One of the most persistent Windows 11 bugs ever keeps telling users they’ve changed their location, when they haven’t – but it’s getting fixed

Windows 11 has a new bug (that’s also in Windows 10) whereby the operating system keeps telling users that their time zone has changed, when it hasn’t – and repeatedly doing this, driving some users to the point of distraction by all accounts.

Windows Latest flagged up multiple complaints about this bug, which has been acknowledged by Microsoft, and the company is now working on a fix.

Indeed, the tech site notes that it has experienced the glitch itself, whereby a dialog box pops up, warning that “due to a location change a new time zone has been detected.”

Then the user has the choice of clicking ‘Ignore’ to dismiss the prompt, or ‘Accept’ to be taken to the Date & Time settings where there’s actually nothing amiss (the time zone and location aren’t changed, just to clarify).

Essentially, the prompt is appearing by accident, but the real problem is that affected users don’t just see this once. It’s occurring repeatedly and in some cases multiple times per day, or even hour, which is going to get seriously tiresome.

A user hit by the problem complained in Microsoft’s Feedback Hub: “This is the 2nd system where this pop-up about me changing time zones has occurred. After I set the date and time (Central time zone), why does Windows think that I have moved 455 miles to the East? Fix your darn OS Microsoft.”


Analysis: A rare bug apparently – but a seriously annoying glitch

This is a bit of an odd one, to say the least, and while it’s a relatively benign bug – an errant pop-up that doesn’t actually throw anything of a spanner in the works (unlike some of the showstoppers we’ve seen in the past) – if it’s happening regularly, then it’s going to be a headache.

The good news is that Microsoft says the bug is rare, and so presumably the set of Windows 11 and 10 users who are subject to it happening particularly regularly is even rarer. That said, it needs to be fixed, and the problem has been around for a few weeks now.

According to Windows Latest, the fix is already in the pipeline and should (most likely) be applied as a server-side solution, meaning that it’ll happen on Microsoft’s end, and you won’t need to wait for an update to contain the cure if you’re affected by this issue. Fingers crossed that this resolution arrives swiftly, then.

Meantime, if you’re getting these head-scratching time zone notifications, there’s nothing you can do but keep dismissing them.

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The latest Windows 11 update is riddled with bugs, but Microsoft has finally addressed the problem

If you’ve been keeping up with Windows 11 news you’ll know that there’s been a lot of turbulence with the latest optional update – Windows 11 version KB5036980 – and the introduction of ads into the start menu. Happily, Microsoft is finally doing something about it – but it might be too little, too late for some users.

The update is currently available for users running Windows 11 version 23H2 and 22H2 and can be installed manually from the Update Catalog. Besides the annoying pop-ups of ads in your start menu, it seems that users are also getting error messages when trying to change their profile photo. 

Spotted by Windows Latest, some users who installed the update are getting an error message when they try to change their account photo. This seems to only be happening on people’s local system accounts and not their actual Microsoft accounts, meaning that it’s definitely a Windows issue rather than something to do with Microsoft’s online account systems.

Playing the waiting game 

Microsoft has updated its Feedback Hub to say that it’s aware of the reports and has already started to make changes in the internal builds. So, the May 2024 optional update is expected to fix the current issues. 

Windows Latest received comments from Microsoft support staff that it is investigating the error and confirmed that the issue affects the mandatory KB5036893 update and the optional KB5036980 update that put ads in the Start menu. The profile pic bug is expected to be fixed soon, along with some other bugs that have been plaguing Windows 11 as of late.

So if you are currently experiencing this issue, you’ll likely just have to wait for the May patch for Microsoft to issue a fix. Until then, you may be stuck with your profile picture for a while – I hope it's cute!

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Microsoft can be slow to cure bugs at times – but you won’t believe how long it took to fix a CPU-related glitch preventing Windows 11 upgrades

After over two years of waiting, Microsoft has finally lifted a block on some Windows 10 PCs with Intel Rocket Lake CPUs that prevented users from upgrading to Windows 11 – so those folks should now be free to migrate (should they wish).

We’re all by now familiar with Windows 11’s more onerous system requirements – which includes a stipulation for having TPM, and rules out older CPUs to boot, but Rocket Lake is contemporary silicon and officially supported by Microsoft’s newest OS. Rocket Lake is, in fact, Intel’s 11th generation, so it’s only three generations back from current 14th-gen chips (Raptor Lake Refresh).

However, as mentioned, some of those PC owners who have a Rocket Lake processor were prevented from upgrading from Windows 10 to Windows 11, and this was due to a compatibility issue with 11th-gen CPUs and some driver versions for Intel Smart Sound Technology (SST).

The problem is that older SST drivers could cause the PC to crash with a Blue Screen of Death (BSoD) when using Rocket Lake.

What’s really odd here is that the bug was discovered a long, long time ago – in November 2021 – and as Tom’s Hardware, which spotted this, points out, for those who had upgraded to Windows 11 and were hit by these BSoD crashes, a fix was offered up within weeks.

However, as is the case when a software or hardware compatibility issue is discovered, PCs that might run into the pinpointed gremlin are blocked from upgrading to prevent that from happening.

The trouble is Microsoft has only just lifted that block now, and finally marked the bug as resolved, almost two and a half years after this glitch was first discovered.


Analysis: Definitely not as fast as a speeding rocket

That’s not exactly moving fast, is it? And yes, the cure in this case did depend on an external source – an Intel driver update – but that was delivered in a relatively timely manner by Team Blue. As mentioned, the fix for those who’d already upgraded to Windows 11 on a Rocket Lake PC, and had run into the BSoD error, was provided not long after the issue was discovered.

So, why did it take Microsoft so long to actually get this fix delivered to Rocket Lake PCs via Windows Update, so the Windows 11 upgrade block could be removed? Well, we don’t know the answer, and the whole episode is very odd indeed. Until now, Microsoft just left the solution to this bug as pointing users to the Intel website to obtain the correct and updated drivers (rather than actually delivering them as part of Windows 10’s updates).

In case you wondering about the specifics here, the affected Intel SST driver versions are 10.29.0.5152 or 10.30.0.5152. If you’re running a PC with Rocket Lake on either of those versions, you need to upgrade to version 10.29.00.5714 or later, or 10.30.00.5714 or better, respectively.

You can now grab those versions via Windows Update – simply head there in Windows 10 and check for updates. Once installed, you should be free to upgrade to Windows 11, though not in every case – and not immediately.

Microsoft clarifies: “If your device still encounters this safeguard hold [block on upgrading to Windows 11] 48 hours after updating your drivers, it’s possible drivers for this Audio Controller [Intel SST] haven’t been developed for your specific device hardware configuration.”

So, bear in mind that even after installing the drivers, it could take up to 48 hours before you get offered the Windows 11 upgrade. However, if you aren’t offered it once you’ve waited out those two days, then you need to contact the manufacturer of your device and get them to help you on how best to proceed.

This is rather an anomaly, it has to be said – Microsoft taking such a ridiculously long time to get its house in order with a fix – and hopefully, we won’t be treated to any hold-ups quite this bad going forward.

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Windows 10 latest update is broken and riddled with bugs – with no fix in sight

Back in January, we reported on a small security update patch for Windows 10 that brought on a lot of headaches for IT admins and brought on a veritable cavalcade of error codes. Microsoft promised a fix was in the works ASAP, but here we are months later and the problem has still not been fixed. 

Windows 10 update KB504441 arrived as a patch to security issues brought on by another previous update, specifically to fix a flaw that could allow attackers to bypass certain encryptions within the OS. According to Windows Latest, readers have reached out to Microsoft for an update on the fix. The company referred users to an existing support document and is apparently “[not] planning to make an easier fix or update to automatically solve this problem any time soon,” which is frustrating.

Users have also reported difficulties downloading the update at all now, with an error thrown up stating that it ‘cannot be installed at this time’. The error code given (0x80070643) usually alludes to you not having enough storage space for the update, but that’s not the case here.

I can’t believe we’re still waiting 

While Microsoft continues not to share an estimated time for a fix, the company has released a shared workaround that allows you to increase the recovery partition size and let the Windows install smoothly.  The official document reiterates that a plan to fix the issue is in the works for the next automatic update, but it sounds like an automatic fix isn’t on the cards. 

As we said in our original report, if you haven’t installed the update yet you might be better off holding off until an actual fix has been released – but if you’re feeling brave, the workaround should be enough to get the update installed, especially if you’re a casual Windows user. These issues have proven more of a problem for networked work devices (and therefore invoked the fury of many IT system admins) than for individual private users.

There have been several other updates between the original security patch and now, including a cumulative update, so it’s strange that we’re still waiting for this pretty important fix. Given how important the security patch is, we do hope a fix is on the way soon.

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macOS has been riddled with bugs lately – but the new macOS 14.4.1 update has just fixed the most notorious one

The last few weeks have been plagued with bugs and oddities for users who updated their Mac devices to macOS Sonoma 14.4, including a particularly thorny issue that functionally broke a lot of users' USB hubs. A new update, macOS 14.4.1, has just been released to address the most notorious issues – so you’ll want to update your system as soon as possible. 

According to TweakTown, the update was released yesterday to the public and will resolve an issue that affected USB hubs connected to the monitors people were using with their Macs. Discussions on Reddit threads and Apple’s support forums indicated that while the problem might not have been incredibly widespread, it was still affecting a decent number of people.

While Apple hasn’t released any formal statements about the issues, it’s good to see Apple swoop in and provide a quick, no-frills solution for the issue. The new update doesn’t offer any new features besides the bug fixes, so if you’re worried about possibly catching another macOS bug from it you can assume there’s likely nothing else to go wrong with such a targeted fix.

Call the exterminator!

Sonoma 14.4 hasn’t just been plaguing users' USB hubs, it’s been taking down printers as well. While the printer issue hasn’t been reported as widely as the USB breakdown, it’s still another unwelcome bug that arrived courtesy of the update. 

The update has also been reported to be deleting previously saved versions of files in users’ iCloud Drives, effectively deleting people’s backups if they moved files out of iCloud. Normally, when you save your files in iCloud Drive all the edited versions of your file are saved for future reference, but thanks to yet another bug in Sonoma 14.4  these previous versions could be erased – which might mean all your work is gone. 

Hopefully, another upcoming update will address these issues alongside the USB hub bug, but we’ll have to wait and see if that is the case. There’s no indication so far that the new update deals with all the currently reported issues – but you’re better off updating your system just in case. 

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New Windows 11 update makes a small but important tweak to Copilot and fixes some nasty bugs

Windows 11 just got a new cumulative update that applies a bunch of security fixes, and makes a small number of changes to the OS, although they include some important tweaks.

The most interesting change here is that Microsoft has decided to give the Copilot button a new home on the taskbar.

As previously seen in testing with Windows 11, the icon to invoke the AI assistant is now on the far right of the taskbar, in the system tray area.

Patch KB5034765, which is for both Windows 11 23H2 and 22H2 versions, also applies an important fix for Explorer.exe which is affecting some PCs. This bug can happen when restarting a PC that has a game controller attached, and means that Explorer.exe stops responding – basically, the desktop (File Explorer) locks up, which is obviously bad news.

Microsoft also let us know that a bug that meant announcements from Narrator (the screen reading tool) were coming through too slowly has been remedied (when using natural voices with Narrator, that is).


Analysis: Don’t expect Copilot relocation right away

As mentioned, there’s the usual raft of security patches with this new update, which are important to apply to keep your Windows 11 PC fully secure.

The big change is the shift for the Copilot button, with it being ushered along the taskbar to the system tray area as mentioned. Why do this? The reasoning is that the Copilot panel is over on the right, so having its button just below where the UI appears makes sense, which is fair enough.

Remember that those who don’t want a Copilot button can drop it from the taskbar, anyway (and folks who want to go further than that and strip out the AI entirely from Windows 11 can do so – kind of, though we wouldn’t recommend it).

Note that not everyone will get this repositioning of Copilot straight away, as Microsoft notes that Windows 11 PCs will get this tweak at different times. In other words, this is another gradual rollout, so it may be some time yet before Copilot shuffles over onto the right of your taskbar – but rest assured, it’ll happen.

While we’re always somewhat cautious around any new update, at least for the first couple of days after it debuts, thus far it seems there are no known issues being reported with KB5034765 (on the likes of Reddit). So far, so good, then, and hopefully the mentioned bug fixes don’t come with any unintended side effects elsewhere in the OS.

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Be careful: There are reports of nasty bugs with the latest Windows 11 update

Windows 11 users have run into trouble with the latest patch for the OS going by some reports, and that includes nasty boot loops.

This is the cumulative update for November that Microsoft deployed last week, known as KB5032190, and Windows Latest has picked up on some problems with the patch.

As noted, the worst issue here is reports of people trying to install the update and getting stuck in a boot loop, meaning that their PC keeps failing during installation, rebooting, failing again, rebooting, and so on.

One Redditor reports: “I have tried installing this update twice now, only for it to get caught in an endless boot loop. It kept getting to 95% and restarting, then would try again. Now it just gives me the ‘Something didn’t go as planned. No need to worry – undoing changes’ message before going back into the endless reboot. At least I can do a System Restore.”

Another Windows 11 user replies to that post observing that they hit a few boot loops before their system rolled back the update – and that it was the same case with this update in preview (released in late October), noting that eventually they “got to the point the laptop wouldn’t boot” with that test update.

Ouch indeed, though that was the preview version, so hopefully any danger of having to reinstall Windows – which is what this user ended up doing – will now have been removed with the final release.

Needless to say, the user in question is not continuing to try to install the update, which certainly seems like a sensible precaution.

There are four reports of this problem in that Reddit thread, and it seems that the boot loop isn’t an endless one, and the system pulls itself out of the loop after a few fails – at least for most folks anyway.

Another problem that is bugging (literally) some Windows 11 users is disappearing icons on the taskbar.

Either the icons are vanishing – though the functionality is still present if you click the blank space on the bar – or there are reports of them being displaced by one, meaning that the icon for, say, Word will open Microsoft’s Edge browser (the icon next to it). Confusing, to say the least.


Analysis: Curious case of the invisible icons

The missing icons problem was introduced with Moment 4 (which ushered in all the new features that have come to Windows 11 lately, including Copilot). So, it has been hanging around for a while, and really annoying those who have encountered it – seemingly a fair few people judging from reports.

The good news is that Microsoft has actually fixed this glitch in the Canary preview build of Windows 11, so hopefully, the solution should be coming through testing soon enough to reach the release version of Windows 11.

Microsoft hasn’t said anything about boot loops, but there are far fewer reports of this from what we can see. Still, it’s a nasty problem, though as noted in most cases, it seems the looping will only run a few times before the system corrects itself and comes back to the desktop. (Still leaving the user unable to install the update, mind, so that’s not great of course).

It’s worth remembering that Microsoft itself has flagged up some known issues with the patch, including a bug whereby those with multiple monitors might see desktop icons shift between one display to another unprompted (or other icon alignment weirdness) when using Copilot. The software giant has pulled the AI assistant from those PCs, so if you aren’t seeing Copilot any longer on a multi-screen setup, that’s why. A fix is being worked on as we type this.

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Microsoft delays one of Windows 11’s most promising new features due to bugs

Microsoft has pulled back on an upcoming upgrade to the video casting feature in Windows 11 due to reported bugs. The new feature was temporarily available to Windows Insiders, members of Microsoft’s Windows Insider Program who get to test upcoming additions, and has been dropped from the latest Windows 11 preview. 

Many users will be familiar with video casting features if you use something like Chromecast, or if you go back even further back in time, you might remember using HDMI cables to connect your computer to your TV. This allows you to choose and control media on your computer (or device) and see it on your TV screen, for example, to see it better or share it with others.

The removal of the feature was discovered in an update released on October 19, known as Windows 11 Preview Build 22635.2486, via the Windows Insider Program’s Beta Channel (one of four preview channels through which Microsoft releases previews). If users choose to upgrade to this preview build, they will find that it lacks the casting experience that Microsoft is in the process of testing. The casting feature was first added to Build 22631.2129 back in August of this year, and Windows Central writes that it’s been explicitly disabled by Microsoft while it carries out fixes on bugs and improves the feature.

Windows Central goes on to quote Microsoft apparently planning to switch the casting feature back on in a future Beta Channel release. 

Highlights of the new preview build

That’s the main development of note in this current update and it doesn’t introduce any major new features overall. Other notable changes include that the Xbox Game Bar now shows up just as ‘Game Bar’ in the Start menu, and system components showing up under a ‘System’ label in the Start menu. The latter should make system components easier to identify and find, and should show up as ‘System’ in the All apps display (once you open the Start menu). The Game Bar will also show up under Settings > System > Apps > Installed apps, and will apparently update via the Microsoft Store.

Some more minor fixes address crash-related issues with the Start menu being affected by language settings and taskbar glitches that were causing problems with the search function. 

Windows Central writes that dropping the upgraded video casting feature is for a “good reason,” even though it temporarily reduces Windows 11’s functionality. I can see why Microsoft is taking its time to get this one right. Chromecast is an extremely popular and beloved feature in Google Chrome and Google devices that’s existed for years, so if Microsoft wants to compete, the feature has to be slick and function reasonably well. If Microsoft wants users to adopt its cast feature in the same way, it has to prove its worth.

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Windows 11 gets a fix for one of Microsoft’s most embarrassing bugs ever

Windows 11 has finally got a fix for an annoying bug that has been hanging around since March, with Microsoft previously pushing out a resolution for the glitch that failed to work.

This time, though, we’re told the issue has definitely been resolved.

To briefly recap, this bug appeared with the March 2023 cumulative update for Windows 11 22H2, causing an error to pop up telling the user that Local Security Authority (LSA) protection was switched off (and that their device may be vulnerable as a result).

In actual fact, LSA isn’t turned off, the bug simply produces the error message (which, ironically, is the error in itself).

The problem being that this warning keeps on appearing, and it sounds like a nasty deficiency in the defenses of Windows 11, meaning folks were unnecessarily worried about it.

As mentioned, a fix was rolled out in May which didn’t work, and actually caused some weird driver-related problems (messing with some PC games). So Microsoft ended up pulling that patch (KB5007651) and went back to the drawing board to work on a new solution.

Well, that rejigged version of KB5007651 has now arrived, as Windows Latest spotted. You can grab it by checking for updates under Windows Update, as per usual.

Microsoft let us know on its release health dashboard that: “This issue was resolved in an update for Windows Security platform antimalware platform KB5007651 (Version 1.0.2306.10002).”


Analysis: An episode Microsoft will want to forget

Hopefully this fix will do the trick (considering that, as noted, the previous patch failed to do so). From what we can see, there are no early reports that something is amiss this time – and a few positive comments that the gremlin has been dealt with. Of course, you’d hope Microsoft would take extreme care over this second attempt at KB5007651.

All in all, this has been one of the more embarrassing episodes in the history of Windows 11 bugs (and there’s some competition on that front).

The bug presenting panic inducing messages about vulnerability, complete with yellow triangle warnings – and doing so repeatedly – was obviously a far from ideal situation. Less tech-savvy users in particular were likely concerned that their PC was broken in some truly worrying way.

Microsoft told us that the error messages could be safely ignored, but that’s easier said than done, and them popping up repeatedly was doubtless pretty annoying if nothing else. Not everyone will have seen Microsoft’s advice on this bug, either.

At least we finally have a resolution now, and a solid one that works properly, by the looks of it.

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