If you are trying to access a particular file on your Windows 10 computer either to open, rename or delete it, and you suddenly encounter an error stating, “Could not find this item. This is no longer located in [Path]. Verify the item’s location and try again”, read on for this post will help you out in resolving this issue. If you are able to find and view a file on your computer, you should have clear access to it. And since you are seeing an error message when you try to do something about this file, you are not able to do anything with the file. There are times when this error pops up with the files created by third-party services and that the file’s extension is not defined properly. On the other hand, there are also other obscure causes for this error. To fix it, here are some suggestions you can try.

Option 1 – Delete the file using Command Prompt

If you wish to delete the problematic file and weren’t to, you can use Command Prompt.

• In the Start menu, type in “Command Prompt” to search for it or you could also click the search button right next to the Start menu and then right-click on the related result and select the option “Run as administrator”.
• Once you’ve opened Command Prompt, copy and paste the command given below and tap Entre after you do so. You also have to make sure that you key in the correct path where the file is located as well as its name.

rd /s \?X:badfolderpath Note: In the command above, “X” is the placeholder letter so you must input the letter that corresponds to the drive’s letter where the file is located.

• After that, you will see the “Operation completed successfully” message on your screen. If you don’t, check if you’ve really inputted the correct location of the file or its name.

Option 2 – Use a Command Prompt tweak to rename the file

If you don’t want to delete the file and only want to rename it, you can apply some tweaks using the Command Prompt. Make sure to follow the steps carefully.

• In the Start menu, type in “Command Prompt” to search for it or you could also click the search button right next to the Start menu and then right-click on the related result and select the option “Run as administrator”.
• After opening Command Prompt, type in “cd” followed by the path where the file is located with this format – “C:\Folder1\Folder2\Folder3”. However, you have to omit the problematic file this time. To put it simply, the last folder in the command must be the folder where the file is located.
• After inputting the command, tap Enter on your keyboard and then use the set of commands given below. Note that each command is a new line so you need to tap Enter after copying each line.
  • DIR /A /X /P
  • RENAME (the current name of the problematic file) (a non-problematic name)
  • EXIT

Note: Make sure that you only input the current name and the new name separated by a space. You must not write the brackets in the command. If everything goes well, you will now be able to operate the file like you used to before.

Option 3 – Use Command Prompt to delete the file without any extension

This option applies to cases where the affected file does not have any viable extension which means that Windows does not really know what to do with it and it only displays the “Could not find this item. This is no longer located in [Path]. Verify the item’s location and try again” error message. It usually occurs with the files created by browser plugins that are mostly from Mozilla Firefox. To delete these kinds of files, here’s what you have to do:

• Follow the first two steps from the previous option above so you can navigate to the location of the file accurately just be careful in inputting the folders.
• Don’t forget to tap Enter right after each command and then use the next command below so you can delete the affected file which has no extension:

del *.*

• After you’re done, open the File Explorer and then check if the file is now deleted or not.

Option 4 – Try using another workaround without using Command Prompt

This option is a lot like a workaround but it definitely gets the job done for you. It’s ideal for you if you do not want to deal with Command Prompt and only want to do everything in a graphical environment. To get started, follow the steps below.

• Look for the affected file or folder on your PC using File Explorer. Once you found it, right-click on it and select the “Add to archive” option from the context menu.
• Once the archiving options window pops up, look for the “Delete files after archiving” option and make sure that you select it then click OK to start archiving the folder or file. After that, you should now notice the file no longer exists.
• After that, delete the archive file as well.

The “Unknown Hard” error that keeps on appearing in Windows 10 can put users in an unpleasant situation. This kind of error leads to the freezing of the taskbar, blackening of the screen, and sudden disappearance of the icons on the Desktop. And each time you try to open Windows, the system will only give you an error message saying that it’s a critical error and some applications like Start and Cortana won’t work. Upon analysis, it seems that the “sihost.exe” is not responding and that it is the one that’s causing the c000021a Unknown Hard error to pop up. Sihost.exe files represent the Shell Infrastructure Host which is an essential component in the Windows operating system. The Windows Shell Infrastructure Host is primarily responsible for handling some graphical elements of the operating system interface such as the Start menu and the taskbar transparency. And so if the Shell Infrastructure or Sihost.exe has stopped, has been removed, or corrupted, you will most likely have issues with the overall functionality of the Windows operating system and you’ll get the Unknown Hard error In addition, the ctfmom.exe Unknown Hard error may also occur due to incompatible drivers installed on your PC. Ctfmom is a process that identifies inputs such as handwriting, languages, and many more. It’s the one that controls the functions of background behavior. To resolve this issue, you need to first try to identify which application is the one that’s running the sihost.exe file. And if needed, you need to either update or reinstall or completely uninstall the problematic application.

Option 1 – Try to run the System File Checker

The SFC Scan or System File Checker, us a built-in utility in Microsoft Windows that can be found in the C:\Windows\System32 folder. This tool allows users to scan and restore any corrupted system files in Windows that might be causing the Unknown Hard error to appear. Before you use this tool, make sure to find out whether the sihost.exe on your computer is a Trojan that you have to remove or if it’s a file that belongs to a trusted Windows application. Once you have that sorted out, follow the steps below.

• Tap Win + R to launch Run.
• Type in cmd in the field and tap Enter.
• After opening Command Prompt, type in sfc /scannow

The command will start a system scan which will take a few whiles before it finishes. Once it’s done, you could get the following results:

1. Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.
2. Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them.
3. Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.

Option 2 – Try to use System Restore

You can also try using System Restore. This is one of the ways you can use it to back up your PC. Since restore points are created automatically each week by System Restore, you can use System Restore to restore your computer back to an earlier good point in time.

Option 3 – Try to troubleshoot the error in a Clean Boot State

Putting your PC in a Clean Boot state can help you diagnose and troubleshoot the issues in your system. During this state, you can start the system with a minimum number of drivers and startup programs that will surely help you in isolating the root cause of the Unknown Hard Error.

• Log onto your PC as an administrator.
• Type in MSConfig in the Start Search to open the System Configuration utility.
• From there, go to the General tab and click “Selective startup”.
• Clear the “Load Startup items” checkbox and make sure that the “Load System Services” and “Use Original boot configuration” options are checked.
• Next, click the Services tab and select the “Hide All Microsoft Services” checkbox.
• Click Disable all.
• Click on Apply/OK and restart your PC. (This will put your PC into a Clean Boot State. And configure Windows to use the usual startup, just simply undo the changes.)

After putting your PC in a Clean Boot State, try creating a system restore point and see if the problem still occurs. Clean Boot troubleshooting is designed to help you isolate the problem. For you to execute a clean boot troubleshooting, you must do a couple of actions (the steps are given above) and then restart your PC after every action. You might have to disable one third-party app after the other to really isolate the issue. And once you’ve narrowed down the problem, you can either disable the third-party app that’s causing the problem or remove it. Note that you must switch your PC back into the Normal Startup mode after you’re done troubleshooting the problem. Here’s how you can do it:

• From the “Start” menu, go to System Configuration.
• After that, switch to the General tab and click the option for “Normal Startup”.
• Next, go to the Services tab and clear the checkbox for “Hide all Microsoft services”.
• Then find and click “Enable all” and if prompted, you have to confirm.
• Afterward, go to the Task Manager and enable all the Startup programs and confirm the action.
• Restart your PC when prompted.

Fix User32.dll Error Code

User32.dll Error Code - What is it?

User32.dll is a Dynamic Link Library file. Windows stores instructions for graphical elements such as dialog boxes and Windows in this file. This file is a crucial file, necessary to run Windows operations. If this file is damaged, deleted, or removed from the system you may not be able to run the programs on your system that use and share the User32.dll file thereby causing you inconvenience. The User32.dll file error is displayed in the following format:

“This application has failed to start because USER32.dll was not found. Reinstalling the application may fix this problem.”

Or

“[Program] illegal system DLL relocation”

Program here refers to the name of a program that caused the User32.dll error message.

Solution

Error Causes

User32.dll errors are triggered by the following reasons:

• Missing and damaged .dll files
• Viral infection
• Registry corruption

User32.dll error is also referred to as C0000135 blue screen of death error. When the User32.dll error occurs it not only locks you out of your desired program but also turns your computer screen blue. If the error is not repaired timely it may expose your PC to serious threats such as abrupt system shutdowns, system failure, and crash.

Further Information and Manual Repair

To resolve the User32.dll error on your PC, try the following solutions:

1. Reinstall Programs Causing User32.dll errors

Sometimes User32.dll error may occur due to missing DLL files.  This happens when you delete a program from your PC and accidentally the DLL file also gets deleted which is shared by other programs on your system. Therefore to resolve this first find out what programs on your system use User32.dll to load and run on your system. To do this use the Tasklist command-line tool. It displays the names of all the programs that currently use the User32.dll file. After this, reinstall the programs that use User32.dll files on your system. This will hopefully resolve the error.

2. Install and Run Restoro

If it doesn’t, then this probably means that the damage is deep-rooted. It is related to the damaged DLL files, registry corruption, or viral infection. To resolve all of these causes in one go, it is best to download Restoro instead of downloading 3 different software to resolve each cause for the error separately. This is basically an advanced, innovative, and multi-functional PC repair tool embedded with multiple powerful utilities including a registry cleaner, and a system optimizer. It is a one-stop solution for all your PC-related problems including the User32.dll error. The registry cleaner wipes the clutter and obsolete files damaging the hard disk and simultaneously repairs the DLL files and the registry. The antivirus feature removes all the viruses on your system while the system stability utility boosts the PC speed significantly. It is safe, user-friendly, and compatible with all Windows versions including Windows Vista, XP, Windows 7, 8, 8.1, and 10. Click here to download Total System Care to resolve the User32.dll error right away.

How to Fix Windows Store Error Code 0x80240017

Error Code 0x80240017 – What is it?

Error code 0x80240017 is associated with installing or updating a Windows Store app. This error is more common in Windows 8 and Windows 8.1. It appears due to missing certain system files and also corrupt registry.

Common symptoms

• When you try to install a Windows Store app on a PC running Windows RT 8.1, Windows 8.1, or Windows Server 2012 R2, the installation fails and you receive an error message: 0x80240017
• Certain apps may become unresponsive.
• You may not be able to download apps or Windows update
• You may have difficulty updating or installing and uninstalling other built-in programs inside Windows 8 and Windows 8.1.
• When you have multiple applications running, you may experience crashes and freezes.

Solution

Error Causes

The error code 0x80240017 in Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 usually appears due to the fact that your system has changed after you installed a third-party application. It might also appear if registry entry has changed after a reboot of the operating system and you do not have the required permissions. Other causes may be due to:

• Corrupted, broken, or missing system files.
• Malware/spyware infection or virus attack
• Hardware/RAM decline
• Fragmented file
• Unnecessary or redundant program installations

Further Information and Manual Repair

Repairing Error Code 0x80240017 in Windows 8/Windows 8.1

Method 1:

Resetting Windows Store app:

1. Press and hold the Windows key and press R. This will open up the Run command
2. Now, type exe and hit Enter
3. Just wait for it to finish and it will re-launch Windows Store. Now, try and install the app you were trying to install which was previously showing an error.

This basic solution will delete the cache and reset Windows Store.

Method 2:

Using Windows troubleshooter:

1. Click on Search on the Charm bar and type Troubleshooting. Click on the very first option.
2. A new window will open. Click View all from the left pane.
3. Scroll down to the bottom and click on Windows update.
4. Troubleshooter window for Windows update will pop up. Click on NEXT. It may ask you for administrative permission.
5. The troubleshooter will automatically detect problems and fix them.
6. Now, close this window and try download/install the app which was previously showing an error.

Method 3:

Disable Proxy Settings: Disable proxy server on Internet Explorer

1. Press the Windows + R Run window will appear.
2. Type cpl and hit Enter
3. Click the Connections tab and click LAN settings
4. Under proxy server uncheck “Use a proxy server for your LAN”
5. Click OK

Now try to install apps from Windows Store.

Method 4:

Boot in Safe Mode:

1. Open Run command as previously described
2. Type MSConfig
3. Click on the Boot tab
4. Tick Safe boot in Boot option
5. Select Network
6. Click Apply and OK
7. Reboot your system

Your system will boot in Safe mode with Networking. You may now try and open Windows Store and should not see any errors.

Method 5:

Note: It is recommended that you back up your files and folders before attempting this step:

1. Move the mouse cursor over to the upper right side of the screen.
2. A menu will pop up on the left. Click on the “Settings” feature on the menu.
3. On the Settings window, click on the “Change PC settings.”
4. Now, left-click on the “Update and recovery” feature.
5. For the next step, left-click on the “Recovery” feature.
6. There is an option here saying “Refresh your PC without affecting your files.” There, left-click on the “Get started” button.
7. Now, follow the instructions on the screen to finish the Refresh process.
8. After the Refresh process has finished restart your Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 device.
9. Check again to see if the error 0x80240017 has been fixed.

If you do not possess the technical expertise required to accomplish this yourself or do not feel comfortable doing so, download and install a powerful automated tool to get the job done.

When we get ourselves a new USB stick, new hard drive, or any storage device not including optical drives they are usually preformatted and ready to be used out of the box. However, reformating them has several benefits and while we are reformatting we can choose in which file system format we want the memory to be formatted. In this article, we will compare and explore 3 typical and standard format options you can get while formating a new media in Windows 10.

FAT32

The oldest one on the list, coming all the way from DOS days. Great for devices that need to be plugged in different operating systems and for USB flash drives. Its advantages are compatibility with all major operating systems and little memory usage comparing to other ones. However, the file system is limited to file sizes of the maximum capacity of 4GB and partitions can not exceed more than 32GB.

NTFS

First introduced in Windows NT this file system offered slower performance than FAT32 and somewhat limited usability but the main advantages were more stability and fewer errors. Its main advantages are support for files larger than 4GB and partitions larger than 32GB along with the ability for on the file encryption, main disadvantage would be limited operating system usage, NTFS can not be used on systems that work on FAT32 like MS-DOS for example or older versions of Windows. The best usage for this file system is in internal hard disk drives and system drives.

exFAT

New kid on the block, well at least from the perspective of the previous 2. exFAT offers unlimited file sizes and unlimited partition sizes but at a price that is even more limiting than NTFS. Some Linux distributions will require a driver to be installed in order to see the exFAT partition. The best use is in storage, in external hard drives. That's it, 3 major file systems, we hope that you have managed to learn something new today, and remember to drop by tomorrow for more articles about advice, tips, tricks, and troubleshooting.

To make the Windows 10 operating system a lot more user-friendly, Microsoft introduced the Tablet Mode for Windows 10 devices, especially the 2-in-1 devices like Surface Pro and Surface Book. Despite the Tablet Mode’s efficiency, it also encounters some errors from time to time. One of the issues users reported about tablet mode is that they can’t turn off or exit tablet mode. If you are one of these users, read on as this post will guide you in what you can do to fix the issue. To fix the problem with Tablet Mode, there are several suggestions you can check out. You can try to check the full-screen setting, or perform a full shutdown or perform two buttons to restart the Surface devices. You could also disable Tablet Mode via Registry Editor or perform System Restore or change the settings in the System tab or the Action Center.

Option 1 – Try to check the full-screen setting

• Tap the Win + I keys to open the Windows Settings app.
• Then navigate to this path, Personalization > Start.
• Next, scroll down to toggle off the “Use Start Full Screen” option.
• After that, restart your computer and see if the problem is fixed.

Option 2 – Perform a full shutdown

• Open Command Prompt with admin privileges first.
• Next, execute this command to perform a full shutdown: shutdown /s /f /t 0
• The command you entered will shut down your computer and once it’s turned off, wait for a couple of minutes and then turn it back on.

Option 3 – Try to perform a two-button restart on your Surface device

• Tap and hold the power button for about 30 seconds.
• Then release them after 30 seconds.
• After that, tap and hold the volume up + the power button for 20 seconds. This will cause the display to flash a few times but you have to keep those buttons pressed until your Surface device is turned off.
• Wait for a couple of minutes and your Surface will turn back on. This should resolve the problem.

Option 4 – Try to disable the Tablet Mode via Registry Editor

• In the Start Search, type “registry editor” and right-click on the Registry Editor from the results, and then select the Run as administrator option. This will open the Registry Editor with admin privileges.
• Next, navigate to this registry key: ComputerHKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionImmersiveShell
• From there, look for the DWORD named “SignInMode” and double click on it.
• Set its value to “1” and its base as hexadecimal.
• After that, click on OK to save the changes made. This will make sure that you are signed in to the desktop mode when you log into your account.
• Now look for the DWORD named “TabletMode” and double click on it and set its value data to “0” and it's base as hexadecimal.
• Click on OK to save the changes made and then restart your computer.

Option 5 – Run System Restore

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
• After that, type in “sysdm.cpl” in the field and tap Enter.
• Next, go to the System Protection tab then click the System Restore button. This will open a new window where you have to select your preferred System Restore point.
• After that, follow the on-screen instructions to finish the process and then restart your computer and check if the problem is fixed or not.

Option 6 – Try changing the settings in the System tab or the Action Center

• Go to Settings and navigate to System > Tablet Mode.
• After that, scroll down to set the “Use desktop mode” from the drop-down menu under the “When I sign in” section.
• Now restart your computer and see if the issue is fixed.

In the latest news, Microsoft has reached a deal to purchase Activision Blizzard for 67.8 billion. Now franchises like Warcraft, Starcraft, Overwatch, Call of duty, Diablo are now the property of Microsoft and I am sure that some of these games we can expect to be included in the Xbox game pass. This is the second large game company acquisition by Microsoft, Acquiring Bethesda first and a big hit to Sony since Xbox will now have more games in its catalog and as exclusives. Of course, the sale has to go through the standard closing conditions and completion of regulatory review and Activision Blizzard’s shareholder approval before it’s finalized. Assuming that all goes well, the deal is slated to be completed during the fiscal year 2023, which is July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023.

A command is not recognized Error, what it is? If you are constantly using programs like CMD or DISM directly from the Run prompt, you might have wondered how they launched instantly and how is it that the Windows operating system is able to find them right away. For instance, when you create a shortcut of a program, the shortcut knows where exactly the program is located and launches it quickly. The Windows operating system keeps a list of paths where the most common system programs are located so when you use the Run prompt, it opens easily. The list kept by Windows is called the Windows Environment Variables. If something goes wrong with this list, the programs won’t work. So in this guide, you will be guided on how you can troubleshoot the problem where any command you use is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program, or batch file. Before you start troubleshooting the problem, you need to make sure that the program you are trying to run really exists. In fact, this can also happen to the Run program which is pulled up using the Win + R shortcut. To check, go to C:\Windows\System32 and there, check if the program exists or not or you can also try searching for the EXE in the System 32 folder. After making sure that the program exists, refer to the instructions given below.

Modify the Windows Environment Variables:

• Step 1: Tap the Win + X keys and then select System. After that, it will open the section where you can see all the properties on your computer.
• Step 2: Next, select the Advanced system setting located on the left pane and click on the Environment Variables.
• Step 3: After that, locate Path under the System Variables and select EDIT.
• Step 4: Before you edit, you need to copy the entire string and paste it into the Notepad app so that in case something went wrong, you can paste it back.
• Step 5: Next, look for the directory path, “C:\Windows\System32”. If you can’t find it, try adding a semi-colon at the end.
• Step 6: Afterwards, click OK to save the changes made and then exit.
• Step 7: Now restart your computer as all the paths are picked up when your computer restarts.

Note: Now all you have to do is to try executing the programs once again – the ones where you got the error, “ is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file” every time you open them and then see if you can now open these programs or not.

If you are trying to install or upgrade your Windows 10 computer but suddenly encountered an error message saying, “Windows could not configure one or more system components”, read on as this post will show you how you can fix the problem. You are not alone in experiencing this problem as other users also reported having the same scenario. Some of them reported getting the following error message:

“Windows could not configure one or more system components. To install Windows restart the computer with error code 0xc1900101-0x30018.”

When you check on the Windows 10 rollback log, you will see a part with the “iisetup.exe” that’s related to the abort. Usually, the upgrade process completes over 50% and gets stuck and then rolls back later on and generates the error logs. This kind of error, in most cases, appears during the upgrade of Windows 10 and is related with the Internet Information Services or IIS in Windows 10. For some unknown reason, it restricts the installation or the upgrade which causes the error to appear. To fix the “Windows could not configure one or more system components” error, you can try to remove the IIS from the Windows Features or rename the “inetsrv” folder. You could also move all the folders related to IIS to another drive. For more details, refer to the options provided below.

Option 1 – Try to remove the IIS from Windows Features

The IIS is installed from the Windows Features and you can find it at Control Panel > Programs. From there, uncheck the checkbox for the Internet Information Services. Once done, click on the OK button to save the changes. Note that this process will get rid of all the related programs, services, and folders from Windows 10. So if you want to, you can just install them later on or use an offline installer from the official site of Microsoft.

Option 2 – Try renaming the inetsrv folder

The next option you can check out to resolve the problem is to rename the “inetsrv” folder. If you have uninstalled IIS from the Windows Features, this should remove the folders as well, however, it didn’t remove the folder then you have to delete the folders that are related to the IIS by following these steps:

• First, you have to boot into the Advanced Recovery Mode and from there, open Command Prompt.
• Next, execute this command to rename the folder from this location, C:Windowssystem32inetsrv: rename C:/Windows/system32/inetsrv/inetsrv.old
• Once done, boot into your computer normally and try to upgrade Windows 10 again, and check if the problem is fixed or not.

Option 3 – Try to move the folders related to IIS to a different drive

• Tap the Win + R keys to launch the Run utility and type “services.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open the Windows Services Manager.
• Next, look for the Application Host Helper Service from the list of services and stop it.
• Once done, take ownership of the “WinSxS” folder and then move the *windows-iis*.*” folders to another drive. You can just search using the “*windows-iis*.*” keyword in the Start Search.
• Next, tap the Ctrl + X keys and paste the folders to another drive.
• After that, start the update process for Windows 10 again.

Universal Windows Platform (UWP) applications are the modern application in the windows store that can be used in all the Window devices like Xbox, Hololens, Tablet, PC or Phone. Basically, UWP provides a common platform for every device that runs Windows 10. When attempting to login into these applications and receive this error:

Can’t sign in with a Microsoft account This program is blocked by group policy. For more information, contact your system administrator. 0x8000704ec

Then this post is for you. We will guide you on how to easily resolve issues, please follow the steps provided.

1. Local group policy editor solution

   • Press ⊞ WINDOWS + R to open the Run dialog.
   • In the Run dialog box type gpedit.msc and press ENTER to open Group Policy Editor.
   • Inside the Local Group Policy Editor, navigate to the path below:
   Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Local Polices > Security Options
   • On the right pane, double-click on Accounts: Block Microsoft accounts to edit its properties.
   • Under Local Security Setting tab, click on the drop-down and select This policy is disabled.
   • Click Apply > OK to save the changes.
   • Exit Group Policy Editor.

2. Registry editor solution

   As always, it is highly recommended to make a backup of the registry editor just in case that something goes wrong.
   • Press ⊞ WINDOWS + R to open the Run dialog.
   • In the Run dialog box, type regedit and hit ENTER to open Registry Editor.
   • Navigate to the registry key path below:
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System
   • At the location, on the right pane, identify the NoConnectedUser key. The key value might be set to either 1 or 3.
   • Now, double-click the NoConnectedUser entry to edit its properties.
   • Input 0 in the Value data field and hit Enter to save the change.