KB5008215 is a mandatory cumulative update containing security updates, performance improvements, and bug fixes for Windows 11 21H2.

You can install this update by going to Start > Settings > Windows Update and clicking on 'Check for Updates.' 

Windows 11 users can also manually download and install the KB5008215 update from the Microsoft Update Catalog.

What's new in the Windows 11 KB5008215 update

After installing the KB5008215 update, Windows 11 will change its build number to 22000.376.

Strangely, Microsoft is very quiet regarding what is fixed in the Windows 11 KB5008215 update.

"This update contains miscellaneous security improvements to internal OS functionality. No additional issues were documented for this release," reads the KB5008215 support bulletin.

However, the preview update released last month included the following fixes, which are likely in this update.

• We fixed a known issue that might prevent apps, such as Kaspersky apps, from opening after you attempt to repair or update the apps using the Microsoft Installer (MSI).
• We fixed an issue that prevents a virtual private network (VPN) tunnel from connecting. The error message is, “The Modem (or other connecting device) is already in use or not configured properly”.

Microsoft also states that they made changes to the servicing stack to resolve bugs or issues preventing Windows updates from properly being installed.

Windows 11 KB5008215 update released with application, VPN fixes

Like the November release, this month's security updates include security fixes for November 2021 Update, May 2021 Update, October 2020 Update (version 20H2), and May 2020 Update (version 2004). It's also the last security update for version 2004, which has been retired today.

The update is now rolling out via Windows Update, WSUS, and the Microsoft Update Catalog with numerous bug fixes and performance enhancements.

Like every Patch Tuesday, you can check for and install new updates by going to Settings, clicking on Windows Update, and selecting 'Check for Updates' to install the updates.

What's new in the latest cumulative update for Windows 10

Microsoft has fixed security and non-security bugs with the December update. For instance, a bug that could affect the rendering of variable fonts has been fixed. Likewise, another bug has been fixed where the Settings page closes unexpectedly close after you uninstall a font. Here's a list of other fixes:

• Updates an issue that might cause the 32-bit version of Microsoft Excel to stop working on certain devices when you export to PDF. 

• Updates an issue that displays letters or characters at the wrong angle when you use the Meiryo UI font and other vertical fonts. These fonts are frequently used in Japan, China, or other countries in Asia.  

• Updates an issue that causes Internet Explorer to stop working when using the Input Method Editor (IME) to insert elements. 

• Updates an issue that causes the Settings page to unexpectedly close after you uninstall a font. 

• Updates an issue that affects your ability to rename a file using folder view in File Explorer when you use the new Japanese IME. 

• Updates an issue that turns off screen capture and recording functionalities on the Windows Game Bar after a service failure. 

• Updates an issue that prevents the applications that you use often from appearing on the Start menu as they should.

• Updates an issue that causes Internet Explorer to stop working.

Windows 10 KB5008212 & KB5008206 updates released

Windows includes a native option to display certain usage metrics, but most users have not heard of the option probable. Windows 10 and 11 systems come with the Xbox Game Bar application installed.

Use the keyboard shortcut Windows-G to display its overlay. Select performance and you see the device's CPU, GPU and RAM usage in realtime on the screen. While that is handy already, it is only visible on the screen temporarily. The overlay is closed automatically when you click elsewhere or switch to other applications or programs.

There is however an option to pin certain widgets so that they become visible all the time. All it takes for that is to activate the pin icon of the panel, in this case of the performance panel that displays CPU, GPU and RAM readings.

The panel remains visible on the screen in that case, so that you see the performance stats in realtime all the time.

Some options are available to change the display. Open the Xbox Game Bar app using the shortcut again and select the preferences icon in the title of the widget that you want to display all the time.

You may use the preferences to change the position of the graph, to hide certain metrics that you don't require, and to change the accent color and transparency.

Note that you can hide the graph in the widget by hovering over it and clicking on the up and down arrow icon that is displayed. The option is available while the rest of the Xbox Game Bar app is not visible. Note that you can't move the widget around when the app is minimized.

The widget is displayed for the duration of the session only. You need to use the keyboard shortcut Windows-G and select Performance in each new session to restore the display of the widget on the screen.

Our colleagues over at Deskmodder note that you can place the widget on the Windows taskbar using the method.

Closing Words

The performance widget of the Xbox Game Bar application is handy in certain cases. Maybe you want to check on the system's RAM or CPU usage, or check the "hunger" of specific games or applications.

How to display CPU, GPU and RAM usage natively on Windows 11

Tetzchner founded Opera browser along with Geir Ivarsøy in the mid-90s, before leaving the company in 2011. He founded Vivaldi Technologies in 2013, though the browser they created was released a couple of years later.

Around the same timeframe, in 2015, Microsoft unveiled Edge, built with the in-house Chakra core engine, as the new default browser in Windows 10. More importantly, this was the first step in replacing/retiring the legacy Internet Explorer.

What annoyed users is that Windows 10 complicated the way to set a different browser as the default handler. You need to jump through a couple of hoops in the Settings app, before selecting the application of your choice. This move was heavily criticized, notably by Mozilla. Fast-forward to 2021, and the same applies to Windows 11, though the new Edge is based on the Blink engine, from the Chromium open source project. For reference, Vivaldi, Opera also use the same engine.

Microsoft is pushing Edge in multiple ways. It is the company's operating system and browser, technically they can advertise whatever they want, which is precisely what they are doing. Whether it is competitively ethical, is the matter in question.

Jón von Tetzchner shared a screenshot, taken from his new laptop, on Vivaldi's blog. The image shows a search query for the word Vivaldi on Microsoft's Search Engine, Bing. The top result displayed a controversial message which says, "There is no need to download a new web browser. Microsoft recommends using Microsoft Edge for a fast, secure and modern web experience....."

When I saw that image, I thought, "No way that is real, it can't be". I was wrong, here is a screenshot from my own laptop, with the same message. I should mention that I have Firefox has my default browser, and not Edge.

That's not something anyone would like to see, least of all if you're a CEO of a rival browser maker, so Tetzchner getting upset about this is understandable. He goes on to criticize Microsoft Edge for anti-competitive practices including the complicated process of switching the browser, during which Windows 10 again asks you not to switch browsers.

Another screenshot shows Microsoft Edge offering the user to customize their experience, and the recommended settings sets Edge as the default browser. This is a screen I have seen many times, on new installs of Windows.

Now, of course you could ask. Why would you use Edge if you had set Vivaldi as the default browser. That is a good question, but Windows 10 and 11 are a step ahead. If you use the Start menu for online searches, and click on a web result, the operating system will redirect that link to open in Microsoft Edge, and not in your default browser. There are ways to bypass this, but not without the help of third-party software.

So, if you are not a tech-savvy user who switched to a different browser, but used search from Start, opened the link, and accepted Edge's recommended settings, it will be set as your default browser.

To be fair to Vivaldi, I don't believe Microsoft is targeting the browser. This message also appears when you search for Chrome and Firefox. If you don't see the message, keep the tab in focus, exit the browser, and reopen Edge. When it loads the page, you will see the prompt appear for a few seconds before disappearing.

From a browser maker's perspective, suggestions like these are literally going to steal users away from your browser. So the complaints are fair, Microsoft should let users make the choice on their own.

Tetzchner slammed Microsoft's moves as desperate, and called out the Microsoft Rewards program as a way to pay users to use the browser. Speaking of which, Brave Rewards does a similar thing, it's got nothing to do with Microsoft, but I want to point out the trend of incentivizing users to stick with the browser.

While some readers may view the tone of Tetzchner post as a rant, as a Firefox user I agree with his points. Microsoft is trying to turn the browser market into a monopoly. It is a numbers game between Chrome and Edge the two players hold the majority of the browser shares, while the likes of Firefox, Vivaldi, Opera and Brave are dwindling in the competitive industry.

Of these, Mozilla is the only browser brand to circumvent Microsoft's shenanigans, to make it easy for Firefox users to set it as their default browser. That said, the latest Insider Preview builds of Windows 11 do make it a tad easier to switch to a different web browser. It's an improvement, but it's still not as convenient as it used to be prior to Windows 10.

Tetzchner has asked users in the US or EU, to write to or call representatives to investigate Microsoft related to Edge's anti-competitive. I'm not sure if this will happen, it didn't with Windows 10. People have gotten used to it for 6 years, but things have been getting out of hand recently.

Microsoft Edge's recent antics

Ars Technica's article focused on how Microsoft Edge started warning users of the risk of downloading Google Chrome. Really, Microsoft? I never support Google, but even I think this is unfair and dumb. The Verge reported that Edge was displaying some messages mocking Chrome.

Microsoft Edge runs on the same technology as Chrome, with the added trust of Microsoft.
I hate saving money,' said no one ever. Microsoft Edge is the best browser for online shopping.
That browser is so 2008! Do you know what's new? Microsoft Edge.

The irony in that last one is pure gold. That said, Google isn't any better in my opinion, its open-source mobile operating system, Android, ships with a dozen or so of the search giant's apps including Google Chrome, Gmail, YouTube, Maps, Calendar, etc. A few of these are useful, but a good chunk of it is bloatware, which you can disable but not uninstall permanently. And for people who value their privacy or don't use Google services or prefer other apps/services, all of it is unwanted weight used by the system storage. Apple's iOS is similar in this regard, but I don't think its users expect anything different from the Cupertino company. Android is the more open, customizable OS that lets you side-load apps.

Vivaldi CEO criticizes Microsoft Edge for anti-competitive practices

Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22518 has a new feature called Spotlight collection that changes your desktop background automatically every day. To put it simply, Windows 11 will now automatically change both the lock screen and background of your PC.

Microsoft is currently testing the Spotlight collection feature with Windows 11 Insider. However, Insiders will have to have the Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22518 or higher installed on their PCs.

If you are running the Windows 11 Build 22518 or higher, you can enable the feature by following a few simple steps.

How to enable Windows 11 Spotlight collection feature

1. Open the Settings app
2. Go to Personalization
3. Choose Background
4. Click on the “Personalize your background” dropdown
5. Select Spotlight Collection

Once you enable the feature, you’ll see a new background and will also notice a new Spotlight icon on the top right side of the screen. Clicking on the icon will tell you more about the background.

Here is how to enable the Windows 11 Spotlight collection feature

via WBI

Telegram Desktop app gets updated to version 3.3 with new Creator options

Microsoft Edge Stable updated to version 96.0.4664.93 with security fixes

Transparent Ad are designed to help Internet users understand "why they're seeing specific ads and where they came from". Besides the ability to look up information, such as the name of the ad provider, the information the provider used to display the ads, and the sites that the ad provider tracked a user on, users get control over their data. Microsoft notes that users may "delete or de-identify any previously collected data", provided that the ad provider joined the Transparent Ad program.

Ad providers need to join the Transparent Ads Providers program; the program requires them to meet the privacy requirements of the program. In return, providers are exempt from the balanced tracking prevention option of the Microsoft Edge browser. In other words: more ads will be displayed to Edge users as the default blocking mode, balanced, won't block these ads anymore.

Edge users may click on the new "ads on this page" icon in the browser's address bar to look up information about ad companies that are members of the program and have displayed ads on the active page.

The information includes the name of the provider, the list of ads displayed by the provider, the data the provider used to display the ads, and a "more details" link, which opens the page of the company in the Edge privacy settings.

Providers need to meet certain requirements to join the program:

• The ability for users to contact the company serving personalized ads
• Privacy Policy must be published on the web at a /.well-known/ location
• For ad serving partners (i.e. demand-side platforms), provide users with a clear indication when they are seeing an ad while browsing
• Provide browser-consumable metadata on each ad
• Ensure ad slots are marked with a unique identifier.
• Do not collect user data on receipt of an opt-out header sent by the browser
• Provide a data dashboard where the user can manage personal data collected by the ad provider.
• Honor users' choices for data control.
• Any data collection must meet the Microsoft privacy and data protection policies and comply with all applicable laws and regulations related to the collection and use of personal data.

The full requirements are available here.

How to disable Microsoft Edge's Transparent Ads feature

Microsoft Edge users who don't want transparent ads to be displayed in Edge while Balanced mode is enabled, have two main options to disable the functionality.

Option 1:Switch to Strict Tracking Prevention Mode

Transparent Ads are displayed only when the Balanced Tracking Protection mode is enabled. One option that users have is to switch to Strict mode instead. Strict mode blocks more trackers on sites. Strict mode may cause issues on some sites, but there is an option to add exceptions to make these sites work.

Here is how you enable Strict mode in Edge:

1. Load edge://settings/privacy in the browser's address bar.
2. Switch to Strict under Tracking Prevention on the page that opens.

Option 2: Disable Transparent Ads in Edge

Transparent Ads can be disabled directly in Edge. Please note that the disabling won't reduce the number of ads that users see, just that ads may be more generic as certain information about users, e.g. gained through tracking, may not be available to the ad provider.

Do the following to disable the feature:

1. Load edge://settings/privacy/trackers in the browser's address bar.
2. Disable "Allow companies that meet Microsoft's strict privacy requirements" at the top of the page.

Closing Words

Microsoft tries to balance advertisement and the growing privacy needs of users with its Ad Transparency program. Users get details on ads, for instance why an ad was displayed and options to delete data associated with them, and providers get the ability to show personalized ads based on certain standards to users while Edge's Balanced tracking prevention mode is active.

Transparent Ads in Microsoft Edge, and how to disable them

Mistyped web addresses are quite common, and Internet users are often greeted with a ‘Website not found’ page. However, ‘Typosquatting’ is an increasingly lucrative lure that malicious cyber criminals are exploiting. Realizing the growing menace and the rising visits to malicious websites with commonly mistyped addresses, Microsoft has now added measures to warn users.

Microsoft recently updated its Chromium-based web browser. Microsoft Edge is now on version 96.0.1054.53. However, it will take some time for the Super Duper Secure Mode or SDSM to offer protection from Typosquatting. Microsoft has added “Typosquatting Checker” to the latest Canary Build of Microsoft Edge.

“Typosquatting is what we call it when people - often criminals - register a common misspelling of another organization's domain as their own,” explains Microsoft. Needless to mention, if a user mistypes or misspells the legitimate site they can, and often do, head to the typosquatter's website.

A well-crafted fake website could easily fool users into handing over their account information. Moving ahead, Microsoft Edge could warn users that they may have misspelled or mistyped a website’s address. The new feature is available in experimental builds of the Edge browser. Hence, it is not immediately clear how exactly will the web browser protect users from Typosqautters.

In its current iteration, the “Typosquatting Checker” warns users about their errors. However, in the future, Microsoft might just tweak the feature to ensure Internet users head over to the correct website automatically. In either case, the company is also actively exploring the legal route.

Microsoft Edge to tackle ‘Typosquatting' and stop users from heading to a malicious website

The company might have made this change after we broke the story of slowing NVMe SSDs on Windows 11. However, we can't confirm when this actually happened since the Redmond firm has not provided any updated date for the KB5007262 support article.

The previous version of the changelog stated:

Addresses an issue that affects NTFS when you enable the update sequence number (USN) journal. NTFS performs unnecessary actions each time it performs a write operation, which affects I/O performance.

The currently updated new log states:

Addresses an issue that affects the performance of all disks (NVMe, SSD, hardisk) on Windows 11 by performing unnecessary actions each time a write operation occurs. This issue occurs only when the NTFS USN journal is enabled. Note, the USN journal is always enabled on the 😄 disk.

Microsoft may have made this change in terminology to perhaps make it easier for readers to understand that it had addressed the issue since most people are likely more familiar with the words NVMe or SSD, rather than NTFS.

However, contrary to what Microsoft claims, the problem was present on the recommended build 22000.348 we tested on using a WD SN520, though it is possible that the issue may be resolved on other systems. While AS SSD did not yield anything significant, CrystalDiskMark seems to show a large drop in random writes compared to Windows 10.

Microsoft's NVMe slow-down fix for Windows 11 didn't work according to our testing

Native Window Occlusion expands a Chrome feature that throttles the priority of background tabs to reduce the resource usage of the browser and leave "more memory, CPU and GPU for foreground tabs".

Google engineers noticed that some Chrome windows were covered completely by other windows but their priority was not lowered. Google's Native Window Occlusion feature does that to improve the browser's performance. Google notes that "nearly 20% of Chrome windows are completely covered by other windows".

Through experiments, we found that nearly 20% of Chrome windows are completely covered by other windows, i.e., occluded. If these occluded windows were treated like background tabs, our hypothesis was that we would see significant performance benefits. So, around three years ago, we started working on a project to track the occlusion state of each Chrome window in real time, and lower the priority of tabs in occluded windows. We called this project Native Window Occlusion, because we had to know about the location of native, non-Chrome windows on the user’s screen.

Chrome is monitoring the occlusion state of each of the browser's windows in real-time according to lower the priority of open tabs in windows that are occluded completely on Windows.

Performance has improved significantly in core areas according to Google as a result of enabling the occlusion checking feature on Windows.

8.5% to 25.8% faster startup
3.1% reduction in GPU memory usage
20.4% fewer renderer frames drawn overall
4.5% fewer clients experiencing renderer crashes
3.0% improvement in first input delay
6.7% improvement in first contentful paint and largest contentful paint

The faster startup performance is a result of Chrome skipping work for the occluded window to save resources, which may benefit the foreground window.

Google also found out that the feature reduced crashes by 4.5%.

All of the benefits require that Chrome users have at least two Chrome browser windows open on their devices, and that one of these windows is occluded completely on the desktop.

Native Window Occlusion is only available in Chrome for Windows. Google does not reveal if it will bring the feature to Chrome for Mac OS and Linux in the future.

Closing Words

The 20% figure of occluded Chrome windows seems quite high, even though it only takes into account scenarios in which Chrome users have launched at least two Chrome windows on the Windows system.

Google: Chrome on Windows has become a lot faster recently

These servicing pipeline updates are necessary in order to make sure that the builds can be served to users without any noteworthy issues or hiccups. So, in the press release, the firm only notes:

This update does not include anything new and is designed to test our servicing pipeline for builds in the Dev Channel.

Hence, all the bug fixes and improvements that were announced with the earlier released build 22518 to the Dev Channel are carried over into this. The build restored some additional context menu options, widget changes and more. You can find all the details here.

Interestingly, while there are no new changes made in this build, servicing test builds like these before have been known to break some features. For example, Windows 10 Build 21292.1010 caused issues for x64 emulation on ARM PCs.

You may find more information in the official press release linked here.

New Windows 11 build 22518.1012 (KB5009380) released to test Dev channel servicing pipeline

 

Google is planning to bring Android games to Windows PCs next year. A Google Play Games app will be available in 2022, built by Google to allow games from Google Play to run on Windows laptops, tablets, and PCs.

 

“Starting in 2022, players will be able to experience their favorite Google Play games on more devices: seamlessly switching between a phone, tablet, Chromebook, and soon, Windows PCs,” says Greg Hartrell, Google’s product director of games on Android and Google Play, in a statement to The Verge. “This Google built product brings the best of Google Play Games to more laptops and desktops, and we are thrilled to expand our platform for players to enjoy their favorite Android games even more.”

 

Google spokesperson Alex Garcia-Kummert tells The Verge that the company has built this app on its own, which means Google hasn’t partnered with Microsoft, BlueStacks, or others here. The upcoming app will also allow players to resume games on a desktop PC, after playing them on a phone, tablet, or Chromebook.

 

For now, Google is simply teasing the app during The Game Awards tonight, with a promised release window of sometime next year. It’s not yet clear what technology Google is using to emulate Android apps on Windows, but games will run locally instead of streaming from the cloud.

 

“This will be a native Windows app distributed by Google, which will support Windows 10 and up,” explains Hartrell. “It will not involve game streaming.” Google’s app won’t rely on any special integration with Windows 11, and the company will also distribute the app itself.

Google’s announcement comes months after Microsoft started testing Android apps on Windows 11 PCs. Microsoft has built an underlying Windows Subsystem for Android, which is capable of running Android apps from a variety of sources. The software giant has partnered with Amazon to let Windows users natively install games and apps from the Amazon Appstore, but native Google Play support won’t be available officially through Microsoft’s feature.

 

Since Microsoft is only officially partnered with Amazon for that feature, it has meant far fewer Android games and apps available for Windows 11 users to easily install than there might otherwise be. The door is open for Google, BlueStacks, and others to fill that hole.

 

While Microsoft, and now Google, work on bringing Android apps and games to Windows, BlueStacks has gone a step further and is now bringing Android games to web browsers. BlueStacks X is a free way to play Android games in your browser, and BlueStacks has been focused on Android gaming on Windows since it became the predominant use case for its main app in 2016.

 

Details on Google’s plans for Android apps on Windows first appeared in a document from the Epic v. Apple trial earlier this year. Dated October 2020, the 70-page document described an ambitious effort to get Android games on Macs and Windows PCs. The document revealed Google would first bring “emulated, native and streamed games” to Windows, and at least part of that effort is starting in 2022.

Google is bringing Android games to Windows in 2022

The issue was recently brought to light again when Reddit user PleasedPen25317  ran a series of CrystalDiskMark benchmarks of the Samsung 980 Pro SSD and showed a massive reduction in random write speeds for any partition with Windows 11 installed.

Windows 10 vs Windows 11

It now appears Microsoft has acknowledged the issue and is working on a fix.

In a support document for Optional Update KB5007262 Microsoft writes:

Addresses an issue that affects the performance of all disks (NVMe, SSD, hardisk) on Windows 11 by performing unnecessary actions each time a write operation occurs. This issue occurs only when the NTFS USN journal is enabled. Note, the USN journal is always enabled on the 😄 disk.

Given that the problem affects all drive, not just super-fast NVMe SSDs, the issue must have been more widespread than previously expected.

If you believe you are affected, you can try out the fix by installing KB5007262. Read more about it here.

via WindowsLatest

Microsoft acknowledges slow Windows 11 NVMe SSD write speeds issue, is working on a fix

Manifest V3, or Mv3 for short, is outright harmful to privacy efforts. It will restrict the capabilities of web extensions—especially those that are designed to monitor, modify, and compute alongside the conversation your browser has with the websites you visit. Under the new specifications, extensions like these– like some privacy-protective tracker blockers– will have greatly reduced capabilities. Google’s efforts to limit that access is concerning, especially considering that Google has trackers installed on 75% of the top one million websites.

It’s also doubtful Mv3 will do much for security. Firefox maintains the largest extension market that’s not based on Chrome, and the company has said it will adopt Mv3 in the interest of cross-browser compatibility. Yet, at the 2020 AdBlocker Dev Summit, Firefox’s Add-On Operations Manager said about the extensions security review process: “For malicious add-ons, we feel that for Firefox it has been at a manageable level....since the add-ons are mostly interested in grabbing bad data, they can still do that with the current webRequest API that is not blocking.” In plain English, this means that when a malicious extension sneaks through the security review process, it is usually interested in simply observing the conversation between your browser and whatever websites you visit. The malicious activity happens elsewhere, after the data has already been read. A more thorough review process could improve security, but Chrome hasn’t said they’ll do that. Instead, their solution is to restrict capabilities for all extensions.

As for Chrome’s other justification for Mv3– performance– a 2020 study by researchers at Princeton and the University of Chicago revealed that privacy extensions, the very ones that will be hindered by Mv3, actually improve browser performance.

The development specifications of web browser extensions may seem in the weeds, but the broader implications should matter to all internet citizens: it’s another step towards Google defining how we get to live online. Considering that Google has been the world’s largest advertising company for years now, these new limitations are paternalistic and downright creepy.

But don’t just take our words for it. Here are some thoughts from technologists, privacy advocates, and extension developers who share our concern over Manifest V3:

"A web browser is supposed to act on behalf of the user and respect the user's interests. Unfortunately, Chrome now has a track record as a Google agent, not a user agent. It is the only major web browser that lacks meaningful privacy protections by default, shoves users toward linking activity with a Google Account, and implements invasive new advertising capabilities. Google's latest changes will break Chrome privacy extensions, despite academic research demonstrating that no change is necessary. These user-hostile decisions are all directly attributable to Google's surveillance business model and enabled by its dominance of the desktop browser market."

Jonathan Mayer, Princeton University

“Manifest V3 positions Chrome as the all-powerful arbiter of what software lives and what dies, shattering the ideal of a diverse array of extensions serving the legitimate preferences and values of equally diverse users. In 2017, when Google banned AdNauseam from the Chrome store, it summarily cut off tens of thousands of users from data they had accumulated, and deprived them of a free and open-source extension to counter online profiling and manipulation. In hindsight, AdNauseam was the canary in the coal mine, as Mv3 is now poised to cut off users from a range of invaluable privacy tools (including ad blockers) that thousands if not millions rely on. A browser that plays favorites to advance its owners’ interests effectively chokes out innovative, independent developers, while shrinking the options for individuals to shape their online experiences.”

Helen Nissenbaum and Daniel Howe (creators of AdNauseam and TrackMeNot)

“Manifest V3 is a detrimental step back for internet privacy.”

Ghostery company blog

“Nearly all browser extensions as you know them today will be affected in some way: the more lucky ones will ‘only’ experience problems, some will get crippled, and some will literally cease to exist.”

Andrey Meshkov, AdGuard company blog

Source

ThisIsWin11 (TIW11) version 0.94.0 was released by developer builtbybel a few days ago on GitHub. This third-party tool allows for more Windows 11 customization and tweaking, and the maker even touts the app as "The real PowerToys for Windows 11".

The developer says that the new version is a patch release that fixes "several UI issues". But perhaps more interestingly, the release also adds a new "Windows Update" section (image below) with the option to "Uninstall broken Windows 11 updates" inside OpenTweaks.

The developer has explained how this works:

Updates that cause problems can be registered in the brokenKB.txt file (must be stored in the data directory) and can be uninstalled in OpenTweaks via the wusa tool.

If you're wondering what OpenTweaks is, it's one of the six modules that TIW11 currently offers:

OpenTweaks integrates an important part of the Windows 11 settings app and allows you to check and enable/disable settings in a bulk and with just a click.

The other changes in release 0.94.0 are given below:

• Replaced Segoe MDL2 Assets font with Segoe Fluent Icons

• Replaced Segoe UI with Segoe UI Variable system font

• Fixed some UI bugs in OpenTweaks

• Revised Update function

• Several minor fixes

If you want to try out the latest version of ThisIsWin11, head over to GitHub via this link, though bear in mind that it is an unofficial third-party tool.

ThisIsWin11 0.94.0 adds ability to uninstall broken Windows 11 updates, fixes UI issues

DirectX 12 has a variety of applications in multimedia environments, especially gaming and video. When it comes to the latter, it already provides APIs for GPU-accelerated video decoding and processing, as well as motion estimation. Microsoft is now introducing a new API for video encoding to DirectX 12 too, and it's native in Windows 11.

Essentially, the Video Encode API allows video engines to make use of the GPU in order to perform video encoding in line with the standards set by DirectX 12. This means that third-party developers can utilize this capability in their applications too. It is important to note that Vulkan already includes APIs for video encoding and decoding for H264 and H265 codecs.

As it stands, the codecs currently supported by this API are H264 and HEVC. Microsoft has recommended that developers should query the support for each codec and their respective encoding tools first because they have driver requirements in place.

The Video Encode API is included in Windows 11 by default and can also be utilized via the DirectX 12 Agility SDK (version 1.700.10-preview or later). The minimum hardware platform and driver version for vendors is defined below:

Microsoft's blog post outlines the process for this video encoding as well as the methods that developers can call, so if that sounds something right up your alley, do check it out here.

Microsoft announces Video Encode API for DirectX 12, native in Windows 11

WSL is a compatibility layer that allows Windows users to run Linux binary executables natively.

It enables using Linux command-line tools and GUI apps directly on Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server 2019.

Previously, installing WSL required using a Powershell or Windows Command Prompt command and restarting the PC. Microsoft also deployed updates to WSL via Windows Update.

This is still the case with Windows 10 and Windows Server 2019.

Windows 11 Insiders in the Preview Channel now have the option to download the tool like any other Windows app from the Microsoft Store, which will also handle its updates.

Microsoft first announced this change for WSL in October.

“This is the same WSL you know and love but just a different delivery mechanism,” Microsoft explained.

By default, the command line used to install WSL will also install it via the Microsoft Store.

Microsoft has also added more arguments to ‘wsl.exe –install’ to make it easier to configure an install.

For example, the ‘wsl –install –no-launch’ command will install a new WSL distro without immediately launching it.

Users can run ‘wsl –help’ to see a complete list of available commands.

If you already have WSL installed and want the Store version, you can run ‘wsl –update’ to update to it.

Source

Maybe someday – maybe – Zero Trust will solve many of our network security problems. But for now, if you want to make sure you don't have an eavesdropper on your network, you need a Virtual Private Network (VPN).

There's only one little problem with commercial VPNs: many of them are untrustworthy. So, what can you do? Well, run your own of course is the open-source answer. And, today, your VPN of choice is Linux's built-in VPN: WireGuard.

Why WireGuard rather than OpenVPN or IKEv2? Because it's simpler to implement while maintaining security and delivering faster speeds. And, when it comes to VPNs, it's all about balancing speed and security.

So, if WireGuard is all that, why did it take so long to make it into the Linux kernel? After all, its creator, Jason Donenfeld, first came up with the ideas behind WireGuard in 2015.

Because even when you have a great idea and implement it well, it doesn't mean that things move quickly in Linux development circles. No, not even when Linus Torvalds himself declared "Can I just once again state my love for it."

Torvalds loved WireGuard because, "Maybe the code isn't perfect, but I've skimmed it, and compared to the horrors that are OpenVPN and IPSec, it's a work of art."

A work of art? Seriously? Yes, seriously.

Donenfeld developed WireGuard as a replacement for older secure tunneling protocols such as IPSec and OpenVPN. Donenfeld, never one to shy away from saying what he thought, has described these older protocols as "overwhelmingly difficult."

Just in terms of sheer lines of code, for example, OpenVPN weighs in at 70,000 lines of code. Or, if implemented with OpenSSL, as it usually is, it comes in at a hefty 600,000 total lines of code. WireGuard? It's a mere 4,000 lines of code. That makes it, as many security experts have pointed out, much simpler to audit for security problems.

One reason why WireGuard is so much simpler, but also why it took so long to make it into Linux, is that Donenfeld disliked Linux's built-in cryptographic subsystem. He thought its application programming interface (API) was too complex and difficult.

He suggested it be supplemented with a new cryptographic subsystem: His own Zinc library. That didn't go over so well, as you might imagine, with developers who'd spent years on Linux's existing cryptographic systems. Besides that aspect, many thought Donenfeld was wasting time reinventing the cryptographic wheel.

Donenfeld was willing to work with the community. As he wrote on the Linux Kernel Mailing List (LKML), "There's no reluctance to work with the community. I'm pretty deeply committed to this, as evidenced by the multitudes of patch submissions, discussions, and popping around from conference to conference discussing with folks face to face."

That didn't slow down the controversy, but Donenfeld had an important ally, who came to his aid once again: Torvalds.

Torvalds wrote, "I'm 1000% with Jason on this. The crypto/ model is hard to use, inefficient, and completely pointless when you know what your cipher or hash algorithm is, and your CPU just does it well directly."

In the end, Donenfeld compromised. "WireGuard will be ported to the existing crypto API. So it's probably better that we just fully embrace it, and afterward work evolutionarily to get Zinc into Linux piecemeal."

That's exactly what happened. Some Zine elements have been imported into the legacy crypto code in the Linux 5.5 kernel. That laid the foundation for WireGuard to finally ship in Linux.

So it was that Wireguard was merged into the Linux 5.6 kernel in March 2020. It's also available as a backport to the stable Linux 5.4 kernel. In short, if you want to run your own WireGuard server today on a modern Linux distribution you're ready to go.

Today, WireGuard is a layer 3 secure VPN. While it started in Linux, WireGuard code quickly became cross-platform. Today it runs on Windows, macOS, BSD, iOS, and Android. Indeed, there's already a native, albeit experimental Windows WireGuard port. You name it, you can probably run WireGuard on it.

Behind the scenes, WireGuard uses Curve25519 for key exchange, BLAKE2s for hashing, and ChaCha20 and Poly1305 for authentication. It also includes other state-of-the-art cryptographic tools such as the Noise protocol framework, Curve25519, SipHash24, and HKD. In other words, breaking WireGuard isn't easy.

It is, however, easy to deploy and use. Because WireGuard presents a virtual interface – wg0 – you can configure it with standard Linux networking utilities such as firewalld and ifconfig(8).

WireGuard does all this by securely encapsulating IP packets over UDP. Its authentication and interface design have more to do with Secure Shell (SSH) than other VPNs' more complex setups. You simply configure the WireGuard interface with your private key and your peers' public keys, and you're ready to network in private.

Mind you, WireGuard isn't perfect. Sure, France's The Center for Direct Scientific Communication (CCSD) has shown cryptographic proof for its "correctness, message secrecy, forward secrecy, mutual authentication, session uniqueness, and resistance against key compromise impersonation, identity mis-binding, and replay attacks."

However, there's more to network security than just locking down the transmitted data. By itself, for example, WireGuard doesn't dynamically assign IP addresses. So, by itself, every time you use it, you get the same, easy-to-track static IP address. That, in turn, means WireGuard must log and store your IP address and timestamps. Both OpenVPN and IKEv2 avoid these security concerns by dynamically assigning IP addresses.

You can work around this. Indeed, three commercial VPNs, CyberGhost, IVPN, and early WireGuard champion, Mullvad, already provide such workarounds. And, of course, if you're running it on your own server and using it to safely network in your working from home users, you aren't going to care much about these issues.

As for me, WireGuard is what I use today and, I expect, eventually, it will be what you use tomorrow. ®

Source

While Microsoft has already supported dictation via a microphone, the ability to use your voice to execute commands in Windows has been limited to specific applications.

In the Windows 11 preview build 22518 released today, users can now use the Voice Access feature to launch or close applications, switch to the Desktop, minimize and maximize windows, switch applications, select items, scroll, edit text, and more.

At this time, Voice Access is only supported with the English-U.S. language, and the display language needs to be configured to English-U.S. for the feature to work correctly.

To launch Voice Access, users running the latest Windows 11 preview build can go into Settings > Accessibility > Speech page and enable the feature, as shown below.

Once enabled, Windows 11 will prompt the user to download a language pack and offers an interactive guide explaining how to use the feature.

The Voice Access feature supports over 80 spoken commands and also allows Windows 11 users to dictate and edit documents directly through their microphone.

A complete list of the spoken commands that can be used with Voice Access can be found on this page.

Today's Windows 11 preview build also includes the ability to install the Windows Subsystem for Linux from the Microsoft Store, making it easier and quicker for Microsoft to release new updates.

Unfortunately, Microsoft has still not added the ability to move the taskbar to the top or sides of the screen or to ungroup applications on the taskbar.

New Windows 11 Voice Access lets you control the OS with your voice

The WSL store app for Windows 11 machines was announced in October when it was also first added as a preview.

Now, Windows Insiders running the latest Windows 11 Dev Channel build can install the WSL Microsoft Store app from the command line.

"Starting in this preview build, we've made it easier for new users to get started with the WSL in the Microsoft Store by changing the `wsl.exe –install` command to install WSL from the Microsoft Store by default," said Microsoft senior program manager Brandon LeBlanc today.

"Additionally, we've added some additional arguments to `wsl.exe –install` to make it easier to configure your install, such as `wsl –install –no-launch` which will install a new WSL distro without immediately launching it."

WSL users who want to switch to the store app right away can do it by running` wsl –update` to immediately update the Store version.

You can learn more about the WSL Store application by watching the video embedded below.

What is the Windows Subsystem for Linux?

WSL is a compatibility layer that enables Windows 10 users to run Linux binaries in ELF format natively on their computers since its release in 2018.

Microsoft has upgraded it with the launch of WSL 2 with support for full system call compatibility, increased file system performance, and virtualization tech that runs a Linux kernel inside a lightweight virtual machine (VM).

Redmond provides step-by-step install guidance Linux GUI apps on your PC, which can be launched from the Start menu or a Command Prompt window.

WSL also provides support for GUI Linux apps through WSLg (short for Windows Subsystem for Linux GUI), released in April with a rollout to all Insiders in May.

Windows 11 can now install WSL from the Microsoft Store

New in Fences 4 is Peek, a feature that lets users instantly view their fences by pressing Windows key + space, making accessing content significantly faster. For example, while working in a program like Adobe’s Premiere or Photoshop, users can bring a folder portal filled with their source footage and images to the surface of their desktop by pressing the configurable hotkey. This eliminates the need to minimize the application and go searching for the required asset in File Explorer.

Also new in Fences 4 is the Desktop Display feature. The Windows key + D hotkey can be configured to be either toggle or press-and-hold to streamline your workflow for accessing content on your desktop.

"Fences 4 is designed to deliver a modern desktop experience," said Brad Sams, Vice President and General Manager of Stardock Software. "Fences is the best way to organize your desktop, and the new “Peek” feature makes it possible to access all of your Fences content at any time and within any application. Your workflow will never be the same.”

Along with its new features, Fences 4 has been optimized so that it loads before the desktop when a PC is booted up, making it not only more functional, but also more performant.

Fences 4 is available through Stardock's Object Desktop suite or on its own for $9.99. For more information, visit www.stardock.com or the Fences 4 website here.

Stardock Fences 4 out now with new Peek feature

Telegram should notify users about the update when it is opened the next time. It may also be updated automatically on some devices.

A new blog post on the official Telegram blog lists all new features. Here is an overview of what is new and improved:

• Protected Content in Groups and Channels -- Telegram group and channel owners may enable restrictions for all members which restricts message forwarding, the capturing of screenshots, and limits the ability to save media posted to the group or channel. Administrators may enable the feature under Settings > Group Type / Channel Type > Restrict Saving Content. Users who attempt these operations receive the following error messages:
  • Can't take screenshot due to the security policy.
  • Copying and forwarding is not allowed in this group.
• Clear Chat History from a specific day or date range in all one-on-one-chats. To use the feature, tap on the date bar in the chat window, select the dates that you want to clear, and then "clear history from these days".
• New button to link desktop devices quickly and a new setting to log out inactive devices automatically after a period of time. Select Devices under Settings to get started.
• Option to appear as a channel when posting to public groups or leave channel comments. Tap the profile picture next to the message bar to select one of the available channels for posting.
• New log in verification option through an incoming Telegram call and entering several digits of the phone number that called instead of receiving the code via a text message.
• Join requests highlight the community they are from.
• Android users may use global chat themes. This unlocks the themes for individual chats for the entire app. The feature is already available on iOS.
• Devices with iOS 13 or newer may use Text Recognition which allows users to "quickly select, copy and search". Image recognition happens on the device.
• Media captions on iOS support bold and italics now.
• Redesigned contact info on iOS.

The new update of Telegram is rolling out to all client installations.

Telegram update brings protected content in groups and channels

A Phoronix reader wishing to remain anonymous wrote in around the unfortunate state of packaged web browser support for Debian. Below is his synopsis on the state of web browsers packaged in Debian as a word of caution to users with regards to outstanding security updates.

All of the Debian-shipped browsers (Chromium, Firefox ESR, Falkon, ...) are having severe open security issues which the package maintainers apparently are not able to fix easily:

- Chromium is still at version 90.0.4430.212-1 which means it contains tons of security issues. The Debian Wiki recommends switching to a different browser. Those who have installed the browser previously and rely on automatic updates are left with an unpatched browser without even noticing.

- Debian's official web browser is Mozilla Firefox (the ESR version). The last update of Firefox ESR in Debian stable has been version 78.15.0. This version also has quite a few unpatched security issues and the 78.x ESR branch is not maintained by Mozilla anymore. They need to update to the 91.x ESR branch, which apparently causes big problems in the current stable Debian platform. In an issue, people complain about freezing browser sessions with the 91.x release, which blocks the new Firefox ESR release from being pushed to "stable-security". Somebody in the issue claims the reason: "Firefox-ESR 91.3 doesn't use OpenGL GLX anymore. Instead it uses EGL by default. EGL requires at least mesa version 21.x. Debian stable (bullseye) ships with mesa version 20.3.5."

So this does not look good at all right now. Mozilla Thunderbird is affected by this as well by the way.

- Other browsers which are included in the Debian distribution, such as Falkon, have also not seen any security patches for a long time (for Falkon the QtWebEngine package would need to be updated).

That seems to be the current state of affairs for web browsers at the moment on Debian... Basically if you want to stay up-to-date, it seems your best option is relying on binaries from the like of Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome, but even with the latest Firefox may be issues on Debian stable around EGL/GLX. The Phoronix reader ended with, "the very sad part about this situation is that Debian actually has a philosophy of keeping non-libre software away from the user by default. But this situation actually pushes people towards closed-source browsers such as Google Chrome or Opera. Tough times for the Debian project."

Source