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One step forward, er, one step back. Nobody gets too far like that Microsoft's build 18362.356 (KB4515384​​​​​) for its Windows 10 May 2019 Update (version 1903) rolled out on Tuesday with security improvements for Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, networking tech and input devices – and a CPU usage fix that, for some, has broken desktop search.The security tweaks address a variety of speculative execution side-channel vulnerabilities known as microarchitecture data sampling (MDS) for 32-bit x86 versions of Windows. Intel dealt with the CVEs at issue – CVE-2019-11091, CVE-2018-12126, CVE-2018-12127, CVE-2018-12130 – in May.The update, released concurrently with Build 17763.737 for...

Some Insiders are more equal than others (sorry, Release Preview) Microsoft has attempted to clear the murky waters of its Windows Insider programme by stowing its virtual coin toss for those on the Slow Ring.Build 18362.10019 of Windows 10 went out last night to those keen to get their mitts on 19H2, the version expected to drop at some point this month.Unlike previous releases, Microsoft has turned on the new features for all Insiders.The previous arrangement had some users running build 18362.10014 with the new toys turned off while all the good little Insiders on build 18362.10015 had their stockings...

This month's Security-only update package for Windows 7 includes an unexpected compatibility/telemetry component that has some skeptical users up in arms. As expected, Windows Update dropped off several packages of security and reliability fixes for Windows 7 earlier this week, part of the normal Patch Tuesday delivery cycle for every version of Windows. But some hawk-eyed observers noted a surprise in one of those Windows 7 packages. Under Microsoft's rules, what it calls "Security-only updates" are supposed to include, well, only security updates, not quality fixes or diagnostic tools. Nearly three years ago, Microsoft split its monthly update packages for...

[Full Title: The difference between October and May? About 16GB, says Microsoft: Windows 10 1903 will need 32GB of space] Storage requirements embiggened in Redmond's upcoming OS emission Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 10's voracious appetite for storage remains undiminished in the upcoming May 2019 Update (1903).Noted by Pureinfotech, Microsoft has quietly updated the minimum storage requirements for the OS from 16GB for 32-bit versions and 20GB for 64-bit to 32GB. Notably, the Windows 10 IoT Enterprise storage requirements remain at 16GB and 20GB for 32 and 64-bit versions respectively.Minimum RAM requirements remain 1GB for 32-bit Windows 10 and 2GB...

Microsoft has a major announcement today: Windows 10 will no longer automatically install those big feature updates every six months. Home users can pause smaller updates, too. In fact, Windows will even let you pause updates after checking for them! This is huge. It’s Microsoft’s biggest change in Windows strategy since the company released Windows 10. Microsoft is giving up on “Windows as a service” that is automatically updated outside of your control. [Here's the announcement from Microsoft] https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2019/04/04/improving-the-windows-10-update-experience-with-control-quality-and-transparency/

Only took five months, and look, 19H1's almost here Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 10 1809, aka the Update of the Damned, is now ready for "broad deployment."The announcement – which comes mere weeks before the next version of Windows 10, 19H1, is expected to put in an appearance – means that the Operating System update is ready to be unleashed on businesses.Handy, because so far only the most ardent of Windows fans could describe the adoption figures of the disastrous update as anything better than flaccid. 1809, which Microsoft named the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, memorably debuted during...

For the BOFHs**: Admin Center preview loaded with Software Defined Networking goodness In a busy week for Windows Insiders, Fast-Ring fans got a fresh build of Windows last night, hot on the heels of a new preview of the Windows Admin Center.You say 19H1, I say 20H1, let's call the whole thing off Having sent Skip-Ahead testers into the future with a 20H1 build of Windows 10, Microsoft has now shared the Linux love with those remaining on the Fast Ring and testing 19H1.The accessing of files lurking in distros running Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) without fear of corruption...

Others still can't even get that far Updated It has been a trying time for Microsoft punters after a Windows Defender update left some PCs unable to boot last week, while other folk continue to struggle to even get to the update service.How do you make a PC super secure? Don't let it boot A tweak to Windows Defender slowly creeping its way over PCs has an issue that can stop Windows 10 booting (and a few iterations of Windows Server – Microsoft points to Server 2016, but some users have reported problems with Server 2019).Some admins have been in...

For the past two days, Windows 10 users from around the world have been reporting that they are unable to connect to Windows Update. When they attempt to do so, Windows 10 will complain that they are unable to connect to the update service....When they tried updating, Windows would report that it could not connect to the update service.(Image)The wording of the error, shown below, indicates that this is an Internet connectivity issue, but others are not so sure."We couldn't connect to the update service. We'll try again later, or you can check now. If it still doesn't work, make...

April (2018) still on top as Microsoft's difficult October update slowly trickles onto PCs With the next release of Windows 10 edging closer, users continue to steer clear of Microsoft's October 2018 update.Figures published by ad slinger AdDuplex show that the Update of the Damned, aka the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, has dribbled its way onto 12.4 per cent of Windows 10 PCs sold.It's a far cry from the near hysterical rate at which the April 2018 Update was flung out, demonstrating just how cautious the software giant has become after the disastrous debut of Windows 10 build 1809...

If you get an error code that starts with 0x8024, the Windows Update Troubleshooter can help resolve the problem. Make sure you have internet access, then download the Update Troubleshooter version that matches your version of Windows. Download Update Troubleshooter for Windows 10 Download Update Troubleshooter for Windows 7 and Windows 8

Activation server fiddling on day of monthly update... really? Microsoft has said that activation errors seen by Windows 7 users should not be chalked up to Tuesday's patch, but rather were an entirely different cockup.Windows Activation Technologies is the Jiminy Cricket of Windows 7, chirping at you if it thinks you might not be paying for your licensing. Combining Jiminy with the Key Management Service (KMS) on Windows 7, as many enterprise customers likely do (even though Microsoft wishes they wouldn't), hasn't caused too many headaches.Until this week.A tweak to the Activation Servers saw happily licensed Windows 7 users suddenly...

Quality Assurance? We've heard of it Microsoft has doubled down on efforts to persuade users to migrate to Windows 10 by breaking Windows 7 networking for some.Windows Server 2008 R2 is also affected.While the last few monthly updates for the soon-to-be-obsolete OSes featured a known issue affecting an "unknown" number of "problematic configurations" that require manual reinstalls of network drivers, January's monthly update seems to have upped the ante somewhat.2019's treat has seen some users finding their shares are now inaccessible, with RDP and other connectivity also suffering.The issue, which affects both the bonzer monthly roll-up (KB4480970) and the more...

Some systems may get version 1809 automatically Forced Windows 10 updates aren’t entirely a new concept, and most users found out this is really a thing back in the days when this operating system was available as a free upgrade for Windows 7 and 8.1 devices.But while Microsoft promised never to embrace forced updates again in the future, a recent company release makes some believe there’s a chance it could happen one more time with Windows 10 version 1809, also known as the October 2018 Update.Microsoft rolled out a silent update to KB4023814 on December 24, and by the looks...

Got a Surface Book 2 on 1803? You should probably uninstall last week's update Users of the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, rejoice! Microsoft has slung out a hefty patch to, er, fix a whole bunch of stuff that was broken in the Update of the Damned.Released last night, KB4469342 is packed full of updates, with two notable changes lurking at the end of the list of tweaks. The failure of mapped drives to reconnect after starting and logging into a Windows device – which was a showstopper for many enterprises and consumers with home servers – has been fixed,...

When it was discovered earlier this month that the 1809 build of Windows 10 was deleting user files just because, Microsoft halted the update until the problem was fixed. Shame, then, that another not-as-bad-but-still-bad file overwriting bug has now reared its head. Over the weekend, several users on Reddit reported that Windows 10's in-built interface for compressed archive won't actually extract files properly. Instead, it just "fails silently", which is not something you want when it comes to data. Here's a concise explanation of the bug from user "Wazhai" on Reddit: The issue is that in 1809, overwriting files by...

Or at least uninstall some of the bits you really don't want Microsoft has announced that its customers will finally be able to remove more of the cruft that arrives with a Windows 10 installation. In 2019.While Slow and Release Preview ring Windows Insiders got to experience Redmond’s latest efforts to stabilise the troubled OS, Fast ring and Skippy testers got their hands on a fresh build of the 2019 version of Windows 10 (aka 19H1).Build 18262 has finally introduced the ability to uninstall some more of the preinstalled Windows 10 apps (also confusingly known as "inbox"), such as little-used...

Second Insider build with more fixes for 1809. Could third time be the charm? Microsoft’s efforts to recover from the Windows 10 October 2018 Update debacle continued last night as a fresh build of the troubled operating system was emitted to Windows Insiders.Build 17763.104 is the second release of the update to Insiders since the file-eating monster was unleashed on an unsuspecting public back on 2 October before being yanked back into its kennel.Microsoft reckoned it had fixed all the data loss issues in build 17763.17, which was released just over a week ago but clearly there was still some...

...Probably because Microsoft has accidentally disabled your audio Somebody got a little trigger happy with the big red Windows Update button last week as a broken Intel audio driver was unleashed on users “by mistake”.It has been a hellish couple of weeks for the Windows giant following the launch of the troubled October update for its flagship operating system. Not content with Display Audio issues, mysterious file deletions and borking HP computers thanks to a “known incompatibility” with drivers for an obscure bit of hardware (aka the “keyboard”), it seems audio is next in the firing line.Last week's Windows 10...

Day four exceeds all expectations as Microsoft steps back from brink Microsoft has taken the unprecedented step of pulling a Windows 10 release a mere four days after its arrival amid a clamour of users complaining about files not being where they had left them.Windows Insider supremo Dona Sarkar took to Twitter to announce that Windows fans would no longer be able to get their hands on the afflicted build. Redmond said the automatic rollout would also be paused until it works out just what in blue blazes is going on. #WindowsInsiders If you've run into the "missing files after...