NeophobiA 1,503 Report post Posted March 20, 2017 You might have heard the latest news about Microsoft blocking new security patches and updates for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users running the latest processors from Intel, AMD, Qualcomm, and others.Don't panic, this new policy doesn't mean that all Windows 7 and 8.1 users will not be able to receive latest updates in general because Microsoft has promised to support Windows 7 until 2020, and Windows 8.1 until 2023.But those who have upgraded their machines running older versions of Windows to the latest processors, or manually downgraded their new laptops to run Windows 7/8.1 would be out of luck.A recently published Microsoft Knowledge Base article suggests that if you are running the older version of operating systems on your computers that feature new processors, including Intel's 7th generation Core i3, i5 and i7 ("Kaby Lake"), AMD Ryzen ("Bristol Ridge") and Qualcomm 8996 chips or later, the security updates will not install.Instead, you will see error messages when using Windows Update to get patches for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1. The error messages read: "Unsupported Hardware.Your PC uses a processor that is not supported on this version of Windows, and you will not receive updates." "Windows could not search for new updates. An error occurred while checking for new updates for your computer. Error(s) found: Code 80240037 Windows Update encountered an unknown error." So, What's the Solution ? (According to Microsoft)Users would require upgrading their systems to the newest version of Windows, i.e. Windows 10, despite Windows 7 being supported to 2020 and Windows 8.1 to 2023.Microsoft announced this limitation in January 2016, when the company said making Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 OSes run on the latest processors was "challenging.""For Windows 7 to run on any modern silicon, device drivers and firmware need to emulate Windows 7's expectations for interrupt processing, bus support, and power states- which is challenging for WiFi, graphics, security, and more," Terry Myerson, VP of Microsoft's Windows and Devices Group, said last year.The initial announcement also included PCs that use 6th-generation Intel processors ("Skylake"), but Microsoft backed off on its plan and released a list of Skylake-based systems that will be fully supported to receive security updates through the official end of support phase for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, i.e. January 14, 2020, and January 10, 2023, respectively. Microsoft Indirectly forcing users to adopt Windows 10This end of updates for new devices doesn't come as a surprise to some PC owners, as Microsoft is making every effort to run its latest Windows on all Windows computers since the launch of Windows 10.An alarm for those still running Windows Vista on their machines: The operating system will no longer receive security updates, non-security hotfixes, paid assisted supports, or online technical updates from Microsoft beginning April 11, 2017.So, it's high time for Windows Vista users to upgrade their PCs to the latest version of Windows operating system in order to protect your devices from malware or other security threats. Ditch Windows for Linux; Try This:No doubt Windows 10 has been viewed as a welcome successor to Windows 8, both by businesses and individuals, with more enhanced security features. But the OS has also come under scrutiny from those who are concerned about their privacy.So why not switch to a free Windows 10 alternative? Privacy concerned people can move to Linux operating systems, such as Ubuntu – a Debian-based OS and part of open source Linux family, and Fedora – Red Hat's Linux distro with estimated 1.2 Million users. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tech 425 3,942 Report post Posted March 20, 2017 Well this sucks as I think a Kaby Lake or AMD Ryzen system would fly with Windows 7 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NeophobiA 1,503 Report post Posted March 20, 2017 yeah I thought so too... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
4X12CAB 245 Report post Posted March 21, 2017 Well, well. I've heard 10 has enough "privacy issues" that Microsuck can take a lookylooky anytime they like & see what you've been up to. I've heard there are programs you can buy costing hundreds that might help, who knows though? Something called VCP or something supposedly bounces your location all over the globe & trips them up, but it seems they get onto what you are doing with that. Basically, it all comes down to making you pay for something over & over, the same something you already have that works just fine. The rich like having money coming in, billions in the bank & not adding to that pile just doesn't cut it for them. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mark Phelps 473 Report post Posted March 21, 2017 Having used Linux distros on a daily basis for well over 10 years now, I can certainly attest that "Switching to Linux" is a no-go for the vast majority of Windows users. Why? Because Linux is not now, nor has it ever been, constructed as a free drop-in replacement for MS Windows. And while true that it does perform MANY of the same end-user functions that are done by Windows apps, it does NOT run the same Windows apps (despite the claim of Wine enthusiasts), and the apps it does run look and feel quite different from the Windows apps that folks are accustomed to using. So, folks jumping into Linux expecting to see their familiar MS office, or Internet Explorer, or Edge -- are in for a rude awakening. Plus, it always takes a while for the Linux community to produce working drivers for the latest and greatest hardware -- which is what folks are going to see when they buy new Win10 PCs and decide to switch them to Linux. One more thing -- changes to the Linux infrastructure happen all the time, and when they do, the Linux users are forced to resort to command-line editing of obscure system files in order to keep their machines running. Twice in the last two months, I have had to do exactly this in order to keep my Mint 18.1 and Ubuntu 16.10 systems working. In both cases, neither of these distros would even boot to a desktop anymore. Fortunately, I do have Windows OSs on my desktop and I was able to obtain patch code from the Mint and Ubuntu forums for making the needed corrections to the system files. This sort of "routine" repair is WAY BEYOND the scope of probably 99% of the Windows community of users -- many of which have never even seen a command line, let alone use it. As long as these kinds of problems continue to plague Linux distros, they will remain a very, very small part of the personal computer community. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NeophobiA 1,503 Report post Posted March 22, 2017 Oh I agree with you Mark and that is coming from a Linux lover, I have a Linux lappy, and a win7 lappy, the second of which I have not by choice but as a requirement for My online studies, ven the universities cant support linux platforms...I still love this even though old....http://youtu.be/8LsxmQV8AXkSponsored by Steve the Super Villain!An article about the creator can be found here: http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/6761 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
plankton 14 Report post Posted March 24, 2017 Thanks for the article! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
