RetroMultiplayer Tech Tips

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Windows 11 ​

Install on unsupported hardware ​

For Windows 11 24H2 to run well and be usable for modern web apps and low spec games the system requirements are the following:

  • 64bit CPU with POPCNT instruction (SSE 4.2 or SSE 4a)
  • 8GB RAM
  • SSD

I run Windows 11 23H2 on CPUs as old as 2008 Core 2 Quad, as long as it's installed on SSD and has enough RAM - the PC is usable for YouTube and osu! (not at the same time though).

Vanilla Windows 11 ISO from microsoft.com will bitch about not having TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot, but when creating install media using Rufus these checks can be disabled.

Install without Microsoft account ​

Unplug ethernet cable before installing, and do not connect to Wi-Fi until you see a desktop and a start menu.

On the "Let's connect you to a network" installation step, press "I don't have internet" button. If you don't see it, there are two ways to reveal it:

  1. Install from media patched by Rufus (see previous section).
  2. Press Shift+F10, enter oobe\BypassNRO command (case sensitive!).

Bootloader troubleshooting ​

When installing 24H2 over Linux instance with GRUB, on some machines 24H2 installer will fail to correctly overwrite bootloader and will land into GRUB recovery console instead of Stage 2 of Windows Setup.

To overwrite bootloader manually, restart installation media and select Repair my PC -> Troubleshoot -> Command Prompt, then enter the following commands:

ps
bootsect /nt60 sys
bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot
bootrec /scanos
bootrec /rebuildbcd

Restart the installation media and redo Stage 1 of Windows Setup.

Update 22H2 to 23H2 on unsupported hardware ​

When installed on "unsupported" hardware as described in previous sections, Windows Update will not automatically update 22H2 to 23H2. This can be fixed by manually installing KB5027397 (The 23H2 enablement package).

Microsoft doesn't offer a straightforward way to download the enablement package, so try this link instead.

Update 23H2 to 24H2 on unsupported hardware ​

Make sure the CPU implements POPCNT instruction (SSE 4.2 or SSE 4a), e.g. using CPU-Z utility, as 24H2 will crash on boot otherwise.

Download 24H2 ISO, preferably using Media Creation Tool, because you need ISO that matches the region of your install.

Mount it, right click on mounted media and select "Open in Terminal", make sure you're running in classic Command Prompt environment by executing cmd command, then execute setup /product server. Make sure to “Change how setup downloads updates” and select "Not right now". If you can select "Keep files, settings and apps" - proceed with that.

On some older machines setup can spend up to 30 minutes displaying blank screen. That is "normal", let it do the thing.

On some machines, using this method will break Windows Update - Cumulative Updates will fail to install quoting error code 0x800f081f. Run Command Prompt as Administrator and enter the following commands to fix the issue:

shell
dism /online /cleanup-image /startcomponentcleanup
dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth

Activation ​

Use Microsoft Activation Scripts (MAS).

Random freezes when using web browsers ​

Use MPO-GPU-FIX utility. From my personal experience, the patch needs to be reapplied after major OS updates.

Share files with Windows XP over SMB ​

File sharing is usually only enabled in "Private Networks", so either make your current network "Private" or enable file sharing on "Public Networks".

Open "Turn Windows features on or off" and make sure "SMB 1.0" is enabled.

Open "Computer Management", go to System Tools -> Local Users and Groups -> Users -> Guest, and uncheck "Account is disabled" to enable Guest account.

Open Local Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc), go to Computer Configuration -> Windows Settings -> Security Settings -> Local Policies -> User Rights Assignment -> Deny access to this computer from the network. Delete "Guest" from the list.

Diagnostics and overclocking ​

  • CPU-Z - detailed properties of CPU and RAM
  • CrystalDiskMark - industry standard storage benchmark
  • FanControl - fan/pump control utility with highly customizable curves. A must have for thermally challenged builds
  • FurMark - GPU stress test
  • Geekbench - free synthetic CPU and GPU benchmark
  • GPU-Z - detailed properties of GPU
  • HWINFO64 - free hardware inspector with excellent temperature monitoring
  • MSI Afterburner - industry standard GPU overclocking and undervolting tool. Bundled with RTSS, which provides customizable performance HUD and frame rate limiter
  • MSI Kombustor - GPU stress test
  • UNIGINE Benchmarks - popular free benchmarks based on a game engine

Useful utilities ​

  • 7-Zip - built-in Windows 11 archiving tools are still missing features and failing on some files
  • UniGetUI - GUI for package managers like Winget and Chocolatey
  • WinCaffeine - tray utility to prevent PC from sleeping
  • WinDirStat - disk usage statistics viewer

Multimedia tools ​

Networking ​

  • qBittorrent - open source BitTorrent client with dark mode support
  • Tailscale - lightweight encrypted tunnels between your computer, VM, or container
  • WinSCP - SFTP/WebDAV client with dark mode support (unlike FileZilla)

Productivity ​

  • Fantastical - calendar app with multiple account support, offline mode and search
  • Obsidian - markdown notes app with plugin support and offline mode
  • Thunderbird - old school, extensible email and calendar app

Development tools ​