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If you're unaware, the Media Creation Tool is a super-simple way to download a small program from Microsoft and bake it onto a USB drive that can then be used to install a copy of Windows on a PC. It's an excellent method for installing fresh and starting from scratch, especially if you need to do so for another computer, say, in aid of family tech support. The Media Creation Tool has been around in various flavors for years, and it's periodically updated as a separate piece of software… and the latest update has broken it for some users on Windows 10.
That's according to Microsoft itself, who filed it as a bug on October 10th (that's 11 days after the tool was updated). According to the official "Known Issues" page for Windows (spotted by Windows Latest), Windows 10 machines on the 22H2 release are seeing the tool "close unexpectedly, displaying no error message."
The fact that this was an update to the tool that immediately preceded the self-imposed deadline that Microsoft set for a Windows 11 upgrade is u
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Sometimes you can notice the signs of a failing SSD. For instance, the once-quick transfer speed slows to crawl, there are frequent program or system crashes, or file system access errors or SMART errors occur. If you notice these things, especially in combination, there's a good chance your SSD is on its way out. In that case, it's time to prepare for the worst and do the following:
Back up critical files
It goes without saying that the first thing you'll want to do if you think your SSD is on the blink is to back up your critical data. Backups should be done regularly anyway, but even if you're doing that, you'll still want to make a new backup of your critical files at this point to have them ready to go should your SSD suddenly die.
See our roundups of the best Windows backup software and
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The Windows 11 2023 Update has been released, but behind the scenes, Microsoft is constantly working to improve the newest version of Windows. The company frequently rolls out public preview builds to members of its Windows Insider Program, allowing them to test out — and even help shape — upcoming features.
Skip to the builds
The Windows Insider program is divided into four channels:
The Canary Channel is where platform changes (such as major updates to the Windows kernel and new APIs) are previewed. These changes are not tied to a particular Windows release and may never ship at all. Little documentation is provided, and builds are likely to be very unstable. This channel is best for highly technical users.
The Dev Channel is where new features are introduced for initial testing, regardless of which Windows release they'll eventually end up in. This channel is best for technical users and developers and builds in it may be unstable and buggy.
In the Beta Channel, you'll get more polished features that will be deployed in the next major Windows release. This channel is best for early adopters, and Microsoft says your feedback in this channel will have the most impact.
The Release Preview Channel typically doesn't see action until shortly before a new feature update is rolled out. It's meant for final testing of an upcoming release and is best for those who want the most stable builds.
The Beta and Release Preview Channels also receive bug-fix builds for the currently shipping version of Windows 11. See "How to preview and deploy Windows 10 and 11 updates" for more details about the four channels and how to switch to a different channel.
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