Windows 10 Anniversary update: Your Last Chance Microsoft!

There are those in my profession that would call me unprofessional.  Others might even go so far as to say I'm just a disgruntled crank festooned with the requisite tin-foil hat when it comes to Microsoft Windows 10.

Here's the thing....

I don't care what you think.  I know what I've experienced and having spent most of my working career in the field losing countless hours to the cavalcade of flaws that is a new Microsoft OS I say with confidence...

Windows 10 is not an operating system, it's a delivery mechanism predicated on a marketing strategy.

I look at Windows 10 the same way I look at car commercials.  It's full of glitz, glamour and endless marketing campaigns with the sole intent of dangling shiny objects to distract you from it's intrusive and unreliable nature.

So yes, I've used it almost exclusively for a year, accepted the endless updates, 20 minute shutdown times and random lockups.  All with the intention of giving the OS a fair shake and hey the price was right.

In the intervening year between update 1607 and the launch of Windows 10 I've used the OS enough to find virtually no compelling reason to recommend it over Windows 7 for anything but support for the OS beyond 2020.

That Microsoft is now charging a minimum of $119 for the OS is an affront considering how much of a marketing platform Windows 10 is.

There are elements in Windows 10 that depending on the version are absolutely detrimental to an enterprise environment.  For example, in older versions of Windows you could get away with using a "Pro" version of Windows in your enterprise.  Yes, there were stripped down "Enterprise" versions only available to those with a Microsoft Licensing agreement but they were few and far between in my own experience.

A PRO version could connect to a Windows domain and allowed just as much control over the user experience.  The only caveat being a bit more overhead cruft inherited from its "consumer" roots.

Today a PRO version is much the same but unlike previous versions is subject to the "consumer" OS experience.   Meaning Microsoft and not your IT department is largely in control of the desktop experience in your enterprise.

Enterprise gives you all the control you used to have with "just" a PRO version but now you have to pay a subscription fee for that privilege.

I don't like that and I've taken active measures against that strategy including using SpyBot Anti-Beacon, refusing to connect my Microsoft account to the OS and denying the allure of the Microsoft Store.

Have you noticed that I've yet to say anything compelling about Windows 10?  That's because it's not and simply put there isn't anything compelling unless you work for Microsoft's marketing department.

Windows 10 is "probably" a better OS than its predecessors but you'll likely never see the benefit for all the cruft piled on top of it.  That's where the promise of the "Enterprise" versions come in but even they have been stained by the tarnish of a consumer OS.

So with the Anniversary update this is my last stand with Windows 10.  I expect many of my issues to be addressed or I'm jumping off the boat.  I could care less about "features" if they get in the way of what I'm trying to get done.

With that in mind I've documented my latest Windows 10 experience.  That being the installation and review of Windows 10 Anniversary update 1607.

I invite you to enjoy in 20 or so minutes what took me 2 1/2 hours.

Desktop Video Capture with MSI Afterburner: Update - How to exclude interfering programs with RivaTuner

Way back in December of 2014 I made a video about capturing your desktop with MSI Afterburner 4.x.

For power users capturing your desktop on video isn't any big deal except when you discover that capturing game footage is very different from capturing a Powershell tutorial.  In short it won't happen without some tweaking.

The original video covered most of what you needed to know and to date is one of the most popular on my IT Mostly YouTube channel.  But it  soon became evident within a few weeks that people needed a little more.

Specifically, what to do when something gets in the way of Afterburner like say, Dropbox??

There were a lot of helpful comments for the original video.  So many, in fact that it was the inspiration for a follow-up.

Which is what you have before you now.

This short Update to the original Afterburner Desktop Capture shows how to exclude specific programs from interfering with video capture.

So without further delay, here's the update everyone was waiting for.

Windows 10 alternative installation

So if you're like me and prefer to pick your own time to take the Windows 10 plunge then you're probably going to need some help when you finally push the go button.

That's because unlike most who'll take advantage of the free upgrade, disabling the automatic upgrade process requires a little more effort but no more than installing any other OS. It's still an upgrade so you still get to keep all your old apps ( so long as they're compatible.)

I haven't changed my position and the tight integration with Microsoft's ecosystem is ever present in Windows 10 but you can get around it.  In fact I'll be doing a series of videos in the near future on just how to minimize the amount of information you share.  

Microsoft may be taking a page from Apple's book with this latest version of the "one Windows to rule them all" mantra but for now it's more of an inconvenience than an Apple-like mandate.  

The reality of tech in the 21st century is that the more convenience you demand the more of your life you'll be asked to expose.  With Windows 10 it's still mostly your choice of how wide to open the Kimono but you need to know what you're buying into.  

For the most part, Windows users have gotten off easy with privacy but with an OS that's more connected than any previous version, it's high time we stop taking privacy for granted.  Look, if it's got a chip in it  somebody can hack it.  That's just the world we live in.  So make sure to clean up your act before upgrading to Windows 10.

That said, you may need some help when you finally do the upgrade.  That's what the series of videos below will show you.  I'll walk you through creating media for a manual install then using it to upgrade a Windows 7 Ultimate PC.

Check them out.  You'll find them a bit irreverent but likely similar to your own experience when you do upgrade.  

KB3035583 and Windows 10, why you shouldn't install it

No, No, No a thousand times NO!

They're at it again...

In case you didn't notice, an "Important" patch (KB3035583) showed up today or should I say showed up again.  Originally hidden in a batch of updates last April, Microsoft was planning on installing "nag screens" on every copy of Windows from version 7 and above to promote the upcoming release of Windows 10.  Nag screens are bad enough but some clever engineer discovered there was more than just the suggestion to upgrade.   

Of course the description of KB3035583 is dripping with ambiguity meaning most people will just blithely install this latest "important" update without a thought.  

That's a bad thing...

The patch includes not only a series of marketing nag screens but code to install Windows 10 as well.  That's a problem due to the fact that by default many Windows PC's are set to automatically install updates deemed "important" of which KB3035583 is one.  Reportedly, Windows 10 will be distributed similar to the 2014 Windows 8.1 update meaning unless you turn off automatic updates, the upgrade could begin without your knowledge.

But this is all just supposition right? Surely nothing can go wrong with a description like...

" This update enables additional capabilities for Windows Update notifications when new updates are available to the user..."

It's wise practice to question what Microsoft deems "important" and what exactly is meant by "additional capabilities"  especially when those capabilities have the potential to become a pain in the posterior.

Which is why I'm disappointed.  I had hoped that the "New" Microsoft under Nadella would have done away with Ballmer era subterfuge.  Surely the days of clandestine updates that killed off email attachments and upgrade nag screens were over or so I thought.

This latest update lays the foundation for the upcoming Windows 10 rollout.  Yes this latest and reportedly last version of Windows may finally cure the evils of its predecessor but there are still far more questions than answers. 

Questions like, is Windows 10 really free or am I going to get a bill for it in a year.  If I don't want to upgrade immediately what will the "retail" versions cost?  Worse, what happens if I have to reinstall the operating system when it inevitably blows up after the "free" period expires.

For now I suggest that you hide this update.  It's not Microsoft's decision whether or not you upgrade to Windows 10 and you sure as hell don't need to conform to their timeline.

For the next few months keep a close eye on those "Important" Windows updates and if KB3035583 is already installed, remove it.

Ghosts in the Malwarebytes

Just a quick note.  If you've just suffered a debilitating round of re-installing Office 2003 today ( C'mon now, at least a few of you still have to support it) I may know why.

At roughly 2PM PST on April 2nd 2015,  Malwarebytes released an update (4.2.6) for it's malware scanner  that falsely triggered a quarantine of Microsoft Office 2003 files for a supposed "Trojan.Agent.edt" infection.  The first victim is usually outlook.dll since it's part of Outlook client and the most used application of the suite.  

While the Fortune 500 IT guys may have nothing to worry about here, the rest of us just might.  In the "real" world to find an old version of outlook (like 2003) to be running alongside a newer version of the MS Office suite isn't uncommon.   More often than not small businesses opted to upgrade to a version of MS Office that didn't include Outlook.

That there were more versions of MS Office without it than with was either bad marketing or just a cruel joke.  Regardless, it means you as a small business IT guy or consultant can run into this issue.  

So here are those ingredients for pain again...

You need one part Microsoft Office 2003, one part Malwarebytes and one part bad update.

The fix?

Depending on whether or not the affected system had Office running today the fix is as simple as allowing the latest updates to install (4.3.x).

If, however, you received a feverish phone call toady from users convinced they were experiencing a "Virus!" there's an extra step.

The "infected" office files will be in the quarantine (under the History tab) of the Malwarebytes application.  Select their associated check boxes and simply click "Restore" and answer in the affirmative to any questioning prompt.

You should update the Malwarebytes signature files first, BTW, so that you don't end up in chasing your tail in an endless circle of restoration/quarantine.

The quarantine process removes but does not damage files so their restoration requires no further action to return your MS Office 2003 applications to full functionality.

Follow the steps above and you can consider this bullet dodged.

Check out the video below to see the steps in action!

Windows 10: Free or Freemium?

Hurrah!

Finally, Microsoft has come to their senses and Windows will be free from now to evermore...

Kinda...

Ok, so the bottom line is this.   The way we'll get a new version of Windows will forever be changed once Windows 10 launches this summer.  From now on Windows should cost you nothing more than a bit of time and a slight hit on your bandwidth cap.

Maybe...

Sometime in the near future you're going to find a very large update in your monthly batch of Windows patches.  It will be Windows 10 and it's coming free of charge to anyone with Windows 7 and above. 

Better yet, it's been suggested that Microsoft doesn't even care if you've got a pirated version.  Could this possibly mean the scourge of "Microsoft Genuine Advantage" will finally be ending?  That would be nice but considering the huge investment Microsoft has put into licensing technologies it's hard to believe that they'd completely abandon them.

Originally, Microsoft claimed that upgrades to 10 would come free to users of all "consumer" versions of Windows 7 and above except for Enterprise versions (labeled Enterprise or Enterprise N.)  That means everything from Windows "Home" to "Ultimate" should be eligible.  In case you don't know, "Enterprise" versions are only available via a volume license agreement offering the rough equivalent of a stripped down  "Pro" version.

What we don't know is if that word "consumer" is just an adjective or a label.  For one thing, will you suddenly find your "Professional" version downgraded to some anemic "Home" version of 10 that can barely browse a web page or will you get the equivalent to what you have now?

If, for example, I suddenly can't connect to my home NAS box or my small office's domain services then we're going to have a serious problem.  I don't say this often but it's true nonetheless.  I'd rather install Linux on an end user's work PC than any combination of the words "Windows" and "Home."

It seems to me there's a hole in Microsoft's strategy in the way its segregating the "enterprise" and "consumer" versions of Windows.  Most small to mid-sized businesses are not running "enterprise" versions meaning whatever it is they are running is considered a "consumer" version.

If Windows 10 is going to be free to "consumers" then what's to stop the next round of hardware upgrades in someone's "enterprise" (as in Fortune 500) just being a bunch of Dell's with free versions of Windows 10 Pro? 

I don't believe Microsoft is going to let that happen since they still make the bulk of their money off corporate volume licensing programs and Windows is a big part of that.

Which makes the use of the word "consumer" suspicious.  Are we going to again fork Windows versions much like the days before Windows XP so that Enterprise grade tools like SCCM can no longer manage a "consumer" version?  Not likely unless the enterprise is getting left out of the whole "unified desktop" thing.

Right now I can push an SCCM package to Windows (7 or 8) Pro and Ultimate.  If I try to do the same to  our theoretical "home" version of Windows 10 I'd have to believe it would fail.   In short, a crippled version of 10 would be little more than a refresh of the much hated Windows Starter Edition. 

With current available information, I don't see how Microsoft could protect the corporate honey pot any other way. That is, unless they really do believe that they can get by on Office 365 license revenues or they're going to be like Red Hat Enterprise Linux and charge for "premium" support.

Regardless of whatever conspiracies are floating around my head, the goal is obvious.  Where Windows 8 was Microsoft's initial attempt to push the idea of "one OS to rule them all."  This next iteration is meant to finally bring that goal to fruition on any device.  The best way to do that is to literally give it away and make your money off services and support. 

While still being closed source, giving away Windows is a very Linux way of getting an operating system into the hands of users.  However, that begs the question of whether the giveaway is really just another revenue stream.  Even Linux can cost you dearly if you can't find the answer in a support forum.

Let's also remember that Microsoft is about making money not social change.

Back in the 90's there was a PC maker called Free-PC who built their business by literally giving away computers. They did that by encapsulating the entire user experience in a horrific advertising shell (or Hell) that you couldn't escape.  You were forced to look at ads, participate in surveys and consent to have your every action monitored.

What price freedom indeed.  Thankfully that model died as quickly as the low grade hardware in those machines.  The question is, much like free apps on smartphones could we find something similar in the form of spontaneous ads or diminished functionality unless we subscribe to "premium" functionality?

So as consumers we have to ask ourselves if "free" is worth a diminished experience if that's indeed what Windows 10 turns out to be.  Unfortunately, we won't know till the OS is launched.  Yes, there are millions of preview builds out there right now but that doesn't really mean much.  Preview builds are generally unrestricted versions analogous to a "Pro" or "Ultimate" retail product. 

Meaning we really don't know what we're going to get for free and Microsoft is apparently content to  keep us all guessing.

Of course all of this grows out of a history of bad faith with Microsoft.  From legitimate copies of Windows being bricked by an update or Genuine Advantage running amok, it's hard to take anything the company says at face value. 

But we are in the age of subscriptions aren't we.  Paying for an operating system is akin to buying a new car and being charged an extra $500 for the ignition key.  Making money off platforms goes against all marketing principles.  

Nobody buys products anymore, they buy an experience.  It's why people pay twice as much for an Iphone when its hardware is frequently inferior to even the cheapest Android phone.

Most normal people could care less about how advanced your operating system is.  They're far more interested in what kind of software can run on it.  If you're proprietary, like Microsoft, you'd rather sell 100 Office 365 licenses than 1000 copies of Windows.  Mostly because you'll sell the Office licenses faster and be back in a year when it's time to "renew."  Nobody is going to pay to renew an OS.  In fact it's amazing that anyone ever paid upwards of $200 for an operating system in the first place.

In a freemium world a "free" OS is de rigeur.  The question is how far does that philosophy seep into Windows 10.

Updates to Info Tech As I see It

While this blog isn't as popular as I'd like it to be I know there are enough readers who do to merit an explanation as to why all the video links suddenly went dead last week.

The reason is simple and is directly related to the content I provide.  You see, I was hit by the #microstopped YouTube takedown last week.  The videos in question were two of my most popular on using Windows 8 Enterprise edition.  Apparently thousands of people found the information useful in the 2+ years they were on my channel.

Unfrotunately a clueless marketing lackey for Microsoft thought that I and thousands of others had no right to share the information.

Well, fast forward to this week and suddenly there's a new source for those same videos.  I've made a brand new YouTube channel with all the content of my former one but without the unrelated clutter you had to sift through to find the infomation you want.

The channel is called IT Mostly on YouTube and will serve as the official video partner to this blog.  You can find it at the link in the sidebar as well as here: https://www.youtube.com/user/ITasIsee

By the way, the YouTube copyright strike has been removed and those same 2 videos are back up and in public circulation again and will remain so until further notice.

For more on the story see this article on my other blog, Digital Dyanmic, here.

For a sampler of what's on the YouTube channel, I invite you to try out the playlist I've provided below.

That's all for now.

Dealing with the latest Java Security update for your legacy apps

Java's gotten a bad rap lately and with good reason.  It's got so many security holes that it triggered an alert last year from Homeland Security.  Since then we've been getting pretty regular updates from the folks over at Oracle.

If you happen to administer networking equipment, especially Cisco branded devices, you've no doubt run into issues that come with Java updates.  If you have to manage different generations of networking equipment, for example, there's not doubt you have to maintain multiple versions of Java to manage them.

The latest Java security update for Java, 1.7.0_51, has finally made good on a threat.  It's activated functionality that effectively blocks any Java applet that doesn't have the "security manifest" parameters enabled.

That can leave you dead in the water.  Except, if you know how to work around it.  The video below shows you how to set an exclusion for trusted connections and applets.

Remember, this is only for connections and applets that you have complete trust in.