Mysterious loss of Win10 1607 Wi-Fi connections

Why Google and other toolbars fail on IE 11

Over time, more and more browser add-ons — toolbars, helper objects, extensions, etc. — are having trouble with Internet Explorer 11. Here’s what’s going on and what you can do about it.

Plus: Sorting out Windows Registry frustrations and misconceptions — some of which date all the way back to Windows 3.1!

IE 11’s EPM security catches browser helpers

Writing from Switzerland, reader Keith Stay seeks an answer for why his favorite browser add-on keeps failing on Internet Explorer 11.

Keith’s running the browser on 64-bit Win10 and Win7, but the same problem can occur with Win8.

• “Several weeks ago, after updates were installed on my Win7 PC, I noticed that my Google search history had vanished from IE 11. Moreover, I no longer received suggestions when typing in a search string.

  “The same problem subsequently appeared on two Win10 laptops and a Win10 desktop, after update installations.

  “Because Internet search results weren’t very helpful, I rolled IE 11 back to IE 8 on the Win7 PC. Lo and behold, everything went back to normal (including the original search history).

  “I then updated to IE 10 — still A-OK. I then upgraded to IE 11, and still OK — at first.

  “After some updates, the problem is back again: no search history and no suggestions!

  “When I rolled back to IE 8, the search history from previous days and weeks was still there, so it appears that Microsoft is somehow now blocking these Google functions in IE 11.

  “Do you have any idea as to what is going on and how to resolve the problem?”

Many IE users have reported trouble with browser add-ons, including Google’s Search toolbar.

The most common cause is IE 11’s Enhanced Protected Mode (EPM). On 64-bit Win10/8/7 systems, IE 11’s EPM is turned on by default. (EPM isn’t available on 32-bit systems.)

This security feature is mostly a good thing; it makes it much harder for malicious browser add-ons (toolbars, browser helper objects [BHOs], extensions, and so forth) to install and run.

Not surprisingly, EPM can also block legitimate browser add-ons, unless they’re specifically coded to work with the security system (see an MSDN page for more info).

Alas, few add-on publishers are willing to invest in the time and expense needed to make their apps IE 11 compatible. The browser is a dead-end product; its market share is currently in the 10- to 20-percent range and dropping fast. Also, Microsoft has said it has no plans for an IE 12. The company is pushing Edge (IE’s replacement) heavily . So there’s little justification for software publishers to invest in what is clearly a browser in its final days.

With little to no help coming from the software publishers, turning EPM off is the only way to get incompatible add-ons, toolbars, BHOs, and extensions to work on IE 11.

Of course, that’ll remove a valuable security feature. So it’s a trade-off: you have to weigh the value of whatever add-on you’re using against EPM’s added protections.

If you decide on the former — disabling EPM on a 64-bit Win10/8/7 PC — here’s how to do it:

• Launch IE 11.
• Tap or click Tools (gear icon) and then tap or click Internet options.
• On the Advanced tab, click to clear the Enable Enhanced Protected Mode check box under Security (see Figure 1).
  

  Figure 1. Turning off IE 11's Enhanced Protected Mode will let some balky browser add-ons work — but with less security.

• Tap or click OK.

Turning off EPM might get your browser add-on working again, but it’s not a panacea. It reduces your security and does nothing to change the fact that IE 11 is the last iteration of very old browser technology.

If you’re having trouble with the current IE 11, I suggest you try a different browser. (This, in effect, is what Keith did by rolling back his systems to pre-EPM versions of IE. It worked initially, but failed again when Update installed more-current versions with EPM enabled.)

Switching to a completely different browser is the permanent solution. For example, Google’s free Chrome browser (site) doesn’t require any add-ons or toolbars to use Google’s search. And with well over half of today’s browser market share, Chrome won’t be going away anytime soon.

Other browsers worthy of consideration include Firefox (site) and Opera (site). Win10 users can try Edge, but to me it still feels like a work in progress.

However you do it, my best advice is to get yourself off IE.

On the other hand, if you really want or need to stay with Internet Explorer, the following links might help you troubleshoot issues with EPM and IE’s other security features:

• “Change security and privacy settings for Internet Explorer” — MS Support page
• “Google Toolbar is not working in Internet Explorer 11” — MS Community post
• “Google search bar not saving recent searches” — MS Community post
• “Enhanced Protected Mode problems with Internet Explorer” — TechNet info
• “Enhanced Protected Mode add-on compatibility” — MS Support page
• “Understanding Enhanced Protected Mode” — MSDN info
• “Enhanced Protected Mode and Local Files” — MSDN info

Reader asks who’s to blame for the Registry?

A reader sent in this interesting question:

• “Who is the ‘genius’ responsible for the Windows Registry?”

I can only imagine what might have prompted this question. I’m guessing it was some sort of serious Registry problem!

I’ll answer your direct question; then I’ll try to address the root cause of your frustration.

Who wrote the first Windows Registry? It wasn’t a single person, but rather the Windows 3.1 development team. (The NT team was also developing a Registry at that time, but the Win3.1 version made it to market first.)

The developers were trying to solve a real and growing problem. In DOS and early Windows versions, programs stored their software requirements and settings in separate INI (initialization) files — one for each program.

That worked when PCs ran one program at a time. But with the advent of multitasking, two or more INI files might try to modify or control the same system setting or component, leading to “who’s in charge?” instabilities and crashes.

So to help avoid these conflicts, and to simplify resource sharing, the Win3.1 developers decided to include a repository — really just a simple, hierarchical database — where programs could register their requirements, settings, and other operational data. This central database would be managed by the operating system, thus helping it to mediate potential conflicts among system and user-installed applications.

Again, Win3.1 was a team effort, and we sort of know who they were. As with many other software products of that era, Win3.1 included an “Easter Egg” (a hidden and nonessential feature) that listed the names (first name and some initials) of all the developers who worked on it. You can see the Win3.1 developers’ Easter Egg in a YouTube video.

No particular Registry developer is singled out in the Easter Egg’s list. In fact, I can find no public record anywhere that specifically identifies the Win3.1 Registry’s authors. I assume that’s because the Registry was just one of many new features in the OS — and also possibly because hierarchical databases weren’t new or noteworthy. (IBM had produced the first computer-driven hierarchical databases some 30 years before.)

Addressing possible Registry frustrations: Although the Windows Registry has evolved over time, it’s still, at its core, just a special-purpose hierarchical database. There’s nothing really unique about it.

When any database has trouble, it’s usually not a problem with the database itself; rather, it’s with faulty data that got into the database.

Bad Registry entries are usually caused by the actions of poorly written software — typically, freeware, shareware, crapware, games, utilities, toolbars, and so forth — created by amateurs, unskilled programmers, pros who simply made mistakes, and miscreants seeking to distribute malware.

Moreover, sloppy programmers might focus on software installation and set up, leaving uninstall routines as an afterthought. Poorly written (or nonexistent) uninstall routines can leave behind digital junk or erroneous data in the Registry.

Over time, as applications are installed, updated, modified, and uninstalled, the Registry can accrue significant amounts of bogus data, bloat, and other unrepaired damage. And that can lead to malfunctions such as lost or incorrect file associations, incorrect icons, broken or blocked install/uninstall routines, and so on.

Again, while these malfunctions might appear to be a problem with the Registry itself, the real problem is accumulated bad data introduced by our software choices and other actions.

There are two major steps you can take to help avoid Registry problems.

1) Avoid junk software. Be aware that some freeware is truly low-quality code, and the publishers have little or no incentive to make it better. Some freeware offerings are mostly camouflage for potentially unwanted programs (PUPs — software that rides along with the app you’re installing) and even malware.

Paying for software doesn’t guarantee that you’ll always get great stuff, either, but it tilts the odds in your favor; the software publishers have fewer reasons to cut corners or turn rogue.

2) Do some simple system maintenance from time to time. Among other beneficial things, it can help keep your Registry lean, clean, and healthy. Such maintenance is quick, easy, and can be almost entirely automated. See “Keep a healthy PC: A routine-maintenance guide” (Jan. 16, 2014, Top Story) and “Start the new year with a clean Windows PC” (Jan. 1, 2015, Top Story).

In short, the Registry is just a database. In the end, it’ll store whatever you (and your software) feed it.

But with just a little care and caution, you’ll likely go years without any serious Registry problems!

For more related reading, see:

• “Windows Registry” — Wikipedia article
• “INI file” — Wikipedia article
• “Accessing the Win3.1 Easter Egg” — Jan. 18, 1993, Computerworld

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Mysterious loss of Win10 1607 Wi-Fi connections

Recently, some users of Windows 10 Version 1670 suddenly found that they couldn’t connect to the Internet via a Wi-Fi connection. The immediate suspect was a cumulative update released Dec. 9.

The solution for the problem — a system restart — is a reminder of how you can easily access some of Win10’s most important troubleshooting tools.

What caused Windows 10 Wi-Fi connections to fail?

A bit of Windows-updating mystery and confusion developed this past week. On Dec. 9, Microsoft released cumulative update KB 3201845 for Win10 Version 1607 (aka Anniversary Update) that included various fixes. About the same time, some users of that OS reported problems connecting to networks via Wi-Fi. The early assumption was that something in KB 3201845 broke wireless connections. However, that assumption was apparently wrong — nor was the update the solution.

A Microsoft Community moderator noted on Dec. 8 that the company was investigating reports of Wi-Fi-connection issues. Annoyingly, there’s been no follow-up information in the post. But Microsoft did take the extraordinary step of putting up a banner on its support pages recommending that users restart their systems to clear the problem (see Figure 1; red highlight ours).

Apparently, some users are having difficulty getting the restart fix to work, possibly due to Win10’s Fast Startup function. A series of posts on Woody Leonhard’s AskWoody site give some observations and alternate solutions.

Update: Adding to the mystery, late this morning (Dec. 12), Microsoft took down the information page for cumulative update KB 3201845, replacing it with an MS “This page doesn’t exist” notification. Some hours later, the page was restored. But we still don’t know what caused the Wi-Fi-connection problem.

Using Restart to access advanced troubleshooting

The above use of Restart is a good reminder that it’s a fast way to access some of Windows 10’s advanced troubleshooting and startup tools. (Note: Before using any of the following options, be sure to close any open applications and documents. Most of the tools will restart Win10 into a limited version of the OS.)

Simply press and hold shift when you click Win10’s Restart option. The system will reboot to the Choose an option screen (Figure 2). From there, you can continue on to a standard Win10 boot or shut down — or open the troubleshooting tools menus.

Clicking Troubleshoot opens two options: Reset this PC and Advanced options (Figure 3). Win10’s two Reset versions should be reserved as last resort fixes. For more information on the difference between the two, see the “OS, apps, and settings backup and recovery” section in the Oct. 15, 2015, Top Story, “Best of breed: Win10’s hybrid backup system,” and the July 11, 2016, LangaList Plus item, “Questions about Win10’s Reset options.”

Clicking Advanced options opens a another window (Figure 4) with choices such as system restore, system-image recovery, startup repair, startup settings, and command prompt. You can also use the “Go back” option to roll back to a previous version of Windows. But if you’ve had the current version installed for a while, there’s a good chance this option won’t work.

The Startup Settings (Figure 5) includes many of the classic troubleshooting tools found in earlier Windows versions. It’s here you’ll find the option to boot into Safe Mode, another tool Microsoft seems intent on depreciating.

The last three Startup Settings options might not be familiar to many Windows users. One, Disable early launch anti-malware, is new to Win8 and Win10. “Early launch anti-malware” (more info) is a feature in Secure Boot that allows AV applications to begin malware detection early in the boot process. It’s designed to allow detection and blocking of malicious code such as rootkits that might launch during Windows startup. (These forms of malware can be difficult to detect once the startup process is complete.)

Both Disable driver signature enforcement and Disable automatic restart on system failure date back to XP. Driver signature enforcement is designed to block any unsigned drivers — a possible source of faulty or malicious code. On the other hand, using Disable driver signature enforcement lets you install and run any driver, good or bad.

Selecting Disable automatic restart on system failure might give you more time to read failure information after events such as a bluescreen of death.

Note that options such as Reset, Advanced startup, and Go back to an earlier build are also accessible more directly via Win10’s Setup/Update & security/Recovery.

Other Advanced options tools are still found in Control Panel and Win10’s Settings. And some troubleshooting apps are still located only in Control Panel. For example, the built-in fix-it for Windows Update is in the CP Troubleshooting section, even though Windows Update options are in the Win10 Settings menus.

Win10’s version of System Restore can be confusing. You can access the classic form in Control Panel under the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) heading. The version in Troubleshoot/Advanced options requires entering a password after it reboots your system (a security feature).

Even when you get to the Restore window, you might well get a message that there are no saved restore points. That’s because Win10’s System Restore isn’t turned on by default. (Microsoft prefers that you use Reset, which has its own significant limitations.)

On my Win10 test system, I was surprised to find that there wasn’t a single restore point, even though I’d had the service turned on for a while. To test the system, I created a restore point manually via Control Panel/System/System protection/Create, and it did show up when I used the Restore tool in Advanced options.

Windows continues to offer an excellent selection of built-in troubleshooting tools. But with the evolution from Win7 to Win8 to the various iterations of Win10, knowing were to find them is only getting more difficult to remember.

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