Giveaway of the Day Forums

1. 

   mikiem2
   Moderator

   pcworld[.]com/article/3181814/windows/microsoft-says-its-blocking-windows-7-8-patches-on-latest-amd-intel-chips.html

   AMD's new CPUs make upgrades much more affordable -- 3rd party main or mother boards are cheaper, & their competitor to Intel's i7 sells for 1/2 the i7 price, with i5 competition coming in April. For some people though there's a Big catch... while Windows 7 may install on these new systems, Windows Update will not work, with Microsoft refusing any hot fixes or patches.

   Microsoft had said it was only supporting Windows 10 on new model CPUs some time ago, then seemed to back down under pressure from businesses that had not yet switched over to 10. That policy is now going to be enforced.

   While hot fixes can be individually downloaded & run, Microsoft has shut down pages on it's site that made it fairly easy to tell which hot fixes you needed -- there also may be a delay between the time a hot fix is available from Windows Update, and when it's available as a download.

   There's also the potential problem of hot fix compatibility. Microsoft will probably not be testing Windows 7 hot fixes on new CPUs, and there's always the possibility that Microsoft could disable the hot fixes themselves if certain CPUs were detected. I'm not saying that they would or wouldn't, but only that it's possible, especially given their prior efforts to get users to upgrade from 7 to 10.

   Posted 7 years ago #
2. 

   delenn13
   Dedicated Gamer

   Doesn't it make you feel all warm and fuzzy when Microsoft decides what is best for you? I feel much safer now.

   Posted 7 years ago #
3. 

   Dragonlair
   Member

   Ah, remember in the good old days when you had power over everything? DOS and it's config.sys file had so much. Ever since Windows started, they have slowly but surely been deciding what's best for you, even when it's not the best. They have hidden and removed capabilities from the start of Windows 95. Is this REALLY any different? They even had some sales people convinced (and they tried to convince me) that Windows ME didn't support DOS (or Command Prompt).

   I lost my database program when I went to Windows ME (my first Windows machine) because I wasn't allow to increase the number of files open at one time. It worked fine (files= command in config.sys) with DOS 6 but ME didn't allow the command even though the config.sys file was there! I refused to pay $75 for the windows version of the program and ultimately switched to Excel for everything.

   Posted 7 years ago #
4. 

   mikiem2
   Moderator

   Microsoft **might** back down again, and I half expect that someone(s) will develop a mod or work-a-round.

   If the total number of active Windows installations starts dropping as this causes people to move to Apple, Google, or *nix, Wall St. will notice. If the EU intervenes, that'll add more pressure. Why would they? There are new PCs & laptops running 7, sold running 7, that can no longer update. Those companies that sold those PCs & laptops are going to apply pressure. Sellers with PCs & laptops sitting on their shelves with 7 installed will apply pressure. If CPU sales start declining more rapidly because of this, AMD, Intel, hardware manufacturers, and those selling all of the above will apply pressure. There are loads of sellers with loads & loads of win7 discs &/or license keys that have just lost maybe 1/2 the value of that stock, if not more -- I'd imagine they'll apply pressure while Microsoft has to deal with these same sellers trying to return truckloads' of win7.

   RE: modding Windows 7, it seems that Microsoft has simply added a few lines of code to Windows Update telling it not to run if certain CPUs are detected. It might be as simple as changing a few registry keys or key names. It might be that MS updated a file or files last Update Tuesday in January, and replacing that with the older version works. It might be that MS is continuing to update Windows 7 installs on new CPUs when/if they're used for some special purposes, requiring a simple change to the registry to continue updating, e.g. my XP VM with the POS registry hack received several updates this week.

   Posted 7 years ago #
5. 

   mikiem2
   Moderator

   And it's happened... Microsoft has followed through on their threats starting this month.

   arstechnica[.]com/information-technology/2017/04/new-processors-are-now-blocked-from-receiving-updates-on-old-windows/

   So far it seems most activity has been spent figuring out ways to get 7 installed -- I guess many new systems, or rather their motherboards coupled with new CPUs, won't see whatever's plugged into the USB ports if/when those ports are tied to the CPU when you try to install 7. That means figuring out which ports, if any, are tied to the board, & then using those &/or PS2 ports [again if any] to connect the keyboard & mouse initially. Once 7's installed, drivers for CPU-based USB ports remain a hurtle.

   Posted 7 years ago #
6. 

   mikiem2
   Moderator

   "User-Made Patch Lets Owners of Next-Gen CPUs Install Updates on Windows 7 & 8.1"

   bleepingcomputer[.]com/news/microsoft/user-made-patch-lets-owners-of-next-gen-cpus-install-updates-on-windows-7-andamp-8-1/

   And now the fixes [or if you prefer, hacks] are happening...

   GitHub user Zeffy has created a patch that removes a limitation that Microsoft imposed on users of 7th generation processors, a limit that prevents users from receiving Windows updates if they still use Windows 7 and 8.1.

   This limitation was delivered through Windows Update KB4012218 (March 2017 Patch Tuesday) and has made many owners of Intel Kaby Lake and AMD Bristol Ridge CPUs very angry last week, as they weren't able to install any Windows updates.

   Posted 7 years ago #

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