Archive for August, 2015

Reset Forgotten Windows 8 Password on Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2

August 30th, 2015 by Admin

Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2 was loaded with a 32-bit version of Windows 8.1, and if you’ve forgotten the login password, you can reset it with PCUnlocker. But this tablet can boot in native UEFI mode only, so you need to use 32-bit version of PCUnlocker Enterprise which supports UEFI boot. Let’s see how to create a UEFI bootable USB drive with PCUnlocker and then reset lost Windows 8 password on Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2.

Part 1: Create A PCUnlocker Live USB

As this tablet doesn’t come with a CD drive, you have to use a USB thumb drive (with at least 1GB of space) instead. Follow the steps below to create a PCUnlocker Live USB from another computer:

  1. Download the 32-bit version of PCUnlocker Enterprise and save it to your desktop. Unzip it and you’ll get a CD image: pcunlocker.iso.
  2. Download and install the free USB creator software – ISO2Disc, which allows you to make a bootable USB drive from a ISO image.
  3. Launch the ISO2Disc program. Click on Browse button and locate the pcunlocker.iso file. Next click on “Burn to USB Flash Drive” and select your attached USB thumb drive.
  4. Select “GPT (required for UEFI boot)” from the Partition Style list. Click on Start Burn to begin creating a PCUnlocker Live USB drive.

Part 2: Reset Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2 Password

As the tablet doesn’t have a full-size USB port, you have to use a micro USB on-the-go (USB OTG) adapter to connect your USB thumb drive to the micro USB port on the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2. Once connected, you can proceed to reset your forgotten Windows 8 password:

  1. When your tablet is turned off, press and hold the volume rocker up button, and press and hold the Power button at the same time.

    lenovo-yoga-tablet

  2. This will turn on the tablet and take you to the Novo Menu. Now you can release both the volume rocker and the Power button.

    yoga-tablet-boot-menu

  3. Select the Boot Menu and hit Enter. From the next screen, choose the USB thumb drive as the boot media.
  4. Once booted to the PCUnlocker program, you’ll see a list of Windows accounts displayed on your screen. Choose a user account and click on “Reset Password” button, it will unlock & reset your forgotten Windows 8 password offline.

  5. Disconnect your USB drive and reboot the tablet. You can now login to Windows without typing a password!

Hide the Search and Task View Buttons from Windows 10 Taskbar

August 23rd, 2015 by Admin

In older preview builds of Windows 10, the Search and Task View buttons in the taskbar couldn’t be removed natively and the only way to get rid of it is using this registry trick. Luckily the official release of Windows 10 comes an option to hide the buttons. Here’s how:

Part 1: Hide the Search button from Windows 10 Taskbar

  1. Right-click on the Windows 10 Taskbar.
  2. Tap or hover to Search.
  3. You’ll see the following options:
    • Hidden – Remove Search button display on the Taskbar completely
    • Show search icon – Show a Search icon on the Taskbar that when clicked will bring up the Search bar.
    • Show search box – Display the large search box on the Taskbar which you can type directly into.

    hide-search-button

  4. Click Hidden. The Search button will disappear from the taskbar immediately

Part 2: Hide the Task View button from Windows 10 Taskbar

Right-click on the taskbar and in the context menu, uncheck the “Show Task View Button” option. The Task View button will disappear immediately.

hide-task-view-button

For tablet users though, the Task View button is pretty important. In the absence of a physical keyboard, that button is the easiest way to switch between apps. Hiding it is likely to result in a downgraded experience so tablet users are better off keeping it visible.

Password Protect A Folder in Windows 10

August 14th, 2015 by Admin

We all have sensitive files we’d like to keep secret from the world. Just like the older versions, Windows 10 also doesn’t come with a native utility specifically designed for password protecting folders. Thankfully, there is a handy folder lock program – Protect My Folders, which can hide and password protect any folders/files with ease. Here’s how to use it to password protect a folder in Windows 10.

How to Password Protect A Folder in Windows 10?

  1. Download and install Protect My Folders. The first time you launch the program, it will prompt you to set a master password. This is the only password that will be used in this tool to protect your folders, so don’t ever forget it or you will be unable to access protected folders.

    set-new-password

  2. After you enter the password and click OK, the main interface will open where you can lock or unlock folders or change the lock settings.

    protect-my-folders

  3. Open the folder which you want to lock. This folder could have files, subfolders, videos, presentations, or any sorts of data you want to protect.

    test-folder

  4. To lock the folder you wish to password protect, just drag and drop it from Windows Explorer to the Protect My Folders program. Or click on “Add/Lock” button to select your desired folder. Repeat the same process to add more folders and lock them as well.

    password-protect-folder

  5. The protected folder will be vanished immediately! If you try to access the protected folder from Windows Explorer or Command Prompt, you’ll get the error message “Access denied” or “Windows can’t find the folder“. Your protected folders will remain lock even if you’ve closed the Protect My Folders program.

    folder-access-denied

  6. To unlock a folder, launch the program and enter the master password. Just select the folder you want to unlock, and then click Unlock. Your protected folder will be back and you can open it in Windows Explorer.
  7. If you just need to lock your folder but keep it visible, click on Settings from within the Protect My Folders program. When the Settings dialog appears, uncheck the Hide option.

    lock-options

    From there you can also change the master password or uninstall the program. After it is uninstalled, all your locked folders are automatically unlocked, thus eliminating the risk of losing your data.

Fix Boot Failure: a proper digital signature was not found

August 10th, 2015 by Admin

I have a Toshiba P850/02c with windows 8. This morning it did an automatic Windows configure update but then on restarting, I got the error message “Boot Failure: a proper digital signature was not found. One of the files on the select boot device was rejected by the Secure Boot feature.” and stuck on there. Now I am unable to boot to the desktop. How can I fix the issues?

boot-failure

This is probably due to the “Secure Boot” feature currently on all new Windows 8/8.1/10 computers. Secure Boot is a new feature that improves the security of Windows. To fix this boot failure, you have to disable the Secure Boot option in the UEFI firmware.

How to Disable Secure Boot?

To disable the Secure Boot option, you have to access to the UEFI setup.

In UEFI setup, try to find a menu labeled “Security” or “Security Settings.” Once you navigate to it, head straight down to “Secure Boot”. There’s a possibility that you might have a “Secure Boot” option immediately when you arrive at the security menu, so look out for that also. Once you see a “Secure Boot” option, disable it. Then reboot the PC to check if that fix the issue.

How to Create A Windows To Go USB Drive in Windows 8 Enterprise

August 3rd, 2015 by Admin

Windows to Go is a exclusive feature available in Windows 8 Enterprise only, which lets users create a portable version of the OS that can be used directly from a USB drive. Here’s how to create a Windows To Go USB drive in Windows 8 Enterprise, without using any third-party software.

How to Create A Windows To Go USB Drive in Windows 8 Enterprise?

  1. First of all we need to open the Windows To Go Creator. Press the Windows key + W, type “Windows To Go” and then press Enter. The Windows To Go Creator Wizard opens.
  2. Select your USB drive. Although it’s recommend to use USB 3.0 external storage device, USB 2.0 should also work.

    windows-to-go-1

  3. Select Windows 8 image (.wim) file from Windows 8 installation DVD. If you’re using a Windows 8 installation ISO file, you can extract the install.wim file from it with the freeware 7-zip.

    windows-to-go-2

  4. Set up BitLocker password. By using Bitlocker, the USB drive and all data on it will be encrypted. This option is not mandatory, and you can skip it by clicking the Skip button.

    windows-to-go-3

  5. Begin to create Windows To Go USB drive. This step displays the summary of settings and prepares your storage media for Windows To Go workspace. Clicking on Create at the bottom will start the process.

    windows-to-go-4

  6. After this step, it begins to install Windows 8 on your USB drive. The whole process should take about 30 minutes, depending on the hardware from which you are running this.

    Windows-to-go-5

  7. Once a Windows To Go USB drive has been made you can choose whether to set up the host PC to boot from USB devices, or leave it as it is. You can close this wizard by selecting No, then choosing Save and Close.

    windows-to-go-boot-option

  8. Now your USB drive is ready for use.

Windows To Go Creator is only available in Enterprise edition of Windows 8. But with the freeware ISO2Disc you can create Windows To Go USB drive in any edition of Windows, so long as you have a Windows 8 ISO image.