience section, and select the Email signature checkbox.

5. Use embedded graphics

  1. Click File > Options > Mail > Signatures.
  2. In the signature editor window, click on the picture icon.
  3. Select a picture from your local drive.

To ensure that your embedded images look correctly on the recipient’s side, you must use a third-party solution like CodeTwo Signatures for Office 365.

How do I set up an automatic signature in Outlook 365?

In Outlook, multiple ways exist to create one or more automatic signatures for your email messages.

Your signature can be either text, images, your e-business card, a logo, or even an image of your handwritten signature.

You can follow our first solution in this guide to set up your customized signature in Outlook without hassles.

These are the most efficient troubleshooting fixes for the Outlook not inserting signature problem. If the fixes are followed strictly, you should fix the problem quickly.

If you need to update your signature, you can follow our guide on show to update your signature in Outlook [Windows, Mac, Web].

Do not hesitate to use the comments section below for further questions or comments.

How to Set Up an IPsec VPN Client on Windows 10

Posted on by Elena Constantinescu

If you need to set up an IPsec VPN client on Windows 10 PC, we’re here to help. Using a virtual private network, you can hide your IP address, encrypt your data traffic, and ultimately protect your online privacy.

There are numerous benefits to using a VPN, such as finding cheaper flights online, fixing network congestion, or reducing ping in multiplayer games.

You can also watch unlimited streaming by using a VPN to circumvent geoblocks and unblock Netflix libraries that aren’t normally available in your country.

What’s an IPsec VPN client?

An IPsec VPN client is a virtual private network service that supports the IPsec protocol. IPsec is used by the VPN to encrypt and protect your data across the Internet.

IPsec (Internet Protocol security) is a VPN protocol that authenticates and encrypts data transferred over the web. It supports multiple encryption methods, including 256-bit AES.

An IPsec VPN client is a virtual private network client that uses the IPsec protocol. However, IPsec can’t be used standalone because it’s only an encryption protocol that provides data security and privacy.

A VPN connection also requires a tunneling protocol to deliver data. As such, IPsec is typically accompanied by L2TP or IKEv2, resulting in the L2TP/IPsec and IKEv2/VPN protocols.

Does Windows 10 support IPsec VPN?

Windows 10 has native support for L2TP/IPsec. You can also set up a VPN on Windows Vista or older editions if you can find one that’s still compatible.

You can use this protocol to set up the built-in Windows VPN (for Windows 10 and 11). It is also compatible with third-party VPN clients that support it.

It’s possible to create a VPN connection in Windows 10 using the built-in OS settings and then add the VPN client’s login information, but it’s recommended to use a dedicated client for best performance.

How do I set up an IPsec VPN client on Windows 10?

To set up a VPN with IPsec on Windows, you need a client that offers you the possibility to connect using this protocol, and our top choice in this regard is ExpressVPN.

The VPN has thousands of fast servers all around the world and industry-leading VPN security to make sure your data stays completely private: military-grade encryption,

1.Get IPsec VPN client credentials

  1. Sign up for an ExpressVPN subscription.
  2. In your browser, open the ExpressVPN manual configuration page.
  3. Enter your credentials and select L2TP/IPsec.
  4. You’ll get information about your username and password + IPsec server addresses.
  5. Save this information so you can add it to your VPN connection.

The user name and password for the IPsec connection will be necessary once you configure your VPN connection using Windows settings.

2. Create a VPN connection

  1. Right-click the Start button and go to Network Connections.
  2. Select VPN on the left side and click Add a VPN connection.
  3. Set VPN provider to Windows (built-in) and write a Connection name.
  4. At Server name or address, type one of the server addresses provided by the ExpressVPN configuration page.
  5. Set VPN type to L2TP/IPsec with certificate.
  6. At Type of sign-in info, select User name and password.
  7. At User name (optional) and Password (optional), paste the ExpressVPN credentials you previously obtained.
  8. Enable Remember my sign-in info and click Save.

3. Connect and disconnect from the IPsec VPN

  1. Click the Network icon in the systray.
  2. Select the IPsec VPN connection.
  3. Click Connect or Disconnect.

4. Change IPsec VPN settings

  1. Right-click the Start button and go to Network Connections > VPN.
  2. Select the IPsec VPN connection and click Advanced options.
  3. At Connection properties, click Edit.
  4. Change VPN connection details and click Save.

If you want to connect to a different VPN server, you can either edit VPN connection details to set the new address or create a new VPN connection for each address.

5. Remove the IPsec VPN connection

  1. Right-click the Start button and go to Network Connections > VPN.
  2. Select the IPsec VPN connection.
  3. Click Remove.

Why use ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is compatible with all popular platforms, including Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS.

You can even set it up on a router to share VPN access with all connected devices. Otherwise, up to 5 devices can share the VPN account for ExpressVPN.

Furthermore, ExpressVPN supports OpenVPN and Lightway, in addition to PPTP and L2TP with IPsec.

It comes with private DNS, gaming optimized servers, SOCKS5 and Shadowsocks proxy servers, port forwarding, split tunneling, and a kill switch.

What else you should know about ExpressVPN:

  • +4000+ servers in 94 countries
  • No traffic logs
  • 24/7 live chat support
  • 30-days money-back guarantee
  • 7-day free trial (mobile)

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In conclusion, you can easily set up an IPsec VPN client on Windows 10 in order to protect your online privacy and computer security, as well as to unblock streaming services and minimize jitter. You can even set up an IPsec connection on XP by using the best VPN for Windows XP.

You just need to get equipped with a premium VPN that not only supports the IPsec protocol but also comes with high-speed VPN servers and superior security features, like ExpressVPN.

Disable the Lock Screen on Windows 11 With 3 Simple Steps

Posted on by Matthew Adams

Windows 11, like other platforms in its series, has a lock screen you’ll see just before logging into your user account.

That lock screen displays the time, date, one app status icon, and a magnifying glass icon. Clicking on the magnifying glass icon brings up the login text box and screen.

The lock screen also has a Windows + L keyboard shortcut. Pressing that hotkey returns you to a lock screen, from where you’ll need to click and then log back into Windows.

Do I need to have the lock screen enabled on my Windows 11 PC?

Although the lock screen displays date/time info and an app status icon, it’s hardly a necessity. Some users might prefer to disable it so they don’t need to click to reach the login screen.

There isn’t an option in Settings that turns off the lock screen, but you can still disable it with the methods below.

Has the lock screen changed in any way in Windows 11?

Microsoft has made some relatively minor changes to Windows 11’s lock screen. It has a new default Windows 11 background wallpaper for one thing. However, you can change that wallpaper via Settings.

You’ll also notice the date/time info has changed position on Windows 11’s lock screen. Now it displays that info at the top center of the screen instead of the bottom left corner. The clock time text also has a bolder font type.

However, those are only small changes Microsoft has applied to the lock screen. There isn’t that much difference between the lock screens in Windows 11 and 10.

So, it’s unlikely users who didn’t want Windows 10’s lock screen enabled will want to keep it after upgrading to 11.

How can I turn off the lock screen in Windows 11?

1. Edit the Registry

  1. Right-click the taskbar button for the Start menu and select Run.
  2. To open the Registry Editor, input the following text and press Enter: regedit
    open regedit with run command
  3. Next, open this registry location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows
  4. Right-click Windows on the left side of the Registry Editor and select New > Key.
    create a new key in registry
  5. Type Personalization in the key’s text box.
  6. Right-click the Personalization key and select the New > DWORD (32-bit) value options.
    create new dword
  7. Enter NoLockScreen to be the DWORD’s title.
  8. Double-click NoLockScreen to open an Edit DWORD window for it.

    name the dword nolockscreen
  9. Input 1 within the Value data text box, and click OK to apply.
    Edit DWORD window disable lock screen windows 11
  10. Open the Start menu, select Power, and click Restart.
    restart pc

2. Use the Group Policy Editor

  1. 1. Bring up the Run dialog (it has a Windows + R keyboard shortcut).

  2. 2. Open Group Policy Editor by entering this command and clicking OK:gpedit.msc

  3. 3. Next, click Computer Configuration and Administrative Templates.

    admin templates registry editor

  4. 4. Select Control Panel > Personalization to open the policy setting shown directly below.

    personalization settings in gpo

  5. 5. Double-click the Do not display the lockscreen policy.

    navigate to lock screen options windows 11 gpo

  6. 6. Then select the Enabled radio button.

    disable lock screen windows 11 option

  7. 7. Press the Apply and OK buttons to save the setting.

    turn off windows 11 lockscreen option apply

    8. A great tool you can use to turn off Windows 11’s lock screen is none other than the Group Policy Editor. It is built-in on your PC and can be safely used to tweak any PC options you want to.

Note icon NOTE
Windows 11 Home edition doesn’t include the Group Policy Editor. However, you can enable Group Policy Editor in the Home edition as outlined within our How to enable Gpedit.exe in Windows 11 guide.

3. Disable the lock screen with Winaero Tweaker

  1. Open the Winaero Tweaker page, and click the Download Winaero Tweaker link there.
    The Download button disable lock screen windows 11
  2. Press the File Explorer button on the taskbar.
    The File Explorer button disable lock screen windows 11
  3. Open the folder the Winaero Tweaker downloaded to, and double-click the winaerotweaker file to open it.
  4. Press the Extract all button that’s on the command bar.
    The Extract all button disable lock screen windows 11
  5. Click the Show extracted files when complete checkbox shown directly below to select that option.
    The Show extracted files when complete setting disable lock screen windows 11
  6. Select Extract to do so.
    The Extract option disable lock screen windows 11
  7. Double-click WinaeroTweaker-1.33.0.0-setup to open the setup wizard and install the software.
    The Winaero Tweaker setup disable lock screen windows 11
  8. Open the Winaero Tweaker window, and double-click the Boot and Logon category.
    Boot and Logon category disable lock screen windows 11
  9. Select the Disable Lock Screen option on the left of the window.
    The Disable Lock Screen option disable lock screen windows 11
  10. Then click the Disable Lock Screen checkbox on the right.
    Disable Lock Screen checkbox disable lock screen windows 11

Can I disable the Windows login screen as well?

Not exactly, but you can bypass the login screen by configuring Windows to automatically sign in for you. Then you won’t ever need to manually log in to Windows.

To do so, you’ll first need to edit the registry and deselect the User must enter a user name and password to use this computer as follows.

  1. Open Registry Editor as covered within the first two steps of method one.
  2. Go to this registry key location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\PasswordLess\Device
  3. Double-click the DevicePasswordLessBuildVersion DWORD for the Device key.
    devicepassowrdless dword
  4. Then erase the current value from the data box, and enter 0 to replace it.
  5. Click OK to confirm.
    edit dword
  6. Thereafter, close the Registry Editor.
  7. Open the Run dialog.
  8. Enter this Run command and click OK: netplwiz
    net command in run
  9. Deselect the Users must enter a username and password to use this computer checkbox.
    choose users must enter password
  10. Press the Apply button to save the new settings, and click OK to close the window.
    click to apply

You can also disable the lock screen on Windows Server with different methods. Our how-to Disable Lock Screen on Windows Server guide provides full details on how you can do so.

So, that’s how you can disable the lock screen in Windows 11 with three different methods. It’s relatively straightforward to enable that screen by editing the registry as outlined above. You can also set up a System Restore point beforehand just in case.

If you prefer not to edit the registry, however, you can disable the lock screen with Winaero Tweaker instead. That’s a great freeware customization app with which you can customize Windows 11/10 in many ways. So, it’s worth checking out Winaero for much more than just disabling the lock screen.

We hope you managed to successfully turn off Windows 11’s lock screen using our methods. Write to us in the comments section below if you have any thoughts you want to share with us.

Norton VPN not Working: 8 Easy Fixes & Causes

Posted on by Elena Constantinescu

Norton Secure VPN is a VPN service created by Symantec, a renowned security company.

You can use it to change your IP address, encrypt your data traffic, and protect your online privacy when browsing the web.

However, many users say that Norton Secure VPN stopped working on their devices, gets stuck trying to connect, frequently disconnects, and other similar issues.

If this sounds familiar, check out our easy troubleshooting guide below and easily fix Norton Secure VPN by following our instructions.

Why is my Norton VPN not working?

Table of contents

First of all, your VPN can be imperative at certain times and you need it for improved privacy. So in case, your Norton VPN doesn’t work, there are clear methods you should use.

The most important check you should do might be on your network connection to see if everything works properly.

The scenarios involving this VPN functionality errors impact every user’s privacy, so it’s best to be aware of these:

  • Norton VPN won’t turn on, respectively Norton VPN keeps turning off
  • Norton VPN not connecting – Secure VPN has experienced a connection failure
  • Norton VPN not working on Mac, Windows 10, Windows 11, Android, iPhone (iOS)
  • Norton VPN connection blocked
  • Norton VPN server error – Norton VPN error 809
  • Norton VPN not changing location
  • Norton VPN region not working (India, UAE)
  • Secure VPN can’t connect because a torrent app is running – Norton VPN is not working with Utorrent, Netflix, Warzone
  • Norton VPN stops the internet or causing slow internet
  • Norton Secure VPN your connection is unprotected

You can have lots of running issues with Norton Secure VPN as reported by the users, and the described ones are a few of them.

Still, are you wondering if Norton Secure VPN works? It is a good option for hiding your IP and protecting your online privacy. But it has few VPN servers and not enough advanced features.

Why does my Secure VPN keep turning off?

To clarify this issue for your Norton VPN, you must consider interferences with security processes like antivirus or firewall.

Apart from an unstable Internet connection, your VPN can be restricted by your firewall to secure the system from potentially harmful software.

Other users may wonder if Norton Secure VPN has a kill switch, but know that Norton Secure VPN doesn’t have a kill switch. So, discover the top VPNs with an integrated kill switch for Windows PC.

How do I fix Norton Secure VPN if it stopped working?

1. Check your Internet connection

If you don’t have Internet access on your Windows PC, make sure to solve that problem before attending to Norton Secure VPN.

Plus, there might be a problem with your router, which you can easily check by temporarily switching to wired mode.

It’s also a good idea to regularly run Internet speed tests and see if your connection has any discrepancies.

It might not be strong or stable enough to handle the encryption process of a VPN service.

2. Make an exception in your firewall

  1. Press the Win key, type firewall, and select Firewall & network protection.
  2. Click Allow an app through firewall.
  3. Click Change settings (you need elevation rights).
  4. Find Norton Secure VPN on this list and enable the Private and Public options.
  5. If it’s not on this list, click Allow another app to locate it.

The instructions above make sure that VPN traffic is enabled in the Windows firewall, specifically for Norton Secure VPN.

If you have a firewall application installed, carefully adapt the steps above.

3. Update and restart Norton Secure VPN

Make sure to keep Norton Secure VPN updated to the latest version. Otherwise, it might not work properly on your device.

Suppose you encounter the Update Required: A critical update has been downloaded and must be installed before continuing to use the Norton Secure VPN message. In that case, you have to remove and reinstall Norton Secure VPN.

It’s also a solution to fix any problems you might have with the Symantec TAP driver (in Device Manager).

4. Change your DNS settings

  1. On Windows 10, right-click the Start button and select Network Connections.
  2. Click Change adapter options
  3. Right-click your Internet connection and select Properties
  4. Double-click Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6)
  5. Select Use the following DNS server addresses.
    Use the following DNS server addresses
  6. Set Preferred DNS server to 8.8.8.8
  7. Set Alternate DNS server to 8.8.4.4
  8. Click OK
  9. Try to connect with Norton Secure VPN

These instructions should resolve any issues you might have with your DNS resolver on your PC, such as slow page loading time. It could also be why Norton Secure VPN doesn’t work.

But you can quickly fix this by using other DNS servers. We used Google Public DNS in our example above, which provides free and public DNS servers that improve your online security and speed up your Internet connection

Find out more about how to change DNS settings on Windows PC.

5. Connect to another virtual location

connect to Norton Secure VPN virtual locations

If Norton Secure VPN doesn’t connect, there might be a problem with the server. Perhaps there are too many users connected to that server or it’s currently down for maintenance.

To fix this problem, try connecting to another virtual location from the list.

6. Reinstall the WAN Miniport drivers

  1. Right-click the Windows Start button and select Device Manager.
    device manager windows 11
  2. Expand Network Adapters.
  3. Right-click WAN Miniport (IKEv2) and select Uninstall device.
    uninstall WAN Miniport network adapters
  4. Do the same thing for WAN Miniport drivers (IP) and WAN Miniport drivers (IPv6)
  5. Open the Action menu and click Scan for hardware changes
  6. Try using Norton Secure VPN again

If your VPN connection fails on your PC, it might be due to WAN Miniport functionality issues. But you can easily fix this problem by reinstalling those devices.

7. Refresh network settings

flush DNS servers in Windows 10
  1. Run cmd with elevation rights: press Ctrl + R, type cmd, hold Ctrl + Shift and press Enter
  2. Copy and paste the next lines (press Enter between each line)
ipconfig /flushdns

ipconfig /registerdns

ipconfig /release

ipconfig /renew

NETSH winsock reset catalog

NETSH int ipv4 reset reset.log

NETSH int ipv6 reset reset.log

exit

Reboot your PC and try connecting to Norton Secure VPN again.

Flushing your DNS servers and resetting Winsock are quick ways to refresh your network settings on Windows.

8. Check the root certificates of Norton Secure VPN

  1. Press the Start button, type certificates, and select Manage computer certificates.
  2. Open the Personal folder on the left side.
    manage Windows Local computer certificates
  3. Look for SurfEasy in the Issued By column.
  4. If there are multiple SurfEasy entries, delete the old ones by considering the Expiration Date.
  5. Do the same in the Trusted Root Certification Authorities and Intermediate Certification Authorities folder.

Old and expired certificates could be the reason why Norton Secure VPN suddenly stopped working on your computer. You just have to find and delete them.

To recap, the solutions above should help you fix Norton Secure VPN if it stops working or won’t connect to your PC.

You can check your Internet connection, add an exception in the firewall, verify the root certificates, etc.

If you’re still encountering issues with Norton Secure VPN, you might consider using the Norton Power Eraser to scan for and remove any deeply embedded threats that could be affecting the VPN’s functionality.

If you’re a fan of Symantec’s products and services, check out our Norton section. Join our VPN Troubleshooting Hub for more helpful guides.

In case you want Norton to do more than provide anonymity, check out our interesting and detailed review of Norton 360 Deluxe to understand how it can protect all your devices.

However, if it’s a recurring issue, consider dropping support for Norton Secure VPN and choosing a better, more reliable VPN like the one suggested, ExpressVPN.

How to Link your Mojang Account to Xbox Live [Quick Guide]

Posted on by Farhad Pashaei

Switching from Mojang to a Microsoft account might be a challenging procedure, and many users need help linking these two together.

The migration is permanent and there is no going back once you have completed the actions listed below to link these two accounts.

Further, the Java edition (which is associated with your Mojang account) and the Bedrock edition (which is the Console version) are two distinct versions that need separate accounts.

But if you want to play Minecraft on your PC with your already existing Mojang account you can simply migrate your Mojang account to your Microsoft account.

What are the benefits of migrating from Mojang to Microsoft?

Support for two-factor authentication, unification of Minecraft games under one account, improved parental controls, and chat/invitation blocking are all advantages of migrating Mojang accounts to Microsoft accounts.

Despite the fact that migration is required for all Java Edition accounts, players who complete it will earn a free cape as a prize.

If you had too many failed attempts to your Mojang account, take a look at our related article.

How can I connect my Mojang account to Xbox live?

1. Migrate from Mojang to Xbox using a new Microsoft account

  1. Log in to Minecraft with your Mojang account and select MOVE MY ACCOUNT on the prompt IT’S YOUR TURN TO MOVE! on your profile page.
    The migration notice from the launcher will also take you to your profile page. move my account
  2. You’ll need to confirm your email address by getting a code to the email address associated with your Mojang account. Click GET CODE and look for the confirmation code in your email.get code
  3. Click SUBMIT AND START MIGRATION after entering the code in the box provided in the pop-up window.submit and start
  4. You’ll be asked to set up a new Microsoft account with a new password. Please note that you will not be allowed to use an email address from your workplace or school.password
  5. After that, you’ll be sent to a screen where you’ll be asked to confirm your nationality and date of birth. Your Mojang account will be used to fill up this information automatically.country and date of birth
  6. You’ll be asked to establish an Xbox profile and a Gamertag in the following stage.gamertg
  7. You’ll be led to a final screen that will ask you to COMPLETE MOVE and provide you with some extra information. You’ll also see an option that allows you to create or select a different Microsoft account at this time.complete

That’s all there is to it once you’ve verified you wish to complete the move. A confirmation notice will appear when your Minecraft account has been converted to your new Microsoft account.

Make sure you log out of your Mojang account and then log in with your new Microsoft account the next time you run the Minecraft launcher.

    2. Connect your Mojang account to Xbox using an already existing Microsoft account

    Another handy method to link your Mojang and Xbox accounts is by using the MOVE MY ACCOUNT option and perform the migration using an already existing Microsoft account.

  1. 1. Log in to Minecraft with your Mojang account and select MOVE MY ACCOUNT on the IT’S YOUR TURN TO MOVE! prompt from your profile page.

    link mojang account to xbox

  2. 2. You’ll need to confirm your email address by getting a code to the email address associated with your Mojang account. Click GET CODE and look for the confirmation code in your email.

    link mojang account to xbox

  3. 3. Click SUBMIT AND START MIGRATION after entering the code in the provided box.

    To link mojang account to xbox submit and start

  4. 4. You’ll be presented with a page that allows you to sign in using an existing Microsoft account.

    Select microsoft account for link mojang account to xbox

  5. 5. You’ll be asked to authenticate your existing Gamertag/profile and enter your Microsoft account password.

    Your Microsoft account will be automatically listed to pick if you use the same email address for your Microsoft account as you do for your Mojang account.

    Type password for microsoft to be able to link mojang account

  6. 6. The last screen will ask you to COMPLETE MOVE and provide you with some further information.

    If you’ve mistakenly used the wrong Microsoft account, you’ll also notice a link that allows you to go back and pick a different Microsoft account at this time.

    connect mojang account to xbox completed

  7. 7. That’s all there is to it once you’ve confirmed the transfer. You’ll get a confirmation message when your Minecraft account has been linked to your current Microsoft account.

Why is Mojang migrating to Microsoft?

Mojang Studios, the Minecraft creators, revealed their newest attempts to merge with their parent firm, Microsoft, near the end of 2020.

These accounts would be migrated to Microsoft accounts in order to strengthen security and add additional safety measures for users’ safety.

Minecraft: Java Edition gamers have previously accessed their game with customized Mojang Accounts with their unique usernames and passwords.

However, it appears that this is no longer a possibility since Mojang is working with a larger firm like Microsoft to safeguard its users’ credentials.

Even though the migration procedure appears to be simple, it will take a few minutes to complete and log in with Microsoft account into Minecraft.

This process is now mandatory for some players, but it will be for all in the near future when all Mojang accounts are switched to Microsoft accounts.

If you are unable to log in with a Microsoft account, there is a full-fix guide that could help you.

Let us know whether you were successful in connecting your Mojang account to Xbox in the comments section below.

7 Tips to Spot Undetected Norton 360 Scam Email

Posted on by Kazim Ali Alvi

Norton antivirus is one of the most trusted options in the market and offers a bunch of features along with regular scanning for malware and virus. But, several of its users (and some non-users too) reported receiving Norton 360 scam emails.

Phishing has long been a problem that all three, users, companies, and authorities are facing. And, it poses a serious risk since people risk losing their money or might end up sharing sensitive information.

But, how do you spot a scam email? What are the various signs? Does Norton 360 send promotional emails or are these scams? Can just opening a scam email bring any trouble? These are some of the questions you may have.

We will take all these up individually in the following sections to help you spot a Norton protection scam email and stay safe.

What is the Norton 360 email scam?

The Norton 360 email scam is a part of elaborate phishing fraud that’s been going around for some time now. Here, you receive an unsuspecting email claiming that your Norton 360 subscription has automatically been renewed, or that your recent Norton 360 purchase will be activated soon.

This could be related to any of the products offered by Norton. For instance, Norton 360 Standard, Norton 360 Deluxe, Norton 360 Deluxe 3 devices, Norton 360 Premium, or Norton 360 for Gamers.

Such emails are meant to create panic. For instance, contact to cancel the purchase right away if you don’t want to be charged. Or, that you have already been charged and can get in touch with the helpline to request a refund.

As expected, at the end of the Norton 360 scam email is a phone number for the support helpline to contact, in case you want a refund. Users who called this number were asked to share banking data or credit card details in order to deposit the refund in their accounts.

As soon as they provided the details, a certain sum of money was immediately deducted. In such cases, getting your money back is the real challenge, so it’s best that you be wary initially and not fall for such scams.

In some cases, there were links and attachments in these emails, which if clicked on or downloaded, can infect the device. This is one of the common modus operandi for scammers. Once the malware is loaded into the system, it can access the files or track your activity.

There are several aspects that can help you spot a Norton 360 scam email. Some pointed out under a section from Reddit regarding the Norton 360 scam email, and others from different past scam experiences. Read the following section to find out.

Can I trust Norton 360?

Norton AntiVirus is not only safe to use, but it also has a lengthy history of providing flawless or almost perfect results when detecting viruses.

During the most recent period of testing conducted by an independent AV company (April 2022), it was able to get a maximum score of 6 points in each of the categories of usability, performance, and protection.

How do I spot a Norton 360 scam email?

1. Verify the sender’s address

The first sign to look out for in case you receive spam emails from Norton and McAfee is the sender’s address. Oftentimes, you would find these to be registered on Gmail, Yahoo, or other email services. And a company like Norton or any other major corporation would always use its domain.

In some cases, scammers also use a slight variation of Norton’s domain. They could add a letter or remove one, such that it isn’t easily noticeable. Norton has made a list of all the registered domains, so you can verify if the email is actually from Norton or a scam.

2. Look for grammatical or spelling errors

When an email is sent from an official source, you wouldn’t find any grammatical errors or spelling mistakes since the content goes through several checks before being sent out to users.

On the other hand, scam emails are generally sent out without any checks. Scammers don’t bother double-checking the content, and as a result, there could be a few typos. Take the below case of the Norton 360 scam email for instance:

Though it could look like a genuine one, the word Proforma (a type of invoice) has been misspelled as Performa. Other than that, there is no spacing after a comma or full stop in some places. So, have a keen eye for such stuff, otherwise, you won’t be able to spot a scam email.

3. Check the graphics or logo

Most of the phishing emails from Norton don’t have proper graphics or use the incorrect logo for Norton 360. The logo might either be hazy, a part of it missing, or it could be an outdated one.

You will have to head to Norton’s website to verify if the logo matches the one officially used. If you find any inconsistencies there, it’s most likely a Norton 360 scam email.

In this case, you should not share any personal information, click on any links, download attachments, or establish contact through the details provided.

4. Email tries to create an urgency

Scam emails work through a very simple technique, highlighting an emergency to manufacture a sense of urgency so that the person is unable to think clearly or realize that they are being scammed. To do this, scammers generally provide a small timeframe in the Norton 360 scam email, as is the case below:

When you see that the amount will be deducted in 24 hours or as the case may be, you suddenly panic and call the number provided there. Norton or any other large corporation wouldn’t use such antics, and this is an easy way to spot a scam or phishing email.

5. Includes suspicious-looking links

Always remember to not click on suspicious links in an email because these might contain files that could harm the computer, and you would end up losing critical data. And, a scam email might have one of these.

It could either ask you to download software or redirect you to another webpage in order to complete the payment. NEVER, click on these!

You can either hover the cursor over the link to preview it or copy it to a word processor. If there’s something suspicious about the link, contact Norton through official channels to verify if it’s a legit email.

6. Look how they address you

Another critical aspect that often gives away if it’s a Norton 360 scam email is the way it addresses the recipient. Corporations generally don’t use highly informal language, so that’s one way to identify.

Also, since the company already has your personal information, it would most likely use it to address you. If the email uses words like Dear Buyer, it’s a sign of a scam.

7. Offers huge discounts on products

Another way to scam users is by offering huge discounts on products. In the case of Norton 360, the scam email would highlight that your computer is at risk and that the antivirus is available at an unreasonably low price.

And most likely, it would ask you to make payments through services such as Western Union or use payment platforms like PayPal, Zelle, or CashApp. Norton has confirmed that it doesn’t accept payments through these platforms.

    How do I report a phishing email to Norton?

    Users can report email scams through Norton Support. So, if you believe to have received one, you now know where to send the fake Norton emails.

    Apart from informing you whether it’s indeed a Norton 360 scam email after analysis, they will also take the necessary action.

  1. 1. Launch your web browser.

  2. 2. Navigate to your email address’s inbox.

  3. 3. Right-click on the email that you believe is a scam, and select Forward as Attachment from the menu.

    Forward as attachment to fix norton 360 scam email

  4. 4. Next, paste [email protected] in the text field meant for entering the details of the recipient.

    send email to report pishing to norton

  5. 5. In case you have contacted the support team earlier regarding this, make sure to enter the Case Number provided in the Subject field. If you haven’t, send the email without one.

Note icon NOTE
The steps listed here are for Gmail and should provide a basic understanding of the concept. In case you use a different email service, it too should have a similar process.

Can spammers tell if I open an email?

Yes, spammers can find if and when you open an email. Because, when you do, the email service will download graphics from the servers chosen by the sender. As soon as that happens, it will become clear that the email has been opened.

Gmail settings to disable the automatic download of images

To avoid that, users can disable the automatic download of images. This way, the sender cannot find out if you have opened the email.

Other than identifying that you have opened the email, scammers can also find out your location, IP address, the device used to view the email, OS, the browser used, and the screen size, amongst other aspects. So, think twice before opening a Norton 360 scam email!

Can I get hacked by opening an email?

No, that is not possible! Until some time ago, scammers could infect your computer or hack into it, but it’s simply not the case now. With recent changes in the way contents of the email are now fetched, you can open any email, though remember that some data will still be shared.

But, if you click on links on download attachments added to the scam email, there’s a good chance that your account or computer might get hacked.

That’s all there’s about Norton 360 scam emails, the ways to spot one, and how to be safe, in general, on the web.

Also, if you believe that such emails are only sent by scammers under the disguise of Norton, read about the McAfee email scams that work on similar lines.

Besides, if you want to stop Norton spam emails, do not hesitate to check the best spam filters that you can start using today.

If you’re worried by unknown files and threats, you also have a guide that answers what is Windoc.exe that can help you with that.

If you received any such emails, tell us how you identified that it was a scam, in the comments section.

Lock and Unlock Fn Key on Windows 10: Step-by-Step

Posted on by Matthew Adams

Want to lock or unlock the Fn key on your Windows 10 laptop but don’t know where to start? Controlling the Fn key lets you decide how your function keys behave, whether you need to press Fn every time or have the shortcuts work instantly.

Locking or unlocking it can save you time, improve your workflow, and prevent accidental key presses. In this guide, I’ll show you simple step-by-step methods to toggle the Fn key exactly how you want it.

How can I utilize the Function key on a Windows 10 PC?

1. How do I enable Function lock on Windows 10?

Have a good look at the Fn key on your keyboard, which is usually at the bottom left of your keyboard. If you really can’t see it, maybe your keyboard doesn’t have one. However, most keyboards do have Fn keys for activating secondary key functions, such as volume controls on arrow keys.

When you’ve located Fn, press and hold that key. Then press one of the F1-F12 keys with a color symbol on it to activate its function. For example, pressing the Fn key and an F8 key with a mute icon on it will mute the sound.

You can also activate secondary multimedia functions for other keys with blue or green symbols on them. So, try pressing Fn simultaneously with any key that includes a blue or green function symbol it.

If your Fn keys are not working on Windows 10, find out what to do by reading our related article.

2. How do I lock and unlock the Function key on Windows 10?

Some keyboards enable users to lock the Fn key so they don’t have to always press Fn to activate secondary key functions. So, you might be able to press an Fn lock key on your keyboard. Look for a keyboard key with an Fn padlock icon on it.

Esc is an Fn padlock key on many keyboards. If you see an Fn padlock on your Esc key, press and hold the Fn key. Then press Esc while holding the Fn key. Thereafter, you won’t need to press the Fn key to active secondary key functions. To unlock Fn, press and hold Fn and the Esc key again.

If your Esc key is not working, check out our dedicated article to find out how to fix it.

    3. How to disable the Fn key in Windows 10?

    If you do not want to use the Fn key on your Windows 10 PC and want it gone, you can disable it via BIOS Settings. In doing so, you will no longer be able to use it on your device until you re-enable the setting.

  1. 1. Click the Type here to search taskbar button on your taskbar. Alternatively, press the Windows key on your keyboard to open the search box.

  2. 2. Type advanced startup in the search box and press Enter.

  3. 3. Click on Changed advanced startup options to open the window shown directly below.

    access recovery setting options

  4. 4. Press the Restart now button for advanced startup.

  5. 5. When your desktop or laptop restarts at the blue Advanced Boot Options menu, select Troubleshoot and Advanced Options.

  6. 6. Then select UEFI Firmware Settings and Restart to enter the BIOS settings.

  7. 7. Thereafter, look for an Action Key Mode setting on the System Configuration or other tabs.

  8. 8. Disable the Action Key Mode setting.

Note: Users with older laptops and Windows platforms will need to enter the BIOS by pressing one of the F1-F12 keys during system startup. Check your PC’s manual, or its manufacturer’s website, to find what the BIOS key is for your PC.

4. How can I change the Function key’s behavior?

  1. To configure the Fn key functionality, enter your PC’s BIOS settings as outlined directly above for disabling Fn.
    The BIOS function key lock windows 10
  2. Select the Advanced tab in BIOS.
  3. Then select the Function Key Behavior option there.
  4. Select Multimedia Key or Function Key depending on preference.

Note: Users with Dell laptops can adjust that same setting from the Windows Mobility Center.

For more in-depth information on how to change Fn key settings on Windows 10, check out our dedicated article.

So, that’s how you can utilize the Fn key, modify its behavior, and disable it if you prefer. Overall, Fn is an important key that provides numerous handy keyboard shortcuts for users.

Windows 11 Version 22h2 Review: Best New Features

Posted on by Vladimir Popescu

We are excited to dive into this article’s Windows 11 version 22H2 update; perhaps, it justifies the announcement’s anticipation.

Almost half a year ago, Microsoft announced this update as feature complete, sparking much user interest about when it will be officially released.

We later discovered that Windows 11 version 22H2 would come to us in the form of the Windows 11 2022 update.

We can all sigh of relief as the big day has finally come for Windows 11 users to get their first significant update.

The 2022 Windows 11 update is officially here and has something for everyone. Let us walk you through it; you should be excited.

What is the Windows 11 2022 Update?

This is a significant update packed with intriguing features for every user. For example, better touch gestures, Start menu folders, Live Captions throughout the entire OS, and a new Xbox controller bar are some exciting features now available via the Windows 11 2022 Update.

Additionally, it makes several significant accessibility enhancements and signals a change in how Microsoft views new features.

Now let us get to a review of this update.

What are the new features of the Windows 11 2022 Update?

The Settings app

Let us start here since the Settings are the powerhouse of most of our devices.

With the release of the Windows 11 2022 Update, Microsoft added several new settings pages to the Settings program, as it does with every new version of Windows.

The Accounts section now includes a new Microsoft Account page that summarizes your Microsoft 365 membership and provides quick access to other online options and services.

If you utilize that service, a new Family Safety page gives you rapid access to all the Family Safety options.

What we find most intriguing is the timed update. Your updates can now be auto-scheduled to follow your local electrical grid. These timed installs with your power grid make efficient use of renewable energy rather than installing updates as they become available.

Additionally, the number of pinned or suggested rows you see on Start can be changed. There are also new options to make the Bing daily image your desktop background or to disable the System Tray overflow menu, among other things.

Gaming features

This update gives you a new Controller Bar, optimizations for playing games in a windowed mode that was only available on full screen before, HDR optimizations, and much more.

As you would have imagined, this new Controller Bar overlay can be activated by pressing the Xbox Wireless Controller’s Xbox button or the equivalent button on a compatible third-party controller.

The tech giant has also improved how DirectX 10 and 11 games are handled by Windows 11 when playing in windowed and borderless modes. In addition, there is a real improvement in display latencies with the 2022 Update, similar to playing their games on full screen.

Auto HDR and Variable Refresh Rate features can now be used in games when using windowed modes, which were locked to full screen before. 

Microsoft has also introduced an HDR Calibration app to help players improve their HDR displays’ color accuracy and consistency.

On MS Edge, we now have a new gaming homepage, Clarity Boost, for better cloud gameplay, tailored stories, quick Xbox Cloud Gaming library access, and an Efficiency mode for increased gaming performance.

Updates to Apps

Let’s start with a redesigned sidebar navigation interface that more effectively groups various shortcuts to frequently used file system locations, such OneDrive and user folders.

Microsoft has also enhanced the nearby Share function, and it now displays devices connected to a private network and Bluetooth-enabled devices. Additionally, you can use the file sharing UI to share local files to OneDrive immediately.

The File Explorer is not left out and features a fresh tabbed layout along the application’s top. In addition, you can now open multiple File Explorer paths in one window, the same way you would a web browser. This is an excellent organizational boost. 

The app also has a new Pinned Files segment in Quick Access. Users can permanently keep files in this location by pinning them for easy access later.

Microsoft has restored several functions from the Windows 10 Start menu in the Start menu, including the capacity to create app folders and modify the area size for pinned apps.

Every time a user moves an app window, a new snapping layout menu appears at the screen’s top. In addition to the drop-down option that shows when hovering over the app’s window’s maximize buttons, this offers a more straightforward way to start Windows snapping.

Additionally, the update will ship a new Sound Recorder with an improved user interface, increased output options, and an audio visualizer.

Finally, a new interface has been added to Task Manager to better integrate it with Windows 11. When you minimize the window, its sidebar navigation Interface instantly collapses.

The Taskbar app has been upgraded with drag and drop functionality. For example, you can paste files by dragging them into program icons on the Taskbar.

New app additions

Two brand-new applications called Clipchamp and Family Safety are pre-installed with version 22H2.

The former is a web-based video editor. Although the free application, you may subscribe to paid monthly levels to access additional rendering options and effects.

The Family Safety app allows instant access to information about your family. These include where your kids are, scheduled events on a shared family calendar, and other utilities for managing your home.

Windows 11 2022 Update Security features

As expected, Microsoft has rolled out a few they can take pride in.

When you input your credentials into a malicious program, Microsoft Defender SmartScreen will detect it and notify you.

Additionally, the driver block list offers protection against ransomware attacks and advanced threats that take advantage of vulnerable drivers. For example, HVCI (Hypervisor-protected Code Integrity) prevents attacks that aim to modify the kernel mode code.

In addition, Smart App Control will now block harmful macros, script files, and untrusted or unsigned apps. Thanks to this tiny feature, you can engage with various programs and web resources more efficiently.

How do I update to Windows 11 version 22H2?

  1. Press Windows + I to access Settings.
  2. Select the Windows updates tab and click Install all.install Windows updates
  3. Press the Check for updates button if you have no queued updates for installation.check for updates

There is so much to love about the new update; it almost feels like we have a new OS. Features like the new System-wide Live Captions, natural narrators, and improved Air Pods support make it as exciting as predicted.

Have you already installed the Windows 2022 update (22H2)? Please share your experience with us in the comments section below.

Fix: Blizzard Connection Issues Can’t Connect to Battlenet

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Blizzard’s games are great, but many users may face Blizzard connection issues. Some reported There was a problem connecting to Blizzard services while trying to play them.

This issue affects the latest Blizzard games, namely the ones we play on Battle.net. Blizzard Battle.net is a pretty popular online gaming platform provided by Blizzard Entertainment.

The service allows online multiplayer for games such as Overwatch, StarCraft, World of Warcraft, Diablo, Hearthstone, and Heroes of the Storm.

Numerous users have reported this issue on Blizzard forums:

I can’t even login to the battle net even though I have internet access. Whenever I tried logging in it shows up as could not connect to Blizzard services with the code BLZBNTBGS80000011 (1001). Please fix this as I can’t even login into overwatch manually as it’s connected to the battle net.

What causes Blizzard connection issues?

There can be several causes of connection issues with Blizzard games. However, here are a few common reasons:

  • Internet connection – Poor or unstable internet connections can cause issues with Blizzard games. It is recommended to use a wired connection instead of a wireless connection for better stability.
  • Firewall or antivirus – A firewall or antivirus software can sometimes block the game’s server connection, resulting in connection issues. Temporarily disabling the firewall or antivirus software can help troubleshoot the problem.
  • Router configuration – Incorrect router settings or outdated firmware can cause connection issues. Checking and updating the router settings and firmware can help resolve the issue.
  • Server status – Blizzard servers may occasionally experience high traffic or downtime, causing player connection issues. Checking the server status on the Blizzard website can help determine if this is the issue.
  • Game files – Corrupt or outdated game files can cause connection issues. Verifying the game files and updating the game to the latest version can help resolve the issue.
  • Third-party programs – Some third-party programs can interfere with the game’s server connection, resulting in connection issues. Disabling any unnecessary third-party programs can help to troubleshoot the problem.

That said, let us explore the best solutions.

How can I fix Blizzard connection issues?

Before trying any fixes, confirm that Battle.net is not down. To do so, you have two quick options. Firstly, it’s practical to check it with Downdetector.com to see the service status.

The alternative is to stay updated with Battle.net stories on social media like Blizzard CS and see the latest posts regarding the platform and games.

  1. Run a reset
  2. Use a gaming-friendly VPN
  3. Run a diagnostic on your network
  4. Reinstall Battle.Net

1. Run a reset

  1. Press Windows + R, type cmd, and hit Ctrl + Shift + Enter.
  2. Type the scripts below, hitting Enter after each one.
    ipconfig /flushdns
    ipconfig /renew

2. Use a gaming-friendly VPN

  1. Get a VPN subscription from ExpressVPN.
  2. Download the software and install it on your PC.
  3. Log in to your account to launch the VPN.
  4. Now, click on All locations to choose different servers.
  5. Press the Power button and connect to high-speed servers.
  6. Go to Battle.net and play your games at maximum performance.

It’s just a matter of opening the recommended VPN software and choosing a remote server to connect to, closer to the Blizzard servers.

If you can’t connect to any game, here’s a list of IPs based on your location worldwide.

  • US West – 24.105.30.129
  • US Central – 24.105.62.129
  • Brazil – 54.207.107.12
  • Europe – 185.60.114.159
  • Europe – 185.60.112.157
  • Korea – 211.234.110.1
  • Taiwan – 203.66.81.98

Using a professional VPN while playing Battle.Net can enhance your gaming experience. When your PC is very far from a server, the VPN improves lag and reduces ping, helping you avoid network throttling.

ExpressVPN

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3. Run a diagnostic on your network

  1. Navigate to the WinMTR official website and click Download WinMTR.
    blizzard connection issues
  2. Unzip the WinMTR.zip file to the Desktop.
    blizzard connection issues
  3. Open the WinMTR folder and select the 32 or 64-bit version according to your Windows version.
    blizzard connection issues
  4. Run the WinMTR.exe.
  5. Type the IP address you want to trace in the Host field.
  6. Once you notice the connection issue while playing, play for a few more minutes, minimize the game, click on Stop, and save your results from tracking the problem.

Note: You must open the game and play the correct IP for a bit to get the correct IP. While running the game, press Ctrl + Shift + N, bringing up the in-game network diagnostic graph.

Alternatively, you can go to Video, then select Options and click on Display Network Performance Graph. You will find the IP address you want to run WinMTR to in the top left corner.

Don’t hesitate to ask your Internet provider about the situation if you notice Blizzard connection issues or spikes.

5. Reinstall Battle.Net

  1. Press Windows.
  2. Type in control and open the Control Panel.
  3. Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.
    blizzard connection issues
  4. Select Battle.net, and select Uninstall.
  5. Restart your PC.
  6. Go to the official Battle.Net website and download a fresh copy of the Battle.Net client.
  7. Install it following the on-screen instructions.

On the other hand, you could use a third-party uninstaller to get rid of your old Battle.Net client since they also eliminate any residual data and files that generally don’t disappear after a typical uninstall.

Moreover, this program keeps your PC safe and clean with a single click and removes malicious browser plug-ins and toolbars, protecting your privacy while navigating online.

Without any cache and unused files, you will recover more space on your hard drive and reinstall Battle.Net problem-free.

That is all we will cover in this Blizzard connection issues guide. Even more, since you are a passionate gamer and similar issues may arise, rest assured that you can also resolve Battlefield 1 can’t connect to any server with these steps.

So, if you have any other suggestions, don’t hesitate to comment below because they might help other users like yourself.

How to Create a Shared Channel in Slack

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Looking for a way to set up a shared channel in Slack? The thing is that sometimes it takes a little while to keep up with Slack’s features. Slack was meant to be a collaboration hub for the workgroups within a company.

With a continuously growing network of companies using it for internal work, Slack saw the need of allowing them to collaborate in one channel. Then, they made shared channels available to all customers.

What are shared channels in Slack?

Shared channels work pretty much like typical Slack channels, but span two organizations from their own Slack workspace.

Once the connection is established, members can share files, send direct messages, start calls, loop in coworkers, and more.

It’s all about enjoying time efficiency like they do with internal teams – all in a dedicated Slack space.

After reminding you of all these, let’s cut to the chase and see how you can create a brand new channel to share with another organization, or how you may share an existing channel.

How can I create a shared channel in Slack?

  1. 1. To create and share a brand new channel, first you need to click the plus button in your sidebar.

  2. 2. Give the channel a descriptive name.

  3. 3. After doing so, click Create.

  4. 4. Follow the prompts to share the channel outside of your workspace.

    slack shared channels create manage section

  5. 5. Copy the link provided and send it to your external partner.

  6. 6. After clicking it, you partner will be taken back to Slack to accept the invite and set up the shared channel.

  7. 7. The invitation is then sent to an admin on both teams for their approval.

  8. 8. Admins or org owners can later manage shared channels invitations. For that, click on workspace name > Administration > Manage shared channels.

  9. 9. When you enter a shared channel, you’ll see the connecting organization’s name just above the message input to remind you that you’re working with an external party.

    connect organization name slack

    10. You can easily create a Shared channel in Slack within a few minutes via the app’s built-in options, and then the channel will be ready to be shared via link with all your peers.

If you are new to Slack, see our Slack how to use guide for the basics before setting up shared channels.

How to share a Slack channel?

To share an existing channel, click on the gear icon from the top of the channel. Then, select Add people to the channel and follow the prompts to share the channel with external companies.

The shared channel might turn into a common place for two separate companies to work together, but each workspace may keep its own identity.

Go for a different channel name, and purpose, or decide whether the channel is public or private.

By default, both owners and admins of a workspace can convert channels to private. Members aren’t allowed to do so.

Want to see who is in a channel and online on Slack? Check out our dedicated article and easily learn how you can do that.

How can I make a channel private in Slack?

make Slack channel private
  1. Download Shift for Windows / Shift for Linux / Shift for Mac. Shift for Windows
  2. Double-click the downloaded file to begin.
  3. Shift will launch automatically once the installation has been completed.
  4. Using Slack in Shift, open the Slack channel you wish to make private.
  5. Click the gears icon in the top right-hand corner.
  6. Choose Additional options from the Channel Settings menu.
  7. Select Change to a private channel.
  8. Click Convert to private to confirm your action.

You should use Shift when deciding to make your Slack channel private. That’s a desktop app to manage Slack and other apps or email accounts in one place.

Converting a channel to private is permanent, so choose wisely. Even after making the change, files within the channel will not become private.

How can I make a new private Slack channel?

new private Slack channel
  1. Download Shift: available for Windows / Linux / Mac.Slack Shift
  2. Double-click the downloaded file.
  3. Once the installation has been completed, Shift will launch automatically.
  4. Up next, launch Slack in Shift.
  5. Open your Slack workplace.
  6. In the sidebar, click the plus icon beside Channels.
  7. Then, toggle the Public button to Private.
  8. Enter a name for the new channel.
  9. Under Purpose you can add an optional description of the channel.
  10. Choose some members to invite by typing their names.
  11. Finally, click Create channel.

There’s a first time for everything, and making a new private Slack channel from scratch isn’t at all difficult. We’ve detailed above a guide on how you can perform this task successfully.

For a detailed walkthrough, see our guide on how to find your Slack workspace URL and keep the link handy for quick access.

Before you go, don’t miss our guide on how to create a poll in Slack, since it might come in handy to you someday.

If you’re dealing with lot of notifications, we also have a guide on how to mark all as read in Slack, so you might want to check it out. Additionally, you can learn how to leave channels.

Have you completed the procedure? Share your feedback by dropping us a note in the comments area below.

Outlook Disconnects When Connected to VPN [8 Tested Fixes]

Posted on by Elena Constantinescu

Microsoft Outlook is one of the most popular email clients worldwide.

Some of its users also turn to VPN services to secure their connections, bypass government censorship, and access blocked websites.

Unfortunately, many Outlook users have server connection issues right after establishing the VPN connection.

As a result, it’s impossible to use Microsoft’s email client to check the inbox, compose new messages, forward emails – anything that requires an Internet connection.

We’re showing you exactly what to do if Outlook won’t connect over a VPN.

Check out our step-by-step guide below to troubleshoot this problem, whether you have PC experience or not.

Does Outlook work with a VPN?

Yes, it’s possible to configure Outlook email to connect with a VPN on your device. What you need to know is that Outlook has an option for this.

In the email account, you have the option that allows you to connect to your VPN, and that is the Exchange server connection.

To have a better knowledge about this issue, these are the potential errors you can run into:

  • Outlook disconnects when connected to Cisco VPN,
  • Cisco Anyconnect Outlook disconnected
  • NordVPN Outlook issues
  • Outlook 365 not working over VPN
  • Outlook and teams not working over VPN
  • Outlook freezes on VPN
  • My Outlook account keep disconnecting
  • Why does my VPN block my Email

So, the final takeaway is that you should be able to use Outlook even connected to another IP address on a VPN.

Why does my Outlook disconnect when I connect to VPN?

This Outlook problem may have multiple factors for not connecting to the Internet when the VPN is on. It can be due to your connection or other causes like the ones presented here:

? The Microsoft Outlook is not updated to the latest version

? The wireless network adapter blocks Outlook connection with a VPN

? Your DNS address is not suited for the VPN connection

? The antivirus or firewall can block Outlook connection

How can I make Outlook connect over VPN?

1. Update and restart Microsoft Outlook

enable Microsoft Outlook update
  1. Disable the VPN connection.
  2. Update Outlook to the latest version.
  3. Exit Outlook.
  4. Connect to a VPN server.
  5. Launch Outlook.

Make sure you’re running the latest version of Microsoft Outlook. It could help resolve various compatibility issues with the software, including VPNs.

You should be able to enable updates from your Office account after opening the main menu in Microsoft Outlook.

2. Check your Internet connection

Netflix has encountered an error

If your Internet connection isn’t stable enough, it could be the reason why Outlook won’t connect over a VPN.

Perhaps there’s a problem with your router or your laptop’s Wi-Fi is too slow. To quickly test this, you can restart your router or switch to wired mode.

It’s also a good idea to run an Internet speed test in two parts: while staying connected to the VPN and without an active VPN connection.

3. Use a reliable VPN

One of the greatest options you can count on is ExpressVPN. It is a VPN service that helps you secure your internet connection and private data, in this context, on Outlook email.

It can support multiple protocols that create secure tunnels without affecting your connection speed, DNS protection for each server, or streaming optimized servers for unrestricted web content.

Here’s how you can get ExpressVPN:

  1. Download and install ExpressVPN from their official website.
  1. Open ExpressVPN and click on Choose location to see all the available IP locations.
  2. Select your region from the Recommended button.
  1. Enjoy using ExpressVPN.

When you’re browsing the internet, ExpressVPN protects your data so you can’t be tracked you are entirely anonymous.

ExpressVPN

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4. Add an exception to the Windows Firewall

  1. Press the Start button, type firewall, and select Firewall & network protection.
  2. Click Allow an app through the firewall.
  3. Click Change settings (you need admin rights).
  4. Find your VPN service on this list.
  5. Enable the Private and Public options for its entry.
  6. If your VPN isn’t here, click Allow another app to locate it.

If you follow these steps, you will fix firewall issues with VPN traffic. If Outlook connects over your VPN now, it means there was never a problem on the email client’s side, but with your firewall.

And, if you’re using a third-party firewall, make sure to adapt the instructions we provided for Windows Defender above.

A premium VPN service like ExpressVPN shouldn’t get blocked by your firewall because it automatically creates an exception for itself when you install it.

5. Disable the wireless network adapter

  1. Go to Control Panel.
  2. Select Network and Internet.
  3. Go to Network and Sharing Center.
  4. Click Change adapter settings.
  5. Right-click your Wi-Fi connection and Disable.
    disable Wi-Fi in Windows
  6. Connect to the Internet in Ethernet mode.

If you’re connected to the Internet in both Wi-Fi and Ethernet mode, it could result in a conflict that causes the VPN connection error on Microsoft Outlook.

To easily fix this problem, simply deactivate your Wi-Fi connection and stick to wired mode.

It also indicates that you have Wi-Fi connectivity issues, which you should troubleshoot as soon as possible to continue using wireless mode.

6. Change your DNS settings

  1. Go to Network Connections > Change adapter options.
  2. Right-click your Internet connection and select Properties.
  3. Double-click Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6).
  4. Select Use the following DNS server addresses.
  5. Set Preferred DNS server to 8.8.8.8
  6. Set Alternate DNS server to 8.8.4.4
  7. Click OK.

If your default DNS servers take too long to load pages, this could also cause VPN connection issues over Microsoft Outlook.

But you can solve this problem by changing the DNS servers. The servers we listed above are free, public, and belong to Google Public DNS. You can also try Cloudflare or OpenDNS.

However, if you have a reliable VPN service like ExpressVPN installed, you don’t have to worry about this issue.

7. Reset the network settings

flush DNS servers in Windows 10
  1. Run Command Prompt with elevated rights: press Ctrl + R, type cmd, hold Ctrl + Shift, and press Enter
  2. Copy and paste the next lines (press Enter between each line)
ipconfig /flushdns

ipconfig /registerdns

ipconfig /release

ipconfig /renew

NETSH winsock reset catalog

NETSH int ipv4 reset reset.log

NETSH int ipv6 reset reset.log

exit

Restart your computer to finish the modifications.

You can easily reset network connectivity settings on your Windows computer by flushing DNS servers and resetting Winsock.

A lot of VPN connection problems can be fixed this way.

8. Allow VPN traffic on your router

If your router doesn’t allow VPN traffic, you wouldn’t be able to connect to a remote VPN server or accept VPN connections. It doesn’t matter if you’re trying to use Microsoft Outlook or any other tool.

In this case, you must access your router’s admin panel, look for a NAT Passthrough option, and enable it for your VPN protocol. Out-of-the-box router firmware typically supports PPTP and L2TP.

If you intend to use a VPN protocol that’s not supported by your router’s firmware (like OpenVPN), here’s what you can do:

➡️ Set up port forwarding at the router level* (not safe). But it only works with VPN server mode.

➡️ Check if your router allows you to install third-party firmware. If so, you can set up DD-WRT, Tomato, or OpenWRT (requires advanced skills). They support VPN client mode.

➡️ If your router doesn’t support third-party firmware, you can purchase a router with VPN client capability and then set up bridge mode to avoid Double NAT.

➡️ Instead of configuring router settings and risk messing up its functionality, you can just Express software to switch your protocol for OpenVPN or other within a few clicks.

How does a VPN affect email?

Actually, a VPN can make an important difference while using email like Outlook or other providers. That means you have online identity safety and security for personal data sent on emails.

However, if your VPN interferes with mail connection and blocks it, you should try our solutions presented above.

To conclude, you can fix VPN connectivity issues with Office by updating and restarting MS Outlook, checking your Internet connection, and adding an exception to the Windows Firewall.

You can also disable the Wi-Fi network adapter, change your DNS servers, reset network settings, and allow VPN traffic on your router or set up port forwarding.

But one of the best ways to stay secure while using Microsoft Outlook is by turning to a reliable VPN service like ExpressVPN.

Thus, you can join our Outlook Troubleshooting Hub for more similar quick-fix guides. Visit our VPN section to learn everything about VPN services.

Frequently Asked Questions

 How do I fix Outlook connectivity problems? To fix Outlook connection errors, you can disable the AppData directory redirection, create a new Outlook profile, repair Office programs, and try other possible solutions.

How do I fix error 0x8004011d in Outlook? To repair Outlook error 0x8004011d, flush your DNS servers, verify add-in issues, repair the Outlook installation package, and so on.

What is the most anonymous email? ProtonMail is one of the best anonymous email clients.

Fix: Can’t Remove Xbox Wireless Controller Device

Posted on by Alexandru Poloboc

Playing your favorite game on your PC doesn’t necessarily have to be done using a mouse and keyboard. In fact, many games are easier and a lot more fun to play with a controller.

And, if you are using a Windows PC, for optimal compatibility, you are most likely using an Xbox controller. The software for these devices can sometimes bug.

If you have a wireless Xbox controller, you will also want to know what to do when it is recognized but not working in games.

Knowing how to set up your Xbox wireless adapter will also make your life easier when trying to connect your controller.

Windows 10, as well as Windows 11 users, have complained about not being able to remove the Xbox controller from their PC. Today, we are going to show you how.

Why can’t I remove my Xbox wireless controller device?

This mostly happens when there is an error with the current driver for the gaming device. Files associated with the controller might have become corrupted, again, triggering this error.

However, before updating the driver for the controller, you will need to remove it somehow. If you are unable to remove the Xbox wireless controller from your Windows 10/11 PC, stick around.

That being said, before we start, make sure you restart your PC. Many users claim that this was enough for the process to run as intended.

Do I need third-party software to remove the Xbox wireless controller?

No, you don’t need to go that far. We will show you exactly what you need to do in order to get this done without downloading and installing anything.

Only resort to third-party apps for the job when you’ve wasted all available paths to do it in-house, or so to speak.

How do I remove my Xbox wireless controller device?

1. Uninstall the Xbox wireless controller from Device Manager

  1. Search for Device Manager and open the app.device manager windonws 11
  2. Expand Sound, video and game controllers, right-click the Xbox controller, then select Uninstall device.uninstall controller

2. Remove the Xbox wireless controller from Devices and Printers

  1. Press Win + R to bring out the Run box, then type Control Panel and press OK.control panel run
  2. Click on View devices and printers.view devices and printers
  3. Click on Devices.windows 11 devices
  4. Click on the three dots next to the Xbox wireless controller, then select Remove device.remove device

Before we proceed with the last step, we recommend you create a system restore point and backup your Registry, just to be safe.

If you want to make sure that this procedure will be done safely, then you might try using third-party software. A system repair tool simplifies the process of protecting your PC from malware and optimizing it to perform flawlessly at all times.

3. Delete the registry key from Windows Registry

  1. Press Win + R to bring out the Run box, then type regedit and press OK.regedit
  2. Type in the following path, then press the Enter key: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\BTHPORT\Parameters\Devices
  3. Expand the Devices folder.devices registry
  4. Delete the folder belonging to the Xbox wireless controller.

Each of the folders you find under Devices represents a different Bluetooth device currently connected to your system.

You have to delete the folder for the Xbox wireless controller, and to find it you have to select the first folder and look for the Value Name on the right side.

After you found it, double-click on it, and a window will open containing its Binary Value. You will see then be able to see your device’s name in the Value Data box.

After locating the Xbox wireless controller folder, right-click it and click delete it. Once you deleted the folder, close the Registry Editor and restart your PC.

You have now completely removed the Xbox Wireless Controller from your PC. You can reconnect it later if that is what you want.

How do I update the Xbox wireless controller’s driver?

  1. Search for Device Manager and open the app.windows 11 device manager search
  2. Expand Sound, video and game controllers, right-click the Xbox controller, then select Update driver.update controller driver
  3. Select Search automatically for drivers.search automatically for frivers

That is pretty much all there is to be said on the matter and we hope this guide has helped you overcome this software issue.

Leave a comment in the dedicated section below if you know of any other methods to remedy this problem.

Waze Audio not Working? Try these 4 Simple Solutions

Posted on by Tashreef Shareef

Waze is a popular direction and traffic map app that saves time by showing real-time traffic and alerting users about potential traffic jams.

Sometimes, the voice direction feature may not work resulting in Waze audio not working issues.

Many users have reported similar issues with their iOS and Android devices. Apparently, the voice narration is not working even though the Sound settings are on.

Why is there no sound on my Waze?

There are plenty of reasons why the sound or the voice narration is not working on Waze but let’s go through some of the most important:

  • Incorrect audio settings
  • The Waze app is not updated
  • Your device is connected to a Bluetooth device that is not working
  • The smartphone was set on a Mute/Do not disturb profile

If you are also troubled by this issue, here are a couple of troubleshooting tips to fix the Waze audio not working glitch.

How do I fix Waze audio not working issues?

1. Make sure that the sound is On

  1. Open the Waze app, tap on Settings, then access the Voice & sound menu.
  2. Now, make sure that the Sounds are set to On.

Some of our readers also said that they managed to fix the problem just by turning the sound Off and then On again after a few seconds.

2. Unmute Waze during calls

  1. Open the Waze app on your phone.
  2. Tap on Setting and select Sound and Voice.
  3. Make sure the option Mute Waze during calls option is turned off.
  4. Also, turn the Guidance volume from the Sound menu to the maximum level.
  5. Relaunch the Waze app and check for audio improvements.

If you have disabled sound and voice during voice calls, it can create issues with the Waze audio. Try to enable the option and check for any improvements.

Should the issue persist, make sure the volume is at maximum on your phone. Now open a video player and play any video from the gallery. Adjust the volume again and check for any improvements.

Also, make sure that your smartphone is not in a Mute or Do not disturb mode because that will also affect Waze.

3. Try the older version of Waze

  1. If the issue started to occur after updating Waze to the newer version, try an older version of the app.
  2. Doing so, you can resolve the issue temporarily until the bug is fixed in the new app.
  3. Android users can download the older version of the app apk from third-party sites like apkpure.
  4. Make sure you have enabled Install from unknown sources option in the Developer Options before installing the app using apk.

4. Upgrade or reinstall Waze

  1. If the issue persists, try to uninstall the Waze app. Reinstalling the app will fix any file corruption that is creating issues with the app.
  2. From the home screen, tap and hold on to the Waze app icon.
  3. Choose Uninstall or Delete from the option and then tap on Yes to confirm the action.
  4. Restart the phone after you have uninstalled the app.
  5. Open the App Store or Play Store and install the latest version of Waze.
  6. Log in and check if the Waze audio not working issue is resolved.

Where are the voice navigation settings on iPhone?

  1. Open Waze on your iPhone.
  2. Navigate to Settings.
  3. Now, select Maps and tap on Navigation & Guidance.

The Waze sound issues usually occur due to incorrect configuration or software glitches. Follow the steps in this article one by one to fix the issue on your device.

Some of our readers also fixed the sound problem on Waze by turning off the Bluetooth connectivity and turning it back on so it’s worth a try.

If you have connectivity issues, read our guide including 5 ways to fix the Waze not working error.

Do let us know which method helped you resolve the issue in the comments.

Easy Tips to Get Your Canon Printer to Be Encrypted

Posted on by Henderson Jayden Harper

Several Canon printer users have registered queries regarding specific errors they come across, such as the Canon printer not being encrypted while making efforts to secure printed information.

Printers are mostly neglected and even overlooked when it comes to security awareness. For the few that note this, Encrypted printing is a significant measure to take note of.

However, what to do when the printer no longer accepts encrypted jobs? Or what to do when encrypted credentials have expired?

This can be a problem and prevent you from printing, but in this article, we’ll discuss how to fix it.

What is encrypted secure print?

An encrypted secure print is a term used for printing tasks, usually those that meet a standard for privacy to prevent the unauthorized use of printed information.

With a secured print, print information is protected until it is released by a user who has access through password or card authentication.

A secure print is kept encrypted during transmission and storage.

How do I get the Canon printer encrypted?

1. Enable secure printing

  1. 1. Click on your PC’s Start button.

  2. 2. Search for Devices and Printers.

    devices and printers

  3. 3. Open the printer folder.

  4. 4. Right-click your printer icon and select printer properties or Properties from the dialogue box.

  5. 5. Click the Device Settings tab and tick to mark the Allow Use of Secured Print check box.

    printer properties set

  6. 6. Then, click OK.

    7. If you want to ensure your Canon printer is encrypted, you must first enable the secure printing option. This can be easily done via Printer properties within a few clicks.

2. Send secured documents from the computer to the printer

  1. Open a document and display the Print dialogue box.
  2. Select your printer, and click on Preferences.
  3. Next, click on Secured Print, then select Yes in the information Pop-up box screen. (This will enable you to create a username and pin for the secured document)
  4. You can use the Basic Settings, Page Setup, Finishing, Paper Source, or Quality tabs to specify the print settings on each page.
  5. Click OK when you are done with the print settings.
  6. Next, click Print or OK.
  7. Insert the document name, user name, and PIN.
  8. Then, click OK.

What does an encrypted job mean on a printer?

Encrypted job is used to mean all print jobs which are readily encrypted but are stored on the disk of the print provider as they await printing.

Is encryption key the same as the password?

An encryption key is not the same as a password. The significant difference between the two is that passwords are humanly created, read, and remembered by a user.

At the same time, a key, on the other hand, is used by the software that implements the algorithm, meaning that it doesn’t have to be readable by a human.

Hopefully, the tips provided in this article will be helpful for you. You can also read through our detailed guide on fixing your printer encryption credentials whenever they expire.

Windows 10/11 users can fix their printer if it fails to respond by following our troubleshooting instructions.

Do not hesitate to use the comments section below for further questions or comments.

Can’t Print From Chrome? 5 Ways to Enable This Feature

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Google Chrome is one of the best browsers for all devices, thanks to its excellent performance, speed, and availability of third-party extensions. But some users reported that they can’t print from Chrome making things a tad difficult.

This is a common problem; many users have shared instances when they can’t print from Chrome in Windows 10 or 11.

Before we tackle this issue, we advise you to read our guide on how to enable system print dialog in Chrome. Given the frequent encounters, we decided to list the solutions for users who can’t print from Chrome.

Why is my printer not printing from Chrome?

You might have asked yourself, why can’t I print from Chrome? The reason could have to do with corrupt browsing data, misconfigured settings, or conflicting applications and processes.

Also, for several users, the problem lay with the printer itself. So check if the printing issue is limited to Chrome or is present on other apps. In case it is, installing the printer driver should do the trick.

How do I enable print on Google Chrome?

  1. Launch Chrome and open the file you want to print.
  2. Press the Ctrl key + P to print.
  3. Choose your preferred printing destination and other settings.
    pages cant print from chrome
  4. Finally, click the Print button.

What can I do if I can’t print from Chrome anymore?

1. Switch to a more reliable browser

If you notice that printing from the browser occurs only too frequently in Chrome, perhaps it’s time you tried an alternative browser.

At this stage, we recommend using Opera One, to which you can add a Print add-on for ease of use.

It has many features that allow navigation between various tabs, workspaces, and built-in social media chat apps.

The Print Opera One add-on is a lightweight tool that adds a specific button to your browser, so you can easily print a page with one click. opera print add on

Furthermore, this add-on can be installed on all systems (PC, Mac, Linux, Chromebooks) and is compatible with all other popular browsers, Chrome or Mozilla.

If you choose to print directly from the Opera One browser with the shortcut, you can do that with Ctrl+Shift+P. opera browser printing

For some other actions, though, add-ons are necessary, and you have many of them in the browser’s library.

For what is worth, the download option in Opera One is automatic, so you need to click on what you want without the hassle of also saving the file, program, or app. In addition, it scans those downloads very quickly because it’s a security-oriented browser.

Opera One

Try it and get the Print add-on to have your documents ready for print at any time.
Free Visit website

2. Use the keyboard shortcut

Chrome offers a dedicated keyboard shortcut to print the web pages you are viewing at that very moment. Press Ctrl + Shift + P, make the necessary selections, and you should be good to go.

This is only a quick workaround, but if you want to solve the problem for good, you’ll have to eliminate the issues that caused the error by executing the other methods here.

If you can’t print in color from Chrome, be sure to try this quick solution.

3. Clear the browsing data

  1. Open Google Chrome, and press Ctrl + Shift + Del to open the Clear browsing data window.
  2. Select All time from the Time range dropdown menu.All time to fix can't print from chrome
  3. Tick the checkboxes for Browsing History, Cookies and other site data, and Cached images and files.
  4. Finally, click on Clear data.
    Clear data to fix can't print from chrome
  5. Wait for the process to complete.

Often, the corrupt data causes issues, and users can’t print PDFs from Chrome even with the built-in viewer. Clearing the browsing data and starting fresh has helped many users solve the problem.

Additionally, many reported that the print popup is not working in Chrome which too should start working after you execute this method.

4. Delete the printers you don’t use

  1. Press Windows + I to launch Settings, and select Bluetooth & devices from the tabs on the left.Bluetooth & devices to fix can't print from chrome
  2. Now, click on Printers & scanners on the right.Printers and scanners to fix can't print from chrome
  3. Click on the printer you don’t use anymore from the list.Printer
  4. Next, click Remove.Remove to fix can't print from chrome
  5. Click Yes in the confirmation prompt.
    Yes

With many of these added, your HP printer might not print from Google Chrome. It could just as well be the case with other manufacturers. So it’s best to remove the ones not used anymore and check if you can print from Chrome.

5. Reset the Chrome settings

  1. Launch Chrome, paste the following path in the address bar, and hit Enter:chrome://settings/reset
  2. Next, click on Restore settings to their original defaults.Restore settings to their original defaults to fix can't print from chrome
  3. Finally, click on Reset settings and wait for the process to complete.Reset settings

If none of the methods listed earlier have worked, this one would; if you can’t print on Chrome with the preview not loading, Chrome is printing blank pages, or it doesn’t recognize the printer.

Why can’t I print anything?

You can look at many things if you can’t print anything from your web browser or other apps. But, of course, it could be due to basic printer issues, like paper jams and low ink toner.

Also, it can be caused by issues with your browser or the app you are trying to print from. So, be sure to troubleshoot both the hardware and software components involved.

Printing failed. Please check your printer and try again in Chrome

This issue is primarily limited to Microsoft Edge, and a patch was released in Edge version 95. However, the problem continues to show up now and then.

The good part is that the problem has been acknowledged, and another patch to eliminate it should be released soon. Also, updating the browser or trying the methods here should do the trick if you encounter it in Chrome.

These are all the ways to quickly fix the problem and get things up and running in no time. If you can’t print from Chrome on Mac, the concept remains the same, and these fixes would help.

Also, find out what to do if Google Chrome is not working.

If any of these solutions were helpful, contact us using the comments sections and tell us more.

8 Best Email Client for Windows 10 [2026 Updated List]

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Emails are a huge part of our work-life. They have transformed communication into something instant and replaced the letters of olden times when people had to wait weeks if not months to get a reply to their messages.

But in this modern age, the information itself can get overwhelming. There is too much data to handle, and you need tools that make you better at doing your job.

Different Email clients always strive to be better than their competition. This make them bring innovative ideas to present you with all this information in a simple manner that you can easily go through at a glance.

Of course, when there are so many of them, it gets a bit hard to figure out which one to go for, and the same goes for apps.

Thus, we made this list here to help you sort out the top email clients and apps for Windows 10. If you’re using the latest OS by Microsoft, you might find it useful to have access to some great Windows 11 email clients.

Does Windows 10 have an email client?

Windows 10, like other recent releases from Microsoft, has a built-in email app. This app called Mail is preinstalled on your PC with Calendar and other important features.

This email app allows you to connect all your email accounts on one platform. With this, you can improve your productivity, thanks to the ease of use.

What are the best Windows 10 desktop email clients?

Mailbird – Overall best email client for Windows 10

mailbird

Mailbird attempts to bring the intuitiveness of Sparrow to Windows. Sparrow was a Mac-only email client that was bought by Google before it was shut down and its development was abandoned.

Mailbird is quite possibly the simplest email client to use for Windows while supporting multiple email accounts. It is no wonder it is widely regarded as the best email client for Windows 10.

It also supports simple keyboard shortcuts, has an extensive label and folder search feature, and supports HTML emails.

Some of the special features that put Mailbird at the top of the list are:

  • Free visual customizing (choose from tons of free themes)
  • App integration: connect your LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and Google Calendar to Mailbird
  • Speed reader for quicker mail reading
  • Attachment search feature
  • Multi-language support
  • Snooze less important emails for later

These are only a few of the multiple useful features that Mailbird has.

Mailbird

Feature-rich Mailbird will make your workload easier and faster in no time – give it a try!
Download Visit Website

eM Client – Secure email client

em best Windows 10 email client

eM Client has a basic interface that prioritizes usability above providing a plethora of functions. You may add numerous email accounts, but the free version is limited to only two.

What distinguishes this is the Skype connection, which allows you to utilize the same email interface.

Keeping up with the most recent security information and ensuring that new threats are adequately protected, eM Client provides a great email service.

It supports almost all email technologies (POP3, SMTP, IMAP, Exchange, Office365) and has a very well-organized UI. This is why eM Client is one of the best email providers on the market for Windows 10.

Here are the key features of eM Client:

  • Message encryption and digital signatures for a secured content guarantee
  • Instant translation
  • Snooze incoming messages for a better workflow efficiency
  • Keep track of replies so you won’t miss flagged information
  • Cloud storage support

In addition to these characteristics, eM has a calendar, tasks, sync contacts from other devices, organizers, templates, and much more.

eM Client

Boost productivity, manage emails, take notes, and chat. One email client that is simple and enjoyable to use.
Free Download

Thunderbird – Extendable email client for Windows 10

thunderbird best Windows 10 email client

Thunderbird email client is one of the freeware clients that you can extend like a web browser on Windows 10. If there is a feature that you really need, somebody has probably made an extension to add it to Thunderbird.

The new multi-process Thunderbird makes greater use of your computer’s processor. It does this by dividing the program into several smaller processes rather than operating as a single large one.

Thunderbird includes a PDF viewer, allowing you to read and even edit PDFs emailed to you as attachments. You can accomplish all of this without ever leaving Thunderbird, allowing you to quickly return to your email.

Depending on how you use Thunderbird, whether you’re using it on a huge desktop display or a tiny laptop touchscreen, you may adapt the interface’s icons and text to be larger, more spread out, or extremely compact.

The calendar sidebar enhancements in this edition make it easier to manage numerous calendars. Also, there is a fast enable button for calendars. There is also the show/hide icon for rapidly changing calendars are shown.

Lastly, Thunderbird should work flawlessly for you. But if you face any kind of problems, we have the perfect solutions for any problems reported with Thunderbird on Windows 10 in this article.

⇒ Get Mozilla Thunderbird

Inky – Excellent interface

inky best email client windows 10

Inky stands out because of its well-polished UX – basically, it looks good. It also has mobile clients, and it can sync all your settings between them over the cloud.

INKY is a low-cost cloud-based email security technology that is considerably more than just artificial intelligence. It interprets emails, looks for indicators of fraud, and can detect imposters with a single pixel. It is also a lightweight email client you can always use on Windows 10.

That is why INKY is the only solution that can prevent phishing by capturing everything from spam and malware to the most insidious and dangerous threats.

INKY is the best investment you can make to defend your organization against zero-day phishing attacks. INKY’s artificial intelligence detects anything from spam and viruses to the most insidious phishing scams. It’s determined, inquisitive, and mobile, and it’s getting smarter by the topic line.

You can determine which threats are delivered to your users’ inboxes and know how to avoid them. You can automatically detect phishing and harmful email and route them to quarantine. This enables you to prevent known threats from reaching your end-to-end customers.

Setting up your different email accounts is simple as well as you don’t have to tinker around with settings.

⇒ Get Inky

Outlook – All-in-one email client

outlook

Outlook is more of an all-in-one solution and comes as a part of Microsoft Office. You can also access it through a browser for free. This tool packs the most featured email client, a calendar, and the ability to store contacts, and even make notes.

Outlook makes it simple to engage with Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. You may use Skype to communicate in real-time straight from your Outlook account.

It works as everyone’s most accessible inbox, with simple, voice-controlled navigation, compatibility for numerous assistive devices, and inbox protection and data encryption after mail delivery.

The UX is as friendly as it can get for a client with these many features, but it might be a bit overwhelming to users who are not used to such a density of data and the number of options and settings.

Premium Outlook features like an ad-free interface, custom domains, better security, the complete desktop version of Office applications, and 1 TB of cloud storage are included with a Microsoft 365 subscription.

Outlook is a tool that is not easy to master, but it can be very powerful.

⇒ Get Outlook

Mail for Windows 10 – Built-in email app

mail for windows 10

Windows 10 comes with its own email client made by Microsoft – not outlook, but a simpler one.

Obviously, it’s not as feature-packed as Outlook, but it features a UX that is easy to understand, and setting it up can’t get any easier. But it is probably the best email application for Windows 10.

With the familiar and extensive capabilities of Microsoft Word integrated into the writing experience, creating emails has never been easier or more powerful. Simply insert tables, images, and bullets to create lists.

Keep up with your inbox with new touch gestures that assist you in reading, sorting, and archiving your mail. The navigation bar provides a quick and simple toggle, enabling you to navigate freely between your email and your calendar to get things done.

The calendar is Exchange-optimized, with comprehensive support for scheduling meetings and managing a busy calendar, and it gives useful, powerful views of your schedule, such as day, week, and month.

The email client supports the rich notifications featured in Windows 10 that lets you reply to an email just from its notification.

⇒ Get Mail for Windows 10

TouchMail – High organization

touch mail

TouchMail presents your emails in a unique yet simple fashion. You have your emails split by contacts and each email is highlighted as its own tile.

TouchMail is the quickest and simplest method to locate and tidy up what matters most in Gmail, Outlook.com, Yahoo Mail, iCloud, AOL, Office 365, and most IMAP email accounts.

Transform your email into a beautiful and colorful inbox that you can explore as you choose – using touch, mouse and keyboard, or pen – with rich visuals, resizable message tiles, and familiar interactions.

In only a few clicks, you’ll be clutter-free! Delete a message with a single tap or hundreds of messages at once. And, with just a few clicks, you can archive, flag, or transfer messages to manage your inbox, as well as quickly identify essential emails with unique color coding.

You can also preview the content of your messages without having to open them, you can easily zoom out to obtain a bird-eye perspective of where your messages are coming from.

TouchMail also supports multiple accounts and has full support for all the filters you could think of. It is primarily made for Windows 10 tablets, so the UI is designed for touch instead of mouse and keyboard, but you can always install those for your tablet.

⇒ Get TouchMail

Flow Mail – High integration

flow mail

Another great email app that you should try out is Flow Mail. The application has a beautiful design and is also quite fast. You can quickly check all your emails and take advantage of the integration offers with most email browser services like Gmail.

Regarding the features, here are some notable ones that Flow Mail offers:

  • Sleek user interface with Fluent Design
  • Support for Split View
  • Support all major webmail providers such as Outlook, Gmail, Yahoo, and more. Flow Mail operates in a sandboxed (secure) environment, far more secure than accessing the web. In addition, it does not collect or retain personal information such as logins or email addresses.
  • Advanced privacy protection with support for custom passwords and Windows Hello
  • Sandbox environment that won’t collect any personal information
  • Frequent updates
  • Jumplists
  • Native downloading support
  • Ability to quickly upload or download files

Flow Mail operates in a sandboxed (secure) environment, far more secure than accessing the web. In addition, it does not collect or retain personal information such as logins or email addresses.

⇒ Get Flow Mail

Is Windows 10 email client any good?

While not as feature-rich as Outlook, the Windows 10 email client is still an excellent tool. It boasts an easy-to-use interface, as well as other superb features.

This is why it is a fitting mention on this list of the best email client and apps for Windows 10.

And these were some of the best Windows 10 desktop and apps email clients you could ask for. Each with its unique features and experiences.

While some borrow from others and refine the innovations, others think of something completely absurd and make it work with their experience in UX design and programming.

How an email client presents all the condensed information makes or breaks it – and it also depends on the user’s perspective. So do tell us what you think about these clients.

5 Ways to Fix FPS Drops, Lag & Stuttering in Black Ops 3

Posted on by Henderson Jayden Harper

Playing games like Black Ops 3 on your computer requires enough resources and a stable system to run smoothly. It is a first-person shooter game and one of the Call of Duty series entries.

The most common issue players encounter on their computers when playing the game is FPS drops in Black Ops 3. It indicates that, for some reason, some actions on the game affect the FPS rate and prompt issues like the Black Ops 3 menu lag on PC, Black Ops 3 stuttering, and Black Ops 3 FPS cap.

However, Black Ops 3 PC frame rate issues can occur for several reasons that may vary on many computers.

The common causes are outdated drivers issue, system issues, or issues with the system DVR. Fortunately, fixing the FPS drop in Black Ops 3 is not difficult, and you can solve the problems by following the simple steps in this article.

Users may be interested in the methods for fixing GPU memory complete issues if they encounter the message on their computers.

Why is FPS dropping suddenly on Black Ops 3?

  • Outdated Operating System: The computer may conflict with your game if the operating system is outdated. So, not keeping your operating system up to date may affect the Black Ops 3 PC performance.
  • Outdated graphics driver: An outdated graphics driver poses more threats than an outdated OS. Running an outdated graphics driver on your computer can affect the graphics performance of your games and cause the FPS to drop drastically.
  • Issues with the Game DVR: Users complain that whenever the Game DVR feature is on, they experience a drop in the FPS on their computer. So, the feature may be responsible for the problem you’re experiencing.

We recommend you check our article about driver updates software for Windows to keep your drivers updated.

How do I fix FPS drop or lag when playing Black Ops 3?

1. Reboot your PC

  1. Click Start on your computer.
  2. Select the Power option.
  3. Click on Restart.

Restarting the PC is the simple fix for startup errors that may cause FPS to drop in Black Ops 3.

2. Update graphics drivers

  1. Press Windows + R keys to prompt the Run window.
  2. Type devmgmt.msc into the search space and click OK.
  3. In the search results, click on Display adapters, then select the driver from the drop-down menu.
  4. Click the Update driver software option, and select Search automatically for drivers.search automatically for drivers.

We recommend you restart your computer after the updating process is complete.

Alternatively, if this seems tedious, you should use a third-party tool to update all your driver automatically.

3. Disable Game DVR

  1. Press Windows + R keys to prompt the Run window.
  2. Type Regedit in the search space.
  3. Double-click Game DVR on the AppCaptureEnabled option, then select the Modify option.
  4. In the Edit DWORD (32-bit) Value tab, change the Value data to 0, then Click OK.

Check if Black Ops 3 FPS drop issue is eliminated on your PC.

4. Set High Performance in Power Options

  1. Click on the Start Menu, type Control Panel and click on it from the search result.
  2. Now, go to Hardware and Sound and select Power Options.
  3. Click on High Performance to select it.
  4. Make sure to close the window and fully shut down your computer.

Restart your computer. Check if the FPS drop issue in Black Ops persists.

5. Close unimportant programs

  1. Click on the Taskbar and select Task manager.
  2. Select the CPU and Memory usage in the Task Manager tab.
  3. Click on the applications consuming lots of CPU and memory space on your PC.
  4. Click on the End task from the drop-down that pops up.

Restart your computer after making the changes for them to take effect. It’ll create more resources for Black Ops on your PC.

Read about how to fix Team Fortress 2 packet loss if you encounter any on your computer.

Is Black Ops 3 capped at 60 FPS?

Black Ops 3 is capped because VSync defaults in the game settings. Hence, the game’s multiplayer is limited to 60 FPS by default due to VSync.

However, a reliable way of uncapping Black Ops 3 is by disabling VSync. It increases the FPS cap to 240 FPS max rate in Multiplayer using the in-game menu.

You may find it beneficial to learn how to fix the GPU if it is at 0% usage in your games. Likewise, we have a list of the methods for eliminating FPS drop and stuttering issues on Team Fortress 2 in Windows.

How to Install the USB Audio Device Driver for Windows 11 [Step-by-Step]

Posted on by Henderson Jayden Harper

If you want to enable USB audio on Windows 11, whether for external speakers, headphones, or microphones, you need the right drivers installed.

This guide will show you how to download and install USB audio drivers, including how to reinstall the Realtek audio driver on Windows 11 if you run into issues.

We’ll also cover how to find the correct USB audio OEM device download so your system recognizes your hardware properly and plays sound without problems.

How do I download and install USB audio drivers for Windows?

Option 1: Download from the manufacturer’s website

  1. Locate the manufacturer’s site to find the appropriate drivers for your computer.
  2. Download the driver manually from the Downloads menu.
  3. Launch the USB audio driver installer and follow the onscreen prompts to complete the installation.
  4. Connect your USB audio device via the USB port.
  5. Play your audio to check if it’s working.

For example, if you are using an audio interface like the Scarlett Solo, you can follow this Focusrite Scarlett Solo driver download guide to get the correct package and ensure smooth installation on Windows.

Option 2: Use Windows Updates

  1. Connect your audio device to your PC.
  2. Go to Settings.
  3. Pick Windows Update from the left pane.windows update settings
  4. Select Advanced Options.advanced options windows update
  5. Select Optional Updates.optional updates
  6. Locate the name of your USB audio device, tick the box next to it, and start downloading.

Option 3: Use a driver updater software

Alternatively, you can opt for a specialized program to update the drivers to precisely what your device needs. It can also help fix corrupt drivers on your PC.

It is a much safer process because this way you will know that your device drivers are updated with the latest version. Plus, you can automate the process so your USB audio device driver is not only installed, but also update whenever a new version is released.

⇒ Get Fortect Driver Updater

What is a USB audio driver?

They are drivers that provide support for audio devices that comply with the Universal Serial Bus. The driver helps the computer to accept the device, communicate with it, and control it.

The USB audio driver performs the role of a translator and enables the audio device and the OS to function coherently.

Is Realtek audio driver compatible with Windows 11?

Yes, Windows 11 supports Realtek audio drivers. The latest Realtek driver was released for Windows 11 on January 11, 2022. Hence, it works fine on Windows.

However, there are some occasions where the Realtek drivers may not work due to audio driver issues; you can check out our guide to fix that.

Although there are relatively complex issues with Windows 11, most are being rectified with driver updates. Hence, getting the correct audio drivers will make using USB audio devices easier.

Further, you can check out our guide on downloading any audio driver on Windows 11. Also, if you mistakenly remove the driver, you can reinstall the audio driver using our article.

If you encounter issues, our guides on the best audio driver for Windows 10, how to fix generic audio driver problems, and solutions for the Realtek HD Audio Manager missing can help you troubleshoot and get your sound working smoothly.

Please leave feedback or a question in the comments section if this guide has been helpful. We’d love to hear from you.

How to Access & Use The Event Viewer in Windows 10

Posted on by Vladimir Popescu

If you’re running Windows 10 and run into issues, the Event Viewer can help you understand what’s going wrong. Many avoid it, thinking it’s only for tech experts, but it’s actually easy to access and use.

The Event Viewer logs everything that happens on your system, especially errors and warnings. For instance, if your network suddenly fails, it creates a log with an event ID and severity level.

Find below all you need to know to use it like a pro.

How do I open Event Manager in Windows 10?

1. Use the Search button

  1. Click on the search icon in the lower-left corner of your task manager. 
  2. Type Viewer or Event Viewer. Use search box to open Event Viewer
  3. Click on the application.

2. Use the Control Panel 

  1. Click on the search icon in the lower-left corner of your task manager. 
  2. Type control panel and select the control panel app. Search for control panel
  3. Once opened, click on System and Security. Select system and security
  4. At the bottom, click on View event logs. Click on View event logs

3. Use a keyboard shortcut

  1. Click the Windows + X keys on your keyboard.
  2. Click on the Event Viewer option provided. Winx menu for Event Viewer

4. Use the Run dialogue

  1. Press the Windows + R to open the Run box on your keyboard. 
  2. Type eventvwr in the Run box and hit Enter. Run box for Event viewer

5. Use CMD prompt or Windows PowerShell 

➡ CMD prompt 

  1. Click on the search icon in the lower-left corner of your task manager.
  2. Type cmd or command and open the app. CMD for Evener Viewer
  3. On your cmd, type eventvwr. CMD eventvwr

➡ Windows PowerShell

  1. Click the Windows + X keys on your keyboard to open the Winx menu. Windows Viewer powerShell
  2. Select the PowerShell option on the menu and type eventvwr.

6. Use Computer Management 

  1. Click on the search icon in the lower-left corner of your task manager.
  2. Type computer management and open the resulting app. Computer management for Event Viewer
  3. You’ll see the Event Viewer link on the left side of the screen. Select Event Viewer from computer management
  4. Click to access it.

7. Use the Task manager 

  1. Press your keyboard’s Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys to open the task manager. Open Task Manager
  2. Click File and select Run new task. Run new task
  3. Type eventvwr in the field provided and select OK. Task Window

8. Use the File explorer 

  1. Select the file explorer icon on your Taskbar. Select File Explorer
  2. If you don’t have this icon, click on your keyboard’s Windows + E keys. 
  3. Go to your local disk (C:). Local Disk (C:)
  4. Then select Windows. Local Disk (C:)/Windows/
  5. Once opened, look for your System32 folder and open it. Windows/System32
  6. Please scroll down to your eventvwr.exe file and open it. eventvwr.exe file

9. Use the Smart menu

  1. Click on the Windows button on your keyboard. 
  2. You can also select the Windows icon on the bottom left side of your screen. Select Windows button
  3. Scroll down to the Windows Administrative Tools section and click to open. Windows Administrative Tools
  4. Select the Event Viewer app from the list. WAT Event Viewer

What is the Event Viewer logs location?

By default, Event Viewer log files use the .evt extension and are located in the following folder: %SystemRoot%\System32\winevt\Logs

To access the folder, you may press the Windows + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run console, paste the path above, and press Enter. A File Manager window will open straight on the location of the logs.

What are some common Event Viewer Windows 10 errors?

As is the case in other circumstances, the Even Viewer app on Windows 10 has some commonly encountered issues affecting users over time.

Here are some of the most frequent errors:

  • Event ID 1000 error – Most commonly caused by some corrupt WRP system files, this error can be resolved by checking for software conflicts and updating drivers
  • Event ID 1001 error – Caused most often by various issues, including but not limited to high system resource usage and system file corruption.
  • Event ID 6008 error – Can be caused by a variety of reasons, including missing driver updates
  • Event ID 455 Esent error – Usually appears because of missing directories which are required by Windows 10 to create log files

Making sure to follow the guides presented above with attention will ensure that no other issues will be pestering your system, so make sure to go through the solutions one by one.

Did any of our methods help you find the Windows Event log location? 

If you would like to tinker with a more advanced tool than the standard one provided by your OS, consider going through these event log viewers. And if Event Viewer is not working in Windows 10 and 11, our detailed guide will help you.

If you upgraded your OS, the Event Viewer still works the same way, here’s how to check error logs in Windows 11.

With this tool, you can see which events occur on your PC, many users reported an event ID 7034, but we have a guide that addresses it.

Finally, let us know in the comment section if you know any other way to access the Event Viewer on Windows 10.

5 Quick Ways to Fix Outlook Couldn’t Set up Your Account

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Windows users reported experiencing a frustrating issue with Outlook recently. When trying to connect their email to the app, the error message Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up your account showed up.

The error can be encountered after making specific changes to Outlook or out of the blue, and users usually have no clue about solving it.

If you came across the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up account error on Office 365, here’s all you need to know and the solutions that would get things up and running.

Why does the Outlook couldn’t set up account message appear?

The issue usually arises when Autodiscover, a process employed by Outlook, receives an unexpected result. Also, your firewall or third-party antivirus may conflict with Outlook’s connection attempt, thus leading to the error.

Besides, as discussed earlier, making changes to the account can cause an error to appear. For instance, many saw the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up your account message after enabling MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication).

How can I fix the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up account error?

1. Create a profile through the Control Panel

  1. Press Windows + S to open the Search menu, enter Control Panel in the text field, and then click on the relevant search result.control panel
  2. Click on the View by dropdown menu, and then select Large icons.large icons
  3. Now, click on Mail (Microsoft Outlook) here.Mail to fix something went wrong and outlook couldn't set up account
  4. Click the Add button.add
  5. Enter a profile name and then click OK.always use this profile to fix something went wrong and outlook couldn't set up account
  6. Now, select the Always use this profile option and click OK.enable auto option

The first thing that you should do is add a mail profile to the system. This will make the system recognize it as an administrator and help you log into Outlook.

Once done, verify if you still see the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up your account message when trying with an Exchange account.

2. Tweak your Registry

  1. Press Windows + R to open Run, type regedit, and click OK to access the Registry Editor.regedit
  2. Click Yes in the UAC prompt that appears.
  3. Now, paste the following path in the address bar and hit Enter:HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Exchangenavigate path
  4. Next, Right-click anywhere on the blank portion, hover the cursor over New, select DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it as MapiHttpDisabled.DWORD to fix MapiHttpDisabled
  5. Double-click on the DWORD, set 1 as the Value data, and click OK to save the changes.ok
  6. Now, navigate to the following address:Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\
    Microsoft\Office16.0\Outlook\AutoDiscover
  7. Create a new DWORD (32-bit) Value here, and name it as ExcludeScpLookup.
  8. Also, set its Value data to 1 and save the changes.edit to fix something went wrong and outlook couldn't set up account
  9. Similarly, create two more DWORD (32-bit) Value in the AutoDiscover folder, and name them ExcludeHttpsRootDomain and ExcludeHttpRedirect. Make sure to set 1 as both their Value data.
  10. Close the Registry Editor and reboot your PC for the changes to come into effect.

Sometimes, your DNS might be broken, causing the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up your account error.

Fixing this issue requires you to make a few registry changes. Be careful when making these, as incorrect settings could cause severe system damage. Follow the steps here as it is to be on the safe side.

3. Disable Windows Firewall

  1. Press Windows + R to open the Run command, enter Control Panel in the text field, and click OK.control panel
  2. Click on System and Security.system and security
  3. Next, click on Windows Defender Firewall here.Windows Defender Firewall to fix something went wrong and outlook couldn't set up account
  4. Next, select Turn Windows Defender Firewall on or off in the left pane.turn off
  5. Select Turn off Windows Defender Firewall (not recommended) for both Private network settings and Public network settings, and then click OK to save the changes.disable firewall to fix something went wrong and outlook couldn't set up account

Sometimes, Windows Defender Firewall blocks certain apps from accessing the Internet. In which case, you can disable it and verify if the Outlook 2016 Office 365 Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up your account error is fixed.

4. Turn off your antivirus

Just like in the case of the Windows Defender Firewall, your third-party antivirus software could restrict certain apps from accessing the Internet. Open the antivirus, find the option to disable it, and check to see if this fixed the issue.

If it doesn’t work, turn the antivirus back on to avoid potential malware attacks. But, in case it did, the problem lies with the antivirus itself. Here, we recommend first uninstalling the program, you can easily use CCleaner to clean up, and then choosing an effective and reliable antivirus for your PC.

5. Run the troubleshooter

  1. Press Windows + R, type control in the text field, and click OK.control panel
  2. Choose Large icons from the View by dropdown menu.large icons
  3. Click on Troubleshooting.troubleshooting to fix something went wrong and outlook couldn't set up account
  4. Click on Programs.programs
  5. Next, click on the Program Compatibility Troubleshooter.Program compatibility troubleshooter to fix something went wrong and outlook couldn't set up account
  6. Follow the on-screen instructions and choose the appropriate response when prompted to complete the process.run

That’s it! If the previous methods didn’t work, running the troubleshooter would fix the Something went wrong, check your account info, try again, or contact your IT admin.

How can I fix the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up account on Windows 11?

If you are encountering the error in Windows 11, we would first recommend trying the solutions listed in the previous section since these are the same for both iterations of the OS.

Now, first things first! Most users reported the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up your account error after enabling 2FA. And the best solution is to disable it for the time being while you set up the account, and after it’s done, re-enable the feature.

Also, check for DNS entries you are unaware of; if any are found, remove them. Besides, if nothing else work, try disabling IPv6.

How do I add email accounts to Outlook?

Adding an email account to Outlook in Windows 11 is pretty simple the first time. Then, on launching the app, you would be asked to provide the login credentials and complete the authentication if required, and things should be up and running.

Things aren’t difficult here for those who already have it set up and want to add multiple accounts to Outlook. Head to the File menu, click Add account, and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

By the time you reach this part of the guide, the Something went wrong and Outlook couldn’t set up your account error should be gone for good.

Also, find out how to check rules in Outlook. If the problem persists, you might have to uninstall and download Outlook for Windows 11 again.

If you find any other working solutions, please share them in the comment section below.

Posted in Fix

How to Change the Primary Monitor in Windows 10

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

A two-monitor setup certainly enhances the display and allows better productivity. Sometimes, you may need to change the primary and secondary monitors to get the desired results.

This is rather simple, and you can do it in a matter of moments. The best part, there is more than one way to do that, thus giving the option to choose whichever suits you the best.

If you don’t know how to change your primary and secondary monitor, this article will be perfect for you.

How do I change which monitor is primary in Windows 10?

1. Via Display Settings

  1. 1. Right-click on an empty space on the Desktop and choose the Display settings option from the menu.

    display settings desktop

  2. 2. Scroll down to Multiple displays. Your monitors should be displayed here.

  3. 3. If your secondary monitor is not visible here, click on Detect.

    detect to change primary monitor in Windows 10

  4. 4. Select the monitor you want to be your primary one, scroll down and click on Make this my main display.

  5. 5. After doing that, the selected monitor will become the primary monitor.

    6. If you own multiple monitors and want to change which one is the primary one and which one is the secondary one, you can do this through the Display Settings menu.

    This is a fast and easy method which allows you to change the primary monitor in just a few clicks.

2. Set the main display in NVIDIA Control Panel

  1. Open the NVIDIA Control Panel.
  2. Under the Display option in the left pane, select Set up multiple displays.
    set up multiple displays How to change primary and secondary monitor
  3. Now, right-click on the display you want to use as primary and choose to Make primary. Note: the display number you can see with an asterisk (*) is the current monitor.make primary on how to change the primary monitor
  4. Then, click on Apply to save the changes.apply
  5. Finally, confirm by clicking Yes.

If you can’t open Nvidia Control Panel, fix that first, and you can then find out how to change the primary monitor in Windows.

3. Use the Command Prompt

Note icon NOTE
This is a slightly intricate method and would require you to use hit-and-trial while identifying the monitor to be set as primary. It’s because the tool (we will be downloading) doesn’t follow the same display configuration set by the OS.
  1. Go to Nirsoft’s official website, scroll down to the bottom of the page, and click the download button, depending on your version of the OS.download
  2. Press Windows + E to open the File Explorer, head to the folder where the downloaded file is stored, right-click on it, and select Extract all.extract all
  3. Choose the location for the extracted files, and click on Extract.extract
  4. Now, select the extracted folder, and click on Copy path in the Home menu.copy path
  5. Press Windows + R to open the Run command, type cmd in the text field, and then press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open Command Prompt with administrative privileges.cmd to how to change primary monitor
  6. Click Yes in the UAC prompt.
  7. Now, paste the following command while replacing Path with the one you copied earlier, and hit Enter:cd /d Pathcommand to how to change primary monitor
  8. Next, paste the following command and hit Enter:nircmd.exe setprimarydisplay 1change monitor

The last command is the tricky part because the number 1 wouldn’t work for most of you. As stated earlier, the monitors are not identified the same in the Command Prompt as they were in the Nvidia Control Panel or Display settings.

So, you would have to follow a hit-and-trial approach. Start with 1 and then keep increasing until you identify the correct value to set the desired monitor as primary. And once you hit the bull’s eye, things will be much more seamless in the future.

Also, while you are at it, make sure to identify the values for all connected displays in case you want to change again in the coming days or revert to the previous configuration.

Changing primary and secondary monitor is quite simple to do on Windows 10. The fastest option is to do it from Display Settings, but you can also use the Nvidia Control Panel. However, using the Command Prompt method is a little too intricate for normal users.

If the game is opening on the wrong monitor, you need to edit the display settings; read this guide to know more.

You can also use similar steps to fix your app if it is opening on the wrong monitor in Windows 11.

You should know that these solutions also work for multiple display setups, not only two. Find out how to configure a three-monitor setup in Windows 10.

Be sure to try all of our solutions, and let us know in the comments section which solution worked for you.

How to Run Windows XP Virtual Machine in Windows 10

Posted on by Ivan Jenic

A lot of people still use Windows XP, although it’s almost sixteen years old. On the other hand, a lot of people are using Windows 10.

There are also millions of computer users who rely on the stable versions of Windows 10 worldwide.

So, if you need to run a copy of Windows XP, you can try to run it within Windows 10 with a little program called VirtualBox.

Many of you would say that a virtual machine is the only right choice for running one Windows operating system within another.

And you’re probably right, but installing your second system on the virtual machine means installing a fresh, clean copy of Windows and installing all third-party programs afterward.

What do I need to do before I can set up a Windows XP virtual machine?

Prior to starting to set up your Windows XP VM using our guide, you need to take care of a few things. First of all, you need to ensure you’re using Windows 10 on the PC where you want to add Windows XP. The guide was written for Windows 10 and therefore might not work for other OSs.

Moreover, installing a VM requires that you have virtualization enabled on your PC. This can be done via BIOS or UEFI settings.

If you only want to run Windows XP games on Windows 10, we have a dedicated article that you can read.

How do I run Windows XP on Windows 10?

    If you’re looking to set up a Windows XP Virtual Machine, we recommend VirtualBox,  an Oracle tool. With VirtualBox you can keep all the programs you installed on your old XP and transfer them to the newer version of Windows.

    VirtualBox simply converts your current Windows XP system and all programs installed on it to the Microsoft virtual image.

    Once the conversion is finished, you can open it in Windows 10 and access your XP system, files and programs just like you do with the virtual machine.

    Do keep in mind that the tool hasn’t been updated in 2 years, and should be used with carefulness at all times.

  1. 1. Download VirtualBox from the official website.

    download virtualbox tool

  2. 2. Install the tool on your PC.

  3. 3. Launch VirtualBox and click on the New button, then name your VM.

  4. 4. Now you need to choose an installation location for the VM, as well as the Windows XP version you want. After you make your selection, click on Next.

  5. 5. Select the amount of allocated memory you want to have for your Windows XP virtual machine, and then click on Next.

  6. 6. Choose Select a virtual hard disk now.

  7. 7. Click on Dynamically allocated and then select Next.

  8. 8. Choose the desired size for your virtual hard drive.

  9. 9. Go to the top menu and click on Start.

  10. 10. Insert your Windows XP startup disk.

  11. 11. Now you need to finish installing Windows XP by following the setup wizard.

  12. 12. After the installation finishes, you can use Windows XP on your Windows 10 device whenever you want.

    virtual box windows xp

  13. 13. For further configuration, navigate to the Windows XP tab and go to Settings.

One of the main reasons people choose not to install Windows 10 Technical Preview on their computers is program compatibility issues.

A lot of older programs can’t even be installed on Windows 10, and people who use them simply choose to stick with their current operating system.

With VirtualBox you’ll be able to try all exciting features of Windows 10 and run all the programs you used in Windows XP at the same time.

We hope that Microsoft will fix the compatibility issues with older programs in the future, but until that happens (if it ever happens), you can use VirtualBox as an alternative solution for running programs compatible with Windows XP in Windows 10.

2. Use Virtualization software

vmware logo


The easiest and most flexible way is to find a Windows XP emulator for Windows 10. Our recommendation comes from VMware.

With over 12 years of experience running virtual machine emulations, VMWare is one of the heavy hitters in the industry, offering a plethora of options.

Today we will concentrate on their Personal Desktop category. Here we will find the tools we need to get the job done.

The scenario is as follows: you have your Windows 10 device up and running. You install VMware Workstation. You load your Windows XP physical disc or a disk image of it.

You create a new virtual machine in the Workstation. There, you install and load Windows XP.

Fire up the new virtual machine and you are done. Windows XP is running alongside Windows 10.

From there you can:

  • easily transfer files from the guest to the host and vice-versa
  • install VMware Tools in Windows XP
  • perform any actions safely since the machine is completely isolated from Windows 10

VMware Workstation provides DirectX and OpenGL support. This means that even Windows XP will be able to benefit from your graphics card. Also important is that VMware supports USB3.0

Please note that only VMware Workstation Player version 15 or up is compatible with the latest version of Windows 10.

VMware Workstation Player

VMware Workstation Player

Create a Windows XP virtual machine that runs simultaneously with your Windows 10, sharing the resources.
Free Visit website

Can I use Windows XP mode on Windows 10?

In the past, you used to be able to download and install the Windows XP Mode directly from Microsoft’s official website. With the help of this tool, you could run Windows XP-specific programs on your Windows 10 computer. Of course, this tool is not the same as VirtualXP.

More specifically, with the Windows XP Mode, you still needed to install Windows XP on your machine. However, Farstone’s VirtualXP tool allowed you to simply migrate your Windows XP OS and apps to your virtual disk. It too became obsolete in the meantime.

VirtualBox though is still up and running and can be safely used on your PC. Don’t forget to install reliable and compatible software such as XP browsers and security software.

We hope you found this article helpful and managed to set up a Windows XP virtual machine on your Windows 10 device. Let us know in the comments section below whether you have any questions.

13 Best Invoice Software for Windows 10 in 2026

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Running a business encompasses many financial functions, and invoicing tops the list.

You will require a reliable way to handle all the transactions, keep track of customers, professionally manage the invoices, and make payments on time.

Instead of outsourcing or hiring a professional accountant, you can manage these functions with reliable invoice software.

How can invoice software help your business?

Keeping track of your finances is very important as finances determine the future of your business.

Producing professional and timely invoices for your clients not only upholds professionalism but also impacts a positive impression.

The best invoice software provides a single platform in which you can create and send invoices, track payments, and manage customer accounts.

They offer advanced invoicing features such as payment processing, batch processing, and customer portals. In this article, we will discuss the best billing software for Windows 10.

What are the best billing and invoice apps for Windows 10 & 11?

FreshBooks – Great for invoicing

FreshBooks is not only the best finance and accounting software but also offers the best billing and invoicing features.

Its mobile app has a clean blue and white interface with a convenient tap to access all the invoicing and time-tracking features.

The Freshbooks system constantly monitors the status of your invoices once you send them. It notifies you when the client receives and views the invoice.

It also comes with a customer portal that allows your clients to review their accounts and pay bills.

Let’s quickly look at its key features:

  • On the dashboard, you will find all the invoice reports such as paid and unpaid for a certain period of time
  • View the invoices reports that show the amount that has not been paid for 30, 60, 90 days, or more
  • Highly customizable invoices allow you to add tasks, rates, items, and time including the cost per item or service
  • Professional invoice templates available with space to add your own logo
FreshBooks

FreshBooks

Running a business is easy thanks to this excellent all-in-one bookkeeping and invoicing tool.
Free trial Visit Website

QuickBooks – Best for accounting

QuickBooks is great for all types of small businesses, online activities, and entrepreneurs. It offers you an intuitive and easy-to-use navigation system that will help you perform the needed tasks.

This software works on Windows, Android, MAC, and iOS so you can operate from all your devices effortlessly.

Invoicing with QuickBooks is easy, with lots of customizable options. You can create and send PDF invoices even from your mobile, not only your PC.

You can also enable online payments, thus getting paid faster after sending an invoice.

Let’s quickly look at its key features:

  • Manage payments, invoicing, and card processing from one centralized location
  • Send invoices from any device and schedule recurring billing
  • Customize paying button directly in the invoice
  • Set reminders and receive notifications when invoices are viewed or paid
  • Reconciliation tools to automatically match payments to invoices

IRISmart Invoice – Personalized invoicing

IRISmart Invoice is one of those types of software that can be considered very well-rounded, in the sense that it caters to both professionals and amateurs alike.

Creating invoices has never been simpler, as the provided form templates look extremely professional, greatly simplifying the creative process for freelancers.

As for managers and those that receive the invoices, IRISmart Invoice comes with some special tools as well.

For example, the program gives them a direct, summary view into all of their incoming invoices, which are then classified, commented on, categorized, and even pre-posted

All in all, it streamlines both the creation and receiving and processes of invoices, making it a valuable tool when time and efficiency are two very important resources.

Let’s quickly look at its key features:

  • Invoice classification and encoding
  • Expense management and account charting
  • Cloud support
  • Fast and easy-to-use
  • Creates indexed and compressed PDFs

Sage Intacct – Automated Cloud Invoicing

Sage Intacct is a powerful cloud-based financial management software that suits perfectly either a startup or an established public company.

This software gives you real-time visibility of your business due to its comprehensive dashboard and detailed reporting systems.

Sage Intacct makes everything simpler, with dedicated features for things like invoices, accounts payable, accounts receivable, and AI-boosted integrations.

With technology like Intelligent GL, you can scan thousands of transactions within minutes and then audit the numbers and plan accordingly all within Sage Intacct.

Invoicing can be streamlined via the cloud automation software, reducing the risk of manual error and the time needed to manually admin that task.

Here are some more features of Sage Intacct:

  • Collaborate in real-time across the entire organization
  • Spreadsheet-like formulas
  • Easily combine payroll, people, and accounting data
  • Multi-entity and global consolidations
  • Sales and use tax
  • Salesforce advanced integration
  • Time and expense management

Tridens Technology – Best financial tool

Tridens Technology -best billing and invoice apps

Tridens Monetization is an all-in-one cloud billing software solution designed to provide the diverse needs of numerous industries, such as Software & SaaS, Telecommunications, Energy & Utility, Media & Entertainment, and more.

This state-of-the-art software is ideally suited to handle complex pricing structures and billing requirements for hybrid business models and traditional subscription-based or consumption-based billing models.

Tridens Monetization offers the flexibility to seamlessly process payments through pre-integrated solutions and stay on top of financial statuses with real-time analytics.

The software is developed on reliable and secure Amazon Web Services (AWS) and offers robust integration capabilities for payments, taxation, customer relations, and more.

With Tridens Monetization, your business can streamline billing operations and enhance your revenue to the next level.

Let’s quickly look at its key features:

  • Accommodate different industry and partner-enabled business models, allowing adaptation of billing processes to specific requirements
  • Configurable offer design for tailored pricing plans and promotions
  • Flexible billing cycle management, dynamic schedules, and template-based invoicing
  • Real-time advanced analytics and notifications for financial insights and customer behavior
  • Effortless self-service functionalities through web and mobile apps for your customers

⇒ Get Tridens Technology

ZoHo Books – Good app implementation

Zoho Books offers one of the best billing and invoicing systems that is clean and easy to use.

The dashboard displays graphical reports that show unpaid and overdue invoices, sales and expenses, and other billing information.

This online system allows you to manage your customers and invoices in an easy-to-use platform that is accessible from your PC as well as on mobile devices.

And it’s possible to link customers’ accounts to payment methods of their choice including PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.Net among others.

Let’s quickly look at its key features:

  • Select a customer from the contact list or add a new one to create an invoice
  • You can adjust the descriptions and prices without affecting the originally saved information
  • Private customer portal where your customers can view their transactions and invoices as well as update their account information
  • Send up to 3 reminders at set dates either before or after the due date
  • Generate reports about payments, taxes, timesheets, etc.

⇒ Get Zohobooks

Nutcache – Perfect for billing

Nutcache is one of the most promising billing and invoicing software that is easy to learn and fun to use.

Launched in January 2013, Nutcache has slowly become one of the most reliable invoicing and time tracking applications on the market.

The tool allows you to create an unlimited number of invoices, estimates, clients, and taxes all in your own branding.

It then gives you the option to convert an estimate into an invoice and send the invoice in many formats such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, PDF, RTF, and CSV.

Nutcache offers a 30-days free trial allowing you plenty of time to test its features before closing the deal.

Take a look at some of its most important features:

  • Create an unlimited number of invoices, estimates, clients, and taxes
  • Send invoices in Word, PowerPoint, PDF, RTF, and CSV
  • Use the Gantt chart to plan, track and organize visually your tasks
  • Set up different alerts and get notified when potential cost overruns occur
  • All-in-one project management software

⇒ Get Nutcache

Momenteo – Great cloud-based tool

If you are a freelancer and accounting isn’t really your strong suit, Momenteo is the user-friendly solution meant for you.

Simply keep track of your work done, expenses, and travels in our beautiful calendar and let our free software generate your accounting.

With a little discipline and a few minutes every month, you’ll never have to stress with accounting again, as Momenteo is cloud-based, automated, and your data is stored in the safest way possible.

Easily manage your clients, invoices, and expenses while having a clear portrait of your freelance business, for free.

You’ll be able to focus on developing your craft with the peace of mind that your finances are straight.

Send your quotes and invoices, personalize them, track them with just a few clicks and receive your payments.

Add your cash inflow and cash outflow to our calendar to do your bookkeeping. Then, at the end of the month, do your bank reconciliation in no time.

Take a look at Momenteo’s best features:

  • Send your invoices in any form you want: paper, e-mail, or PDF
  • Cloud-based app, accessible from almost any device anywhere
  • Convenient cash inflow and outflow for quick bookkeeping
  • Easily manage your clients, invoices, and expenses
  • Advanced automation features

⇒ Get Momenteo

Invoicely – Great invoice filtering

Just as the name suggests, Invoicely aims at producing professionally designed invoices with the best set of options such as currency, taxes, invoice notes, discounts, shipping, and more.

This tool takes a new approach to online invoicing. It allows you to create new invoices in a snap, see which invoices have been sent, paid, and due, as well as filter your invoices by status, client, or period.

The app has a unique billing timer that ticks in the background while you continue with your work.

Invoicely is ideal for freelancers and businesses who want a simple and clear-cut means for creating and managing invoices.

For small businesses, the service is free and offers up to 3 invoices per month. Medium and large-sized businesses have to pay a fee.

Consider some of its best features below:

  • Track hourly billed tasks, expenses & trips
  • Unlimited mobile invoicing
  • Recurring invoices, and automatic payment
  • Fully customize statements, logos, icons, control panel pages, and log-in screens
  • Add taxes, discounts and shipping to single line items

⇒ Get Invoicely

SliQ Invoicing – Includes professional invoice templates

SliQ Invoicing is an intuitive billing and invoicing software that offers you full control over the customization of your invoices.

The software is feature-rich and gives you full control over the management of your bills, invoices, customers, products, and services.

For products and services, the software allows you to set up stock controls, manage orders, and keep track of prices.

You can also specify payment terms, see the payment history, and manage customer profiles.

You can choose from the 11 invoice templates provided, and all can be customized to reflect your company’s ascetic.

Reporting is excellent, you can choose from over 20 reports, and all give you the option to specify the reporting period. Reports include sales reports, payment reports, product reports, and others.

Here are a few of its best features:

  • Manage your bills, invoices, customers, products, and services
  • 11 invoice templates available for customization
  • Over 20 report templates to use
  • See the payment history, and manage customer profiles
  • Bulk emailing feature

⇒ Get SliQ Invoicing

Invoice2go – Quick and easy usage

Invoice2go is a feature-rich yet efficient invoice software that is highly customizable and easy to use. Its magic is seen when it comes to editing and personalizing invoices.

You can edit every line of the invoice, upload a logo, enter company information, adjust the placement of every element, and chose from over 50 background images, 20 colors, and over 40 fonts.

You can also add up to three payment options to the invoice. Various reports can be generated, including customer-aging reports that show when the customers are overdue, payment reports, sales reports, and P & L reports.

However, the system does not automatically send email notifications to notify customers when payments are due.

Get a glimpse of Invoice2go’s best features:

  • Fully customizable invoices
  • Add up to three payment options to the invoice
  • Generate various reports, including customer-aging reports
  • Automated overdue invoice reminders, and invoice status tracking
  • Accept payments via bank transfer, credit card, debit card, or PayPal

⇒ Get Invoice2go

Tipalti – Good ERP integration

Tipalti provides one of the world’s most reliable billing and invoicing solutions automating the entire supplier payments operations.

What makes this app unique is that it comprehensively covers all the phases of the payouts processes—from funds disbursements to payments and control.

Tipalti covers every facet of the payment cycle including electronic invoice collection, currency selection, global supplier remittance, tax remittances, payment reconciliations, payee payment status communication, and also integrates with ERP.

The tool also comes with Cloud Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to its invoice processing module, a process that slashed the invoice processing time by 80% by delivering touchless invoice automation.

Check out Tipalti’s key features:

  • ERP integration
  • Invoice processing with OCR function
  • Automated supplier payments operations
  • Electronic invoice collection, global supplier remittance, tax remittances, payment reconciliations, and payee payment status communication

⇒ Get Tipalti

Billdu – Best for small businesses

If you have a small business, Billdu is definitely going to make your life or your accountant a lot easier.

The app has a built-in invoice generator that you will be able to use in creating appealing professional invoices, estimates, and purchase orders in just a few seconds.

With Billdu also comes with a PDF receipt maker and a bill payment organizer, but it’s so easy to use that you won’t even need to hire a dedicated accountant.

The software has multiple payment options, including card payments, so your clients will be able to pay immediately.

You will know about your available budget at all times because as you upload your expenses, you will be able to track every cent.

But the best of all, Billdu is a cloud-based app and it also has mobile apps for Android and iOS devices.

That means that all your data is stored safely and securely and you may access it wherever you are on pretty much any device.

Let’s see some of Billdu’s best features:

  • Dedicated invoice maker with customizable templates
  • Built-in PDF receipt maker
  • Very easy to use even for non-professionals
  • Advanced communication features
  • Online booking and online store

⇒ Get Builldu

The software discussed above all offers standardized invoicing, so no matter which one you choose, you will get stellar services.

Using any of these products will save you time, let you get paid faster, and add a professional touch to your business.

You will also be able to focus entirely on business knowing that you have reliable invoice software and all you’ll need to do is check from time to time to see how much money you have paid and expensed.

While we are on this subject, you might be interested in our list including the best free cloud-based tax software for small businesses.

What will you go for? Share your impressions via the comments section below.

7 Ways to Fix FPS Drops, Lag & Stuttering After Nvidia Update

Posted on by Henderson Jayden Harper

The Nvidia update helps keep your PC up-to-date with the latest Nvidia drivers. It notifies you when a new driver is available and directs you to the download page for the driver.

However, running Nvidia on your PC may be challenging due to some issues you are likely to encounter with it. Many users complain about FPS drops after the Nvidia update. It indicates that the update affects the computer, causing its FPS to drop, lag or stutter.

However, various factors may cause the FPS to drop after the Nvidia driver updates your computer.

Hence, we’ll discuss how to fix FPS drops, lag, and stuttering that you may encounter after updating Nvidia drivers on your computer.

You may also encounter FPS drop and stuttering problems with your game on your PC. Here are some: Team Fortress 2 FPS drops and stuttering, Low FPS in Sea of Thieves on PC, and FPS drop in Lost Ark on a high-end PC.

However, you can click the links above for solutions to your games’ FPS drop, lag, or stuttering issues.

Why did my FPS drop after the update?

  • Outdated graphics drivers: When you have outdated graphics drivers on your computer, it reduces the performance and strength of your drivers. It indicates that your computer lacks the necessary updates and patches that help fix bugs on your computer and improve performance. Hence, it is possible to be the cause of the FPS drop after the Nvidia driver update in 2021.
  • Too many programs/apps running concurrently: The Nvidia update may not be responsible for the FPs drop. Having many apps open on your PC may be the cause. It consumes your computer’s resources, hence leaving it with low RAM.
  • Outdated Windows: Users may encounter FPS drop after driver update if the operating system on their PC is outdated. Outdated Windows can make the computer perform poorly.

However, there are many other factors that may contribute to the FPs drop after the Nvidia driver update on your PC. The above list of causes is the common one.

How do I fix FPS drop in games after the Nvidia update?

1. Update the graphics driver

  1. Press Windows + R key to prompt the Run window.
  2. Type the following into the search space: devmgmt.msc, and click OK.
  3. Click on Display adapters from the search results, select the driver from the drop-down, and then right-click.
  4. Click the Update driver Software option, then select Search automatically for drivers.

Restart your computer after the updating process is complete.

You can also use a specialized program if you don’t want to follow the manual steps from above. The third-party solution can scan your device for old drivers and find them instantly an updated version.

2. Update Windows

  1. Click the Start button.
  2. Select Setting and click on Windows update.
  3. On the Windows update page, select Check for updates. If there are any updates available, Windows will automatically search and install them.

3. End task for programs

  1. Click on the Start button, search Task manager, and launch it.
  2. Select the CPU and Memory usage in the Task Manager.
  3. Click on the applications consuming lots of CPU and memory space on your PC.
  4. Click on the End Task from the drop-down that pops up.
  5. Restart your computer.

We recommend you check the best Task Manager software for Windows 10 for better performance.

4. Scan for viruses

  1. Press Start and search for Windows Security.
  2. Open the Windows Security option and select Virus & threat protection.
  3. Click on Quick scan below the Current threats tab.

Restart your PC after the process finishes and check if the FPS drop or lag persists.

5. Reboot your PC

  1. Click Start on your computer.
  2. Select the Power option.
  3. Click on Restart.

Restarting the PC will help fix any startup error causing FPS to drop after the Nvidia update.

6. Disable Intel’s overclocking technology

  1. Click on Start and select the Control Panel.
  2. Select Hardware and Sound and click on Power Options.
  3. Click on Change plan settings.
  4. Click on Change advanced power settings to prompt the Power Options tab, then expand the Processor power management option.
  5. Expand the Maximum processor state and set the On battery and Plugged values as 99%.
  6. Click on Apply, then OK.

7. Check for corrupt files on the PC

  1. Press Windows + R to open the Run window.
  2. Type cmd in the text space and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open Command Prompt as administrator.
  3. Type sfc /scannow in the search space and press Enter.

Wait until the scanning process is complete, then restart your computer.

Why is my FPS high but choppy?

Various factors may cause your performance to be choppy or unsmooth, regardless of having a high FPS. However, low computer RAM and Outdated graphics drivers can cause the issue.

Nonetheless, we have an extensive guide on the methods to fix full GPU memory problems on your PC.

Let us know which solution worked for you in the comments area below.

How to Turn Off Automatic Updates on Windows 10 Step by Step

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Turning off automatic updates in Windows 10 can save you from unexpected restarts and slowdowns when you’re in the middle of something important. Automatic updates often kick in at the worst times, and if you want to take control and stop Windows 10 from updating itself without your say-so, this guide will show you how to disable those updates for good.

How Do I Permanently Disable Windows Update in Windows 10

Table of contents

1. Disable Windows Update via Services

This is one of the most reliable methods.

  • Press Windows + R, type services.msc, and hit Enter
  • Scroll down and double-click Windows Update
  • In the new window, set Startup type to Disabled
  • Click Stop, then Apply → OK

This will make Windows stop auto updates completely until you manually re-enable the service.

2. Use Group Policy Editor (Windows 10 Pro)

If you’re using Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise, follow these steps:

  • Press Windows + R, type gpedit.msc, and hit Enter
  • Go to: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update > Manage updates
  • Double-click Configure Automatic Updates
  • Select Disabled or choose Notify for download and auto install
  • Apply and OK

This gives you more control over when and how updates are applied.

3. Set a Metered Connection

Perfect for Home edition users:

  • Go to Settings > Network & Internet > Wi-Fi
  • Click your connected network and toggle Set as metered connection ON

Windows treats metered connections with limited data usage, so it won’t auto-download updates.

For more control, you can also schedule update downloads in Windows 10 instead of disabling them outright.

4. Pause Updates Temporarily

If you only need a break from updates:

  • Go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update
  • Click Pause updates for 7 days
  • For more time, click Advanced options and choose a date

This doesn’t disable Windows Update permanently but gives temporary relief.

5. Use a dedicated Windows 10 update disabler tool

You can install Windows 10 Update Disabler and block the automatic installation of updates. This tool runs in the background and doesn’t affect your system’s performance.

The software evaluates the status of Windows Update using an undocumented system to prevent Windows from overwriting it before it disables updates. The tool also terminates all scheduled Windows Update tasks.

FAQs

How do I stop automatic updates in Windows 10 Home?

Use the metered connection method or pause updates via Settings. These are the most effective on Home editions.

Can I re-enable Windows Update after disabling it?

Yes. Just go back to services.msc, set Windows Update to Manual or Automatic, then click Start.

How do I update from CMD?

Open Command Prompt as Admin and type:
wuauclt.exe /updatenow
or
USOClient StartScan
This forces Windows to check for updates.

How do I know which version of Windows I have?

Press Windows + R, type winver, and hit Enter.
Or go to Settings > System > About.

Is there a way to only block cumulative updates?

Not directly, but you can use tools like wushowhide.diagcab to selectively hide certain updates. For details, see this guide on how to manage Windows 10 cumulative update installation.

Will this affect Microsoft Edge updates?

No, Edge updates are handled separately. You can follow this tutorial on upgrading to the latest version of Microsoft Edge on Windows 10.

Can I stop updates on Windows 11 the same way?

Windows 11 has different controls. Check out this walkthrough on how to disable automatic updates in Windows 11.

Wrap up

That’s all there’s on how to disable automatic updates in Windows 10. And by now, you would have it turned off. Though, we recommend manually installing the update every once in a while to get the latest security patches.

Also, find out how to improve the performance of your Windows 10 PC.

If you’ve used other workarounds to disable automatic Windows updates, list the steps to follow in the comments section below.

How to Fix Forza Horizon 5 Stuttering on a Windows PC

Posted on by Matthew Adams

Forza Horizon 5 is an enthralling racing game at the best of times. Yet, nothing spoils Horizon 5’s gameplay more than excessive stuttering. One player’s Reddit post said this about Horizon 5 stuttering:

I bought Forza Horizon 5 Premium Edition a few days ago. I have noticed some kind of stuttering in the game, especially when I drive fast. I don’t know if it is a coincidence, but I noticed it especially when I drove fast.

When excessive stuttering occurs in Horizon 5, its gameplay becomes very jerky and unresponsive. Momentary and regular delays to player actions caused by stutter can significantly impact gameplay.

Besides, excessive stuttering in Forza Horizon 5 can ruin the game for some players. You can fix, or at least reduce, stuttering in Forza Horizon with the potential Windows 11/10 remedies below.

What causes Forza Horizon 5 stuttering on PC?

The causes of Forza Horizon 5 stuttering can be varied. However, overly extended system resources can often cause stuttering. Games don’t run so smoothly when PC resources are stretched.

Windows also has a few built-in features that can cause more stuttering in games. Disabling those features can help to reduce stuttering.

Graphics card drivers are important to optimal gaming performance. If your PC has an outdated or even corrupted GPU driver, updating it could be a solution for Horizon 5 stuttering.

What are Forza Horizon 5’s system requirements?

Bear in mind that gaming performance is primarily determined by PC hardware. So, it might also be worth checking how your PC matches up with Horizon 5’s system requirements shown directly below.

Horzon 5's system requirements forza horizon 5 stuttering pc

If your PC hardly matches those minimal requirements, you can’t expect optimal Horizon 5 gaming performance. Upgrading your PC’s GPU or RAM might then be the best way you can reduce stuttering.

However, upgrading hardware does come at a cost. So, you might as well first try applying some of the potential resolutions below for reducing Horizon 5 stuttering to see if they make any difference.

How can I fix Forza Horizon 5 stuttering on my Windows PC?

1. Free up system resources for Forza Horizon 5

  1. Press the Windows + X hotkey to select Task Manager on the Power User menu.
    Task Manager option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  2. Click Startup at the top of Task Manager.
    Startup tab
  3. Select unneeded startup items, and click the Disable option for them.
    Disable option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  4. Press Windows + R to open the Run command, type msconfig in the text field, and then hit Enter.
  5. Then select Services along the top of the System Configuration window.
  6. Deselect superfluous third-party services listed on that tab. You can select Hide all Microsoft services to filter out more essential ones, and then click on Disable all.disable all
  7. Select Apply to save your newly selected MSConfig options, and then click the OK option.
  8. Click Restart on the dialog box to reboot your PC.

2. Update your PC’s graphics card driver

2.1 Find your PC’s graphics card model details

  1. Press Windows + S to open the Search menu, enter System Information in the text field, and then click on the relevant search result.system information
  2. Double-click Components in System Information to expand it.
    Components category forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  3. Select Display to view graphical details.
    Graphics card model name forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  4. Note down the name of your PC’s graphics card listed there.

2.2 Download and install the latest graphics driver

  1. Open either the AMD or NVIDIA website, depending on your graphics card model.
  2. Then select your PC’s graphics card model on the NVIDIA or AMD driver download pages. You’ll also need to select your Windows 11/10 platform from there.
  3. Click Search or Submit on NVIDIA/AMD driver download page.
    Search button forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  4. Select the Download option for the latest, platform-compatible graphics driver available for your PC’s GPU.
    Download button forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  5. Press Windows + E to open File Explorer, navigate to the folder where the setup was downloaded, and then launch it.
  6. Then, follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation process.
  7. Select Power and then Restart from the Start menu after installing the latest driver.
    Restart option

3. Run Forza Horizon 5 with a higher priority

  1. Start the Forza Horizon 5 game.
  2. Press the Windows key to return to the desktop with the game running.
  3. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager and head to the Details tab.
    Details tab forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  4. Right-click the ForzaHorizon5.exe, and then select Set priority.
    Set priority option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  5. Select the Above normal or High options.
    High option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  6. Then return to Horizon 5 to play the game.

4. Disable player designs

  1. Start the Forza Horizon 5 game, and click its Options button.
  2. Select the Hud and Gameplay menu option.
    Hud and Gameplay option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  3. Set the Player Designs option to Off.
    Player Designs forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  4. Click the Save option.

5. Disable sound enhancements

  1. Right-click the speaker icon in the system tray, and then select Sound.sounds
  2. Then right-click any sound devices on the Playback tab you don’t use to select Disable. Repeat that step for the Recording tab.
    The Disable option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  3. Right-click on the active sound device and then select Properties.
  4. Navigate to the Enhancements tab.
  5. Click the Disable all enhancements checkbox.
    Disable all enhancements checkbox forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  6. Select the Advanced tab.
  7. Then select the 24-bit 48000hz option on the Default Format drop-down menu.
    Default format forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  8. Click Apply, and then choose OK.

6. Disable GameDVR (background recording)

  1. Press the Game Bar’s Windows + G hotkey.
  2. Click the Settings button on the Game Bar.
    Settings button forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  3. Select the Capturing tab, and deselect the Record in the background while I’m playing a game option.
    Record in the background option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
Note icon NOTE
In Windows 10, you can disable GameDVR by selecting Gaming > Captures in Settings. Uncheck the Record in the background while I’m playing the game option there. Also, deselect the Enable Xbox Game option on the Xbox Game Bar tab.

7. Lower in-game graphical settings

  1. Launch Forza Horizon 5.
  2. Select Options to view the Settings menu.
    Options button forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  3. Select Graphics, and then lower the graphical Preset setting by at least one level.
    Environment Texture Quality options forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  4. Save the new settings.
  5. It’s recommended that players also lower Horizon 5’s Environment Texture Quality option and disable the game’s Ray Tracing.

8. Play Forza Horizon with your PC’s best graphics card

  1. Type Graphics Settings in the Search bar, and then click on the relevant search result.
  2. If the game isn’t listed there, click the Browse button, select Forza Horizon 5, and then click the Add option.
    Graphics options forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  3. Press the Options button for Forza Horizon 5.
    Options button forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  4. Click the High-performance radio button, and then click on Save.
    High performance option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
Note icon NOTE
This resolution is only applicable for PCs that have dual graphics cards. You can also change the selected graphics card for games via the NVIDIA Control Panel.

9. Select a high-performance power plan

  1. Press Windows + R to open Run, type powercfg.cpl in the text field, and click OK.The Run accessory forza horizon 5 stuttering pc
  2. Then click Hide additional plans to expand it.
  3. Select the High-performance radio button from there.
    High performance option forza horizon 5 stuttering pc

Those are just some of the best ways you can reduce Forza Horizon 5 stuttering for the smoothest of gameplay. With stuttering fixed, you’ll be able to enjoy Horizon 5 at its exhilarating best.

Your PC’s hardware is most important to Horizon 5 gaming performance. If you’re still experiencing considerable stuttering in Horizon 5 after applying those fixes, you might need to improve your gaming rig.

But, before you do, find out the best settings to optimize your PC for gaming, and see if that boosts the game’s performance.

You’re always welcome to discuss this article’s topic within the comments section below. Have you found any other good ways to fix stuttering in Forza Horizon 5? If so, let us know about them below.

Posted in PC

How to Reinstall Microsoft Edge Browser in Windows 10

Posted on by Claudiu Andone

Microsoft Edge debuted alongside the release of Windows 10. It is the default web browser that has taken the place of Internet Explorer. We are here to help you reinstall the Microsoft Edge browser on your Windows PC.

Microsoft Edge is a clean and lightweight web browser with features such as Cortana integration, a reading mode, and so on.

Many users are experiencing problems while using Microsoft Edge. Users have reported that Edge does not start at all, crashes a lot, works slowly, and sometimes crashes right away.

Although these issues appear minor, they can be enraging if you use Microsoft Edge as your primary web browser.

All of these problems are easily resolved by simply reinstalling the browser. The process of reinstalling Microsoft Edge is a little tricky and must be done with care.

However, you have the possibility to switch your browser to benefit from smoother navigation and fast search results.

Quick Tip:

If you don’t plan on going through the reinstall process again any time soon, we recommend trying Opera One, a browser that has the same features as Edge but also comes with some bonus features.

The Opera One browser comes with a Modular AI-Ready Design ready to use with it’s build in Aria Browser AI which is free and Up-to-Date. The browser also features messaging, social media buttons, a build in VPN and Add-block.

Opera One

Improve your browsing experience with features that make web browsing smarter and safer.
Free Download Visit website

Note: During the reinstallation process, there is a chance that you will lose all of your favorites as well as your browsing history, so we recommend that you export favorites to another browser to keep them safe and secure.

Here’s a quick guide on how to reinstall Microsoft Edge in Windows 10.

How do I reinstall the Microsoft Edge browser in Windows?

1. Close Edge

If you currently using Microsoft Edge or it is already opened, close it so we can start the troubleshooting process. If you try to reinstall it while it’s open, it’s not going to work.

2. Open File Explorer

  1. Press Windows + S to open the Search menu, type File Explorer, and click on the relevant search result.
  2. Click on the View menu at the top left of the screen and check the Hidden items box.

3. Search for Edge in File Explorer

  1. In the address bar of File Explorer, paste the following path and hit Enter while replacing UserName with the one in your case: C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\Packages

To find your username, navigate to C: Users, which will display all current user names. The username, in our case, is admin. You can get here by pasting this command into the Run Command box.

4. Delete the location folder

  1. Look for the folder with the name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe and delete it.
  2. Click on Yes to confirm the deletion.
  3. Close everything and restart your PC.

It may take up to 10-15 minutes to delete the file. Just click on Yes to all the prompts during the deletion.

5. Start PowerShell

  1. Type PowerShell in the Search menu, and then click on Run as administrator. run powershell as administrator
  2. Paste the following command and hit Enter while replacing UserName with the current one on your PC: cd C:\users\UserNamePowerShell User Profile Nabvigate
  3. Type the following and then press Enter: Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml” -Verbose}
  4. You will see the Operation Completed for message when the command is fully executed.

All you have to do now is restart your computer, and you will find that Microsoft Edge is working perfectly fine. With the help of this guide, we hope you were able to reinstall the Microsoft Edge browser in Windows 10.

If you are having trouble with Microsoft Edge, check the best lightweight browsers for Windows 10.

If these methods didn’t work for you, perhaps steps from our guide on how to use Edge offline installer will help.

Share your review of Microsoft Edge in the comments section below.

Here is how you can enter for a chance to win this custom Deathloop Xbox Series X console

Posted on by Robert Collins

It looks like Microsoft is once again up to its custom Xbox console shenanigans, this time with a custom Deathloop-themed Xbox Series X. You won’t be able to buy this in stores, but you can enter for a chance to win this awesome Xbox by following the instructions in the tweet below.

As you can see, the Series X and matching controller feature artwork inspired by Bethesda’s time-looping first-person shooter. Previously a PlayStation exclusive, the highly-acclaimed (the game has won Game of the Year accolades from publications such as EDGE and Gamespot) Deathloop released on Xbox—and Xbox Game Pass—on September 20 to the delight of Xbox fans everywhere.

According to the game’s official description,

In DEATHLOOP, two rival assassins are trapped in a mysterious timeloop on the island of Blackreef, doomed to repeat the same day for eternity. As Colt, the only chance for escape is to end the cycle by assassinating eight key targets before the day resets. Do whatever it takes to break the timeloop.”

Just follow the official Xbox Twitter account and retweet the post with the appropriate hashtag and you will be entered for a chance to win the Deathloop custom Series X. You can check out the rules here.

Featured image via purexbox.com. 

5 Ways to Fix FPS Drops, Lag & Stuttering Because of Your HDD

Posted on by Claire Moraa

FPS drops, lag and stuttering are some of the most common problems that PC gamers face. These issues can occur due to the slow speed of the hard disk, low memory or outdated graphic drivers. 

If you are experiencing any of these problems in your games, it is possible that this could be because of your HDD. The truth is that most computers don’t have enough processing power to run modern games at their highest settings. 

Even if your computer has the right specs and enough RAM, there’s still a chance that your games will run poorly because of other factors.

HDDs are great to store data or just have extra storage space. However, when it comes to gaming, HDDs can cause issues as they can’t keep up with the fast pace of games. This means that your PC will struggle to run games at their maximum potential.

Does a HDD affect gaming performance?

A hard disk drive can slow down your gaming performance in some games and make no difference in others. It all depends on the type of game as well as your hard drive.

It’s a common belief that using an HDD instead of an SSD will slow down your gaming performance. If it’s an old mechanical HDD, your hard drive can be a bottleneck in your PC’s performance.

SSDs are much more reliable than HDDs, especially when it comes to data loss and corruption. They are also fast and don’t suffer from seek times or latency issues like hard disk drives (HDDs) do.

The only downside is that SSDs are relatively expensive compared to HDDs. Luckily, there are excellent choices of external hard drives for gamers in the market that can elevate your gaming performance

Can a bad HDD cause stuttering in games?

A bad hard drive can cause many problems, including slow performance and corrupted files. When you are playing a game, it requires access to the disk drive frequently, especially if you have a large game.

If your disk is not fast enough, the game may stutter or stop completely and FPS drops to 0. Also, if your disk is getting full, you may experience stuttering. This can happen for a variety of reasons, including downloading too many games and installing frequent large updates.

To ensure your HDD is in perfect condition, it is recommended that you install health check software as hard drives have a limited life span.

Hard Disk Sentinel

Can hard drive speed affect FPS?

FPS is a common way to measure how smoothly a game runs. If your FPS is low, your game may stutter or freeze up entirely. A faster hard drive will allow you to load your games quickly and reduce the time between frames.

Latency has an impact on frame rate in video games because when your computer needs data from the disk, it has to wait for it to be read from the disk before acting on it. Also if you notice that your FPS drops over time, it may be time to upgrade to a faster hard drive.

How can I solve low FPS, lag and stuttering caused by my HDD?

1. Optimize Your RAM

RAM is an important part of every computer because it stores all the data and programs that are being used by the user and makes them readily available when needed. High-quality RAM will improve your overall performance and make your system run smoother than ever before.

If you have low-quality or old RAM installed on your device, then it might be causing some problems such as FPS drops, lag and stuttering while playing games or using other applications on your PC. 

You can simply optimize your RAM by upgrading it with a new one or removing any unwanted applications from running in the background while playing games.

2. Update your drivers

Don’t forget that drivers play an important role when it comes to gaming performance as well. Outdated and corrupted drivers can cause all sorts of problems ranging from reduced FPS to crashing during gameplay.

Some may even prevent specific games from launching properly at all. As a rule of thumb, you need to update your drivers whenever a new update is available.

3. Lower resolution and graphics settings

If you’re playing at high resolutions and with high graphical settings, it can put a lot of strain on your system. Lowering these settings will make the game run smoother without reducing the quality too much.

If your system can’t handle the game at 1080p resolution or higher settings, try dropping it down to 720p or lower. The difference in quality will be noticeable, but it may fix some of your performance issues.  Alternatively, if your FPS drops in fullscreen, you can exit the fullscreen mode for smooth gameplay.

4. Clear up some space on your HDD

If you have a lot of games installed on your PC and there isn’t enough space on your HDD for them all to load at once, this can cause lag and stuttering while playing games that require multiple files to be read simultaneously.

Consider uninstalling games you have installed but don’t play often enough if there’s no room left on your drive.

5. Defragment your Hard Drive

If your computer has been running for a while without doing any maintenance or defragmentation, then it might be time for an overhaul. You can use defrag tools to remove HDD clutter for a hassle-free process.

By defragmenting your hard drive, you are increasing the speed of your computer by optimizing its performance. This means that all the files on your hard drive can be accessed easily without any lag or delay. 

Can low storage cause FPS drops?

It’s important to know how much space each game will take up on your hard drive before buying it. The most common way in which low storage causes FPS drops is when the game’s files are fragmented. 

When this happens, your computer has to read through multiple locations on your hard drive to find a particular file or piece of information. This takes time, and if it’s happening frequently enough, it can cause your computer to lag.

Another cause for FPS drops is too many programs running in the background while you’re playing a game. For instance, if you have an antivirus program running in the background, it can slow down your computer and cause FPS to drop.

If FPS keeps dropping, you can opt for FPS booster software to avoid frequent interruptions that kill the fun while playing your favourite games. 

With Windows 11 you can optimize settings to enhance your gaming performance so that you don’t have to experience lag and stuttering.

And that’s how you can fix issues with FPS drops, lag and stuttering because of your HDD.

Let us know of any other issues you may be experiencing with your HDD when gaming in the comment section below.

5 Ways to Stop Your Windows 11 Webcam from Flickering

Posted on by Alexandru Poloboc

People have been using webcams for as long as we can remember, but the market witnessed a huge growth after the COVID-19 pandemic kicked in and triggered hybrid work solutions.

Now, in order to attend work-related situations, webcams are pretty much mandatory for users, which is why addressing webcam problems is even more important than it was.

That being said, if your webcam is not working with a USB extension cable, we will gladly help you solve this annoying issue.

Also, if you are looking for a reliable USB cable to use with your webcam, check our dedicated list and make the best choice.

However, if you are experiencing screen flickering when using your webcam on Windows 11, follow the guide below.

Why does my webcam keep flickering?

We’re glad you asked because this is really a topic we can get into and see why something that seems so banal can cause so much trouble.

Actually, webcam flickering is caused by an interaction between lights and the shutter speed of the webcam.

Know that the electricity supply used to power lights uses AC power, which rapidly oscillates the current being used.

Thus, this oscillation is perfectly normal and is used around the world, the exact frequency varies between countries but is always either 50Hz or 60Hz.

To be a bit more direct, the annoying behavior known as webcam flickering has something to do with the artificial lighting that you are using.

Keep in mind that, if you are using a different refresh rate for the artificial lighting, the camera will be recording at a different rate, causing the video image from the external webcam or built-in camera to flicker.

So, whether your webcam is flickering in OBS, or your laptop webcam won’t stop flickering, the solutions below are for you.

How do you stop camera flickering in Windows 11?

1. Update Windows to the latest version

  1. Press Win + I to access Settings.
  2. Select Windows Update from the navigation pane, and click on Check for updates on the right.check for updates
  3. If an update is listed after the scan, download it and then restart the computer.

2. Update webcam drivers

  1. Search for Device Manager and open the app.device manager
  2. Expand the Imaging devices section, right-click on your device and choose Update driver.update driver

Although sometimes Windows doesn’t find the drivers by itself, you can use third-party software that does that for you. Make this process faster and safer than manually searching for drivers with a tool we use, Outbyte Driver Updater.

Outbyte Driver Updater will do a quick scan and show you all outdated drivers on your PC. Since it’s faster and automated, rest assured the installation process will be smooth and errorless. Also, it might even increase your PC performance because everything is now optimized.

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3. Connect the webcam to a different USB port

It could be that the USB port to which you connected your webcam to has broken and is now defective and unable to properly do its job.

If the flickering sops once you have switched USB ports, please stop using the defective one immediately and think about changing it.

You should know that this solution, as simple and basic as it is, it has actually helped many users fix their problems.

Thus, if your device has a USB 3.0 port and you have connected your webcam to a USB 2.0 port, disconnect it from there and connect it to the USB 3.0 port.

Why? Well, it’s because the USB 3.0 ports have a faster data transfer rate as compared to the USB 2.0 ports.

4. Disable Low Light Compensation for the webcam

As you probably already know, the Low Light Compensation feature of a webcam brightens your shot automatically, which is helpful if you are recording in a dark room.

That being said, if your webcam supports this feature, you can turn it off in the Camera Control options in your webcam’s Properties.

After disabling the Low Light Compensation feature of your webcam, check if your webcam still keeps flickering while you use it.

5. Disable Power Saving/Battery Saver

  1. Press Win + I to access Settings.
  2. Select the System tab and click on Power & battery.power and bettery
  3. Select Battery saver and set it to Never.battery saver

How do I change my webcam settings?

  1. Press Win + I to access Settings.
  2. Select the Bluetooth & Devices tab and click on Cameras.camera

From this section, you can manage all settings for your camera. So just keep this in mind next time you need to surf these settings.

If your webcam keeps flickering in Zoom, or the webcam is flickering while in Teams, consider deleting the cache for these apps before using the camera again.

In case nothing works, it could be a hardware fault or manufacturing defect. The best option here would be to buy a new, more reliable, and high-quality webcam.

Also, find out what to do if your webcam isn’t listed in the Device Manager.

It’s never a good sign when your webcam starts flickering green. So, we hope this article helped you solve this annoying problem. Let us know if it did in the comments section below.

LinkedIn Polls – ask your business connections how they really feel

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

As LinkedIn positions itself firmly as a networking tool for businesses, it has adopted many of the features offered by its competitors. An addition to the platform is LinkedIn Polls, first introduced onto the business networking platform during the lockdown in 2020.

The ubiquity of social media in our lives has resulted in a significant reduction in active online engagement. It is far simpler to click like or use a similar emoji than waste time typing into the comment box talking about how you feel.

You can use Polls across the platform, asking for opinions from your personal profile, business page or group. The Poll feature is intended to help LinkedIn members engage with other members and connections by asking them to chose an option from a topic presented to them.

As this is a business networking platform, LinkedIn expects you to post about relevant topics. You are not permitted to create a poll asking for political opinions, health status, or other sensitive data.

How to create a LinkedIn Poll

You construct a poll in a very similar way to Poll creation on Twitter. From the main home page on LinkedIn, click ‘start a post’, then select the graph icon to start a Poll.

LinkedIn Polls - ask your business connections how they really feel eileen brown onmsft

A pop-up window will appear where you can type your questions and fill in the poll options for the vote. You can create a simple Poll with two options, or click the add option link to add another option to the Poll up to the maximum of four options.

You also have the chance to modify the time that the poll is displayed. Although the default is for one week, you could choose to display the poll for one or three days, or one or two weeks.

Once you have clicked the ‘done’ icon, you can see the poll in preview and you have the option to add your comments to the poll to put it in context. You also have the opportunity to choose the visibility for the poll and there are quite a few options to choose from.

LinkedIn Polls - ask your business connections how they really feel eileen brown onmsft

Hashtags are a key feature across the platform and can be used to extend the reach of a poll. Anyone searching for a specific hashtag can discover your poll and respond to it. Using regularly searched-for terms in a hashtag can be picked up by the software algorithm and show your poll to a new audience.

LinkedIn Polls - ask your business connections how they really feel eileen brown onmsft

You can share the poll with anyone on or off LinkedIn, or to LinkedIn and Twitter, your connections, or show the poll to a group of members. The default option is set to anyone on or off LinkedIn.

LinkedIn Polls - ask your business connections how they really feel eileen brown onmsft

Once the poll has been published, the poll creator can see who voted and how each person voted. You can also view aggregate results and the number of votes submitted for each option.

Creating Polls from LinkedIn Pages or Groups

If you are creating a poll on behalf of a business page, or group you manage, you can create a poll directly from the home page in the Group or Page.

Other admins of the page will be able to see who voted and how each person voted. This enables the Page’s sales team to be able to get in touch with the Poll respondent and follow up on a potential sales lead.

Advantages of using Linkedin Polls

Spotting trends and market sentiment will bring you an advantage if you are trying to compete for business. Knowing what your customers want will help you to deliver the right product for your business, or add features that will benefit your customers. Informative, engaging, fun, or baffling questions will keep your audience intrigued enough to want to connect with you.

If your polls are wacky enough or cover topical news, you might gain new followers who just want to see what your next poll of the day is going to be.

Check out these LinkedIn posts, too:

6 reasons why LinkedIn is important for your business

Make your LinkedIn profile more dynamic with a cover story video

On LinkedIn – our series on getting more out of LinkedIn

Image via alphastockimages.com