
Microsoft Abandons Windows 10’s Constant Forced Updates - el_duderino
https://www.howtogeek.com/410183/microsoft-abandons-windows-10s-forced-updates/
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smush
If this is true, it represents the single biggest olive branch Microsoft can
send to Windows 7 diehards like myself short of just continuing to develop
Windows 7 until I die.

I must grudgingly admit I'm still very suspicious of W10 but with this, if it
turns out to be true, will cause me to take another hard look at my decision
to jump to Lubuntu instead of W10 shenanigans.

Edit: Wait a sec, this is just the update pause not update refusal being
extended to Windows 10 Home users...after a while they do force you to update
anyways. Nevermind then.

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LifeLiverTransp
I work in factory automation, half of the machines there are still on WinXP.
The idea to switch a system that auto-updates, sending a whole production
facility into a full stop is laughable. That legacy rope your most loyal
customers where depending on microsoft, its now strangling your very movement.

In the long run, i can some compatability layer beeing developed, so legacy
customers can cut out microsoft. Its just not a reliable partner anymore.

~~~
neilalexander
Generally the right approach to this in the enterprise is to use WSUS, and
then using GPO to prevent Windows from trying to get updates from the
Internet, limiting it only to the updates that are approved in WSUS.

Separately I'd have to ask why if your production facility is dependent on
these machines that they would be Internet-connected in the first place.

~~~
Sir_Substance
>Separately I'd have to ask why if your production facility is dependent on
these machines that they would be Internet-connected in the first place.

Anecdotally, I did some for-cash IT work at a trophy engraving store about a
decade ago. Small shop, maybe 7 employees, they had about 6 different cnc
machines of varying sizes but only one of each type.

One of the machines was a vinyl cutter that was about 4mx4m, being run by a
windows 98 computer. Not windows 98 SE, the original. The manufacturer of the
table had gone broke some time between the two and never released an updated
driver, and it seemed it was not possible to bring the driver forwards to 98
SE, let alone xp or 7.

A new machine would have cost them something like $50,000, basically 1-1.5
employees, so they just stuck with windows 98. That machine had internet
connectivity too because it was just plugged into the company network (of like
7 computers) so that it could get the job files from a shared drive, and since
the company network provided internet, it had internet.

I guess the point is these companies don't get paid to keep stuff up to date
or to be secure, they get paid to make trophies or whatever. They look on
cyber attacks in largely the same way they look on someone driving a truck
through their front wall. It might happen, their margin isn't good enough for
them to spend money on preventative measures for such a specific problem, and
they don't know anyone it's happened to anyway.

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maimeowmeow
It was one of the largest motivating factors when switching of windows to
linux/mac.

That lack of control where the computer randomly decides to restart when
gaming during odd hours.

Set network on metered mode, but computer decides to reboot while you are
still inputing with mouse, and keyboard is so passive aggressive.

All for some random update that is just so important.

~~~
jdsully
The worst part is even if you aren't there - it doesn't do all the work while
you are away. It intentionally saves some work for when you log in so that you
are forced to watch all the great work its doing instead of what you actually
wanted. Its extra fun on those big updates where this part can take over a
half hour.

~~~
jboles
The effusive status messages when it does this really adds to the "watch all
the great work it's doing" effect.

"Hi ... We've got some updates for your PC ... It should only take a few
minutes ... We should be done with your PC really quick ..."

~~~
jdsully
I always found "Your data is right where you left it" mildly threatening. Like
is there a reason it wouldn't still be there? Should I be worried?

~~~
colanderman
I mean, there was that one time:
[https://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonkelly/2018/10/06/microsof...](https://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonkelly/2018/10/06/microsoft-
windows-10-update-lost-data-upgrade-windows-7-windows-xp-free-upgrade/)

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autotune
It should not have taken them this long to figure out that forced updates are
not something most users want.

