Replies

Uninstalling all the versions of the software and then installing the version from the link provided by jwitalka seems to have stopped the problem. Yesterday and today, I didn’t get more versions of the update.

Thanks to jwitalka for this suggestion.

Does anyone know of a list of programs that use the Visual C++ runtimes? I don’t seem to have any programs that need it (after uninstalling all the versions of this software and rebooting, the system performed normally – and my key applications had no problems running).

David

I had lots of versions of the software – and I uninstalled all of them. I don’t seem to have any programs that depend on having this available, but I did reinstall via the link you provided. I’ll see how it goes.

Thanks for the response.

David

The 1511 W10 Update doesn’t fix this issue. You would think MS would pay more attention to this – as it does provide a critical function. It seems like they are encouraging the use of other software….

David

Thanks. I have been struggling to get the update (from 8.1 Pro) to work since July. My problem was that I had a Samsung SSD as my C: drive, and the imaging software I used to create it (Farstone) damaged the bootloader. (Many others have reported this problem with other imaging software. Samsung supplied imaging software, but that didn’t work at all – hence the Farstone use.) I found instructions on how to fix that – and then the update worked. Of course, then, the first thing I tried in W10 (the image backup) failed!

I have other backup tools that are working – so this is not essential. I just thought: “use the built in tools…” Too bad that didn’t work.

David

Never mind – I found it in Settings.

David

I am still in wait mode. I did get the message (finally) that W10 was ready to install – but starting that process runs for about 10 seconds and then drops me back to the desktop – no error message or any other information about what happened. Going to Windows update and running it from there also fails with the usual error message.

Dell does say the XPS 8500 has not been certified for W10 and they don’t recommend trying. There is nothing on the web site about whether they plan to update the bios/firmware/drivers for this system, but a Dell Support tech did tell me they were working on it. Also, yesterday, I got an email about an updated “Dell Update” service that is supposed to detect updated software, so I think that means they are working on this issue. I have the Dell Update service running and will see if an updated Bios or any new drivers are issued. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

I also have the Dell “Restore” DVD that brings everything back to the way it was when I bought the system (W8.0 Home). I assume that means that the HD will be formatted and all the relevant partitions recreated. I’m going to call Dell tomorrow to confirm that. However, that really erases everything and I prefer waiting to see a new Bios and drivers are released.

The other complication I learned concerns the license codes for the software. When I tried to refresh W8.1 in place it rejected my W8.1 license code – the valid code I am running now. What I think is happening is that this is looking at the _original_ W8.0 license code, which Dell, in its infinite wisdom, no longer puts on a sticker on the outside of the case. Dell writes the code into the motherboard when the system is manufactured and set up. Tools like Belarc Advisor don’t see that code. Some internet searches found a (Spanish-Language) site with instructions on how to read the key off the motherboard (thanks Google Translate!), and that pulled off the original key.

So, my plan, if Dell doesn’t release updates, it to restore back to the original system state (the SSD is swapped out now and I have the original Seagate HD back in the system as my C: drive – its running fine, but boy is it slow compared to the SSD!). Then, I will try to update to W8.1, and then to W8.1 Pro (with the other license key) – and then, see if I can get it to update to W10. If that fails, I’ll just stay with 8.1. I am in the process of migrating all my outlook mail and documents over to my iMac so I can access it there. I only need the PC for one simulation game – everything else is covered in OS X (I have Office 2011 for Mac) – so I suspect I’ll end up abandoning Windows and the PC within the next 12 months anyway. At this point, I am looking at this an an intellectual challenge – and to try to satisfy my mild case of OCD….

David

I have swapped out the Samsung SSD for the original HD – which I imaged from the SSD. The install still fails – with the error message C1900101-20017 The installation failed in the SAFE_OS phase with an error during BOOT operation”. Same error I got before.

Next, I am going to try a Refresh to see if I can get back to a basic, “clean” W8.1 and see if that will update. I have my applications backed up via the EaseUS Todo PC Trans Pro, so (if that works) I can still reinstall my applications easily.

This is ridiculous.

David

I’ve tried that several times. It fails.

I am in the process of copying the image from the SSD to a regular HD (the one that was in the System when it was delivered). I will then swap in the HD and see it I can get it to boot. If it boots, I will try the upgrade. If that fails, I’ll try a clean install. I have MS and Dell V8 reinstall disks.

David

There are no new drivers available for the 8500. They have updated the Bios (and I assume some drivers) for the 8700 and advertise that it is now W10 compatible. A number of posters have indicated that it is not.

As far as I can tell, Dell has abandoned a system that is 2 1/2 years old.

David

This article is interesting, but misses the main point, I think. The most important variable here is user behavior – don’t navigate to bad sites! I run Windows Defender, and have never had a virus flagged. In fact, in many years of using a PC, I only ran into one situation in which systems were being infected – at my work (a very large health insurance company), in which a server had been infected and was passing along the infections to PCs at work. I am not familiar with the rating service mentioned in the article, but PC Magazine used to run these tests on a regular basis, and the relative product ratings used to vary substantially across time – the “best” product now was likely not the “best” 3 months from now. I doubt if anyone wants to switch products every few months.

And, of course, the other option is to switch over to OS X – which is inherently more secure, and has a much lower attack volume than PCs. I do run a Mac anti-virus product and in/out firewall (Intego), but again, have never gotten an alert to an infection. Many of the OS X experts that I trust still recommend not using anti-virus software (mostly because of system performance impact). I have not noticed any impact on my Macs – including a MacBook Air that is relatively low powered. So perhaps, this is just superstitious behavior on my part.

So, be careful out there!

David

The best Mac OS X (and iOS) training I know of is the Take Control eBooks (http://www.takecontrolbooks.com). These cover the OS, major Apple built-in applications, and some key third-party products that are available. Inexpensive, authoritative and comprehensive. That would be my recommendation for anyone starting to use Macs.

(The Apple conceit that everything is easily discoverable and written documentation is not needed is, obviously, not true! I have been using Macs for about 10 years, and I buy a lot of these books – particularly when new versions of the OS are released. Apple hides a lot of valuable functionality.)

David

Mentioned briefly in the original article is the fact that these registry cleaners can actually damage systems. I used jvPowerTools for many years, mostly on XP systems and some on a Win7 system (I paid for a license each time the software was updated). When the product was updated for Win8 I gave it a try on my home Win8/64 system and it screwed things up so badly that the system would no longer boot completely. Contacting their support area yielded nothing helpful (basically, they said they didn’t know what had happened and recommended restoring the system). I can’t remember the details now, but I was finally able to get this fixed – apparently, jvPowerTools had made changes, but the repair had not completed. After playing with the system for several days, I saw a message about jvPowerTools needing to run – let it run – and I was back to a normal system. I removed the product. I now use CCleaner occasionally, and have had no problem with that software.

So, as demonstrated in Fred’s article, these products don’t really help. They can also (seriously) damage your system. They provide very poor technical support (even for registered, paying customers) in case of problems.

Stay away from this product!

David

Check Woody’s site this morning. He has a link to a script on the Windows Answers site (page 90 of the thread about the missing reservation icon) that seems to work (it did for me – I think my problem was a missing registry entry).

Now we wait for the real drama to begin….

David

No errors, just Information: “Information message: GWX Main: No existing tray window found”. I found 12 of those messages for today after start up.

David

That KB is for Win7. I am running Win 8.1.

David