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We Can’t Sign into Your Account – And Other Computer Problems

Refer my previous post about my new NUC.

My old desktop computer started life when I built it in 2008 but the current iteration dates from 2013 when I kept the Lian Li case but replaced almost everything else.

Two problems surfaced at the same time. These were:

No 1 – We Can’t Sign into Your Account

On bootup, I kept getting the above notice. The suggested simple fix of signing out and signing back in did not work and the alternative seemed to be to carry out a number of changes to the registry. I did not want to do this and thought it would be easier to do a PC Reset.

However, the PC Reset process kept failing. At first, I thought that it might have something to do with the inability to sign into a Microsoft Account. However, later I discovered that the special partition on the C drive needed for a PC Reset was missing. Whether this was due to problems with the 2-year-old SSD and/ or if I did not copy it over to the SSD when I imaged the old drive for transfer to the new SSD, I can’t say. I am reasonably certain that I copied over all of the partitions, but I can’t remember.

In any case I resolved the issue by setting up a new user, elevating it to an Administrator/Microsoft Account and then deleting the old user account. Then I went to the Microsoft site the get the download tool and installed a fresh copy of Win 10.

Everything now works as it should, and a test PC Reset was successful.

No 2 – Computer Failed to Boot when shut down and re-started.

If I shutdown the machine and tried to restart after a short period, it would not send a signal to the monitor. Power was getting to the motherboard and the hard drive was working, just no monitor. My first thought was a problem with the GPU, and I tested this and resolved the issue by swapping out the GPU. The old GPU was a Gigabyte Radeon HD6850 that I bought in 2011 so I have had a fair run out of it.

OTHER THINGS:

Will Not Boot From DVD

As stated above I obtained the download tool to make a bootable DVD of Win 10 for a fresh install, but the computer would not boot from the DVD. It took more than a few minutes for “the penny to drop” and to realise that I had to go into EUFI and turn off fast boot.

Storage Spaces

As well as not being able to boot from DVD, I really started to panic when I pulled out the additional hard drives to recover and copy my data. All was not lost as I had current backups to other drives, one up to date using Win 10 Backup and another a week old via SyncToy. But again, it took more than a few minutes to put two and two together and remember that, back in the days of Win 8.1 (I think), you could create a “Storage Space” by combining physical drives into one big virtual drive. Why I did this I cannot say, but it was probably because I could. I think the last time I bought the OS was Windows 8 or 7 and the “Storage Space” survived the subsequent upgrades to Win 10.

However, I found out the hard way that you just can’t pull one drive out of the storage space and put it in another computer to view/copy the contents. It has to be properly removed and even then, the data on the removed drive is lost.

Anyhow, I had up to date backups, so I did not lose anything, but I have no real use for storage spaces, so I won’t be using it again.

Back Ups

I was using both the inbuilt Win 10 back up set to the default of every hour PLUS a separate back up using SyncToy that I performed when I remembered – usually about once a month. Both were to external USB drives with one (the Win 10 back Up) permanently attached and the other (SyncToy) plugged in just for the backup.

I will keep doing this for my new NUC.

One thing that I did learn is that the Win 10 Back Up system does not detect changes to files encrypted with VeraCrypt. SyncToy does, but only if you tick “Options/Check File contents”.

I tried the new “Personal Vault” in OneDrive but gave up as it becomes annoying with constant reminders about signing out and in.

So in the end, the silver lining is that I learnt some valuable lessons.

My New NUC 7i5BNH

A couple of days ago my old desktop computer became very troublesome. It would not always turn on and, when it finally started, a message would come up showing that “ We can’t sign into your account”. I’ll write a separate post about this but considering I built it in 2008, I thought it was about time for a new one.

I have been looking at those very small computers from Intel called a NUC.

I did not want to spend a lot of money so I looked for models that have been (or will soon be) replaced by newer versions.

I decided on the NUC7i5BNH which was at about a 30% discount at Umart. It is a “barebones” kit meaning that I have to buy and install the HDD and RAM.

I won’t go into the full specs but the CPU is a 7th generation Core i5 and it has USB C Thunderbolt 3, WiFi, Bluetooth, HDMI with 4K video output , SD card slot and plenty of USB3 ports. The “H” in the model number means that it has space for a second 2.5 inch SATA SSD.

The main thing about these “little” computers is the small size yet they have the functionality of a full size computer.

And when I say “little” I mean small – 11cm X 11cm X 5cm. (OR for us oldies who still think in feet and inches – about 4½ inches X 4½ inches X 2 inches)

I set it up with:

Main Hard Drive – 1 TB M.2 SSD

Second Hard Drive 2 TB 2.5 inch SATA SSD

RAM 2 X 16 GB SODIMs = 32 GB

Windows 10 Pro

Also, I ended up buying a USB DVD drive so I could buy a DVD OEM copy of Win 10 Pro. The cost of the DVD Drive PLUS the DVD OEM of Win 10 Pro was about the same as a retail USB version of Win 10 Home – and about 60% of the cost of the retail USB version of Win 10 Pro from Microsoft.

It was easy to insert the drives and RAM and my NUC is up and running using existing monitor, keyboard and mouse . It has only been a couple of days but so far so good. Umart had all of the items that I used on special so I paid about 30% less than standard retail.

To give an idea of size:

Next to the DVD drive with one of those small WD “My Passport Portable” USB external drives on top.

Windows 10 – Ransomware Protection

Recently while listening to Security Now Episode No 732, mention was made of Ransomware Protection built into Windows Security in Windows 10.

It is “Off” by default, but it is a good idea to turn it on. I have deliberately not mentioned this to most of my friends as it can be a bit confusing to use and most ransomware attacks are targeted.

I have had it turned on for some time, but I admit that the earliest versions were annoying. The biggest challenge was finding a program file being blocked to place it on the “white list” so it could run. This was particularly the case with store type Apps rather than traditional programs.

However, the latest versions have largely solved this with a “Recently Blocked Apps” button in the “Add an Allowed App” section to make it easy to put a wanted program on the white list.

Ransomware Protection is located in All Settings / Update and Security / Windows Security / Virus & Threat Protection / Ransomware Protection. It consists of two parts:

1. Controlled Folder Access – A white list of allowed programs/Apps; and

2. Ransomware Data Recovery – Back up to One Drive of certain folders.

Naturally the Back Up to One Drive part is limited by the amount of space you have on One Drive. If you only have the free 5 GB, you will not be backing up things like the Pictures folder. However, in my case I have the large allowance that comes with Office 365.

When it is first turned on, you have to spend considerable time adding to the allowed apps list but, over time, as more programs and apps are listed, it only needs attention when you install a new program / app.

I have it turned on and, in addition, once a week I run a manual back up to an external drive that is only attached to the computer during the back up. This might be “overkill” but is just me. I still use Sync Toy for this even though Microsoft does not list any OS after Win 7 under System Requirements for Sync Toy 2.1.

VLC Microsoft STORE APP

I usually try to use Microsoft Store Apps whenever possible. The only real problem that I can recall with them was when I tried 3 different Apps from the store to extract a 7-zip file. None worked so I downloaded the program from the 7-zip site.

However, I have been reluctant to try the VLC Store App for 2 reasons

The program from the VLC site works well; and
The App had very bad reviews the last time I looked at it.

Normally with reviews I look for say 80% 4 and 5 star reviews. I am suspicious of 100% favourable particularly when there are only a small number. Equally, I approach 1 star reviews with caution. With VLC however, at the time I looked at it, all the reviews were 1 star and most voiced similar complaints that the App crashed and had very limited functionality compared to the program that you download from the VLC web site.

Recently I looked again at the reviews and now 40% are 4 & 5 stars against 50% 1 & 2. This at least is some improvement but there are still many recent unfavourable ones. The main complaints remain App crashing and lack of functions including the inability to play DVDs.

So, I decided to download the Store App and compare it to the Desktop App from the VLC site.

ABBREVIATIONS

DVLC The standard desktop program downloaded from https://www.videolan.org/index.html

SVLC The version from the Microsoft Store.

They are both about 40MB downloads.

TO SUMMARISE, the 1 and 2 star reviews are correct in that SVLC has limited functionality and really only plays common video files which is something the Win 10 “Movies & TV” App will do. However, it did not crash at least on my computer.

I did not test everything but here are the results of the things that I did.

Play DVD

DVLC Played with full functions

SVLC Does not work

DVD iso (ripped copy)

DVLC Plays with full functions

SVLC Does not work

YouTube Video

DVLC Copy and paste YouTube URL to “Open Network Stream” and it plays

SVLC Open “Network” and paste the URL into the box and nothing happens

.mkv File

Both played the file

iTunes .m4v

DVLC Would not play

SVLC Would not Play

.mp4 Video File

Both play .mp4 – AND I assume other common video files but I only have .mp4 files.

Other functions and tools that come with DVLC are not there with SVLC.

On top of that, this annoying screen comes up every time you open SVLC asking if I want to use my USB attached Win 10 Back-up Drive as my media library OR copy my backups to internal storage. NO I DON’T!

SUMMARY

As I mentioned before, the inbuilt Win 10 Movies & TV App does all that SVLC does so I can’t see the point in getting it.

HOWEVER, TO BE FAIR this warning is prominently displayed in the store

Now that this warning is there, for what it is, it is a good player for common files. However, for the full functioning program you need to download the desktop version from the VLC site.

Mine did not crash, and as the warning is now in place, perhaps 1 & 2 star reviews are a bit harsh. Just be aware that if you are expecting something similar to the full VLC program, this store App is not the one for you. I have uninstalled it.

EMOJI Windows 10 TIP

Thank you Mary Jo Foley. In Episode 630 of Windows Weekly, Mary Jo had a great tip on how to insert an Emoji in Windows 10.

I never knew this and I had been using the Touch Keyboard (via a button in the Task bar) to access emojis.

BUT there is a much easier method – Windows Key + Full Stop (Period)

😁👍✔

After hitting Win Key + Full stop you can either select an Emoji or type a word and it will bring up associated emojis.

OR if you want a Bicycle Emoji simply type Bike and:

Bluetooth Earbuds / Earphones

Unfortunately I have the type of ear shape that will not hold Apple Airpods or any similar type earbuds. They fall out.

While Apple supported the 3.5mm stereo jack, I had almost unlimited choice but I usually made do with those ultra cheap “hook over the ear / earhooks” corded ones for a few dollars at Woolworths. These do not have a mic but so what. I just answer the phone the normal way. They do the job for listening to podcasts and music and it doesn’t matter much if they get broken or lost.

I did own a pair of over the head Bluetooth headphones but I rarely used them. The corded cheap ones did the job and you don’t have to remember to charge them.

All that changed when Apple did away with the 3.5mm jack. Even today there is not a great choice for corded headphones with the lightning connector. Beats have them but they are all “in ear” types and expensive. As yet I have not been able to find reasonably priced “Earhook” types with a lightning connector – at least not from an Australian retailer.

I do have the lightning to 3.5mm adaptor so it is not a great crisis. (Although, the adaptor costs more than the Earphones.)

A friend of mine ( I will call him “G”) has a similar problem so we decided to test Bluetooth earphones. I went ultra cheap and he went ultra expensive.

MY CHEAP SOLUTION

Jam Live Large Wireless Bluetooth In-Ear Earbuds from JB HiFi. Current price is $49-95 but I got them on special for $40. They do the job, sound OK, battery lasts a long time (7 hours) and have a mic BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY they have ear hooks. They are also joined by a cord so you cant lose one of them. They charge via USB.

I am very happy with them. They work as advertised and sound OK to me. Be aware that I have no appreciation of sound quality so take my statement that they sound OK with a grain of salt. They are not noise cancelling or anything fancy like that but I like that you can hear what is going on around you. It saves from getting run over by a car or hit by an ankle biter on a bike on his/her way to school and riding on the footpath. My only minor complaint is that it is a bit fiddly to get the charging plug in. But this is because I am ham fisted with big fingers.

FRIEND “G” – EXPENSIVE SOLUTION

Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless for around $500. (Although he got them for about half that with Flybuys.)

These are “top end” and all of the reviews confirm this.

G has used them for nearly a year. He reports that they are great, work really well and sound excellent. However he is “not a great fan”.

His reasons –

They are in ear types which don’t appeal to G very much. He says that you are certainly aware your ears are blocked.
The App is good but when you turn on “transparent hearing” to hear local noise, you also get whistling wind noise and can hear your own footsteps.
The right earphone tends to fall out regularly when walking.

So G has now also opted for a cheaper solution. He bought an “Apple AirPod” knock off from Kogan

Kogan W8 True Wireless Earphones (White)

The usual price is $59 (delivery included) but he got them on special for less.

He reports that he is pleasantly surprised. They have excellent sound, hang securely in his ears ## and are not noise cancelling so you remain aware of your surroundings. They can also operate with only one piece as well. (## They would not work for me. They would fall out.)

The negatives he reports are; (The first one made be laugh).

You look like an absolute dork, just like the Apple ones ,
They flash a bright led blue light every 5 secs.

CONCLUSION

Even if your ears are the correct “Apple Approved” shape and can hold AirPods, why spend the money.

iTunes – Good News

Please refer to my previous post 4th June 2019 – “ iPod Nano – iTunes”.

I was relying on reports in Mainstream Media (MSM). I am old enough to know better but ending support for older hardware did sound like something Apple would do.

However, I should have waited for the Technology site reports.

In short, Windows users will see no change and continue to be able to use iTunes. On the other hand, Mac users will have iTunes functions transferred to Apps and, even then, they will not lose anything.

I picked up the full story from an article on Paul Thurrott’s site “Apple Has No Plans for Music, Podcasts, and TV Apps on Windows” which refers to this article on Ars Technica.

When I think about it, I have never connected my iPhone XS to a computer. I originally set it up from an iCloud back up of my previous iPhone 6S and use Apps for Audio Books – the Audible App and the three Apps for my local council library (Borrow Box, RB Digital and Libby). I checked the Podcast App and it is a mirror of the set up I have on iTunes on my PC and it is the same for the Music and TV Apps. The TV App provides for both TV shows and movies and has my purchased movies and TV shows in my library. It is the same on my iPad.

iTunes on Mac computers will be replaced by the Apps that are already running successfully on IOS devices and also allow for syncing of older devices like the Nano. Windows computers will still use iTunes.

iPod Nano – iTunes

The battery in my iPod Nano is finally on its last legs. I have tried to work out how old it is but I can’t locate the purchase receipt.

It is a green 7th generation model and they came out towards the end of 2012. So it would be about 6/7 years old as I bought it soon after that model was released. Since then it has been used every day. However, for the last couple of months, it will only hold a charge for about 2 hours of use.

I think the Nano is a great device, small, lightweight, easy to use and ideal for listening to music, podcasts etc, while exercising. As soon as I heard that Apple was discontinuing them I bought a spare but now it looks like that iTunes will be replaced by separate Apps.

I have some music on it but mainly listen to Podcasts and this requires regular updating via iTunes. I really hope that the Podcast App (at least) will be available on Windows and provide for syncing with the iPod Nano, otherwise I will have to reconsider my options.

There are a number of replacements for iTunes on Windows but finding a program that will easily sync with an Apple device appears to be a problem.

Depending on future support for the Nano, I might consider the latest iPod Touch, but it will be hard to forget about the money wasted on the “spare” Nano. So, I will also think about an alternative MP3 player. The Sony NW-WS413, which is about half the price of the much bigger iPod Touch, looks like it is ideal for what I want.

UPDATE – iTUNES See my next post 6th June 2019.

MICROSOFT STORE

I am always on the lookout for Apps from the Microsoft Store and in particular Apps for programs that I use regularly.

Open Live Writer is now in the store.

It looks and works the same as the traditional program. It still lacks the function to drag to resize tables but, apart from that, it remains the excellent program that it always has been.

To celebrate my new NBN internet, I performed a “Reset This PC” on my HTPC. As long as you are prepared, a fast internet makes this process a breeze.

To recap, my preparations are:

Using the inbuilt back up function (so back ups to an external drive are always up to date);
Using OneDrive for all important data;
Keeping a list of programs to be re-installed. This list includes the URL for downloading the .exe and/or the location of disks and activation codes;
For my Canon Printer I keep the two .exe files needed on One Drive
Keeping a list of Store Apps purchased.

With No 5, if you go to the Microsoft Store and click on the “Burger Menu” ( the three dots / top right) and select “Purchased”, you will be taken to the purchase history in your Microsoft Account and from there, select “Show All – From All Available” . It was surprising when I looked at this list. I had bought a couple of Apps that I had forgotten about.

I only reinstall programs that I use, and put others back if and when needed.

I use a password manager and the entries for my Emails contain server details etc.

If available, I use the store App version as, not only is re-installation easier, but more importantly, a Store App retains the personalisation details you have made – like iTunes and the Money App etc. (Except for non Microsoft Account Emails). I installed Open Live Writer Store App on another computer signed into the same MS Account, and it retained my WordPress Details.

I have to mention that I did have a bit of a panic with Adobe Photoshop Elements. The store bought version I have is 2015 but current store version is 2019. At first I could not download it and I thought I would have to buy the latest one to get it back. BUT rest easy, I bumbled around until I found in this case, you go to MS Store/ Burger (3 dots) Menu / Downloads and Updates / Ready to Install and it was there.##

I thought for a while that I would have to back to “The Gimp”. Not that there is anything wrong with “The Gimp”, it is an excellent free alternative, but I paid money for PS Elements.

(## This is probably the way you are supposed to do it. My method has been to search from memory in the store where it usually shows that you own the App and re-install from there. I will use the “Ready to Install” menu in future. I think this list might automatically install if given time. I notice that some I did not manually install and now back.)

BROWSERS

I the past I have used Firefox as my default browser. From now on I will leave it as Edge (with Bing) and still install Firefox ( with DuckDuckGo) and Chrome (with Google) and use all three equally.

BACK UP

I am always reminding people I know to back up – and before I proceed with this post – yes I gave myself an uppercut.

I recently lost a Hard Drive that had not been backed up. It was a second drive on my Home Theatre PC (HTPC) but it did contain photos that a friend gave me as part of a 3-2-1 back up plan. Apart from that, it had nothing of importance saved on it and I had been delaying transferring the photos to One Drive until after I had high speed internet from NBN.

The drive failed about 2 days before the NBN was connected.

My HTPC was built in late 2016. I have an SSD for the main drive with a 2TB spinning drive for storage. It was the 2TB spinning drive that failed. It is a well known brand and was/is only about 2½ years old.

SO BE WARNED – Hard Drives can and do fail!

BACK UP WITH the “3-2-1 PLAN”

For important data I use the 3-2-1 method, three copies with 2 local and one off premises. The 2 local copies are the original on the computer and I use the inbuilt Back Up function of Win 10 and Time Machine on the Mac for the second local copy to an external hard drive. The third copy is to One Drive using the 1TB that you get with Office 365.

If you don’t want to use on line storage, you can back to a drive that is held by a friend or relative but this involves setting up a system to rotate the drives and getting them to and from the location.

By far the most convenient is to use an on line storage option. You can start by using all the free stuff but eventually you will probably have to buy storage.

Common free storage:

Google Drive 15GB
Microsoft One Drive 5 GB
Apple iCloud 5GB
Dropbox 2GB

There are others but these are the ones that I have used. Google Drive with 15GB is a good place to start but make use of all of them.

We all should back up to “off premises” but if you have important data ( business or student) then you should look at professional options like Carbonite or similar. I have not used any of these so look around and check them all out.

AND remember if you run out of free space and decide to get another G Mail / Hotmail for more free stuff, you will run into difficulties with syncing etc., but it is not impossible.

If you have a lot of photos or home videos, eventually you will exhaust the free offers. However, it is not all that expensive to buy more. There is large of variety to suit all needs. Google Drive has a number of smaller and cheaper plans, but 2TB costs AUD $125 per year against Microsoft’s offer of 1TB PLUS the full Office suite for one user for AUD $99 per year (AUD$129 per year for 6 users with 1TB for each person). If you use Office, the Microsoft Option seems better, but don’t take my word, check all.

Go through and clean up your computer and get rid of all that junk. Few people require more than 2 TB and most can easily get by with 1TB.

BUT NO MATTER BACK UP and at least have a second copy on a local hard drive. Hard drives are cheap.