Another Windows 10 snippet for what is yet to come:


Microsoft shares twin previews of Windows 10 with Insiders: Toys for some, coal for others

Windows Insiders were seeing double last night as Microsoft once again pushed out not one but two builds of October's Windows 10.

The 19H2 builds were again targeting the Slow Ring and continued the company's determination to confuse the heck out of its loyal army of unpaid testers with one that contains new toys and one that does not.

The dual test builds are aimed at trialling the strategy of shipping an update with features turned off then gradually turning them on via "controlled feature roll-outs".

The result is that if you were on build 18362.10012, you'll get 18362.10014 with the new toys turned off by default, while 18362.10013 users get 18362.10015 with stuff turned on.

And if you've just joined the Insider programme from the May 2019 Update to check out how things work ahead of time because that was the point of the programme in the first place, well, a virtual Dona Sarkar and Brandon LeBlanc will play rock/paper/scissors within your PC to decide if you're on the naughty or nice list.

Which is a shame because this release contains some new features...

To my jaundiced personal opinion, this all sounds like a lab-rat game of experimenting with the Windows faithful...

IT is what we allow it to be...
Martin

i do not understand these build numbers as I have two computers on Insiders and both have build 18963 installed this past weekend.

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SETI@home classic workunits 4,019
SETI@home classic CPU time 34,348 hours

i do not understand these build numbers as I have two computers on Insiders and both have build 18963 installed this past weekend.

You are on the Fast Ring builds, while these are for the people on the Slow Ring builds.

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I would like to share some hack I developed to stop my netbook from being unusable by its OS with few days period.
It has Win10 (home) and only 32GB "SSD"(that could not be real one) drive in it. So OS updates constantly eat it up to the point of OS instability due to lack of room on system drive.
I really tired to block updates via 3rd party stuff and tricks from internet so I:
1) found place where updates downloaded C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\
2) run as administrator
3) edited NTFS security descriptor for that dir to DENY System account for accessing to it (to be sure also took ownership to own acc).
4) deleted all it has to that moment.

And few months already I enjoy my netbook working FOR me,not AGAINST me.
Small win in perpetual M$ battle. In quite radical way but I saved from OS restarts when it wants with losing my work and from constant lack of room on system drive. Maybe some find it useful too,especially for devices with small system partition.

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SETI apps news
We're not gonna fight them. We're gonna transcend them.

I am running Windows 10 on a HP Omen desktop which has a 128 GB SSD and a 1 TB hard disk. On my HP laptop with a 1 TB hybrid disk I run SuSE Leap 15.0. On a HP desktop with Windows 8.1 I run Science United which sends me thousands of Milkyway@home tasks and hundreds of Asteroids@home tasks. They are both CPU and GPU tasks but while Milkyway tasks use OpenCl on an nVidia GTX 1050 in a few minutes, Asteroids GPU tasks use cuda55 and mostly fail, so I have to abort them. On the same pc I am running a Linux Virtual Machine with SuSE Tumbleweed with a 5.2.8 kernel, frequently updated.
Tullio

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I switched all of my dedicated crunchers over to Linux. Left them alone and checked them after a couple days--they were still doing exactly what I had told them to do.

Checked them a week later. Still doing exactly what I had told them to do.

Couple weeks later. Still doing exactly what I had told them to do. Nothing more, and nothing less.

Set a couple of them up as headless due to the stability.

I hate Windows now.

https://www.neowin.net/news/some-windows-10-users-on-1903-are-facing-high-cpu-usage-after-latest-cumulative-updates

Users on Reddit began reporting that after installing the latest cumulative update, CPU usage shot up to high numbers even when the system was idle and wasn’t being used. Most users that reported this performance issue noticed that the high CPU usage came from Cortana (specifically the SearchUI.exe process as spotted in the Task Manager). Additionally, the Search functionality in the Taskbar too seems to have become non-functional for those that have hit this issue, with the search flyout turning blank when clicked on.

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SETI@home classic workunits 103,576
SETI@home classic CPU time 655,753 hours

https://www.neowin.net/news/some-windows-10-users-on-1903-are-facing-high-cpu-usage-after-latest-cumulative-updates

Users on Reddit began reporting that after installing the latest cumulative update, CPU usage shot up to high numbers even when the system was idle and wasn’t being used. Most users that reported this performance issue noticed that the high CPU usage came from Cortana (specifically the SearchUI.exe process as spotted in the Task Manager). Additionally, the Search functionality in the Taskbar too seems to have become non-functional for those that have hit this issue, with the search flyout turning blank when clicked on.

Hi IG,

It looks like my NOT using Cortana is doing me just fine. My CPU usage is normal (if you can call it normal while running BOINC / SETI. lol). My search button works just fine for me.

I just wish I could figure out what Winders is filling up my M.2 drive with. The amount free keeps going down about every 2 or 3 days. Winders keeps filling up a folder with .ETL log files. I haven't been able to figure out what creates them so I can put a stop to them. They don't seem to be of any use at all, it's all just garbage. You would think that the application that creates them would delete the old ones as it goes, but NOooooooooooooo... :( I have to manually delete all but the current ones. They don't have an impact of the drive free space either.

I'm getting real tired of Micro$oft and their bloated POS of an OS. Too bad I need it for stuff. Got an idea I'm working on. I'm thinking of dual booting with Linux Mint. I would need a higher capacity M.2 drive and clone my current one. Then install Mint as a dual boot. Stop BOINC and SETI on Winders and get it running on Mint. Then I can run Mint all the time and only go into Winders for a short time for other stuff. Yeah! That's the ticket! :)

Have a great day! :)

Siran

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CAPT Siran d'Vel'nahr - L L & P _\\//
Winders 11 OS? "What a piece of junk!" - L. Skywalker
"Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." - T'Plana-hath

https://fileinfo.com/extension/etl

Programs that open ETL files:
- Microsoft Event Viewer
- Microsoft Tracelog
- Microsoft Tracerpt

Most probably Event Viewer.

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https://fileinfo.com/extension/etl

Programs that open ETL files:
- Microsoft Event Viewer
- Microsoft Tracelog
- Microsoft Tracerpt

Most probably Event Viewer.

Hi Jord,

Yeah, I've already spent a lot of time researching what .ETL files are: Event Trace Log, about a month ago or more, and whether they can be deleted or not.

I went into Event Viewer and there are over 39MB of logs. One set of logs dates back to July. Why the heck can't Micro$oft figure out a log system like Linux has. The way I understand it, in Linux, and have seen is that each new day the backup logs are erased, the previous days logs are backed up and the new days are created. I see no reason to have logs several months old like Micro$oft likes to do. Also, I figured out how to read the ETL file in human readable form. They have something to do with updates. I go into updates in settings every day and I see that it hasn't checked for updates for a week sometimes. So why have ETL files pertaining to updates EVERY day.

I just looked and there is one ETL file for today. All the rest are yesterdays that I didn't delete yesterday. I do this about every 3 or 4 days or so. I delete all but the current days ETL files.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, I won't have to worry about it much longer once I get a large capacity M.2 drive and Linux Mint dual booting. When I want to play World of Warcraft, I'll shut down BOINC in Linux, boot into Winders and play for a while. Then log back into Linux and resume BOINC. All I gotta do is figure out how to clone from one M.2 to another M.2 drive. Acronis doesn't care about the destination drive just as long as it is the same capacity or larger. I can clone from my 250GB to a 1TB no problem.

Have a great day! :)

Siran

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CAPT Siran d'Vel'nahr - L L & P _\\//
Winders 11 OS? "What a piece of junk!" - L. Skywalker
"Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." - T'Plana-hath

I use Macrium Reflect for backups and cloning.

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I searched my system for an *.ETL file and found nothing that has changed recently. I hope there isn't anything wrong with your system that is making the trace log grow like crazy.

Try running something like CCleaner to see where the disk space is being grabbed.
Log files, (failed) updates, memory dumps, temporary browser caches etc can all add up very quickly to tens of Gb being grabbed to no good purpose.

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

I searched my system for an *.ETL file and found nothing that has changed recently. I hope there isn't anything wrong with your system that is making the trace log grow like crazy.

Hi IG,

This is the location where all the ETL files build up: C:\ProgramData\USOShared\Logs, I delete all but the current days files about every 3 days or so.

Here's a location for 2 other ETL files: C:\Windows\System32\WDI\LogFiles but their sizes remain fairly relative. I don't do anything with them.

I only noticed this after updating to v1903. So It's like Micro$oft has changed something and whatever it is it doesn't clean up after itself.

Have a great day! :)

Siran

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CAPT Siran d'Vel'nahr - L L & P _\\//
Winders 11 OS? "What a piece of junk!" - L. Skywalker
"Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." - T'Plana-hath

I searched my system for an *.ETL file and found nothing that has changed recently. I hope there isn't anything wrong with your system that is making the trace log grow like crazy.

Hi IG,

This is the location where all the ETL files build up: C:\ProgramData\USOShared\Logs, I delete all but the current days files about every 3 days or so.

Here's a location for 2 other ETL files: C:\Windows\System32\WDI\LogFiles but their sizes remain fairly relative. I don't do anything with them.

I only noticed this after updating to v1903. So It's like Micro$oft has changed something and whatever it is it doesn't clean up after itself.

Have a great day! :)

Siran

I only have 437 files in mine, from all the way back to March 8th, and it only takes up 12.9MB.

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I only have 437 files in mine, from all the way back to March 8th, and it only takes up 12.9MB.

Mine goes back 3 months, and is under 12mb.

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I searched my system for an *.ETL file and found nothing that has changed recently. I hope there isn't anything wrong with your system that is making the trace log grow like crazy.

Hi IG,

This is the location where all the ETL files build up: C:\ProgramData\USOShared\Logs, I delete all but the current days files about every 3 days or so.

Here's a location for 2 other ETL files: C:\Windows\System32\WDI\LogFiles but their sizes remain fairly relative. I don't do anything with them.

I only noticed this after updating to v1903. So It's like Micro$oft has changed something and whatever it is it doesn't clean up after itself.

Have a great day! :)

Siran

I only have 437 files in mine, from all the way back to March 8th, and it only takes up 12.9MB.

Hi Arkayn,

12.9MB can be used for something else. 437 files???? Dang!

But why doesn't the old crap get deleted since it's like reading a newspaper from back then? It's old news; why does Micro$oft have this need to retain superfluous news? Is it to give us something to do when we don't have anything else productive to do? lol ;)

I like the way Linux does log files. That's why I ordered a 1TB M.2 drive and a PCIe adapter to clone my current one to it. I will be running Linux Mint on my main and Winders will only be there for playing Warcraft and stuff. They'll dual boot. I'm fed up with Micro$oft's bloated OS and their attitude toward their end users.

Have a great day! :)

Siran

---

CAPT Siran d'Vel'nahr - L L & P _\\//
Winders 11 OS? "What a piece of junk!" - L. Skywalker
"Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." - T'Plana-hath

https://www.neowin.net/news/some-windows-10-users-on-1903-are-facing-high-cpu-usage-after-latest-cumulative-updates

Users on Reddit began reporting that after installing the latest cumulative update, CPU usage shot up to high numbers even when the system was idle and wasn’t being used. Most users that reported this performance issue noticed that the high CPU usage came from Cortana (specifically the SearchUI.exe process as spotted in the Task Manager). Additionally, the Search functionality in the Taskbar too seems to have become non-functional for those that have hit this issue, with the search flyout turning blank when clicked on.

That has now been reported on Tom's Hardware:


Latest Windows 10 Update Leads to High CPU Usage

... a cumulative update to Windows 10 has caused performance issues for some users. Windows Latest reported Saturday that problems with Windows 10 Build 18362.329, which debuted with the KB4512941 cumulative update, have caused high CPU usage issues ... because of an issue with Cortana. The virtual assistant's SearchUI.exe process has reportedly used 30-40% of the CPU as well as 150-200MB of memory since the installation of the KB4512941 update. But those resources are being totally wasted--the Cortana window opened from the Taskbar fails to load...

... members of the Windows Insider Program reported these problems to Microsoft via the Feedback Hub before the update was made available to the public. Those reports appear to have slipped through the cracks...

... some users resolved the problem with Cortana by deleting a registry key, but unless one of the update's improvements outweighs the performance hit, it's probably easier to simply uninstall the KB4512941 update...



So, really, that one "slipped through the cracks"? Or more a case of 'rushed out regardless'?


IT is what we allow it to be...
Martin

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See new freedom: Mageia Linux
Take a look for yourself: Linux Format
The Future is what We all make IT (GPLv3)

No issues so far...

Try running something like CCleaner to see where the disk space is being grabbed.
Log files, (failed) updates, memory dumps, temporary browser caches etc can all add up very quickly to tens of Gb being grabbed to no good purpose.

Hi Rob,

This morning I was attempting to take your advice about using CCleaner. I downloaded v5.61 and tried to install it 3 times with a failed install (actually, no install at all). Nothing happened after clicking the blue install button. So, I did some DuckDuckGoing on failed installs of CCleaner. I discovered this post on the Micro$oft help forum:

> Is it safe to install ccleaner on my pc?

Depends...

Piriform (the maker of CCleaner etc) was bought by Avast in July 2017 and there was this nasty incident...

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/avast-clarifies-details-surrounding-ccleaner-malware-incident/
https://blog.avast.com/update-to-the-ccleaner-5.33.6162-security-incident

All CCleaner versions are bundling Avast AV and/or various Google products such as Google Chrome, a Google toolbar and possibly other products....

Microsoft Community has seen quite a few of related threads.

Recently more and more threads are popping up in the Piriform/CCleaner forum which hint at even more questionable methods...

Here are a few recent example threads:

-- Problem with installer bundle offer? By nukecad, yesterday at 01:33

-- Providers of CCleaner are forcing installation of Avast Antivirus By ecbritz, yesterday at 09:33

-- CCleaner v5.38 installing Avast Free Antivirus By SMalik, Thursday at 05:37

IMO, CCleaner is not unproblematic and has to be treated carefully.

I, personally, would not recommend CCleaner to inexperienced and/or not so tech-savvy persons...

Suggestion to inform yourself before installing CCleaner (or any other product) and to always, always keep your eyes wide open during installation (watch out for any bundled softwares etc etc).

You also might want to read this article (in case you don't use an ad blocker: ignore all advertisements): https://www.howtogeek.com/172820/beginner-geek-what-does-ccleaner-do-and-should-you-use-it/

WRT to CCleaner on Windows 10:

According to this post Windows 10 blocks older versions: "CC v5.27 and older, (or somewhere around there) are no longer deemed safe by MS and automatically blocked when starting."

I used to use Avast AV many years ago and quit using it because of their shenanigans. I will NOT use Google Chrome or anything Google consciously anymore. I only use Winders 10 built in AV and such now. I'm thinking that Micro$oft has continued to block CCleaner even up to the version I downloaded, v5.61.

I have tried several times to use Winders 10's built-in disk cleanup utility. I have not gotten the space back; it's where it was the other day when I started this rant on Micro$oft and Winders 10. ;)

But... That's neither here nor there now. My new 1TB M.2 NVMe drive and PCIe adapter will be here tomorrow and I will be cloning this M.2 drive, installing it and installing Linux Mint as a dual boot. I will do this after BOINC has finished in Winders 10.

I'll let you know how I fare in a few days when all is done. :)

Have a great day! :)

Siran

[edit]
Sorry, they didn't supply the URL in some of the links marked with a -- , so I will link to the forum page where you can read the other linked articles.
[/edit]

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CAPT Siran d'Vel'nahr - L L & P _\\//
Winders 11 OS? "What a piece of junk!" - L. Skywalker
"Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." - T'Plana-hath

Hi Siran,

Seems like your computer is messed up if you can't get CCleaner to install. I hope the new hard drive gives you some relief.

I recall a version of CCleaner that was suppositly embedded with malware about a year or so ago. I hadn't heard much since.

Windows Disk Cleanup is really slow - and I'm not sure it would "target" USO ETL files in any event. I can understand your frustrations with trying to maintain your privacy and Windows 10 aggravations. I have a Windows Server 2016 machine (it has a Windows 10 underpinning) that won't do windows updates no matter what I do.

IG