Bugs Killed
Problems I have seen killed on Windows and Mac, with the steps that killed them.
Each page says where it comes from: a repair I made, a repair by someone from XL.net, or published sources you can open. The steps are one quick check away.
Windows
No audio because system volume was muted and set to 0
The computer had no sound because the main volume was set to 0 and mute was enabled. The technician turned sound back on and raised the volume, and audio worked again.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2026-01-05.
Windows
Excel prompts for activation because a non-licensed Office account is signed in
Excel was reporting that it needed to be activated. The fix was to remove the secondary Office account that did not have a valid license so only the licensed account remained signed in.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2026-01-05.
Windows
Docked external display not detected
The laptop's external display was not being detected when connected through the dock. The issue was resolved after a BIOS update on the laptop.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2026-01-05.
Windows
Missing printer mapping on a Windows computer
The needed printer was missing from the computer's printer setup, so printing did not work. The technician resolved it by mapping the printer using its IP address.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2026-01-05.
Windows
Recurring printer notification caused by extra installed printers
A Windows laptop kept showing a printer notification. The technician removed all printers except PDF/application printers from the local laptop and the remote machine, rebooted, and the notification stopped appearing.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2026-01-02.
Windows
Outlook crashes when printing an email
Outlook was crashing and prompting for Safe Mode after an email print attempt. The printer was reinstalled on a TCP/IP port, updated to the latest Windows 11 print driver, and printing from Outlook on the virtual desktop was confirmed working.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-31.
Windows
Outlook desktop profile issue prevented mailbox folders from loading
Mailbox folders were not listed in Outlook, so the expected mail could not be accessed. The Outlook desktop profile issue was fixed and verified by confirming new email loaded and the mailbox folders were available again.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-30.
Windows
Browser sites returned "page can't be found" because of DNS
Both browsers failed to open sites and showed "page can't be found". The issue was identified as DNS-related and was resolved by restarting the machine.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-30.
Windows
Microphone was muted by the keyboard mute key
Microphone input was reported as not working. The keyboard Microphone Mute key was turned off, then a microphone test in Windows Settings passed.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-29.
Windows
Monday workspaces were not visible until all workspaces were browsed
The user could not see all of the Monday workspaces they had access to. The issue was resolved by browsing all workspaces so the missing workspaces became visible.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-24.
Windows
Repeated Windows feature update restart prompt caused by low disk space
The computer kept showing a Windows feature update restart prompt because the update was failing due to low disk space. Disk space was freed up so the update could continue after the download completed.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-24.
Windows
USB drives were corrupted and would not encrypt with BitLocker
A set of USB drives would not stay encrypted with BitLocker because the drives themselves were corrupted. The issue was confirmed by encrypting a different USB drive successfully.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-23.
Windows
Remote Desktop administrator error caused by a missing taskbar icon
The user saw an error telling them to check with the administrator when opening Remote Desktop. The issue was resolved by pinning the Remote Desktop icon back to the taskbar.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-22.
Windows
Temporary Windows profile loaded instead of the normal user profile
The computer signed in to a temporary profile, which made the taskbar and other programs stop working. The technician removed the temporary profile so the correct profile could be used again.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-20.
Windows
Egnyte sync issue prevented access to a PDF file until the computer was restarted
The Egnyte app was not syncing correctly, and after the computer was restarted the PDF file could be accessed again.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-20.
Windows
Browser bookmarks or websites fail with "can't be found" until browser data is cleared
The browser could not open bookmarks or some websites and showed that the page "can't be found". Clearing the browser data, relaunching the browser, and retesting restored normal loading; Bitwarden was not the cause.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-19.
Windows
Mapped S drive inaccessible after password expiry
The user could not access the mapped S drive because the login password had expired. Support reset the login password and remapped the S drive, then confirmed Outlook, Teams, and OneDrive were connected.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-17.
Windows
Excel formatting changes were not being retained because the file was a .csv
Excel was opening a comma-separated values (.csv) file, so formatting changes were not being preserved. The file was saved as an Excel workbook (.xlsx) and the formatting changes then saved correctly.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-15.
Windows
Dock fan failure prevents boot
The computer stopped at the boot menu with a dock fan failure message and would not boot automatically into Windows. A replacement docking station was sent and the new dock was confirmed in use.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-15.
Windows
Print jobs produced no error but nothing printed because a duplicate printer entry was present
Printing showed no error message, but nothing happened when a print job was sent. Testing found two printer entries using the same IP; the non-working entry was removed and printing worked from the remaining one.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-15.
Windows
Windows 11 upgrade for an outdated desktop OS
The desktop was running an outdated operating system and the technician upgraded it to Windows 11. The ticket was closed after the upgrade was confirmed complete.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-15.
Windows
Test domain blocked by DNS Filter
A new test domain was being blocked when trying to reach the website. The domain was added to the DNS Filter allowed list, and access should work afterward.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-14.
Windows
Help-center link blocked by firewall and showed a privacy warning
The help-center link from the secure web app opened a browser privacy warning instead of the page. The domain was whitelisted on the firewall after approval, and the help page could then be reached.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-10.
Windows
VPN would not connect over cellular internet until the modem was rebooted
VPN access was failing when the connection came through a cellular modem/hotspot. Rebooting the modem restored VPN connectivity.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-10.
Windows
Windows updates failed because the disk was too full
The computer could not run Windows updates because it did not have enough free disk space. The technician cleaned up temporary files, log files, a PST restore file, and unneeded installer files, leaving about 19 GB free.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-09.
Windows
Excel error until Office was repaired and Windows updates were installed
Excel was reporting an error when files were opened. The technician repaired the Microsoft Office products, installed Windows updates, and confirmed that several Excel files then opened normally.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-09.
Windows
New Outlook would not open
The New Outlook app would not load on the laptop. The app was repaired and then opened normally again.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-09.
Windows
AVD loads to a black screen after reconnecting
The user could not get back into the virtual desktop after disconnecting; the session loaded normally but showed only a black screen. Support restarted the AVD/virtual machine and believed that resolved the connection issue.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-09.
Windows
Slow computer with high CPU use; installed updates and restarted
The computer became slow over a few days, with about 80% CPU shown in Task Manager even though only a few apps were open and Settings was slow to load. Important updates were installed and the computer was restarted to apply them.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-09.
Windows
Enscape in SketchUp 2026 needed reinstall and licensing under the correct account
Enscape needed to be reinstalled and then licensed with the correct account. It was verified to function properly in SketchUp 2024 and SketchUp 2026.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-04.
Windows
Disabled audio drivers caused missing speaker and microphone in Teams
Teams had no audio because the audio device drivers were disabled, so speaker and microphone options were missing. The technician uninstalled and reinstalled the audio drivers, rebooted the PC, and ran a Windows scan; audio worked normally afterward.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-04.
Windows
Adobe Acrobat opens, but PDF files would not open
The computer could open Adobe Acrobat, but PDF files would not open from email or from local files. The issue was fixed after the machine was rebooted.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-04.
Windows
OpenVPN login fails with a wrong-credentials message until Okta Verify is set up
The VPN sign-in was failing with a wrong-credentials message. The fix was to set up the Okta Verify mobile app so OpenVPN authentication could complete.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-04.
Windows
Adobe Acrobat missing prevented sending documents for digital signatures
The user could not send documents for digital signatures because Adobe Acrobat was not installed. Installing Adobe Acrobat resolved the issue.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-04.
Windows
Teams mobile app could not access meetings until local network access was enabled
The Teams mobile app on the phone could not join meetings. Enabling local network access in the app resolved it.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-03.
Windows
Internet access stopped working after updates; restart restored it
The computer was reported as very slow before a reboot and update cycle. After the updates finished, internet connectivity was lost, and a quick restart restored access.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-03.
Windows
Excel trust issue caused by Group Policy blocking trusted locations
Excel was showing a trust issue on a file that had worked before. The Excel policy settings were changed back to Not Configured so Group Policy would stop blocking trusted locations.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-02.
Windows
Taskbar disappeared after a Windows feature update
A recent Windows feature update left the taskbar missing. The fix was to roll back that feature update and reboot; after restart, the taskbar was back.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-12-01.
Windows
Wireless keyboard and foot pedal not working in a virtual machine
The wireless keyboard and foot pedal were not working. Replacing the keyboard batteries and uninstalling/reinstalling the USB Over Network software restored use in the virtual machine.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-28.
Windows
Random freezes and slowdowns; repaired by depot inspection
The PC was reported as randomly freezing and slowing down. It was sent for depot inspection, then returned with the issue marked resolved.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-28.
Windows
Outlook classic would not open until the network connection was refreshed
Outlook was not pulling up. The technician refreshed the network connection and Outlook opened normally again.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-25.
Windows
C70 Color printer setup required moving off Guest WiFi
The workstation was on Guest WiFi and could not see the office printers. After switching it to the office network, the C70 Color printer connected on the new workstation.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-24.
Windows
Low free space on the C: drive
The PC had very little free space on C:, and the technician did a cleanup that raised free space from 1.55 GB to 83.4 GB.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-24.
Windows
Printer shows online but print jobs do not go through
The printer was online, but jobs would not print. The computer was restarted and the printer was power-cycled; when the printer came back on, the stuck jobs printed and normal printing resumed.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-21.
Windows
Mapped S: drive unavailable because the file-share VM was unresponsive
The S: drive could not be accessed because the virtual machine hosting the shared folder was online but unresponsive. Rebooting that VM and the dependent terminal server VM restored access to the drive.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-21.
Windows
Teams camera and video not available inside AVD
Camera and video were unavailable in Teams inside the AVD session, with the camera icon blurred out and no option to use it. Relaunching Teams resolved the device passthrough issue, and retesting a Teams meeting confirmed camera and sound worked; the same result was confirmed again after relaunching AVD.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-19.
Windows
Postman desktop app would not open or uninstall
Postman would not open and uninstalling it was unresponsive, usually only showing a spinning circle and no error message. The app was reinstalled, updated to the latest version, and then verified to launch and sign in successfully.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-19.
Windows
Canon plotter was not reachable because its LAN setting was disabled
Plotting from Revit to the Canon plotter failed because the plotter was not accessible on the network. The LAN setting was enabled and printing was then confirmed to work.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-18.
Windows
Bank website login fails in Chrome until browser updates are allowed
The user could not log in to a bank website in Google Chrome. The fix was to allow Chrome updates and then update Chrome to the latest version, after which the site opened normally.
- Windows
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-18.
Windows
Built-in laptop keyboard keys stopped working
Spacebar, G, H, and T stopped responding on the laptop's built-in keyboard. The ticket was closed after a new laptop/workstation setup was completed and the user confirmed it was working.
Killed once by someone from XL.net, on 2025-11-18.