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Netgear A6100 WiFi adapters (USB dongles) stopped working part way through this month’s updates. Naturally, the update process stalled as soon as the internet connection was lost. This happened on an old laptop and an old tower PC, both running Windows 10 Home Edition 22H2.
Neither machine would complete the Windows April updates until I hardwired them into a LAN connection.
After the Windows updates completed, I downloaded and installed the newest Netgear A6100 software (version 1.0.36), but after installation, the Netgear Genie doesn’t seem to run and I have not figured out how to activate the A6100 adapters.
Will look into reinstalling drivers tomorrow when I’m awake.

If you’ve been a customer of your ISP for a long time, consider calling them up and seeing if you can get a cheaper/faster deal. You may not want to call today, as chances are their staffing is lower today and thus you’d have longer wait times.

I’ve had good responses when calling customer support hotlines on big holidays and extremely odd hours (such as Saturday night at 11 pm PST).  There is often one technical support representative handling the one or two calls that happen to come in simultaneously.  Sometimes the tech helping me after hours is authorized to do higher-level fixes when the higher-level support techs are off duty.

Of course, my calls did not involve sales representatives, who are often slammed on holidays.

 

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SueW

Thanks, Paul.

That’s the configuration I’ve been using. I never felt right about sharing the WiFi on the ISP modem/router.  And I’ve never found more than minimal WiFi performance from the ISP’s router.

I do need to get on the guest network idea for IoT devices.

At 3m53s into the video, though, Susan admits that sometimes she wants to use her ISP wifi directly, instead of the WiFi through her own router attached in front of it.

I don’t understand what value there is to maintaining two WiFi networks on separate routers. Seems like just asking for interference between the two.

Thanks, Susan, for more good advice to the clueless. There are probably more out here than anyone would care to admit.

In the video, you mentioned that you have your own router behind the ISP-provided router/modem. I am curious how you have this configured, and what advantages are available through your arrangement.

Do you have active WiFi through both the ISP router and also WiFi on your own router? Or is the second router’s WiFi turned off, so that you just use it for Ethernet LAN connections?

Is there a particularly good home configuration for separating insecure IoT devices from the computers to protect sensitive personal data?

[Latka]

Yes, Paul, but I didn’t realize the command prompt has been relegated to just another app controlled by UAC.

I am old enough to remember (cough, cough, Win 2) when using a command prompt meant having direct control of the operating system; and apps controlled popup windows.

Now the command prompt is in an “app” and the O.S. is controlling all the windows.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by Latka.

Now it has worked on both machines.  On the first machine, apparently it wasn’t enough to run the command prompt while signed into an admin account.  Apparently the right-click to run as administrator is required, whether it is signed into an administrator account or not.  Go figure.

I ran the command prompt while signed into the administrator account. I will check it again tomorrow.  You may be right about recent updates, as I checked it last week.

I am going to try it on another machine, too. Unfortunately, the machine is 12 years old, so this may take a little longer.

Susan,

This did not work for me. Not sure why. After the last command “/update user” the pop up screen said “you’re up-to-date.”  There was no downloading and reinstalling.

Using Microsoft 365 subscription and Version 2103 (Build 13901.20336 Click-to-Run) Current Channel on Win10 Home Edition Version 20H2 (Build 19042.867).

Thanks, Susan.  You come up with the most practical suggestions for the weekend.

PKCano wrote:

make a full disk image of your computer and a data backup BEFORE you start

I need assistance in translation.  The EaseUS Todo Backup Free 13.0 utility offers several backup options:

1. Disk/Partition Backup
2. System Backup
3. File Backup

Which of these options would perform a “full disk image” backup?

For “data backup” would I choose the File Backup (option 3)?

OscarCP wrote:

A somewhat related idea (the Universe inside a locket that is itself inside another Universe)

See also, Whoville, in Horton Hears a Who, by Dr. Seuss.

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OscarCP

[Latka]

CBA wrote:

Matador wrote:

Works every time CBA, no sweat.

And the great thing , no rebooting or waiting up to 36 hrs required.

I thank you for giving this ‘alternate’ method a go.

I just got 2004 in the chute, but following your above “method” one more time (hide in WUShowHide and a quick Pause On/Off) it went away.  That said, as I’m still on 1809, I soon have to make a move .. either to 20H1 (2004) or to 20H2.

The feature update to 2004 appeared spontaneously in the update queue today on Windows 10 Home Edition.  I thwarted this upgrade in my usual fashion.

I am not afraid to click “Check for updates” or “Resume updates,” because:

1. My internet connection is always set to “metered,” so that updates are never allowed to install unsupervised, on their own.  I do not change to unmetered just to get updates.  If the option to download update over metered connection appears, I click it only for the updates I want to install.
2. After clicking “Check for updates,” and before available updates get installed, I always use WuShowHide to hide unwanted updates.  Having the internet connection set to metered allows unwanted updates to be hidden before they are installed.
3. If a pesky update has already been downloaded and is already installing or preparing to install, I delete all files and folders in C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download

It works for me.

Some of the procedures PKcano recommends were helpful on previous versions of Win 10 Home Edition, but are no longer necessary.  I haven’t had to turn off the metered connection to download updates since the “download update over metered connections” option was added (Version 1903, I think).  I have never set Target Release Version or altered the registry.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 6 months ago by Latka.

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Perq, Matador

That is why I still keep the Windows Home Edition machines on “metered” network connections, in addition to setting update deferrals to five weeks.

The inconvenience about the “metered” connection setting is that Outlook will not sync my emails due to the “metered” connection setting until I click to override.  This happens every time I launch Outlook.  I have not found a setting to turn off this feature.

The “metered” network setting is much less disruptive now (Win 1909) than it was in previous releases.

1.  Both wifi and ethernet connections can be set to “metered.”
2. There are now options in One Drive to sync despite “metered” connection settings, so your One Drive files will stay up-to-date.
3. When Windows Update is triggered (whether by “seeking” or simply by deactivating the update deferral status), “Updates will not be downloaded due to metered connection” appears.  It is at this point that I run the WUShowHide utility to hide unwanted updates, such as the “Optional” .net update.  I click on “Download anyway” only after WUShowHide finishes its business.

This usually works.  (As with most things from Microsoft, the emphasis is on “usually.”)  Your mileage may vary.

OscarCP and others have posted about compiling a password list to be stashed in a secure location:  a USB drive, an unindexed partition, or as a password encoded Word or Excel file.

Nobody has mentioned the possibility of risks inherent in opening the password document for viewing, searching, or editing the password list.  There must be some possibility of malware capturing data when the password list is opened for viewing or editing.

When viewing the password list, a working copy of the document must be temporarily stored in working memory, display memory, or perhaps also in a temp file on the hard drive.

What is the risk is of malware capturing password data in this situation?  Perhaps this is not the biggest password security concern, but I suspect the probability of this mode of attack being possible is, to use Woody’s words, “non-zero.”

[Latka]

With Win10 Home 1903, when I press “Resume updates”, it immediately checks for updates and lists what’s available. At this point, if you have a metered connection, it says “Pending download.” There is a “Download” button available, but nothing further happens if you do not click the “Download” button and you are not using a metered connection.

You then have the opportunity to run WuShowHide and hide the unwanted updates, or click “Download” for each offered update, one at a time.

I don’t see much use for the new pause updates feature in Win10 Home 1903. In addition to pausing various unwanted updates, it also delays implementation of new Security Intelligence Updates for Windows Defender Antivirus and the Malicious Software Removal Tool updates.

 

• This reply was modified 3 years, 5 months ago by Latka.