Computer issues after last Windows Update

[Debbie292d]

Dell XPS 8940 PC
Windows 11
Chrome browser
Malwarebytes
No other outside VPN or virus scanner.

The last Windows update a couple of days ago did two things that I was not expecting and cannot fix.

1. I had about 200 files/photos in my downloads folder. (I planned to put them in appropriate folders.) That was wiped clean. I searched for some I knew the file name of, and they are nowhere on this PC, not even Trash. Most I can replace so no issues here, just mentioning it as it shouldn't have happened.

2. I seem to have lost my cookies and keep losing them. I have to re-authenticate several times a day to log in to BYC, Facebook has to send me verification texts, and Grammarly needs me to log in everywhere instead of automatically being there. Other sites are acting the same. The usernames and passwords are all there, but they need further verification each time.

Chrome things I checked:

I did not do this, and haven't done it in over a year or more:

There are cookies but not the right ones maybe or perhaps this isn't the issue?

I didn't see a setting for it to not clear cookies upon closing the browser window. Maybe I'm wrong here, and it has nothing to do with cookies?

@Nifty-Chicken @CarpCharacin @azurbanclucker @notabitail Anyone have other ideas for me to check? I'm stumped.

 

[casportpony]

1. I had about 200 files/photos in my downloads folder. (I planned to put them in appropriate folders.) That was wiped clean. I searched for some I knew the file name of, and they are nowhere on this PC, not even Trash. Most I can replace so issues here, just mentioning it as it shouldn't have happened.

I asked AI and it said to check C:\Users for extra or duplcate user folders:

 

[Debbie292d]

I asked AI and it said to check C:\Users for extra or duplcate user folders:
View attachment 4261637

I had checked that. There's two folders. Mine and Public. Mine is everything, Public has my PDF Foxit in there.

 

[Debbie292d]

Interestingly, I just got an email. So my computer thinks I'm missing part of my OS?

 

[Debbie292d]

Installed that and rebooted. No change.

Had to verify everywhere all over again. This is getting old fast!

 

[casportpony]

Did you find your missing files?

 

[Debbie292d]

Did you find your missing files?

No. I'm not worried about that though. It's a pain but I can download most from iCloud again. I just mention it as that also happened from the Windows Update.

 

[Debbie292d]

I tried ChatGPT's advice: Did/checked everything. But alas, none of this worked either.

This is a very common issue after recent Windows updates, and it’s usually not caused by browser cookies at all — even if it looks like it.

Here are the most common causes that fit your description, especially if it started “a couple of days ago” after an update:

​

Some Windows updates wipe or corrupt saved login tokens.
When that happens, websites can’t access the stored “session tokens” → so they ask you to verify every time.

Fix:

1. Open Start → Credential Manager
2. Go to Web Credentials
3. Look for duplicated or corrupted entries (they’ll often show blank icons or no description).
4. Remove any suspicious ones and let your browser rebuild them. (There was nothing strange there.)

​

This is a known cause of repeated logouts or verification loops.

Fix:

1. Settings → Accounts → Sign-in options
2. Scroll to “Use my sign-in info to automatically finish setting up my device after an update or restart”
3. Turn it ON (It was ON).

​

If Windows time is even a few seconds off, many websites (Google, banking, email) repeatedly force verification.

Fix:

1. Settings → Time & Language → Date & Time
2. Make sure:
   • Set time automatically → ON
   • Set time zone automatically → ON
   • Click Sync now (Time/date matched my phone, synced it anyway.)

​

This happens especially after security updates.

If you use Chrome:

1. Go to chrome://settings/system
2. Turn ON: “Continue running background apps when Chrome is closed.”
3. Also check: chrome://settings/cookies
   • Make sure “Clear cookies and site data when you close all windows” is OFF. (This was already okay.)

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Wow, those are both super frustrating and annoying (especially the latter).

I've been digging around, trying to find ideas or suggestions that haven't already been mentioned, and I can't find or think of anything.

(BTW, I know it doesn't help you now, but this is the exact reason why I use imaging software to do occasional full system backups, especially when I'm about to do an update.

... that way, if I get super weird problems that I can't fix by troubleshooting, I can roll back to a version of my entire system that was working properly... and had files)

Actually: Is there any chance that your system did a system backup before the update that you could roll back to?