Utilities

How to Use Windows Spotlight as Desktop Wallpaper Slideshow

by

The Windows Spotlight brings fresh wallpaper images for your lock screen daily. The wallpapers are stored in the Assets folder wherein the older wallpaper images will be purged automatically as the new set of images get downloaded. We saw how to save the lock screen wallpapers using various methods, including a scripting method. This post … Read more

How to Delete Images or Pages from a PDF File

by

We have numerous freeware PDF document viewers but not many freeware PDF writer tools are available. Sometimes, you may want to remove specific pages from a PDF document or remove images from a particular page in a PDF file completely to keep the file size low. Many online portals provide the PDF editing and merging features you’re looking for. But if you need an offline tool (for privacy concerns) to remove images or delete pages from a PDF document, this article has the info you’re looking for.Read more

Turn Off Monitor Using Shortcut or Command-line in Windows

by
samsung monitor jog button

My new Samsung Curved monitor has the power button on the rear end, perhaps for aesthetic purposes. I have been using monitors that have controls on the front or underneath the bezel all these years. Now, with the new monitor, I find it a little bit inconvenient to reach out to the button on the backside every time I need to turn off or turn on the display.Read more

How to Find and Remove Empty Folders in Windows

by
remove empty folders in windows

Over time, hundreds of empty folders and junk files may take up your hard disk. While the junk files occupy disk space and can be cleaned up using Disk Cleanup or Storage settings, the empty directories remain.

The empty folders don’t take up disk space, but to organize your data better, you may want to prune them every once in a while.

This article discusses different methods to find and remove empty folders on your computer.Read more

Enable or Disable Windows Defender Using Shortcut or Command-line

by

Windows Defender, the built-in anti-virus program in Windows, has useful features such as cloud-based protection, offline scanning, limited periodic scanning, tamper protection, controlled folder access, etc.

Almost every aspect of Windows Defender can be managed or automated using the MpCmdrun.exe command-line tool and PowerShell cmdlets. There are times when you need to temporarily disable your Windows Defender real-time protection on your test (non-production) systems and switch it back on after a few minutes.

You may prefer a single-click shortcut or script solution because of the following reasons:

  1. It takes several mouse clicks to turn off/on the Windows Defender real-time protection through the user interface.
  2. The Turn off Microsoft Defender Antivirus Group Policy setting or its equivalent registry setting DisableAntiSpyware = 1 would require rebooting the computer.
  3. Microsoft has discontinued the DisableAntiSpyware policy/registry setting in Microsoft Defender Antimalware platform versions 4.18.2007.8 and higher. DisableAntiSpyware no longer works!

hand point iconThis post explains how to enable or disable Windows Defender in a single click using desktop shortcuts or command-line without requiring a restart.

Read more

How to Clean Up the Windows Installer Cache Folder

by
windows installer - delete unwanted files

When you install a program in Windows, the program’s .msi or .msu setup package gets copied to the C:\Windows\Installer folder. The Installer folder is a protected folder with System & Hidden attributes and is found under your Windows folder.

windows installer - delete unwanted files

What is the Windows Installer folder?

The Installer directory is intended to serve as a cache for installer data files for various applications installed on the computer.Read more

[Fix] Cannot Add a Program to Open with List in Windows

by
cannot add program to open with menu in windows

When you right-click on a file, select “Open with”, click “choose another app” and select a program using the Browse dialog, the program may fail to appear in the “Open With” dialog.

It may appear as if nothing happened after you selected the program in the browse dialog — i.e., the Open with dialog simply ignores your selection. This is a bug that exists since the Windows XP era (at least) and remains in Windows 10 as well. This article shows how to fix the Open with problem.Read more

[Fix] “Managed by your organization” in Chrome or Microsoft Edge

by
chrome policy "managed by your organization"

In Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome, some users see the message “Managed by your organization” when they click the “More” menu.

chrome policy "managed by your organization"

The message indicates that the browser (Microsoft Edge or Chrome) is being managed. If a user clicks on the “Managed by your organization” link, they are directed to chrome://management/ which contains details about Chrome Browser management on Chrome browser, or the edge://management page on Microsoft Edge.

This message is also seen on the Chrome/Microsoft Edge (chromium) Settings page.

edge managed by organization

Clicking on the “Managed by your organization” link opens the edge://management page, which displays the following message:

Microsoft Edge is managed by your organization

If you use Microsoft Edge at school or work, it might be managed, or set up and maintained, by your organization. Your organization can set up or restrict certain features, install and block extensions, monitor activity, and control how you use it.

If Microsoft Edge is managed, you can view the policies that are set by your organization on the edge://policy page.

This post tells you how to remove the Managed by your organization notice and also explains how to remove the Microsoft Edge or Chrome policies that cause the notice to be shown.Read more