Personal Tech Raspberry Pi wants Windows admins to Connect – or it might pull the plug Remote access software could bring mixed fleets under one roof, assuming enough people ask for it
Offbeat Unexpected item in Windows' bagging area Activating Windows will cost more than a couple of cheap carrier bags
Software Microsoft's bad obsession is showing up in shabby services and slipshod software. Here's proof If you can't bother to keep GitHub running, why should we bother with you?
OSes Microsoft's turned Windows into a cesspool, but it wants to do better Windows is a mess, GitHub keeps wobbling, Copilot draws flak - what’s wrong at Redmond?
OSes Microsoft updates the Windows Update Experience: You can hit pause now Keep the patches away for as long as you like
Applications Microsoft beefs up Remote Desktop security with ... hard-to-read messages Ailing scaling blamed by Windows-maker for unreadable missives
OSes You can now run WSL on Windows 95, in case you're crazy, too 'I think this might be one of my greatest hacks of all time,' says dev behind unholy abomination
OSes Task Manager's CPU meter is an obituary for the recent past, says the engineer who built it Spoiler: There's no magic value. Just a timer, some kernel calls, and too much coffee
OSes Linux 7.1 will have an optional new NTFS driver Good news for those working with Windows, bad news for Paragon Software
OSes Windows Update is a torture chamber for seldom-used PCs Microsoft punishes you for updating infrequently
OSes Microsoft attempts to untangle 'confusing' Windows Insider program Controlled Feature Rollouts headed for the trash among other changes
Public Sector France’s digital directorate dumping Windows desktops, adopting Linux instead Après ça, le déluge, as plans call for move away from plenty more American software and hardware
Personal Tech Apple's chips are the core of a new landscape, but its biggest win is Windows Walled gardens make more sense when it's an AI-lligator infested swamp outside
Bootnotes When a billboard survives the wind, but not the boot This GRUB is not an advert for some tasty fried food
OSes Microsoft veteran says some 'broken by update' PCs were already doomed Patch Tuesday often gets blamed when a reboot merely exposes damage already done, according to Chen
OSes Microsoft yanks Windows 11 preview update after install failures KB5079391 pulled after some devices hit errors, adding to recent quality woes
OSes Windows 95 let installers trash its files then fixed the mess behind their backs I'll just clear up that up, shall I?
OSes Windows boss promises to heal the operating system's self-inflicted wounds Sorry seems to be the hardest word at Microsoft
OSes Microsoft fixes broken Windows update days after vowing fewer broken updates The era of reliability begins... right after this out-of-band patch
OSes Microsoft breaks Microsoft account sign-ins in Windows 11 with latest update OneDrive, Office, Teams Free users greeted with phantom 'no internet' errors, restart may help if you're lucky
Applications After years of being stood up, ARM64 Linux users finally get Chrome date Someone, somewhere, ticked a box on a build farm. The wait is over
OSes US state laws push age checks into the operating system Bad legislation, but an especially big headache for FOSS
OSes Microsoft finally gets around to fixing Windows 10 Recovery Environment after breaking it in October Released from the curse of the update bork fairy
Software Bootleg Windows, Office scheme crashes, triggers 22-month lockup for Florida woman Heidi Richards paid more than $5M for certificate of authenticity labels in five years
OSes Windows 11 tops market share as 10 faces extended farewell More than a fifth of servers still on Windows Server 2016
OSes Microsoft gives Windows laggards the 'gift of time' wrapped in licensing fees With Server 2016 and other OSes for the chop, security fixes can continue to flow for a price
OSes Windows 11 finally hits right note: MIDI 2.0 support arrives Musical instrument digital interface protocol leaves preview for bright lights of General Availability
Bootnotes If Microsoft made a car... what would it be? What is the automotive equivalent of Word, and where does Copilot fit?
Applications Contain your Windows apps inside Linux Windows Can't live without Adobe? Get on board WinBoat – or WinApps sails a similar course
OSes How Microsoft's legal eagles wrangled Happy Days for Windows 95 Has the OS also jumped the shark?
OSes Microsoft dials up the nagging in Windows, calls it security More prompts when apps and agents roam around a user's system
OSes Azure power hiccup gives Windows admins a rare break from updates West US datacenter incident disrupted Microsoft Store and system patching for several hours
OSes Microsoft actually does something useful, adds Sysmon to Windows After years of bolting AI onto everything, Redmond remembers admins exist
OSes Patch Tuesday meets Groundhog Day as Windows hibernation bug returns Microsoft concedes January's out-of-band fix didn't stop some PCs from rebooting instead of sleeping
Personal Tech Microsoft's Sinofsky saw Surface fail coming – then hit up Epstein for advice on exit DOJ files show former Windows chief predicting a public flop before mulling next mission
OSes Microsoft's 'atypical' emergency Windows patches are becoming awfully typical Administrators sigh: OOBs, they did it again
OSes Systemd daddy quits Microsoft to prove Linux can be trusted Lennart Poettering's Amutable aims to bring 'cryptographically verifiable integrity' to the other OS
OSes Sat Nad declares Windows 11 has a billion users – just don't bother asking for details Terrible start to 2026 offset by optimistic operating system numbers
Cyber-crime Everybody is WinRAR phishing, dropping RATs as fast as lightning Russians, Chinese spies, run-of-the-mill crims …
Security Old Windows quirks help punch through new admin defenses Google researcher sits on UAC bypass for ages, only for it to become valid with new security feature
Offbeat ATM flashes a port or two for the enterprising hacker Connection secured. Not so sure about the installation
Offbeat Crossrail? More like Borkrail... A thoroughly modern piece of public transport infrastructure deserves a thoroughly modern bork
Storage Microsoft rushes out another fix for cloud storage after January update 2026 is shaping up to be a bumper year for patch management
Offbeat Windows fails to tip the scales in grocery store deployment Recovery from an excess of sprouts, or something else?
OSes PowerShell architect retires after decades at the prompt After Microsoft, Google, and a long fight for automation, Jeffrey Snover hangs up his keyboard
OSes Microsoft veteran explains the one weird trick that made Windows 95 restart faster Hold down Shift to make the magic happen (or not, as the case might be)
Patches Sorry Dave, I’m afraid I can’t do that! PCs refuse to shut down after Microsoft patch Microsoft claims it's a Secure Launch bug
OSes Windows App forgets how to log in with first security update of the year January patch trips up Azure Virtual Desktop and Windows 365 authentication
OSes Hasta la vista! Microsoft finally ends extended updates for ancient Windows version Support expires for Windows Server 2008, and the codebase released to manufacturing in 2006
Offbeat Windows 2000 rusts in peace by the sea When salty coastal air meets memory errors in one of Portugal's rail ticket machines
OSes Developer writes script to throw AI out of Windows Satya Nadella's call to accept and embrace desktop brainboxes faces skepticism
OSes Microsoft Windows Media Player stops serving up CD album info No naming that tune and no album covers
OSes What if Linux ran Windows… and meant it? Meet Loss32 It's crazy, a million-to-one shot, but it might just work
Research Fake Windows BSODs check in at Europe's hotels to con staff into running malware Phishers posing as Booking.com use panic-inducing blue screens to bypass security controls
AI + ML How Microsoft gave customers what they wanted: An audience with Bill Gates Well kinda... Your call will be transferred to the next available assistant
OSes Keeping Windows and macOS alive past their sell-by date Practical steps to make an aging operating system usable into 2026
OSes What the Linux desktop really needs to challenge Windows Wasn't 2025 the year it happened? Yes. No. Answers on a Christmas card
OSes Microsoft security update breaks MSMQ on older Win systems Folder permission changes cause queue failures and misleading error messages, no real fix yet
OSes Legacy Update expands archive of vanished Microsoft downloads Preserving not just updates, but also lots of the now-deleted optional extras
OSes Window Maker Live 13.2 brings 32-bit life to Debian 13 Trixie may have gone 64-bit for installs, but WMLive still ships an i686-bootable build
OSes Windows Insiders get a glimpse of Microsoft’s agentic future Native MCP support lands in Insider Dev and Beta builds
Patches Microsoft quietly shuts down Windows shortcut flaw after years of espionage abuse Silent Patch Tuesday mitigation ends ability to hide malicious commands in .lnk files
Software Latest Windows 11 updates may break the OS's most basic bits Microsoft warns Start menu, Explorer, and other XAML apps can crash or vanish on managed devices
OSes Windows 11 still barely pulling ahead of 10 despite end-of-support push Statcounter shows the gap narrowing as users cling to older hardware and familiar workflows
AI + ML Whatever legitimate places AI has, inside an OS ain't one We're getting it baked into Windows whether we like it or not
OSes Windows keeps obsolete strings forever to avoid breaking translations Another reason why the OS seems to swell with every update
Virtualization Microsoft reveals new cloudy AI PC that’s not a Copilot+ PC And a cloud PC that's for AI agents only
OSes Microsoft issues patch to tackle Windows 10 Extended Security Updates failures Users who thought they were safely in the program hit errors on day one
OSes To solve compatibility issues, Microsoft would quietly patch other people's code Long before automatic updates, the Windows 95 team tweaked third-party software to keep it running
Applications MS Task Manager turns 30: Creator reveals how a 'very Unixy impulse' endured in Windows Dave Plummer's 85 KB troubleshooting tool shipped with his home number on the code
Software Microsoft's lack of quality control is out of control At one point, Microsoft's QC was legendary. Now, it's the wrong kind of legend
OSes 'Windows sucks,' former Microsoft engineer says, explains how to fix it Respecting users choices and offering a hardcore mode among key suggestions.
Cyber-crime Russian spies pack custom malware into hidden VMs on Windows machines Curly COMrades strike again
OSes 'What the hell, Microsoft?' Users hit with incorrect ESU and LTSC Win10 out-of-support messages Microsoft accidentally tells supported users that they aren't
OSes Microsoft Task Manager now tasking PCs with running multiple copies of itself The once fearsome process killer is now a leaker of resources
Cyber-crime Suspected Chinese snoops weaponize unpatched Windows flaw to spy on European diplomats Expired security cert, real Brussels agenda, plus PlugX malware finish the job
Software The CAPITAL LETTERS trick that helped merge Windows 95 into NT Keeping track of checks, 1990s style
SaaS Microsoft suggests temporary registry hack for stricken smart card users When is an issue not an issue? When it's intentional
OSes Introducing NTFSplus – because just one NTFS driver for Linux is never enough Dev unveils a faster, modernized take on Microsoft's file system for penguin-powered PCs
Software Microsoft's ancient icon library still lurks deep within Windows 11 Pixels of the past 'created just for fun'
Cyber-crime Feds flag active exploitation of patched Windows SMB vuln CISA adds high-severity flaw to KEV list, urges swift updating
AI + ML The real insight behind measuring Copilot usage is Microsoft's desperation Citizen! You are falling short in your AI usage targets! Strive harder for the revolution!
Personal Tech Turns out the end of Windows 10 is good for something: The PC refresh cycle Operating system's D-day resuscitates flatlining computer sector
Networks 'Fax virus' panicked a manager and sparked job-killing Reply-All incident The 1990s called with a reminder that in the time before ransomware, infosec panics could be quite quaint
Applications End of support for older Office and Windows Server versions pile on the pain for admins Windows 10 is the least of some people's problems
Offbeat Microsoft veteran explains Windows quirk that made videos play in Paint Raymond Chen says the OS used green-screen overlays to fake video playback – with curious side effects
OSes What do we want? Windows 10 support! When do we want it? Until 2030! Protesters slam forced obsolescence outside Microsoft's office
OSes End of Windows 10 support is the perfect time for the Windows 11 installer to fail Microsoft admits its media creation tool 'might not work as expected'
AI + ML Microsoft hypes PCs with NPUs, still can't offer a good reason to buy one AI tech not on the hardware compatibility list for now. But future Windows will need it
SaaS Microsoft pushes Pull print, so you don't have to dash to the printer to grab the 'Fire everyone' memo
Cloud Infrastructure Month Oracle offers workaround to Windows boot issue in the cloud instead of fix
Software How to get free software from yesteryear's IT crowd – trick code into thinking it's running on a rival PC
Applications Windows 2000 Server named peak Microsoft. Readers say it's all been downhill since Clippy
Personal Tech The sound of Windows 95 about to disappoint you added to Library of Congress significant sound archive
![[record scratch] [freeze frame] yup thats me. you're probably wondering how i ended up in this situation](https://image.theregister.com/136208.jpg?imageId=136208&width=960&height=432&format=webp&format=jpg)
