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Rafael Rivera
1,966 posts
user avatar
Rafael Rivera
@WithinRafael
Forward engineer by day, reverse engineer by night. Le Cordon Bleu. Windows Dev MVP alum. My brain is protected by Beefbrain Shield Pro.
Redmond, WA
withinrafael.com
Joined October 2008
2
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15.9K
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  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Aug 15, 2024
    Latest Windows build (Canary) removes artificial FAT32 partition size limitation!
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    76K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    May 9, 2025
    Microsoft periodically releases these hilariously unconvincing design manifestos, only to subsequently ignore their own principles by cluttering their interfaces with advertisements, unnecessary app promotions, and various other unwanted elements. Don't hold your breath.
    35K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Mar 28, 2025
    Soon?
    Image
    Rejuvenated bugcheck screen/BSOD in Windows 11. It is a black screen with some text saying that the user's device ran into a problem and needs to restart, with a percentage indicator. The stop code and what failed are shown at the bottom.
    Rejuvenated bugcheck screen/BSOD for Insiders in Windows 11. It is a green screen with some text saying that the user's device ran into a problem and needs to restart, with a percentage indicator. The stop code and what failed are shown at the bottom.
    user avatar
    phantomofearth 🌳
    @phantomofearth
    Mar 28, 2025
    Here's the rejuvenated bugcheck/BSOD in the latest Insider builds (feature ID 50070238) in both colors. The QR code and frown say bye bye, and the screen is going back to black for production PCs just as it was in the early 22000 days.
    24K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Apr 22, 2024
    You can plant a few of your favorite DLLs into \Downloads and bounce off those shiny new Microsoft Store installers 👍 ncrypt.dll, cryptsp.dll, cryptbase.dll, bcrypt.dll, msvcp140_clr0400.dll, profapi.dll, en\StoreInstaller.resources.dll, d3d9.dll, etc.
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    197K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Apr 20, 2024
    The Microsoft Store team has started quietly wrapping apps, like EarTrumpet, with some malware-looking .NET executable wrapper (with my app's name of course) chock full of telemetry and other code. They also target netfx 4.7.2 when my app targets netfx 4.6.2, wtf?
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    130K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Jul 23, 2025
    Don't ever run scripts that claim to "debloat" windows. Always a bad idea.
    user avatar
    Tom Dörr
    @tom_doerr
    Jul 23, 2025
    PowerShell script to remove bloatware and tweak Windows 11
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    33K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Apr 18, 2025
    Dave Plummer is abusing DMCA to go after a YouTuber he doesn't like digging around in his criminal past. 🤡
    user avatar
    Enderman
    @endermanch
    Apr 16, 2025
    Hey, @TeamYouTube, Dave's Garage is constantly issuing false DMCA notices in attempts to silence my video. His false pretense is me «copying and pasting» his thumbnail, while it's obviously untrue. This is blatant copyright system abuse, please help. youtu.be/1GeF9AjlqP8
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    13K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Nov 8, 2024
    From a former Microsoft employee: Mikhail Parakhin, former head of Bing Search and Microsoft Advertising, and his gang of Bing yes-men are to blame for Edge and Windows being packed with ads, scams, and other unwanted junk. Shocker.
    26K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Mar 4, 2025
    Made possible, thanks in tiny part due to me, the uncredited unfunded contributor/maintainer of the SDK/WDK Win32 Metadata projects used by the app (see assets\NOTICE.txt). I'll just be over here eating my ramen.🥲
    user avatar
    Zac Bowden
    @zacbowden
    Mar 4, 2025
    I can't believe my eyes. Microsoft is previewing a new version of Copilot for Windows that has a native Windows UI! It's using WinUI 3, and it looks pretty great. DETAILS: windowscentral.com/software-apps/… 😲
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    14K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Nov 19, 2024
    Probably safer to pay $50 than install this on your machine. It will automatically install Bing Visual Search and has code to peruse and decrypt your Edge and Chrome cookies.
    30K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Jul 16, 2024
    Not sure about this story. The Start Menu branding bitmap variants shipped in Windows NT, Windows 2000, etc.
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    51K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Jan 21, 2025
    Microsoft reached out today to recommend putting EarTrumpet into the Microsoft Store. Good idea! 😂 Bruh. We were in Microsoft Store at launch (wave 1) and have roughly 160M+ unique acquisitions across 241 markets.
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    8.1K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    May 6, 2024
    Microsoft has quietly tweaked its app installer executable. Altered dll search path in an attempt to mitigate my finding, added new icon, etc. I continue to have no comms from that team, despite reaching out. Previous threads: x.com/WithinRafael/s… x.com/WithinRafael/s…
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    user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Apr 20, 2024
    The Microsoft Store team has started quietly wrapping apps, like EarTrumpet, with some malware-looking .NET executable wrapper (with my app's name of course) chock full of telemetry and other code. They also target netfx 4.7.2 when my app targets netfx 4.6.2, wtf?
    52K
  • user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Jul 22, 2024
    Replying to @timmisiak
    Yep, and some stories have accuracy issues (e.g. x.com/WithinRafael/s…)
    user avatar
    Rafael Rivera
    @WithinRafael
    Jul 16, 2024
    Not sure about this story. The Start Menu branding bitmap variants shipped in Windows NT, Windows 2000, etc.
    Image
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    29K