[Solved] Optimized Image Guide - System Properties always back to defaults after reboot

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ohbehave

New Member
I've installed Windows 10 21H1 Pro following the Optimized Image Guide (December 2023 update) by Hellbovine.

I noticed immediately that all of the settings in System Properties > Advanced > Performance were being reset to their defaults on every reboot. The one that really matters is 'Show window contents while dragging' because when this is unticked it seems you either get just a gray outline or, sometimes, nothing at all to guide you when moving windows. I have to keep toggling this on after every reboot along with some other useful settings. [Just out of interest, most of these are disabled by default, is this by design?]

I don't think this is down to any other changes I've made because I noticed this immediately after install.

I made the following changes to the ISO while following Hellbovine's guide:
  • Installed SSU-19041.1704
  • Installed cumulative update KB5026361
  • Applied the Privacy template
  • Disabled all the options under Configure > Settings > Privacy except:
    • Allow telemetry: Basic
    • Enforce DCOM Hardening Changes: Default
    • Remove registry logs of package install locations: Default
    • Search - Find My Files: Default
    • Shellbags: Default
  • Enabled .NET Framework 3.5
  • Applied a bunch of registry files to remove unnecessary shell and contextual menu items.
Troubleshooting Windows isn't my strong suit so suggestions are welcome.
 
My registry files do intentionally set the Visual Effects so that everything is unchecked except for font smoothing within the "let Windows choose" button. Unchecking most things helps reduce overhead, but is also the most frequently requested setup on the internet for these settings.

You should be able to change it all on a live install though. What happens when you click the other three options for best appearance, best performance, and custom? If any of these modes are resetting after a reboot, then something else is interfering. To change the "let Windows choose" mode, edit my registry files and modify the relevant keys there.
 
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garlin said:
Installing the SSU is redundant, it's automatically included in the current CU. It's not harmful, but unnecessary.
Click to expand...
You're probably right normally, but the official KB article for this particular CU indicates that the extraction and manual pre-slipstreaming of this SSU is necessary to avoid a Microsoft Edge installation bug for custom ISOs, which I assumed applied to one created with NTLite.
Hellbovine said:
My registry files do intentionally set the Visual Effects so that everything is unchecked except for font smoothing within the "let Windows choose" button. Unchecking most things helps reduce overhead, but is also the most frequently requested setup on the internet for these settings.
Click to expand...
I just wanted to make sure this was wasn't part of the symptoms. I normally untick most of these myself anyway because, like you say, it's mostly just a CPU hog.
Hellbovine said:
You should be able to change it all on a live install though. What happens when you click the other three options for best appearance, best performance, and custom?
Click to expand...
Interestingly, if I enable Best Appearance, click Apply, then reboot, this persists - IOW Best Appearance and all the sub-options remain ticked. But if I go Custom and tick only the following:
  • Show shadows under windows
  • Show window contents while dragging
  • Smooth edges of screen fonts
  • Smooth-scroll list boxes
Then reboot only ONE of these persists:
  • Smooth edges of screen fonts
Bizarre. If only one was going to remain ticked, couldn't it have been the one I actually want? :p:rolleyes:
Hellbovine said:
If any of these modes are resetting after a reboot, then something else is interfering. To change the "let Windows choose" mode, edit my registry files and modify the relevant keys there.
Click to expand...
So you're suggesting I modify the original Registry files that you supplied, tweak them to match to my personal defaults and then re-apply them on my current live install, right?
Anything so long as I don't need to do a fresh install :eek:
 
ohbehave said:
...if I go Custom and tick only the following...
Click to expand...
Visual Effects can be really cumbersome due to Microsoft's clunky design of that settings page and the registry keys underneath it. There's things that can interfere with some of them, and solving your situation is probably as simple as deleting conflicting keys acquired elsewhere. That would take up more time than it's worth hunting things down though, since the traditional tweaking method for that settings page is obsolete and the focus should just shift to the better method, discussed below.

ohbehave said:
...modify the original Registry files that you supplied, tweak them to match to my personal defaults and then re-apply them on my current live install, right?
Click to expand...
I attached a registry file to this reply, which you can download anywhere and double-click on it to install exactly what you want (show shadows, show window, smooth edges, smooth-scroll) with everything else disabled. No reinstall of Windows required, but you may need to manually select the "let Windows choose" button again and then reboot afterwards. To explore and personalize my tweaks, right-click on a registry file and click "Edit" to see its contents, including documentation I added about what they handle.
 

Attachments

  • Visual_Effects.reg
    4.9 KB
Well I spoke too soon. So the reg file works and the settings are shown as applied when I select Let Windows Decide... IOW each of the 4 options is ticked in the list.

But... the one setting I find most important - Show window contents while dragging - isn't actually applied in practice, but acts as though it's still disabled. Very odd. All the others work as they should.

If I untick 'Show window contents while dragging' this automatically changes the main setting to Custom. I click Apply and the window dragging behaviour follows the way the setting is toggled and so is disabled, as expected. If I now choose Let Windows Decide... and then Apply, the reg file's options are applied and the window dragging behaviour follows the fact that the setting is now enabled and so works as it should. But then this is lost on reboot just like before...

Open to suggestions.
 
Can you elaborate on what "lost on reboot" means. Are you saying it removes checkmarks from something, or are the settings remaining checked and the issue is that the feature to display contents while dragging things around stops working after a reboot? Try the following without skipping anything, no matter how trivial. I have more ideas, but this should solve it or at least give us some insights.

1) Go to the Visual Effects page and select the "best appearance" option, then click "Apply" and "OK" before exiting. Now, reboot.

2) Go back to the Visual Effects page and select the "best performance" option, then click "Apply" and "OK" before exiting. Reboot again.

3) Revisit the Visual Effects page and select the "let Windows choose" option, then click "Apply" and "OK" before exiting. Reboot one last time, then check to see if the contents of Windows appear while dragging them around. This step assumes the previous registry file I attached is still active.

If that doesn't fix it, make sure you are rebooting where indicated and bring up Task Manager to look at the CPU display for "Up time" to see if it only has seconds displayed after a reboot, otherwise if there are minutes, hours, or days it means Fast Startup is enabled and that can interfere with testing by preventing the computer from truly rebooting or shutting down, so disable it and perform the steps again.
 
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