HELP Winaero Tweaker has damaged my Win11 system

hdmi said:

Last time when I tried that, it had no impact on the world.

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I just tested it on Win 11 about 40 minutes ago. I posted pics for proof.
Posts #14 and #16
Works the same on Win 10 also.

Ghot said:

I just tested it on Win 11 about 40 minutes ago. I posted pics for proof.
Works the same on Win 10 also.

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I guess that's only because you live in a different world than me.

hdmi said:

I guess that's only because you live in a different world than me.

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I think you're right. ^^

I tried to change the system font again, to reset the system font, to reset the changes, etc in Winaero. Nothing helped. I tried to use my restore points, and they would not (could not) restore.

I was "offline" because Microsoft was reinstalling Win 11 Pro on my machine. I am functional again, with VERY small fonts. Now the Search box is working again, etc.

To cause the problems using Winaero 1.40:
The ONLY thing I did was (1) change the font size for the CURRENT_USER (to 12) (Icons, Menus, etc), and then attempt to change the system font. I wanted to use the same font (Segoe UI), but increase the size. When I clicked on change the font, it just happened. There was no "viewing" of the change, nothing. There was no chance to change the size of the font. Winaero made no comments of any kind. So I think that I "replaced" Segoe UI with Segoe UI. And that caused all the problems.

When I looked at the keys related to the system font, I found the (Default) value was (data not set). This was true for
HKLM\...\CurrentVersion\Fonts\
HKLM\...\Font Substitutions\
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\...\Font Management\

I didn't think those keys should be set to (data not set).

The ONLY reason I attempted this tweak was because I have such terrible eye strain and headaches using my new Win 11 machine. I have no such problems using my Win 10 machine.

I had read enough comments about the wonders of Winaero to be brave enough to attempt these tweaks, AND ONLY these tweaks. That was a real learning experience in what NEVER, NEVER to do.

bmagnet said:

I tried to change the system font again, to reset the system font, to reset the changes, etc in Winaero. Nothing helped.

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A little over 2 months ago I experienced the exact same as you. Nothing helped, excepting only the tutorial that I linked in my previous reply. I don't know why. To reduce eyestrain, have you tried this?

P.S., the best way to increase the very small size of the system font (IMO, and IME) is this. Increasing the scaling will increase the size of UI elements too, not just the system font, but on a 4K (3840×2160) screen with the Scaling at 150% it looks reasonable to me.

bmagnet said:

I had read enough comments about the wonders of Winaero to be brave enough to attempt these tweaks, AND ONLY these tweaks. That was a real learning experience in what NEVER, NEVER to do.

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Well, you should never do it without a backup,
I feel sure that we tell people that over and over.


You should be able to undo whatever combination of things you did, by using Winaero again.
Under the "Icons" tweak you should be able to choose whatever size the text was set at before you started.

Then, you should be able to go to the "System Font" tweak and reset that to system defaults.

If that still doesn't help, you can always do an In-Place upgrade will will fix Windows problems while leaving your programs and data untouched.


Use Option #2 (this link), to get the latest ISO image, save it to your desktop.[/n2]

Then use that ISO image to do an In-Place Upgrade to 22H2.

Here is the short version of the In-Place Upgrade tutorial...

DISABLE non-Microsoft:
a) antivirus software
b) firewall software
c) drive encryption software

Make a full OS backup with a program like Macrium Reflect (free)

Right click the ISO image and choose: MOUNT
Open File Explorer and you will see a new drive letter. It will "look" like a DVD optical drive.
Double click the new drive letter to open it.
Find setup.exe and double click it to start the in-place upgrade.
Choose the Keep personal files and apps option.

After it's all done... to UNmount the ISO image, right click the new drive letter and choose: EJECT.
The ONLY thing you will lose is some of your personalizations. Your programs and data will be intact.

After you've upgraded to Windows 11 22H2, run Windows Updates to get the latest version.
When that's done, make a fresh backup.

This time, when things are back to normal, get some 3rd party backup software like Macrium Reflect or AOMEI Backupper, and make a full OS image backup, and make the bootable Rescue Media.
THEN you can play around with any settings you want, and if you break something... just restore from your backup and try again.


There's nothing wrong with Winaero Tweaker... as long as you aren't operating without a safety net, like backup software.

Just for the record... if you're gonna tweak Windows... use backup software.
It even helps for other things like a bad Windows update... a bad driver update... etc.

How about using the built in options for text size?

Ghot said:

Then, you should be able to go to the "System Font" tweak and reset that to system defaults.

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Didn't work for me.

hdmi said:

Didn't work for me.

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I saw that the last time you said it.
I just assumed you did something wrong... cause it works fine for me.

I've found that one of the hardest things to do when tweaking... is to keep track of the tweaks we've done.
Personally, I keep a list of every tweak I do.

AND even then... I still use backup software.

Think I'm kidding? This is just Windows 10...










When ya go in the woods... take a map, or the bears will get ya! ^^

Porthos said:

How about using the built in options for text size?
View attachment 49169

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In some situations the text gets cut off due to it being too big to be able to fit inside the UI element in which the text is shown. Microsoft has always been infamous for this kind of tomfoolery.

Ghot said:

Personally, I keep a list of every tweak I do.

AND even then... I still use backup software.

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Same here, but I also automate various tweaks by writing my own programs and (mostly) scripts for that. Some of these depend on Microsoft PowerAutomate Desktop (free version) and/or AutoIT.

Yes, I am using Accessibility > Text size to increase the size of EVERYTHING. This makes webpages (like the one I am typing on) TOO big. The text also gets cut off. AND not all of the text is actually increased. For instance, the date and time in the lower right corner is not any bigger. On this webpage, the titles of the threads are increased, but the other information is not any larger.

I was attempting to find a better solution using Winaero. Once again, I think I "replaced" the default system font Segeo UI with Segeo UI. THAT was the problem.
Things might have worked correctly if I had replaced Segeo UI with Arial (for example).

YES, I had no business attempting this dangerous undertaking. I had built a USB Recovery disk, but didn't have an ISO image, and didn't know how to use one. I had several recovery points, but NONE of them fixed the problems.

I was just desperate for a little relief from the constant headaches.

Ghot said:

Think I'm kidding?

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I'm not quite as meticulous as Ghot in keeping track of MY tracks, but I ALWAYS export any registry key I work on before I make changes. I also make an image once a week. I believe strongly in covering my a$$ because I screw up on a regular basis, and never know when Windows will do the same. System Restore...pfft. Useless.

glasskuter said:

I'm not quite as meticulous as Ghot in keeping track of MY tracks, but I ALWAYS export any registry key I work on before I make changes. I also make an image once a week. I believe strongly in covering my a$$ because I screw up on a regular basis, and never know when Windows will do the same. System Restore...pfft. Useless.

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We in the "I wanna Tweak it" group do screw things up every once in a while. Me too! I know it's my fault and I never blame anything or anyone but ME.
That's why I make sure that I have a fresh System Restore Point every day, and a complete C: drive backup no less than once a week.
One path to tweaking, that I adopted some years ago, is to make one tweak, make sure it works and make a new restore point by rebooting the PC. Make the next tweak and repeat the above process, so that I have a restore point to fall back on if any one tweak takes off down a dirt road.

Just a few days ago, something in Windows took a long walk off of a short Pier, and I had no reasonable choice but to do a full C: drive Restore. That worked, and the world was back, right side up again. Maybe y'all notice that I advocate doing Backups, in my sig. line.
Famous old saying, "the only bad backup is the one you decided not to make".
Cheers Mates!
TM

bmagnet said:

I used Winaero Tweaker 1.40 to change the fonts for Icons, Menus, etc. That worked fine. Then I change the System Font, and the WORLD ENDED. When I hit the "search" on the Taskbar, a blank window opens and flashes. I used regedit to look at the entry for the system font. The HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft|Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Fonts has the first entry called "Default".
(Default) REG-SZ (value not set).

PLEASE help me fix this. I know nothing about the Registry, or Windows 11. I used this program on the advice of this forum.

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Ive used winaero tweaker to change my system font for a long time now. Never any issues. But what does happen for me is the Font doesnt stick, it reverts back to default system font sooner or later or sooner as in within a day sort of thing. I know being able to change the font in windows settings makes sense and i have been waiting for Microsoft to remove head from butt scenario. Its an easy coding issue

Thank you very much for your comment. I think my problem is that I accidentally asked winaero to change the system FROM Segeo UI TO Segeo UI. That should be a "non-change". But something weird happened when I asked for such a "nonsense" change. I wanted to change the SIZE of the font, but winaero was only set up to change the TYPE of the font. I clicked Segeo thinking that I would be given a choice for the size, and the ability to VIEW the change BEFORE it was applied. Obviously that is NOT what happens. The "world ended" instead.

The Microsoft documentation TOLD me to generate a System Restore Point, NOT backup the registry. So that is what I had done. WRONG decision. I know that NOW, but not THEN (of course).

The more I study the problem, the less I am able to see ANY real fix. My eye strain and massive headaches continue each day. I wear computer glasses, but they are NOT nearly strong enough. My computer glasses will probably have to be STRONGER than my bifocals. AND many programs are blurry, no matter what I do. I am almost ready to throw the new Win11 computer out the window, and buy an Apple.

@bmagnet

Have you tried just using Winaero to "go back" to the System Font?

See post #23 for the correct solution.