Following up on numerous tips here (and elsewhere), I rebooted twice and finally got my Win10 version 1903 Search box back: Search on my main machine
[See the full post at: Win10 Search is working again]
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Patch reliability is unclear. Unless you have an immediate, pressing need to install a specific patch, don't do it. |
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Win10 Search is working again
- This topic has 58 replies, 23 voices, and was last updated 5 years, 3 months ago.
AuthorViewing 29 reply threadsAuthor-
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This patch was a stealth patch with no notice, nor option to decline nor hide.
On permanent hiatus {with backup and coffee}
offline▸ Win10Pro 2004.19041.572 x64 i3-3220 RAM8GB HDD Firefox83.0b3 WindowsDefender
offline▸ Acer TravelMate P215-52 RAM8GB Win11Pro 22H2.22621.1265 x64 i5-10210U SSD Firefox106.0 MicrosoftDefender
online▸ Win11Pro 22H2.22621.1992 x64 i5-9400 RAM16GB HDD Firefox116.0b3 MicrosoftDefender -
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I think the recent changes are very likely connected with the four “Quick searches” buttons at the bottom of the Search “Home”, which I believe most of us have not seen until very recently:
Quick searches now in Search Home
To help you find the info that matters even faster, we’ve added four quick web searches to your Search Home:
Weather: Get current conditions and the upcoming forecast
Top news: Read the latest headlines from popular news sites
Today in history: Explore four events that happened on this day
New movies: Find out what’s playing in theaters near youNote: This is a server-side change that’s currently rolling out and will appear for users across builds from version 1809 to 20H1. Currently, quick searches are only available in the US, but will be available soon internationally.
Quick Searches go international
Last month we announced the new Quick Searches feature—available in Search Home—that makes it fast and easy to find web answers and results. Today, we’re happy to share that this experience is now expanding from EN-US to:
Australia: English
Canada: English and French
China: Chinese (Simplified)
France: French
Germany: German
India: English
Italy: Italian
Japan: Japanese
Mexico: Spanish
Spain: Spanish
United Kingdom: English
United States: EnglishUse Quick Searches to find out about weather, top news, today in history, new movies, and occasionally, a seasonal topic or interesting quiz. Depending on which market you’re in, you’ll see two to four of these options.
Note: This is a server-side change that’s currently rolling out and will appear for users across builds from version 1809 to 20H1 in supported markets.
So there’s the warning and documentation (for Windows Insiders, but affecting everyone else)!
2 users thanked author for this post.
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I’d agree, except it was under this heading:
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hmm.. they are missing a few countries for a full-house!
Denmark, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Belgium and Sweden.
Perhaps those search fixes will happen later..14 eyes
Windows - commercial by definition and now function... -
Okay, but I’ve had “Quick” *(unwanted)* searches for weeks….
1 user thanked author for this post.
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Doesn’t work at all here, extraordinary frustrating. Completelt ridiculous that a core functionality of an OS like searching for local(!!!) files is dependant on remote stuff elsewhere. I run a search-troubleshooter which couldn’t repair it either. In fact, it turned out it send a crash report to Microsoft, with as reason a failed certificate. Weird story. No idea what to do now, restarted about 5 times and really have other things to do today.
2 users thanked author for this post.
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Microsoft confirmed it was investigating access and latency issues “with multiple Microsoft 365 services,” before fixing the issue at 11:35AM ET. Microsoft blames a “third-party networking fiber provider” for experiencing a network disruption resulting in multiple Microsoft 365 services issues. While Microsoft has fixed this issue, many are still reporting that Windows search is still not working. You may need to reboot your Windows 10 PC to get search working again, though.
So, wait. The search box/bar is now *dependent* on Microsoft 365 services? What if my cable goes out due to a storm? Or I’m on vacation and purposefully disconnecting from the internet? I can’t perform local file searches?
Five Pinocchio noses is not enough. And also, there is strong evidence that if you were already at or above a certain build number for the search app, then you were not hit with the issue.
Up to this point, I’ve been intrigued and somewhat concerend about not having any control over the updates. Honestly, feeling some genuine anger here now. Just, wow.
Via https://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-users-encountering-problems-with-built-in-search/ … Update (1 pm ET): A Microsoft spokesperson says the issue should now be resolved for most. You need to reboot your PC — at least once. In my case, third reboot was the charm. No word on what caused the issue or how Microsoft intends to prevent this from happening in the future.
You have to reboot the PC at least once. Are-you-kidding-me Batman! And how is the average user supposed to know to reboot. And possibly reboot 2 or more times.
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It looks like the Search updates are being distributed through the Microsoft Store. That’s hard to verify because there’s no record of the updates coming through – and no way to turn them off, as best I can tell.
I understand that Chredge, being a UWP/Store app, will get updated through the Store. I assume you’ll be able to block updates via the Store.
But a key component of Windows itself getting updated silently? Very scary.
Somebody’s beta testing the Search software, on our production machines.
1 user thanked author for this post.
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Insiders are Alpha testers.
The Public are the Beta testers7 users thanked author for this post.
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I understand that Chredge, being a UWP/Store app, will get updated through the Store. I assume you’ll be able to block updates via the Store.
Actually, I don’t think it is through the Store. While in Chr(Edge), just like Chrome, you can click on Help and Feedback > About Microsoft Edge and it checks for updates. I’ve already pulled down one update since installing via that method. I’m pretty sure Chr(Edge) has its own internal update mechanism … did I miss something?
But a key component of Windows itself getting updated silently? Very scary.
Terrifying. And since this immediate crisis has passed/is passing, can I bring up two other points?
- At the moment, it really sounds like you need to have an active internet connection to even perform local searches, or you end up with the blank screen. Do we know if there is some mechanism that tells search, ‘hey we’re offline,’ just skip ahead over the fancy websearch buttons we added that no one asked for or will likely use, and function like the user wants, and
- What is with this ‘Microsoft Rewards Balance’ gameification of search, that is connected to a Microsoft Account stored in Credentials for Office 365 (again, I logon to Windows with a local admin account). I did not sign up for Microsoft Rewards, I did not sign into search using *any* account, and … since I’m signed in, does that mean every search I make – even for local files I made all by myself – are somehow part of the larger telemetry picture being created? I hope not to that last one, but how would we know without any documentation or user-preference controls?
I get that we do not technically ‘own’ our copy of Windows. We buy a license to run the code on our hardware – which we do own; and create/store content – which we own (assuming we created it or purchased it legally), using legally obtained software.
Microsoft may have the legal ‘right’ to change how things work, but they also have a moral, and common-sense, obligation to be trasnparent about those changes, give advance warning of changes so users don’t think there is something ‘wrong’ with their system when things seemlingly go haywire, and give users at least some basic control over those things that can impact work (or play) flow and privacy.
My gut is this is a story that is not going away anytime soon, and has some pretty dramatic implications not just for search, but for the entire Windows echo system.
2 users thanked author for this post.
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Not sure why, but I haven’t had any problems with the Search function on 1903 18362.592. maybe I’m just one of the lucky ones. Maybe it’s just related to MS Office 365 which I don’t have. I have Office 2013 Home & Student. Anyway, another fine mess from MS
Don't take yourself so seriously, no one else does
All W10 Pro at 22H2,(2 Desktops, 1 Laptop). -
Just fired up my laptop after a week, 1903 18632.592 (same as other desktops) but the laptop search hasn’t updated since July 2019 evidently. My other computers show 2/8/2020. What’s up with that?
Don't take yourself so seriously, no one else does
All W10 Pro at 22H2,(2 Desktops, 1 Laptop).
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Curious about the different (4 versions so far) of search text in the search box and if it is relates to the search bug.
1 user thanked author for this post.
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Well, it’s 19.58 GMT and my search is back now, build 2020.02.04.6238073. It does make me laugh, though: under “Recent activities” there is a light bulb icon with the slogan, “Let Microsoft keep your PC healthy”. If I didn’t know better, I’d think MS was developing a sense of humour……………………
3 users thanked author for this post.
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I’m back to working as well … looks like 2020.02.04.6238073 may be the magic build? … if it was a build update that fixed the issue. I have no idea what build I was on when the blackout hit.
Still showing ‘Start a web search’ in the box
1 user thanked author for this post.
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I had the misfortune of encountering this problem with one of two Windows 10 Home computers I was setting up last night, freshly built yesterday by a local PC parts vendor.
One was installed in US English, and the other in UK English. Both were localised to Australia. Only one of the two received the patch that broke my search, although I don’t recall which one (I think it was the Windows 10 Home with UK English but my memory is vague).
After a lengthy Google search I resolved the issue to great effect by editing the registry, as suggested by the following article: https://www.windowslatest.com/2020/02/05/its-not-just-you-windows-10-search-is-giving-blank-results/
Instructions in brief, courtesy of r/windows10:Open command prompt or PowerShell and type the following commands one by one:
- reg add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search /v BingSearchEnabled /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f
- reg add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search /v CortanaConsent /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f
- tskill searchui
That Bing and Cortana are involved, as well as Javascript as suggested by Woody in his other article, reeks to me of bad, expired and putrid spaghetti code.
1 user thanked author for this post.
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The excuse given by MS that this was the fault of a third party fibre provider is a distraction, the node fault is at the doorstep of Redmond, with it’s accelerated cumulus integration, minimal testing and bullish attitude towards windows 10 end-users across the spectrum.
The move to rely on third party partners to integrate a local search facility that DEPENDS on network connectivity has shown it’s quality.*
Yesterday, the Satya stratocumulus failed at ground zero level, that created a data storm for lots of system/home users and admins,.. in the meantime, we have to suck-it-up and get on with the everyday chores/business the best we can whether within our decisive control or otherwise. With the extra windows 7 staff to deploy and accelerate their intentions, I for one, am in rebuke of the MS collateral damage approach.* does not determine it’s true meaning or value in this instance and is variable
Windows - commercial by definition and now function...1 user thanked author for this post.
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It sure seems to me a three finger salute is in order regarding this situation, the resolution and for bringing this to everyone’s attention.
A three finger salute to Woody! I’m sure there are a lot of folks that would like to give Woody a three finger salute! (running away)
Red Ruffnsore
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Windows 10 is so complex, that these bugs are unavoidable. But solution at least reboot once (mostly third restart did the job) is something new in IT. MS shouldnt have close testing dept.
Dell Latitude 3420, Intel Core i7 @ 2.8 GHz, 16GB RAM, W10 22H2 Enterprise
HAL3000, AMD Athlon 200GE @ 3,4 GHz, 8GB RAM, Fedora 29
PRUSA i3 MK3S+
1 user thanked author for this post.
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Good job, but what about average user, that has no clue whats going on? Average Home user (that does not know hot to tun telemetry off, how to defer updates and so on) is being exploited to risk of breaking search, losing data, etc. every 14 days. Microsoft is causing far more damamge than hackers and thieves to them.
Not mentioning gamers and streamers, who are complaining about Windows abusing their connection bandwith with constant MS traffic in and out – causing lags and crashes.Defer updates for as long as possible, set connection to metered and turn telemerty of, if you wish for stable and functional Windows 10. Create Hyper-V machine for testing if you like to be an early adopter.
Dell Latitude 3420, Intel Core i7 @ 2.8 GHz, 16GB RAM, W10 22H2 Enterprise
HAL3000, AMD Athlon 200GE @ 3,4 GHz, 8GB RAM, Fedora 29
PRUSA i3 MK3S+
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I want to bump up attention to another issue with the ‘new’ Windows search box, that – the more I think about – is really bothering me:
What is with this ‘Microsoft Rewards Balance’ gameification of search, that is connected to a Microsoft Account?
First, I log on to Window using a local admin account. There are two Microsoft accounts saved in the Credential Manager on my system: one is associated with the account used for my Office 365 subscription, the other is a Hotmail/MSN email address that I setup in Outlook.
Given that:
1) Why is search logged into any of my accounts? This connection to the mothership was made without any actions on my part, and more concerning, I do not see anyway to ‘sign off’ of search or switch accounts if I so choose. In fact, until I set one of my stored MS accounts to ‘do not automatically log me into MS apps’ in Settings > Accounts, the account logged into search would seem to just flip back and forth between the two accounts without reason, or any action on my part.
2) Microsoft Rewards Balance: What is this? I did not sign up for Microsoft Rewards, and certainly do not want my searching to be gameified. Both of my Win10 systems are logged into the same MS account in search. On one system, the awards balance is ’15,’ as shown here, on the other system, the balance is ‘0.’ So, in addition to signing me in to search and starting up an awards account, it is not clear if the rewards balance is a ‘local’ count or just another part of the new search that MS has not fully baked.
Of course, now that I am signed into search – with no way to sign out – does this mean that every search I do in the search box is being sent to MS? Even local search?
Oh, and after several days of not seeing a new build – upon booting up this morning, it looks like MS pushed out a new search build on a Saturday: 2020.02.08.6238399.
And also, with this new build, on one of my systems, the text in the search box is still ‘Start a web search.’
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1) Why is search logged into any of my accounts? This connection to the mothership was made without any actions on my part, and more concerning, I do not see anyway to ‘sign off’ of search or switch accounts if I so choose.
You’ve redacted “Connected accounts” in your screenshot with a black box overlay.
If you go to Search settings on that menu you can turn off “Cloud content search” for your Microsoft account. As soon as you’ve done that then Search no longer shows a connected account or Microsoft Rewards.
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Thank you. That’s certainly good to know.
However – none of this was there for me prior to all these search box updates, and these were all turned on without any user interaction on my part.
It also does not explain why my two MS accounts were being logged into or how Windows decided which account to use at a particular time.
Also, also … those points are only for cloud searches, as far as I can tell, since in my experimenting, local searches do not bump up the count. While some people may want this or not mind it, this is only about MS trying to get people to use Bing vs. another engine through social engineering. For something as basic as search in the OS, I honestly find that hugely problematic *since* there was no documentation this ‘feature’ was being turned on/delivered.
If there had been some type of pop-up along the lines of … “we’ve updated your search box, now you can earn rewards by turning on cloud search, etc.” … that would have framed all of this differently.
It’s the fact that there is no disclosure at all, or an obvious way to turn this off from the search box (I’m pretty tech savvy, but would not have imagined that’s how to turn the rewards off), that is concerning.
And the question remains, even if I turn off the ‘cloud search,’ is MS still recording all my searches? I think that’s an entirely fair question. With Google, you are in the cloud to begin with and accept how all of that works. Local, OS based search, is an entirely different matter.
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It just took me a moment to work out what I was looking at, and I wanted to point out that the solution was just an inch below that.
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This is because of the default search settings. Check your search settings at Settings | Search | Permissions & History.
In my experience, the rewards balance is Microsoft account based not local.
--Joe
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In a word, The Store (OK, two words).
Search, even Local Search, is now being treated as a MS Store App. Cortana apparently wasn’t intrusive enough. So now we have to connect to the MS Store (using our MS Accounts)to get any MS Search results — even Local Search.
If this is indeed the case, it’s time to trot out the MS Search alternatives.
Any confirmation or denial of these conclusions?
-- rc primak
1 user thanked author for this post.
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In a word, The Store (OK, two words).
Search, even Local Search, is now being treated as a MS Store App. Cortana apparently wasn’t intrusive enough. So now we have to connect to the MS Store (using our MS Accounts)to get any MS Search results — even Local Search.
If this is indeed the case, it’s time to trot out the MS Search alternatives.
Any confirmation or denial of these conclusions?
Since I started using Windows 10 in 2018 I’ve intentionally kept my files away from Microsoft’s “ID” servers. So I’ve had fewer issues with Windows 10 search. Not no issues, just fewer. In support of your observations about the Microsoft Store App, I’ve a third-party security suite which tells me that the Store, via Edge, has consistently broken and thus suspicious and unreliable security certs. I use Edge only for quick and dirty web searches in which I don’t care if some company I’d never truly trust (Microsoft) logs what I’m doing. I run and continuously test multiple web browers which are more secure than Edge. But I like its convenience in the 10 UI. Cortana is turned off, and will remain so.
Human, who sports only naturally-occurring DNA ~ oneironaut ~ broadcaster
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Sharing howardagoldberg’s concerns and following b’s search settings instructions, I turned off “cloud content search” and the speed of my Brave browser improved noticeably. As it did on Firefox and Edge. Coincidence? Search build 2020.02.08.6238399 on Windows 10 Pro 1909.
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So, I turned off the ‘Cloud Content’ options and yes, I am no longer ‘logged in’ (at least as far as one can see), and the awards points icon is gone also.
But guess what … the search box still has the text “Start a web search.” So, here one thing has nothing to do with the other. And web search is still very much a part of the search box. Not surprising, just a FYI.
Turning off ‘cloud search’ only turns off searching your MS account connected cloud email (if you do email via a browser, I assume), docs (One Drive?), etc. The default for this should be off, and at some point during the search box debacle, I suspect it was ‘turned on’ for us as a courtesy (of course you want this!) … unless I just never noticed this before, which would be a bit unlike me
.But turning off ‘Cloud Content’ options doesn’t let us know what telemetry MS is gathering from our local searches. Hopefully, none … but, after all this, I am suspicious …
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There’s a whole slew of other things you need to turn off in Windows 10 to completely disconnect Search from anything Cloud dependent, and to completely disconnect it from your MS Account.
Cortana, Inking, Bing Search — these are just the start of what needs to be disabled to get rid of Cloud elements from Windows Search these days. That’s why some of us use products like O&O’s ShutUp 10 to make the disabling process more manageable.
-- rc primak
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