Deutsch
English
Using an OS for many years can feel like marriage: there are good and bad times and you adapt to get along. Your partner may no longer be the love of your life but you've become intimately familiar and know each other's quirks. However, once updates are forced down your throat, errors get ignored and customer service is next to nonexistent, the relationship quickly cools off and you start taking precautions. In other words: Get your act together, Microsoft!
The Windows 10 October update nearly gave millions of users a heart attack because, depending on their configuration, it deleted all of their personal files! And that was just the beginning. Many customers experienced massive audio issues, flaky internet connections and even blue screens. Sure, errors happen but it goes deeper than that - they were already known beforehand! Thanks to the Windows Insider program, Microsoft now has an army of roughly 10 million beta testers who receive software pre-release builds - with a proviso that the software might not behave as expected, of course. At least participants know what they're in for.
But what good is an army of free testers, if reported issues are ignored? Weeks before the update was released, Microsoft had received a plethora of reports pointing to data loss in users' home directories (C:\Users). This affected personal documents, game states and streaming profiles. To make matters worse, the update disabled system restore for some users. So not only were their files deleted, but the update also took away their ability to revert their machines to a previous state. Many malware authors must have gone green with envy! How did the update make it past quality assurance? Is Windows Insider just a fig leaf to feign extensive testing or are Microsoft unable to cope with the huge amounts of feedback they receive?
The moment of truth
You might think this a golden opportunity for Microsoft's support team to spring into action and save the day. Well, think again! Apologies were plenty, solutions were not. They did point out the latest update build no longer had the issue though - terrific! Doesn't Microsoft have an undeleter tool somewhere to help users restore their affected files? Apparently not. Instead, users are advised to seek help from third party data recovery specialists or accept that their data is lost - disgraceful for a company of this size. All of this would be easier to accept if it was an isolated incident, but 2018 has been a nightmare for Windows 10 users.
The October update already sabotaged many machines. Aside from 68 security updates, users were treated to various issues surrounding VPN tools, Chrome and even Microsoft's own software like Cortana, who became deaf and dumb, or Edge, that forgot all its settings. In March, many older PCs got stuck in a loop when the update began, failed and then began anew, only to fail again. And not only that but the update process was automatically triggered on machines that had automatic updates disabled. Microsoft's reasoning was that security risks outweigh user rights and thus ignored their settings, rendering many working PCs unusable in the process. They could have just ramrodded the security updates and leave out "feature improvements" but they didn't. This is especially bad for companies, right?
You and I: guinea pigs for Microsoft
Nope, when it comes to potentially system-breaking updates, it's private consumers first, companies second. You don't have to be a cynic to feel like a guinea pig here. The telemetric data Microsoft collects from us not only serves to personalize ads but also helps them fix bugs and optimize the OS. This means their software goes through two test phases before it's rolled out to businesses: first Windows Insider participants then private consumers. Only when the update has successfully been rolled out to the aforementioned user groups and major issues have been fixed will it become available to businesses. No wonder private consumers feel a little unloved.
In the past, Windows Updates used to be smooth sailing for most, now, it's a question of will my system still work afterwards? This uncertainty causes many users to reject automatic updates altogether, with some even deliberately filling their drives to the brim to prevent Windows from updating! That's not a viable long-term solution though. Secure systems need regular updates to fix newly discovered vulnerabilities. Once again, a decent backup strategy pays off. That's why I regularly back up my system to an external drive to mitigate unwanted side effects of Windows updates. As one of the world's biggest software developers, this is certainly not a glorious chapter in Microsoft's history!
What I would like to know: How satisfied are you with Microsoft's update policy? Have you experienced any issues afterwards?
I think I'm still running update 1803 on both PC's I have. But am seriously thinking of moving to apple - but of course at enormous cost to me as a domestic computer user.
I like the old adage - 'if it ain't broke don't try and fix it' and was only too happy with Win7 - both my machines are recently purchased and came loaded with Win10. If I can find a legal copy of win 7 is it possible to load it onto the win 10 machines and get rid of win 10 without any program or data loss. Uggh!
I am running a number of computers across three locations. In the last two weeks I have lost two complete days of work identifying and correcting errors (like the audio goes dead, settings are lost) - and that does not account for the number of BSOD interruptions. One killed a bulk mail send - and of course killed the log as well. Very helpful Microsoft.
The focus MS has on making you use 'Edge', and/or the MS store is blinding them to the reason so many PC's use MS Windows in the first place. It's making 'Microsoft' into our newest swear word.
Their monopoly position is very strong - but not that strong!
These crashes and the creeping conversion by stealth from 'Control Panel' to 'Settings' is firming my resolve to find a way to get out from under.
The Banking Royal Commission in Australia has shown what happens when dominant companies (in this case banks) go all out for profit at the expense of customers. It has shown that there is a day of reckoning. MS would do well to recognise that!
Excellent article as usual Sven, Danke!
There is little point in me repeating what many people have previously said about the negative issues of Windows 10.
Fortunately Microsoft do not manufacture motor cars using first-year apprentices.
I'm sick of MS. A few years ago an unsolicited upgrade from 8 to 8.1 destroyed much of the functionality of my expensive Asus Tai Chi laptop. It was only after a complete re-install of 8.0 that I got my laptop back working properly. Thankfully I'm obsessive when it comes to data - I back up everything to three or four different external drives. Seriously thinking about Linux.
Best stick with XP, the best user-friendly system MS had ever produced....before and after. Bring back support for XP and don't faff about with it!
Windows 10 is very good for a lot of good reason but as soon as they try to improve it (to suit only a specialized few) the rest of the users, including the oldies like me at 80, can go begging.
I use both because my old machine can't be upgraded to take Windows 10. I invested in a new hardware and with W8 and upgraded to10 when the upgrade was free. I regret, in many ways, the fact that I spent so much on a bag of "up-date" worms. Difficulties galore and no real help to sort the problems. I spend more time trying to sort it out myself than actually doing any work on it.
And as for the latest issue of Office goes, why do we have to use the cloud? But that is a whole different story.
I'm not a computer wizard, I'm just a simple user.
From my lowly position on the bottom rung of the wizardry stairway, Windows 10 stinks. The smell on the landing is intolerable.
I wondered why my machine suddenly went dumb a couple of months ago! A reinstall fixed it but then I had to reinstall all my programs, good job I keep my personal files on separate media
It seems I was very lucky, I was away on a cruise and the computer switched off AT THE WALL!
Microsoft for years was about choices, totally opposite from Apple. Now, Microsoft and even Android shove whatever down their client's throats.
First, Sven, Love your articles. They are very straight and to the point.
I'm a long time computer user... started with the Commodore C64 and have used and installed every Microsoft O/S beginning with DOS. I LOVE COMPUTERS!
I totally agree with the idea that a "personal computer" is one that the user has imput and control over how it operates. We, as users, used to have that with the Windows' systems. Through no fault of our own, we no longer have this luxury. I guess we can't call it "personal computing' anymore, but we have to call it "Microsoft Computing" which makes the whole experience totally owned by that company. We no longer own our property, our enjoyment, our thoughts, or anything else because we pay for everything and all of it it tracked and used for someone else's betterment.... !
I'm with the Windows 7 brigade. Have Windows 10 on one machine (to test the waters) - it's more memory-efficient than 7 and the processor doesn't run as hot, but I can get 7 to work the way I want; 10 - you are stuck with a (to me) clunky interface that works (if you are lucky) the way M'soft chose.
I won't touch Apple over-priced and inflexible junk, and unfortunately not enough programs I use are able to run on Linux (or have suitable equivalents for that platform), so I'm stuck with windows. M'soft wins by default, not by any other standard.
My current beef (and I am not alone judging by what others say on the web) is that the almost daily updates of Windows Defender virus definitions slow my PC to snail's pace. For example, whereas Word normally takes 5 seconds to load, it takes 5 minutes (this is not an exaggeration!). Once loaded and eventually opening a doc, click Print and you have to wait another 5 minutes before the command is executed. The only solution is a Restart, which reverts everything to normal. WHY??!!!
It's not much better then?!! Having windows 10 with updates!! I have windows 7 and don't use windows updates now, unless i am in need to, as' not only do they upset your computer at times, but' there are simply too many and take up valuable space on your hard drive capacity. Why are so many updates required?!!
I may be just lucky but both my pc and laptop survived October updated without any issues... phew.
But a friend of mine experiences strange issue when audio jack and speakers on his work laptop became dumb and no matter what he does he cannot make the laptop to make any sound. This started after the october upate and till now he hasn't been able to fix it. At least he found a workaround in using a USB headset which works properly.
Not a great state for a work laptop which is frequently used for video calls with colleagues and customers.
I take daily backups on both my computers with Backup Pro 12 and hope I will never have to restore from them :)
At last I've found out what happened with one of my PC's. I gave up trying everything to fix it and eventually re-installed W10 from scratch, thanks for finally solving my conundrum. Great article.
Windows tries to update things that I do not use or want. Then, it discovers that my machine will not accept them - OK, it is a bit old, but it does what I want. The irritating thing is that Windows keep trying!
My machine wont accept the update - so why does it keep trying?
Luckily? I do not store any data C/ users etc.
Never have. Dos 5 was fine and I learned where to store my data where it would be safe - even if it was a floppy.
God I feel old …
Yes I agree how do I pass the email to a friend who has issues with iTunes and Microsoft
I prefer to stay with Windows 7, with all updates set to off, or at least when I prefer to update if I want to. Haven't updated anything except for a few drivers here and there for a few years. The old mantra of "don't fix it if it ain't broke" is where I'm at. Maybe someday I'll be left in the dust with the technology and updates these days, but I prefer a modicum of control over my own stuff, or at least my narrow beliefs that I have some.
I think it is probably the fault of money grubbers at the top, who have collected a new set of managers (at all levels) more concerned with counting beans than providing a good product. When stock values become the more important metric for top management. the organization is in a downward spiral. We have seen companies fall aside like governments, because they ate their seed corn.
This is why I SPECIFICALLY upgraded all my devices to win 10 pro and select the following: (under "advanced options", inside "Update & Security" available after converting to pro - this is NOT available ion win 10 Home)
Choose "semi-Annual Channel", which is business CHANGE it from default which is "Semi-Annual Channel (targeted)" (which is retail)
"A feature update..." max it out to 365 days (default is zero delay)
"A quality update" max is a month, I do a week (default is zero delay)
Microsoft appear to be getting it wrong too often for it to be a "one off".
I have to say I personally have had no problems, but my 6 monthly updates come well late compared to most people. The company appears to be getting just too blase about things and ignoring their beta testers is inexcusable.
My PCs have full system backups made to a couple of dedicated NAS units which have RAID arrays set up to replicate these backups to both drives in the NAS. It may seem like overkill but my data is priceless to me. Similarly now that so much software is delivered "online" with no hard copy backup I rely on these backup to restore systems should anything go awry.
.
" How satisfied are you with Microsoft's update policy? Have you experienced any issues afterwards? "
My Windows 7 updates satisfaction level is 'high'. Over the years, some of their auto-updates failed to install. This required me to manually download the failed updates and install. No problem the second time.
.
I don't normally contribute to blogs and as a Windows 8.1 Luddite I've not been hit with the series of disasters that Windows 10 appears to be. But I have no intention of "upgrading" to Windows 10. My primary reason for having a PC is because it enables me to work. I don't want to constantly be trying to find out where things have been moved to, re-personalising software so it works the way I want it too etc. I want things left as they are so I can just log on and get to work. If I want to play "computer-geek" (no offence intended to anyone) I'll get myself an installation of Linux and while away the hours learning how to use that. In fact as I near retirement I may walk away from Windows entirely - my wife's new Chromebook (less than £200 and working within 5 minutes of taking it out of the box) does everything she needs and probably will do the same for me in the future. Sorry Microsoft I loved XP, got on fine with Vista and have no problems with 8.1. But Windows 10 and it's well reported problems? Well if you make things hard enough I'm happy to go elsewhere. (I can't say I'm that impressed with Office 365 either - after a week I uninstalled it and I'm now using something cheaper and, at least for my needs, better).
Answer to the 1st question is no I'm not happy with their way they're doing it I have not been happy since I went to Windows10.
Answer to # 2.
With all the updates that we've had even though I was at time one time and kind of on the Windows insider program And experiencing exactly the same problems with the update program as most everybody else has and having to contact Microsoft several times to repair or re install or whatever I anything that was messed up has become a norm rather than the way it should be and has become very very up setting. It seems at once they have taken had taken the permissions away for access to anything on your hard drive and made it so the you no longer own or can have access has made them programs at times very unusable. It would be great to gain complete control of my personal computer again.
Army of insiders? I have an old Chinese saying:
"A lion-led donkey army is stronger than an army of lions led by a donkey"
After this update of win10,"No Comments!"
Good health and all the best,Sven!
Makes me glad I have stuck with Windows 7!