Posted on 06/27/2015 6:40:58 AM PDT by dayglored
Samsung will release a patch for its computers so that they no longer kill off automatic Windows updates.
On Wednesday, reverse-engineering specialist Patrick Barker blogged about a program suspiciously called Disable_Windowsupdate.exe that is bundled on Sammy machines and shuts down automatic Windows Updates – including security updates.
Users have to remember to install updates from Microsoft manually, and if they opt for automatic installation, Samsung's software disables it. The firm's support staff told him that was to make sure Samsung's hardware drivers were not removed or overridden by Microsoft's upgrades.
While not as serious as Lenovo's Superfish debacle – where bundled code punched a hole in system security – Samsung's cockup has caused ructions. Now it has promised that the issue will be fixed.
"Samsung has a commitment to security and we continue to value our partnership with Microsoft," a spokeswoman told El Reg.
"We will be issuing a patch through the Samsung Software Update notification process to revert back to the recommended automatic Windows Update settings within a few days. Samsung remains committed to providing a trustworthy user experience and we encourage customers with product questions or concerns to contact us directly."
Microsoft hasn't responded to a request for comment on Samsung's new position, but it's pretty clear that the Windows giant was not happy about the situation. Some South Korean executives may have been getting the rough side of Redmond's tongue.
The thought of a computer manufacturer disabling Windows Update will have had the Microsoft security team on edge. But there's also Windows 10 to consider...
(Excerpt) Read more at theregister.co.uk ...
In fairness to Samsung, Windows Update is a performance hog, especially on laptops.
Do you mean while it's doing the updates, or after the installation is done (and restarted)?
During installation, the machine is largely taken over by the update process. But I've not seen any significant performance hit -afterwards-.
It’s so nice to log into my Macbook after a long day of doing the gymnastics of making a Windows machine behave.
And the rest generally fix bugs and improve stability.
You would not believe how many people contact me complaining that their Windows machine is unstable, but when I ask when was the last time they ran Windows Updates, they say, "Oh I stopped allowing those Updates, they annoy me so I turned them off".
Fools. Just sayin'...
Have a piece of Samjunk — Win7 i7 laptop. It lasted 1 month beyond the end of the warranty, when the motherboard crapped out. No replacement motherboards are available. Now, it is an $800 doorstop.
Had another piece of Samjunk — DVR recorder. It lasted about 2 years before crapping out.
Wow, sorry to hear that. For whatever reason, I’ve had very good luck with Samsung video monitors and TV displays, and more recently with a bunch of SSDs replacing my old Seagate hard drives. But I haven’t gotten much else from them over the years.
Windows’s and IE’s updates have basically hamstringed my HP Windows 7. It takes for ever to log on to our Comcast internet and slows down a fast internet.
Those intrusive updates forced me to go Chrome as a browser.
Chrome has been fast and reliable until a series of updates brought the blue circle whirling around showing no connection to the internet. Our android phones and tablet at the same time got on the internet quickly via our WiFi.
A younger relative serves as our IT advisor. He had three suggestions:
1. Use Norton’s protected search and Chrome to log on to Comcast with my old HP. It is faster and does a good job. When my HP pavilion becomes so corrupted, replace it with the HP Stream mini computer when/after windows 10 is available. I want a desktop with a keyboard and mouse to do word processing, spread sheets and to pay our bills.
2. Get Ad Muncher to block all of Comcast’s intrusive ads.
3. Buy Acer’s new Chromebook 15 to avoid MS’s intrusive bs.
Then use it to log on the Comcast internet. For non word processing/spreadsheets and bill paying/financial stuff.
#1 and #2 are working
#3 My new Acer Chromebook 15 is fast/reliable and great for my internet stuff. I would not like to use it for word processing, heavy spreadsheet and financial work. It was a pia to set up printing, but I did it. The only catch is, I have to have my old HP turned on to print from the Chromebook and our android phones and tablet with my HP 2544.
If HP or Acer comes out with a Chrome desktop with easy printer access, a keyboard/mouse and internet connection, I will leave the MS bs ASAP!
Windows updates have caused other software to break, including other Microsoft software. The updates are often not tested enough, like everything else Microsoft. The transformation into an Indian software company full of cheap third worlders didn't help.
That really doesn’t sound like an issue with Windows or IE. It sounds more like you have a malware or virus infection.
I’ve always just had automatic updates, how do people even know they are getting updates, much less all these wild stories that some computer users have?
It seems like some people are just determined to find a way to complicate their computer usage, as though they are dealing with some hostile force.
The update installation process can sometimes cause a system slowdown because it thrashes the hard drive for a few minutes. And of course there's the nag about restarting to complete the update installation, and the "installing update 3 of 27" messages. But I've always accepted that crap as part of the game. I oil my tools and clean the crud off my garden spade from time to time, too.
> It seems like some people are just determined to find a way to complicate their computer usage, as though they are dealing with some hostile force.
You could easily argue that a lot of computer users DO view their computers as a hostile force, whose presence in the house is barely tolerated.
Like some folks view their cats. :-)
(Disclaimer: I am both a computer-lover and a cat-lover.)
I do not necessarily view this as a bad thing. The ‘doze “Automatic Updates” were so buggy that they sometimes would BSOD the machine and I began disabling them long ago because of that.
Now, I simply no longer allow any machine running ‘doze internet access so as to eliminate the problem. Since I for the most part run linux I no longer have to worry about such things although I still have clients that do.
If I see a need for an update, I will first copy the machine before allowing any update, then if any problems arise I will restore it and wait for a later and possibly more stable update to become available.
Best way to go, I believe.
Cheers. :)
In W7, I found some svchost.exe instances which took up an extraordinary amount of memory. Looking at the process tree (and checking on the web), I determined that the instances with the biggest footprint were linked to Windows Update.
I’m running 8.1 now, and it’s not nearly as much of a problem. Fewer instances, less memory, less CPU time.
Caveat: Maybe this is now improved; maybe I haven’t been running this machine long enough to accumulate the cruft of several years of updates.
My dislike of Samsung here is the sneaky nature of their disabling. It smacks too much of the old browser and A/V wars, where software manufacturers would disable each other's installations and take over system defaults.
At the very least, Samsung should have made it clear what they were doing.
Not according to Norton and McAffe(sp).
Our younger relative, our IT guy, told me to wait until Windows 10 comes. Then see how that works on my old computer.
If the HP doesn’t speed up, then buy the HP Mini Stream with Windows 10 and only use it for word processing, spreadsheets, bill paying,financial stuff, and to print from that computer and my Chromebook and Androids,
Then, continue to use my new Chromebook for web surfing and dropbox for photos to avoid viruses and other bs.
He hopes that with Windows 10, MS will get out of bed with the companies which want to use us for our data and develop a long healthy relationship with users like me/you. He thinks that Apple and Google have made MS wake up.
“In W7, I found some svchost.exe instances which took up an extraordinary amount of memory. Looking at the process tree (and checking on the web), I determined that the instances with the biggest footprint were linked to Windows Update.”
Hopefully, Windows 10 will be even better.
If not, I will leave MS.
There’s a lot of stuff that Norton and McAfee don’t catch, because they mainly look for viruses. So, if you accidentally installed some software that loads you up with spam or something, they might not even look for that. Try this, the free version is very good at finding bad stuff like that:
https://www.malwarebytes.org/mwb-download/
Just be careful because they try to trick you into enabling the “free trial” of the premium version if you install the free version. That one will expire in 30 days so just decline that.
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