Solved ***Bitdefender on Windows 11***

My guess, after extensive testing, is that one of two things happened.
Either... Microsoft has "taken" over Bitdefender (paid), or Bitdefender allowed Microsoft to take over.

Clues...
1. Windows 11 Home updates... nothing, every 2-3 days [No KB numbers, with everything up to date as far as Windows Update is concerned]
2. New entry in REVO > Windows Apps, called: Bitdefender CL Contextual Menu (see pic below).
3. Only on Windows 11, Winaero Tweaker's "see how this tweak works" link, no longer functions.

I've talked with Microsoft and with Bitdefender, and both blame the other.

The "nothing" updates mentioned in #1 seem to me like they're probably Windows Defender updates. These "nothing" updates just started in Oct. 2022.
My best guess is that Microsoft has taken over Bitdefender, and possibly Winaero Tweaker as well... only on Windows 11.
None of these problems occur on Windows 10.

I've used Bitdefender Internet Security (paid) for 9 years.
This entry has never popped in REVO's Windows Apps, till the 2nd half of 2022.



Testing Notes...

1. Use REVO to uninstall Bitdefnder CL Contextual Menu, and Windows Update puts it back upon reboot.
2. Uninstall Bitdefender and Bitdefnder CL Contextual Menu goes away.
3. Wipe Windows 11 from SSD. Then do In-Place upgrade from Win 10 to either 21H2 or 22H2... WU puts it back again.
4. Reinstall Winaero Tweaker... same problem. "See how this tweak works" no longer functions on Win 11 only.
5. When I say WU puts it back again, I mean... I get the messages before and after restart... 0-30% and 30-100%
But no update shows in any list. And it continues to happen every 2-3 days... pretty much like Windows Defender is updating.



This screenshot was taken on July 13th 2022...

I've told both Microsoft and Bitdefender of the problem. I don't know what the outcome will be, but until something is resolved, it makes NO sense to pay for a product that doesn't function properly on Windows 11.

I've got an idea for another test... I'm gonna disable Windows Defender completely, and see what happens.
Ok... Windows Defender is disabled, now for some tests...

I'm gonna remove (with REVO), that Bitdefender CL Contextual Menu item in Windows Apps, and see if WU puts it back again.

REVO remove that entry and it's registry leftovers... fast.
It takes about 3-4 minutes to remove the leftovers in File Explorer though.


Ok... everything is removed. Need to restart.
In the past... when I restarted after doing this... WU would put it back.
Let's see what happens.

Ok, it's gone, and this time, after removing, I didn't get the 0-30% and the 30-100% upon reboot.
Now to update Bitdefender itself...




After updating just Bitdefender... it's back.
But, I still need to reboot again, to see if I get the 0-30% and the 30-100%, that I've been getting every few days, with no updates available.

I have recommended some of my clients run Bitdefender in the past & was never happy with the results so stopped recommending users run it !
Going to follow your post as i am curious to see what you come up with.

flashh4 said:

I have recommended some of my clients run Bitdefender in the past & was never happy with the results so stopped recommending users run it !
Going to follow your post as i am curious to see what you come up with.

Click to expand...

Also... this is the error that Winaero is popping up when I click on "See how this tweak works".
This error only happens on Win 11 and happens even after reinstalling Winaero.




I'm gonna remove Bitdefender CL Contextual Menu again, and retest Winaero.

Ok... Winaero throws this error when clicking on ANY of the "see how this tweak works" links on Win 11 only.
BUT... doesn't seem to be related to the Bitdefender CL Contextual Menu entry in REVO.

Well, MAYBE not related. Bitdefender put that entry back in REVO while I was typing this post... without me trying to update Bitdefender.

So... I guess I'll turn Windows Defender back on... and just wait till Bitdefender and MS get their acts together.



UPDATE...


OK, so everything is back to normal, and I guess we wait... as usual.
I think I will notify the Winaero folks cause that seems to be related to a Windows Update.

Well, I can't seem to contact the author: Sergey Tkachenko

I don't use an email client or any social media.



Notes:

I don't have EDGE installed. Only browser I have installed in Firefox 105.0.3

I can't think of anything else to check at the moment.

My guesses at this time...

1. The Bitdefender CL Contextual Menu item may be some kind of work-around by Bitdefender to accommodate something Microsoft has done since July 2022. Best I can figure, it was installed around July 29th 2022. It wasn't there on July 13th 2022.
Windows Updates in July 2022, were on the 12th and the 21st.

2. I don't know what the deal is with Winaero Tweaker, it works fine on Windows 10.
It might be because I removed EDGE on Win 11. I still have EDGE installed on Win 10.
Next time I'm on Win 11 I'll put EDGE back and see if the Winaero links start working again?






After noticing all this stuff in the last couple days, I was sad. So yesterday, I bought a book...


So, for now, back to Windows 10 where the air is sweet and the wind blows free.


Heck... I got nothing better to do. I'm gonna go back to Win 11 and reinstall EDGE.
Well, that fixed Winaero. Even though I have EDGE and EDGE Update blocked in the Bitdefender firewall...
Winaero "see how this tweak works" links, work again.

Evil, evil Microsoft. LOL


Sigh... I guess I have to make a new backup now.
Now... I need to make a fresh backup on Win 10. I did the chipset drivers on both, the other day.




Well, I guess all my weekend warrior-ing is finished. So... it's time to relax.

Conclusion...


It "must" just be a work-around from Bitdefender, to make up for some W11 skullduggery. The program itself, never even flinched.
It would have been nice if they had used a Bitdefender icon, instead of some old Microsoft icon.

I marked this solved, and I'm not gonna worry about it.

I use MWB + Defender. The reason I still use MWB Premium is my grandfathered license from many moons ago so I save a few bucks a year by using it. Never used BD but I know it's rated #1 now. My only suggestion to anyone living in the free world. Don't support Kapersky. It's always been really good at what it does, but its owner's ties to the Russian government are enough to not give them any of my money. It's too bad most people who use it don't know that. Sorry to the 4000 or so of innocent Russians who work for Kapersky, but I stand with Ukraine.

Along those same lines, just saw this the other day...

I agree with @glasskuter! Kaspersky is headquartered in Moscow and the Russian economy gets nothing from me!

I also use Microsoft Security (Defender) so I don't need to endure the BitDefender dance.

@TraderGary Did you know he got his education at a KGB-sponsored technical college which prepared intelligence officers for the Russian military and KGB. After he graduated, he served the Soviet military intelligence service as a software engineer but surprisingly (or maybe not so surprising) they released him early from military service after he found and designed protection for a number of viruses within the military's network. Sounds real sketchy to me.

glasskuter said:

@TraderGary Did you know he got his education at a KGB-sponsored technical college which prepared intelligence officers for the Russian military and KGB. After he graduated, he served the Soviet military intelligence service as a software engineer but surprisingly (or maybe not so surprising) they released him early from military service after he found and designed protection for a number of viruses within the military's network. Sounds real sketchy to me.

Click to expand...

Wow! I knew nothing of his background, just that I will not support the Russian economy. Now there's even more reason to avoid Kaspersky.

Since this thread is about BitDefender, did you know that BitDefender is headquartered in Romania? Romania shares a 337-mile-long border with Ukraine and is friendly with Russia.

Romania is also a full member of the European Union and has, as far as I'm aware, not expressed any support for the current actions by the Russian government.

I'm sure that most, if not all, European countries, including the Ukraine, would much prefer to have an 'amicable' relationship with the Russian people, but co-operation is a two-way street and is dependent on government's that are genuinely interested in diplomatic solutions that do not involve repeatedly annexing vast areas of other sovereign states by military force.

I just tried Bitdefender Free and, unfortunately, am back to Windows Defender. Several years ago, I remember Bitdefender being both very good in lab test results AND very light on resources. While it still ranks well with detection rates, it consumed a lot of memory on machine and slowed it down, including web browsing (I think it was scanning connections).

mccnavy said:

I just tried Bitdefender Free and, unfortunately, am back to Windows Defender. Several years ago, I remember Bitdefender being both very good in lab test results AND very light on resources. While it still ranks well with detection rates, it consumed a lot of memory on machine and slowed it down, including web browsing (I think it was scanning connections).

Click to expand...

I disabled everything BUT the AV, firewall and Threat Defense.
The thing I like most about it... you can set the Firewall to "Block All", then just allow what you want through.



I do miss the old days when Zonealarm was king. Best firewall I ever used.
Any thing that wanted to access the internet or my computer, popped up a little window. All I had to do was click allow or deny... one time, and that was it. Zonealarm would remember forever.


This was my Windows XP setup...
The only times I had to open this window was if I wanted to change a choice I made before.




This was all I ever really had to deal with. It would popup down by the clock whenever something (first time only), tried to get out, or come in...



When ZA was first installed ofc, you had to spend a day or two, allowing or denying... but then it didn't really bother you... ever.
And... when you denied something... that was it... it just couldn't get through, no matter what.

I remember thinking, every time I denied something... da-gung !!! Like heavy bars slamming down.

But then, like everything else, sometime between 2011 and 2012... they messed it all up.


And the best part of all, was after the install of ZA you could tell it to just block everything.
So then, you only had to "allow" a few things.

Best of all, it was completely free with no ads or "this part only works if you pay". ^^