Topic: Windows 10 to be free upgrade for Win7/8 owners

[scottws]

Same guy again.  Windows 10 S.  Oh, boy!  Here it comes.  This is a severely locked-down version of Windows 10, not the "special" "extra-nice" that an 'S' after the name would have most of us thinking.  It runs only apps bought through the store, browses the net only with Edge, and searches the net only with Bing.  It is now the standard version of Windows on the new Surface laptops.  Their spin is security, but what you get is basically the same kind of walled-garden environment found on consoles and smartphones.  You can spend an extra $50 to unlock it (for now).

It shouldn't take the help of a tinfoil hat to see where this might lead.  Most people don't know how to prevent updates to their copies of Windows 10.  As Jerry says in the video, the circle is slowly closing in.  The new Creator's update will bring back the OS's default settings.  Maybe this time, you'll really stick to Edge and Cortana.  Slowly . . .

It's supposed to be a Chrome OS competitor since that is eating Microsoft's and Apple's lunch in the education sector.

[MysterD]

Is Windows 10 S Edition (locked-down version) a lot cheaper than the usual Windows 10 versions (that allow you do install, download, and use other stuff you want)?

[Cobra951]

The education target was right up front.  I understand why Microsoft want to compete there.  What I don't understand is why they have to lock Windows like that to achieve it.   If anything, that makes the environment more limited and inflexible.  They could have used Windows openness as a differentiating factor in their pitch, and turned it into a competitive advantage.  They could have added a "parental-lock" layer with teachers as administrators and students as restricted users.  There is much they could have done without arriving at what they did, which is so obviously an attempt to lock the user to Microsoft's ecosystem, with a fee to escape it.  This opens a door I never want to walk through.

[Cobra951]

Massive vulnerability in Windows Defender leaves most Windows PCs vulnerable

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/security/4022344

Patch was issued immediately.  Anyone using Defender, Security Essentials, or other forms of this protection engine, make sure its engine version is 1.1.13704.0 or higher.  Otherwise, force an update.  Enterprise deployments may need hands on.  (Thinking of Scott, but I'd bet he keeps in touch with such fun stuff.)

The massive part of this is that simply scanning a properly crafted file with the affected anti-malware software can infect you.  And Defender does that automagically to whatever you download, as well as having a real-time component nosing around.  Ain't that a kick in the head.

[Quemaqua]

Thanks for the heads up. That's ugly ... guess I better go turn Windows Update back on.

[Cobra951]

You can update Windows Defender directly, right inside its UI.  2nd tab, I think.  You can check its version in its Help->About

[Quemaqua]

My version is 4+, not 1? Also it's completely turned off, and I guess that probably means the exploit couldn't affect me since it needs to scan something?

[idolminds]

Yeah mine is off because I have a different anti-virus running.

[Cobra951]

Guys, make damn sure whatever form of Windows you're using is updated past the zero-day exploits making this shit possible (courtesy of the NSA).

They say Windows 10 isn't targeted, but I wouldn't bet my files on that.  For those still on Version 1607 (latest before the upcoming "Creators" update) who prefer control over updates, here is the latest cumulative update.  No nasty surprises after installing, so far.  Everything still works for me as before.

To clarify the alarm, WannaCrypt is a worm--it finds its way without your involvement.  It has been stopped for now by someone who found the kill switch (by registering a particular domain), but that may not last for long. Fully weaponized ransomware.  Yikes.

[Quemaqua]

Yeesh. Yeah, I've updated myself on Win 10 until ... I don't know, a few weeks ago. Just got sick of the constant updating, frankly, and the absolute inability to turn off the goddamn notification to reboot, which loves to pop up at the worst possible times. And I'm also still really angry that you have to give it a "window" of when it can reboot, and you can't even set it to like a few hours, it wants I think 12 or something insane. Like no, how about I tell you when I want the machine to reboot and install updates? I hate this OS so much.

[scottws]

This worm was so serious that Microsoft patched Windows XP, 2003, and 8.

[Cobra951]

I downloaded the XP patch on the new PC.  I'm not even sure I have SP3 on the old box.  It may still be on SP2, so I don't know if it'll work.  I'll disconnect the ethernet before I even power it on.  If I can't patch it, I guess it stays offline until I find an alternate solution.  (I think some port blocks might do.  Kerio Personal Firewall 2.x blocks everything by default anyway; just have to make sure no rules allow the involved ports.)

Que, what I do after I'm happy with the state of my updates is disable the Windows Update service and the Windows Modules Installer service (in services.msc).  That kills Update and all hogging of the CPU.  It also kills the Windows Store (which I never use).  Apps I have continue to work, but won't update, and I can't get new ones.  (So this won't work well for anyone invested into Microsoft's walled garden.)  When I choose to update again, I find the cumulative standalone msu file in that catalog site I linked above and download it.  Then I disconnect from the internet, reenable the 2 services (manual and automatic, respectively, were the initial settings for me), launch the msu, and let it do its thing.  After the reboot and completion of updating, I disable the 2 services again, and finally reconnect to the internet.  It's a chore, but it gives me exactly what I want, which is full control over updates, and a nag-free environment.