Someone found a way to bypass Windows 7 Extended Security Updates checks

Martin Brinkmann
Dec 7, 2019
Windows, Windows 7
|
101

Someone discovered a way to enable Extended Security Updates on all machines running Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system.

Support for Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system ends after the January 2020 Patch Tuesday. Small businesses and Enterprises may extend support by up to three years for a price.

Small businesses pay Microsoft up to $200 per device and year for extended support, Enterprises up to $200 per user and year. The support program is available already and there are prerequisites that need to be met.

Microsoft won't offer the Extended Security Updates program to Home users even though some would pay Microsoft to extend support for Windows 7. Home users may get some security patches created by third-party company 0Patch, but support will be limited and not as extensive -- likely -- as what Microsoft pushes out via the Extended Security Updates program.

Note: Microsoft released a test update that administrators may attempt to download and install to verify that the device is eligible for Extended Security Updates. This, and other parameters, may change before the program starts officially in January 2020. Creating backups is highly recommended.

bypass security updates checks

Devices or users that participate in the Extended Security Updates program need to install an update that verifies eligibility to receive updates after January 14, 2020. Extended Security Updates must be installed online on live systems; they cannot be integrated or installed offline, at least not right now.

Users on the My Digital Life forum discovered a way to bypass the Extended Security Updates check. The bypass works with Microsoft's test update but it is unclear if it will also work with "real" updates that the company releases after the January 2020 Patch Day.

All that needs to be done currently is to download a small archive from the My Digital Life forum and extract it. The package includes two batch files that enable or disable the bypass on the system, executable files, and the source.

Basically, what happens behind the scene is that verification checks return true all the time through manipulation of these checks.

One interesting aspect of the hack is that it enables support for all Windows 7 editions, even those that Microsoft does not want to support after January 14, 2020. In other words: Windows 7 Home, Starter or Ultimate editions would be able to receive updates provided by the Extended Security Updates program when the bypass is installed.

The developers plan already to extend support to Windows Vista and to support the POSReady 7 SKU which will receive security updates until 2024. (via Deskmodder)

Summary
Someone found a way to bypass Windows 7 Extended Security Updates checks
Article Name
Someone found a way to bypass Windows 7 Extended Security Updates checks
Description
Someone discovered a way to enable Extended Security Updates on all machines running Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system.
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Comments

  1. Darren Lee said on February 10, 2021 at 7:35 pm
    Reply

    Its in German..?

  2. Anonymous said on May 24, 2020 at 11:18 pm
    Reply

    The BypassESU-v5 tools works fine for installing the post-EOL updates for February – May 2020.

    However, it does not allow the May 2020 update(and future updates) for Microsoft .NET Framework 4.8 to be installed unless the BypassESU-v7 tool is used.

    Note: The May 2020 servicing stack update(KB4555449) needs to be installed first before the BypassESU-v7 tool can be used.

    1. Matt said on June 6, 2020 at 5:11 am
      Reply

      Does anyone have a link to the BypassESU-v7 tool?
      thx

  3. JoeG said on February 12, 2020 at 5:32 pm
    Reply

    URGENT MODIFICATION TO MY PREVIOUS POST!

    I wrote …
    “By the way, some people on mydigitallife believe that if you install the Feb 2020 Servicing Stack Update Security Update (KB4537829) as one of the updates, it will prevent the bypass from working in March. This, to the best of my knowledge, has not been corroborated by the development team.”

    In the meantime, about 20 hours later, my statement is clearly in need of correction.

    Members of the “Bypass ESU” development team HAVE corroborated on the mydigitallife site that the Feb 2020 SSU will indeed prevent the bypass from working in March. Moreover, they also contend that it will even prevent the bypass from working with last night’s February updates.

  4. JoeG said on February 11, 2020 at 11:47 pm
    Reply

    As of tonight, 11Feb 2020, the bypass works. I’ve used it to patch/update four Win 7 x64 pro machines without a hitch. Other people on the mydigitallife site have, too.

    I’d be remiss, however, in failing to add that people have experienced problems with it. Without wanting to be overly unkind, many of them apparently either have problems reading English or following the pretty straightforward instructions.

    By the way, some people on mydigitallife believe that if you install the Feb 2020 Servicing Stack Update Security Update (KB4537829) as one of the updates, it will prevent the bypass from working in March. This, to the best of my knowledge, has not been corroborated by the development team.

    Let it be said clearly here that I am NOT advocating the use of the bypass. Even though the devs have offered a pretty clear outline of how it actually functions, it obviously opens some major security issues, let alone the “moral” ones possibly involved.

  5. Anonymous said on February 11, 2020 at 11:46 pm
    Reply

    As of tonight, 11Feb 2020, the bypass works. I’ve used it to patch/update four Win 7 x64 pro machines without a hitch. Other people on the mydigitallife site have, too.

    I’d be remiss, however, in failing to add that people have experienced problems with it. Without wanting to be overly unkind, many of them apparently either have problems reading English or following the pretty straightforward instructions.

    By the way, some people on mydigitallife believe that if you install the Feb 2020 Servicing Stack Update Security Update (KB4537829) as one of the updates, it will prevent the bypass from working in March. This, to the best of my knowledge, has not been corroborated by the development team.

    Let it be said clearly here that I am NOT advocating the use of the bypass. Even though the devs have offered a pretty clear outline of how it actually functions, it obviously opens some major security issues, let alone the “moral” ones possibly involved.

    1. anonymous2 said on February 12, 2020 at 5:34 pm
      Reply

      it looks like MS will continue to issue new Win7 SSUs like KB4537829 to shut down any “ESU bypass” hacks

  6. Damian Lang said on January 29, 2020 at 9:56 am
    Reply

    Not a bad idea to run Win 7 as a “standard” user instead of as Admin, post-EoL. Always running a PC or laptop WinOS as a “default” Admin is why I made some $$ delousing many users Win OSes over the years. Linux has had it right, requiring running as limited default user and using Sudo password to make OS changes or repo updates.

    A “bit” OT..but…

    WOW (Wide Open West) ISP uses half of its home subscribers’ installed WiFi capable routers’ broadcast bccid being also the first 4 digits of its default 8 digit password, so having to only crack the other 4 digits of their 8 digit WPA2 TKIP AES encryption using Kali+Crunch to gain internet access is easy-peasy. So many home users never bother or know how to change the default password…much less the name of the broadcast IP ID signal…:-)

  7. Damian Lang said on January 29, 2020 at 9:19 am
    Reply

    Micro$oft Security Essentials is still updating defs as of the date of this post. I have lomg used it, SMADAV, and Clamwin/Sentry for virus protection, SMADAVbeing the best for USB on my Win 7 Pro and Ultimate OSes.

  8. zaro said on January 24, 2020 at 10:51 am
    Reply

    Windows 10 Heavy, Telemetry, Useless, Bloatware, Over Usage of Resources

    Windows 7 : Hello dudes…

  9. AnyCreatureMorph said on January 21, 2020 at 12:43 am
    Reply

    Just switch to Linux because it is more useable than micro-craps operating system. I use zorin os on my laptop. There is a thousand of Linux operating systems to choose from.

  10. Jerry said on January 15, 2020 at 3:11 pm
    Reply

    File is inaccessible unless you have a digital life login. Would someone please post it to Google Drive? Thanks.

    1. Yury Gödl355 said on January 20, 2020 at 9:24 pm
      Reply

      gitlab.com/stdout12/adns/uploads/4dc079c2bb172696b22e64cf361daa55/BypassESU-v3 dot zit.

  11. Mr_Yesterday said on January 14, 2020 at 7:34 am
    Reply

    Thank you for posting. I read every single blog post here and read last min 7 articles for about most of today.

    Can I still reset to my initial 7 image and take in the full updates on the very last day of 01/14/2020 around noon mst, and then image copy again? Does support end on the 14th or at the crack o dawn or midnight on the 15th, in what time zone? Should have covered this last month but ended up in the hospital. What is the exact minute, day, and time zone of the cut off time?

    I’ve tried to be optimistic about a 10 swap over but the trust factor with MS has been destroyed years ago. Restart this 7 pro, new image copy w/ last 3 years of updates, drop mwbytes back on there, and hope for the best. It is the principal of the matter, automatically opting into data tracking, not allowing owners to have master control, de elevating administrative privilege to that of a mere responsive user, etc.

    This is stupid, we’re all victims of corporate extortion. What about the environment and ewaste? My original 7 home slimline is working 10 or 12 something years later and my girls learned a lot about computers still using that. If it stays offline it never breaks. I kept it to save word 2010 because that is indeed the best most user friendly writing software ever.

    If Microsoft was not in bed with spyware government this whole time, building in backdoors, the exploit game would be much slower, the need for updating much less, the general pace of needing new equipment would be slower. When users are pushed so far the only option is to get hacked over here or lose constitutional rights over there. Tell me they could not have done something fundamentally better to keep XP and 7 running all these years. Like commented above, they’re offloading the responsibility to others.

    The saga of never 10’ers is the saga of the ages, repeated again. How to protect our inalienable rights from a runaway government and monopolized businesses. Privacy matters, much more than so many apparently realize. Slow it down a little. Since when was theft, dishonesty, or deception ever o.k.? The digital world continues to erode our fundamental humanity.

    Thank you for reading and thank you again for providing an independent network of solutions apart from these corporations. All I want to do is hold onto windows 7 without being threatened or extorted. Why is it such a problem? Contrived problems, pre planned solutions. Order out of chaos but there is a better way. Why should I be so concerned with being hacked when just about every single business I may frequent holds my data to infinity and they get hacked or betray the privacy trust daily? I’ll at least have an operating system I enjoy using.

  12. Taggart Romkey said on December 13, 2019 at 12:39 am
    Reply

    I just dumped Windows 10 for Debian Linux. I found that Windows 10 just bogged down my system and kept borking stupid things like Office, Photoshop CS4 activation

  13. EP said on December 10, 2019 at 9:58 pm
    Reply

    support for Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) on Windows 7 will still end on 1/14/2020, regardless of whether or not ESU is enabled on Win7, Martin:
    https://news.softpedia.com/news/microsoft-to-kill-off-its-windows-7-free-antivirus-next-month-528522.shtml

    Win7 users after Jan. 14 of next year will need to remove MSE and use another AV program to secure their machines. Win7 ESUs will NOT include updates for MSE from that point on

  14. Bobby Dope said on December 10, 2019 at 11:08 am
    Reply

    I’m still on Windows 95, as it’s the best!

    I will never upgrade!

  15. trlkly said on December 10, 2019 at 7:55 am
    Reply

    The main problem with Windows 10 are the constant “feature updates” which are effectively upgrading to a new version of Windows, with all the headaches that involves. Before, you might get a handful of such updates throughout the life cycle of the OS (and you would always wait a long while for them to be stable.) But now they happen twice a year, with much less testing. So it’s even worse.

    The reason I’m on Windows 7 is that I moved to Windows 10, and the very first feature update ruined my machine, making the hard drive run way too slow. And I had to spend a couple hours after the 4 hour long update to fix things it reset. And I still lost my better graphics driver to Microsoft’s built in one, and couldn’t get them to stop replacing the better one.

    If I can find a way to keep Windows 7 updated, I’m going to choose that. If I can’t, I’m just going to harden my Windows 7 with techniques that make it where any but the biggest exploits (which Microsoft will backport like they did with Spectre/Meltdown) are not a problem. Software won’t stop supporting Windows 7 for a long time–did you see how long it took for Windows XP to be dropped? And DirectX 12 is basically useless with the existence of Vulkan. And I can use any apps on my tablet or phone, or even use an Android emulator if I for some reason need them on PC.

    The security risks are not worth the hassle of upgrading and having to stay on top of every mistake Microsoft makes. Hopefully their bottom line is starting to be affected and they’ll continue to try and make things more stable. I’m hoping the commitment to more testing and 1909 is a sign of things to come, where that update will be a minor update. Heck, I hope they drop to one feature update a year, like macOS, or even fewer.

    Don’t try to make us out not to know how to handle computers. The people who don’t like Windows 10 are largely people who have been using computers since the DOS days when you had to know a whole lot more about how computers worked to use and maintain them successfully. Heck, it’s our advanced uses that are more likely to result in breakage.

  16. Anonymous said on December 9, 2019 at 12:10 pm
    Reply

    Bottom line is windows 7 is more user friendly and works great for most users needs.
    Windows 10 has many more options and choices but requires many more clicks and so it makes most work for word and excel inefficient.

    So for some people windows 10 is a good tool but for speed freaks who DO NOT NEED the extra options, it is annoying.

    For Microsoft to stop supporting 7 is one thing but to charge to change to 10 is greedy. PERIOD.

    Again the difference is, 7 being more user friendly and faster to navigate.
    For some professions (architects, teachers) and big corporations 10 is better but for smaller businesses and the vast majority of users 7 is the preferred choice.

    It is as if Microsoft does not listen to consumer demand/preference.

    So I agree with Jimmy and others and feel Microsoft should stand by their products and provide service support.

    Martin, thanks for this post.

  17. Ash said on December 9, 2019 at 9:50 am
    Reply

    I’ll take windows 98 any day compared to to all windows above. Next would be 2000, then Vista. Beyond that, too many problems and you have to damn near be a programmer. No can do.

  18. Father said on December 8, 2019 at 9:00 pm
    Reply

    Win10 is rubbish it’s nothing but blotewear turning all our comps to Linux mint

  19. BiteMyKrank said on December 8, 2019 at 8:29 pm
    Reply

    It seems EVERYONE has a downer on Windows 10 because of the so called Telemetry. It’s very simple, you install Win 10, then install O

  20. ULBoom said on December 8, 2019 at 7:45 pm
    Reply

    Wow, this thread makes me nostalgic for the old Firefox vs. Pale Moon vs. Chromia vs. Vivaldi bloodbaths.

    Not even a little bit.

  21. John in Mtl said on December 8, 2019 at 7:15 pm
    Reply

    Quote: “They force us to move. It is not about a fear of change- it is about junk programing.” – Dino

    Couldn’t have said it better myself!

  22. Bobo said on December 8, 2019 at 7:13 pm
    Reply

    I think that come February 2020, switch to a non-admin account on your Windows 7 and you’ll be safer than those who pay for extended support..

  23. the_soft45 said on December 8, 2019 at 6:06 pm
    Reply

    Nice that you mention “someone” and link to the MDL thread but not mention abbodi1406 and mspaintmsi.

    Ghacks gets worse and worse…..

  24. Dave said on December 8, 2019 at 5:54 pm
    Reply

    The expert you all come here to take advice from runs the very OS so many of you spend all your time bashing on.

    Now that’s Irony LOL

  25. anonymouse said on December 8, 2019 at 4:44 pm
    Reply

    Thanks for the article Martin although, the way I see it, whatever holes there are now at this early testing-ESU patch stage will ultimately get plugged by MSFT. Whether it’s before 14th Jan 2020 or after is a bit cloudy in the crystal ball

  26. mysiak said on December 8, 2019 at 4:10 pm
    Reply
  27. Zhamshir said on December 8, 2019 at 2:59 pm
    Reply

    Jayson, there IS something else that came along, decades ago, in fact.

    It’s called Linux.

    I run linux on my laptop, my workstation at work, and an additional server which hosts my Windows VM’s (which are required for a few things that I support at work) running under QEMU/KVM and accessed via Spice.

    Throw Libre Office on top of that, and screw MS Office and Office365.

    The only thing that Windows is good for is ensuring that the plethora of idiots in this day and age have something to point and click at.

  28. JohnIL said on December 8, 2019 at 12:50 pm
    Reply

    I guess if you absolutely need Windows 7 this is probably nice to at least get security updates, if indeed it works and Microsoft doesn’t keep breaking it. I have moved past Windows 7 just for the better security in Windows 10 alone, yeah the OS itself isn’t what I would call Microsoft’s best Windows. But Windows 7 is a ancient operating system and security updates don’t fix the inherent weaknesses of such a old OS. Windows is such a target, I wouldn’t feel secure running even a updated Windows 7 these days.

    1. Mothy said on December 8, 2019 at 7:01 pm
      Reply

      Security updates or newer software (ex. application or operating system) are but one layer of security. There are various other more important layers all of which combined together (ex. defense in depth) that will determine the overall security of a system. Guess the point being, don’t be lulled into a false sense of security based simply on being up to date on patches or by running the latest software.

  29. nealis said on December 8, 2019 at 12:42 pm
    Reply

    Stay with Windows 7 as long as you can. Windows 10 is a mess. Biannual annual service packs and you are at risk of bluescreen and random file deletion with every update. They want to create with WinRT ecosystem, but nobody is committing and ignore the Windows Appstore.

    Their updates have no quality controls and tt is so bad that that their own hardware, surface pros suffered with bluescreen b/c of their half backed updates. You don’t have to take my word for it, just google the whole of issues that comes with half backed updates.

    The updates are to satisfy the ego of MS CEO Nadella who sees Windows as a mobile os like android, not an OS where people depend on stability and predictability to get work done. The mobile update cadence that Nadella forced on users has no justifiable reason desktop users at all.

    1. VioletMoon said on December 8, 2019 at 7:47 pm
      Reply

      Completely false. Linux updates can completely destroy the entire OS just as much, if not more than, Windows 10.

      We’ve been running Windows 10 since it came out and have had zero problems. Problems with updates–blue screens, drivers, etc.–are usually poor judgment by users who are in a hurry to always have the “latest and greatest” from MS.

      Nothing has changed since XP days when all sorts of problems could be attributed to an update–google around and you will find all sorts of problems XP, Vista, and Windows 7, 8 have had.

      One learns the ecosystem for Windows 10; then, all is well.

  30. Kentoz said on December 8, 2019 at 10:32 am
    Reply

    Windows 10 is a garbage os installed it two weeks ago and within some minutes I got a blue screen of death poorly programmed kernel….m now using Linux for the rest of my PC usage rip windows 10

  31. Hamzali said on December 8, 2019 at 9:21 am
    Reply

    Long live LINUX!!!! :P

  32. Nevyn said on December 8, 2019 at 8:25 am
    Reply

    I would upgrade to windows what ever… but why pay for Microsoft 360 l…. why do I need to pay for something I bought! Again and again and again. With Microsoft 360 that’s what we are doing… with both the Internet and the program we are using!

  33. Dino said on December 8, 2019 at 8:04 am
    Reply

    Microsoft does not care what people want. They change and rename and take-away tools for no real reason. I see nothing in Win 10 that is better, easier, or faster than Win7. Office is also a complete mess and has been since Office 2003. They force us to move. It is not about a fear of change- it is about junk programing. At the very least- they should have skins that give the user the same experience as the Win7 or even XP. It is fine to have programing in the background of the new software. I wish they would just make us pay to keep what we want. Win10 is just a little better than Win8. Edge is pure garbage. They are the biggest but far from the best. They should have been broken up in the late 1990’s. They are only around because we have limited choices and they are biggest. I seriously doubt users where telling them to get rid of start button and programs – or they really want to type search of everything. Or they love that Office Ribbon- instead of a commonsense toolbar.

    1. Anonymous said on December 8, 2019 at 3:23 pm
      Reply

      My client base has been voting with their wallets for quite some time now:

      Office – predominantly Office 2003, with only a handful using office 2010 for dealing with the .docx and .xlsx files that won’t convert with Microsoft’s converter. Reasons given – Ribbon is terrible and hurts productivity even after training and daily usage. Recurring fees to use software unacceptable. Many of those who moved (or were forced) to 2013, 2016, or 2019 have had me roll them back to 2010.

      OS – Predominantly Win 7 or Server 2012 Terminal Services. Users that got home computers loaded with Win 10 are universally telling me to buy refurb Dells, wipe Win 10, and load Win 7 with a correct initial setup, limited patching, and then Win Updates set to Never (turned on only when an important patch arises. Only HIPAA controlled customers have begrudgingly been moved to Win 10 – with a great deal of “feedback” from users that, unsurprisingly, don’t seem to like Win 10 either.

      Of note – not one of the many hundreds of computers has ever been affected by an unpatched exploit. In fact, no issues across the board except for the handful of issues caused by a user clicking on something they should not have. And these are never protected by a patch or even by anti-malware software.

  34. Alex1838 said on December 8, 2019 at 8:02 am
    Reply

    Auslogic.com
    All you need to keep Windows 7 going.
    What’s the big deal.

    1. Bast Hotep said on December 8, 2019 at 8:13 pm
      Reply

      Why are you spamming people to go to a dead website?

      1. Hugh said on January 12, 2020 at 1:16 am
        Reply

        I think he meant …
        https://www.auslogics.com

  35. Jayson said on December 8, 2019 at 7:22 am
    Reply

    I just finally upgraded to 10 a couple weeks ago, held out as long as I could. I started with Windows 3.1 then 95. 98 was ok, I loved XP, refused to touch Vista, 2000, ME… 7 is by far the best one ever. 8/8.1 are garbage, meant to capitalize on the tablet movement. So now we’re forced to use 10, which is basically a combination of 7 and 8/8.1, until something else comes along…

    1. Iron Heart said on December 8, 2019 at 11:42 am
      Reply

      Windows 8.1 isn’t “garbage” as long as you know what you are doing, Classic Shell is able to fix all of its UI issues permanently. I have never seen Metro again after having installed Classic Shell. I use Windows 8.1 Pro and laugh at all the Windows 7 idiots lamenting “end of support”.

      1. Rob said on December 9, 2019 at 5:17 am
        Reply

        Agreed, however I’m happy with the default menu. Win 8.1 is solid, uses virtually no resources compared to Win 10 (HDD or RAM), does not send all your info to MS, does not change features constantly and never crashes, what more could you ask for? It is a very solid OS. My Win 10 machines randomly hung for about two years for no obvious reason, while they have settled, it remains a rubbish OS.

        A few years ago I purchased cheap 8.1 licences and will use it fro as long as possible then migrate to Ubuntu ( other than my Win 10 gaming PC).

      2. stefann said on December 9, 2019 at 12:48 am
        Reply

        @Iron Heart: Windows 8.1 was okay until Microsoft stopped test the updates they are releasing….

  36. Win10User said on December 8, 2019 at 5:56 am
    Reply

    I cannot believe the number of morons who insist that they will continue to run Windows 7. I saw the same thing happen with Windows 98, then Windows XP. The big bad telemetry monster doesn’t care about your stupid little computer; the NSA and the Russian government are not sitting these poised, waiting for you to install Windows 10 so they can monitor your every move. The amount of money I made cleaning up infected computers operated by idiots like you was ridiculous.

    1. stefann said on December 9, 2019 at 12:43 am
      Reply

      @Win10User: I can’t believe that morons still use Windows 10 – the easiest Windows 10 hack of them all….

      1. stefann said on December 9, 2019 at 12:45 am
        Reply

        This should be the correct answer to @Win10User : I can’t believe that morons still use Windows 10 – the easiest Windows to hack of them all… (edit button needed)

    2. DaveyK said on December 8, 2019 at 6:22 pm
      Reply

      If they didn’t care, they’d provide an official “off” switch for it.

      MS cares because they don’t do much testing of updates any more, so once their “insiders” have run the update for a bit, they push it out to end-user PCs, then use the telemetry to spot which bits break. Call me old-fashioned, but I’d rather MS tested updates properly, rather than using me as an unpaid “tester” for them.

      As it is, I do have W10 on a couple of machines and see no real benefit to it. Also replaced my wife’s laptop a few months ago with a W10 laptop – all she’s done since is moan about problems with it compared with her old one.

      In the past when MS released a crap version of Windows (ie, Vista), people could just wait for MS to get their shit together. Not anymore…

      1. Anonymous said on December 16, 2019 at 5:34 am
        Reply

        “all she’s done since is moan”

        Obviously now ‘winning’! };-)~

    3. Jimmy said on December 8, 2019 at 5:30 pm
      Reply

      Telemetry isn’t even my biggest issue with 10. Major updates are. And LTSC has its own problems, so that’s not a solution either.
      “It it ain’t broke don’t fix it.” That’s how people who want to get things done think. But if you love tinkering and babysitting your PC then go ahead, upgrade every week for all I care.

    4. Anonymous said on December 8, 2019 at 12:13 pm
      Reply

      Another “Privacy does not matter because I have nothing to hide” moron.

  37. Kenneth G. Terral said on December 8, 2019 at 5:23 am
    Reply

    It’s still possible to install Windows 10 on your machine for free. You’ll just have to upgrade Windows 7 to Windows 10. Just download the Windows 10 ISO that corresponds with the version of Windows 7 that you have. If you have edition, download home edition if you have pro, then download pro. I did it with my HP laptop. My desktop I just found a website that sells license keys for Windows 10, now I’m dual-booting Windows 7 and Windows 10 together. https://www.tomshardware.com/amp/reviews/get-windows-10-free-or-cheap,5717.html

    1. msorkdl said on December 8, 2019 at 4:09 pm
      Reply

      Nope!

  38. Stephen said on December 8, 2019 at 5:14 am
    Reply

    I can only imagine that people who think Windows 10 is garbage in 2019 must not be very good with computers. Pretty much all the undesirable quirks are easily fixable with a powershell script, or a little bit of tweaking to a SOE. It’s miles ahead of what it was on launch day. Stop holding onto your dinosaur operating systems.

    1. sp808 said on December 9, 2019 at 10:39 am
      Reply

      Wanna to be on the edge? On the edge of sh#tty wave?

      Nothing is wrong with Win7. I do creative work, like 3d rendering, using raster and vector editors, entertainment works also: movies, games, you name it.

      Vector of attack will continuosly decreasing, and no privacy issues.

      Conclusions regarding win7 demise can declare only puter amateurs.

    2. Peterc said on December 8, 2019 at 10:42 pm
      Reply

      @Stephen:

      “I can only imagine that people who think Windows 10 is garbage in 2019 must not be very good with computers. Pretty much all the undesirable quirks are easily fixable with a powershell script, or a little bit of tweaking to a SOE.”

      And that kind of observation might be defensible if we were talking about Slackware, Arch Linux, or BSD. Given that we’re talking about Windows 10, the *vast majority* of whose target audience consists of users who are “not very good with computers,” it’s supercilious and inapposite.

      Let’s be honest. Windows 10 supports a few new technologies and is the only version of Windows that Microsoft supports installing on post-Skylake-era chipsets. Eventually, maybe starting two or three years after end of life, app developers will stop supporting Windows 7 and Windows 8.1. And those are really the *only* things that make Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 dinosaurs — markedly more stable, more predictable, more trustworthy dinosaurs.

      Even though I’m probably good enough with computers to minimize (though probably *not* completely to avoid) stability and privacy problems in Windows 10, I don’t *want* to have to be eternally vigilant and pro-active to avoid major OS issues, so Windows 10 is off the table for me. I’m switching to a reasonably stable, secure, and private Linux distro instead, and I fully understand users who want to continue running Windows 7 (or Windows 8.1 with Open-Shell) for as long as possible.

    3. Darren said on December 8, 2019 at 10:34 am
      Reply

      Thoust speaks only truth brother Stephen.

  39. Veron said on December 8, 2019 at 4:12 am
    Reply

    I am staying with Win7. I had 10 in my music studio. Nothing would sink with 7 softwares.

  40. Laurence "GreenReaper" Parry said on December 8, 2019 at 3:42 am
    Reply

    Microsoft are unlikely to care. Big businesses that want support will pay for it. As for people at home, it’s arguably better for them to be patched than not, and the cost is minimal. And if for some reason a patch breaks something, well hey, wasn’t supported anyway.

  41. Michael Delcambre said on December 8, 2019 at 2:27 am
    Reply

    I’ll be okay at least until 2023 because I installed 8.1 just to avoid 10. I’ve had too many problems with Windows 10 and actually like 8.1. I had planned to solely use Linux Mint for my online needs after 2023, but might actually get a few more years out of 8.1 if they find an update hack for it. I used the POSReady2009 on my Windows XP in 2015.

    1. Iron Heart said on December 8, 2019 at 11:44 am
      Reply

      Windows 8.1 with Classic Shell is literally the best Windows ever. Unironically.

      1. Jody Thornton said on December 12, 2019 at 1:17 pm
        Reply

        I use Windows 8 with Classic Shell (just because I bypass telemetry updates with Windows 8.1). Best experience EVER.

  42. Alex said on December 8, 2019 at 1:54 am
    Reply

    So now that this is front page news, how long will it take MS to plug the hole?
    Nobody likes egg on their face in public.

    1. cat in the hat said on December 8, 2019 at 6:08 am
      Reply

      Good point. I expect this crack with stop working soon, so many Win 7 users will likely still be vulnerable to future security risks.

      Also, being that Win 7 is still supported now (until January 14, 2020), this news is rather moot.

      For good news is, Win 7 users will likely keep finding ways to keep updated without paying Microsoft for “Extended Security Updates”.

      The questions now are: Is it even worth the hassle of keeping Win 7 updated for free like that? Will such options even work well? .. and .. Would it be better to just move to Win 10 and/or Linux?

      Based on the history with Win XP, I’d say it’s time for most Win 7 users to simply move on.

      BTW, I use XP (offline), Win 7 and Win 10.

      As for Win 7, I will continue to use it offline after January 14, 2020, and may try updating it, if that process is simple enough, secure, and free.

  43. Tim said on December 8, 2019 at 1:48 am
    Reply

    I will use windows 7 forever even offline

  44. MartinFan said on December 8, 2019 at 12:58 am
    Reply

    @LaundryGuy I know you think everyone should update to the latest and greatest but some of us have monthly data caps, and we don’t want telemetry wasting our bandwidth.

  45. Darren said on December 7, 2019 at 11:36 pm
    Reply

    Yea, I too just built a new Ryzen machine so had to go to Win10 Ent 1909 to get the most out the the new processor architecture.

    Win10 is fine as long as you neuter it as much as possible with privacy apps and such and only use Enterprise or LTSC. If you game or use Photoshop etc using Windows 7 is like beating an old mule. It’s just way too outdated now. If you’re just an Internet / Email user, then continue partying like it’s 2009.

    1. cat in the hat said on December 8, 2019 at 6:23 am
      Reply

      I agree. Furthermore, I reckon it will likely be harder and sketchy to keep Win 7 going for free, than to deal with tweaking Win 10.

      Personally, it took me some time, but I finally got Win 10 to be better than Win 7, IMO, and the reasons you spoke of.

      Tip to Win 7 desktop users on the cheap: Consider buying a used/refurbished Dell Optiplex PC with Win 10, and install Linux on your old box.

      Also note, you can run Linux and Win 7 on that same old box, and just use Win 7 offline when the support ends.

  46. John in Mtl said on December 7, 2019 at 10:17 pm
    Reply

    Someone should publish a hack to enable us “ordinary small folk” to use Win10 Enterprise or Education versions instead of the crappy Pro and worse, Home versions, of win10. Maybe, maybe… win10 could become palatable then.

    Win 7 (pro and >) was a great OS’s and still is but eventually we all have to pinch our noses and swallow the new medicine, wether we like it or not. I’m holding out until I can’t. Still, for many uses, personally, I’ll stick to air-gapped “obsolete” win 7 and for the big-bad-public-internet I’ll use Linux Mint through a hardware firewall & router. This solution already works well 100%.

    1. CKing123 said on December 8, 2019 at 2:02 am
      Reply

      There is, and in fact I can use any edition of Windows 10 from Home, Pro (and the weird N etc editions), Pro for Workstation, Enterprise, Education, etc

      I used it for Enterprise, and the way it works is using HWID (the same way Windows 10 free upgrades work)

  47. fozz said on December 7, 2019 at 9:48 pm
    Reply

    You know, I’d love to move to Win10 but I dread the idea of doing a ton of installing/configuration/fiddling with settings are just off-putting.

    Call me lazy but, from upgrading/installing Win10 itself to configuring various settings to ‘optimise’ your OS and whatnot, all these sound too much of a hassle for me.

    I’ll stick with Win7 until majority of the programs that I use drops Win7 support for good.

    1. nealis said on December 8, 2019 at 2:38 am
      Reply

      @fozz, you aren’t missing much. The Windows 10 biannual update cycle is a bad idea all around. Anyone who is sticking with WIndows 7 for this long won’t use the Windows 10 “features” anyways.

  48. nealis said on December 7, 2019 at 9:06 pm
    Reply

    I wish I didn’t join the Windows 10 hype train and upgrade at launch day and become a unwilling beta test user for Windows 10 all those years. Windows 10 has been such a disappointment in every regard. I could have stayed with the rock stable Windows 7 my old AMD 8350 based computer and avoided all those issues with Windows 10.

    Now I just built a new Ryzen computer and hardware support for Windows 7 is nonexistent and I don’t have a choice but to use Windows 10.

    1. semper liber said on December 22, 2019 at 11:55 pm
      Reply

      What “Anonymous” wants to convey is this extreme notion among simpletons, that entitlement is always good and capitalism is always bad.

    2. Bindere Dundat said on December 7, 2019 at 11:59 pm
      Reply

      “….. Windows 7 is nonexistent and I don’t have a choice but to use Windows 10.”

      Wrong.
      You DO have a choice.
      And in the unlikely scenario that you do not have a choice, then your problem is not with Microsoft and/or Windows. Your problem is with whoever it is that is holding a loaded gun pointed at your head FORCING you to choose.

      1. Anonymous said on December 8, 2019 at 12:02 pm
        Reply

        What Bindere Dunrat wants to convey is the very general idea that under capitalism, you always have the FREEDOM to starve homeless if do not want to obey all the rules edicted by private monopolies with the sole objective of maximizing their bottom line. Well, they will also hold a loaded gun at your head if you disagree with them making the rules, so you win there too.

  49. Rouxenator said on December 7, 2019 at 8:53 pm
    Reply

    This is the perfect sense of false security fools running ancient operating systems need. Malware and ransomware developers will rejoice. Windows 7 is a dinosaur.

    1. Anonymous said on December 8, 2019 at 4:07 pm
      Reply

      You ignore the fact that win10 is already inherently malware. It breaks your privacy in any imaginable way.
      That fact alone makes win7 more secure even w/o any updates than win10 ever will. Whats the sense of an snakeoil ‘secure OS’, when the system itself is build to leak any pricacy related stuff to MS and maybe 3. parties?

      Close unused ports and services like remote desktop stuff, use a proper firewall, use a browser with blocking addons in a sandbox and you stay safe with win7, – im running win7 since ages even w/o latest updates and had never any virus/trojan plus the system os perfectly stable and runs everything i need. And i dont need to fear stuff gets broken with each new forced upgrade.

      tl;dr: win10 is a) no OS – its a Spyware as a Service b) its a Pest c) win7 is safe.

    2. sp808 said on December 7, 2019 at 10:42 pm
      Reply

      All future attacks will be aimed on win10, nobody will waste his time on small percentage of users.
      Better for us. I can bet that my hardened version of win7 + firewall + pihole will be better than win10.

  50. Anonymous said on December 7, 2019 at 8:19 pm
    Reply

    Linux distros goes a long way.

  51. LaundryGuy said on December 7, 2019 at 7:47 pm
    Reply

    Regardless if people want to patch their systems etc, newer software is dropping support for Windows 7. It does not even support DirectX and it’s a pain to get drivers for newer hardware. It’s great that some of you wish to keep a death grip on it but you’re hurting yourself in the end missing out on the OS improvements. Regardless of the telemetry, you think that you, out of millions of PCs really makes a difference? No, you do not. Been running windows 10 since release day on multiple systems without an issue.

    1. Addy T. said on December 9, 2019 at 12:33 pm
      Reply

      My main system is Windows Vista — x86.

      I use it since the mid-00’s and have never seen a reason to update. It’s reasonably fast when configured properly and on acceptable hardware, and I like the Explorer more (hint: there’s always a filter bar at the top, and it properly saves the views) and the seach folders as well (a bit more clumsy in 7). Windows 7 doesn’t even have a Media Player that remembers its windows position. I don’t use it anyway, but what the heck?

      I admit that that I cannot install a number of applications, but I can use what I need. I miss the libraries a bit, but that feature is poorly implemented anyway. I upgrade when the hardware dies — it’s how I always do it. If you’re desperate to get “cool new OS features” (what? Cortana?) you’re probably less than 18 years old. I don’t think that Win10 is a monster, but it doesn’t interest me and it’s also ugly. Compared to Vista/7 the design looks like a childish throwback to the 90’s.

      I also use Ubuntu and Win7. Actually, I’m posting from a Win7 machine.

      I expect that Windows 10 will eventually completely replace legacy Windows systems, but I understand why people don’t wish to change a running system with which they’re pleased with.

    2. welcome to windows alternative said on December 9, 2019 at 5:37 am
      Reply

      I agree there isn’t a thing wrong with windows 10, I been running it for over a year and also Linux Mint and both are rock solid! I was reluctant to go back to Windows but my new HP came with it and so I resized the 1TB SSD dive and use both OS and I find both useful Linux for surfing and Windows for gaming

    3. Chippy said on December 8, 2019 at 6:37 pm
      Reply

      “It does not even support DirectX”

      Eh, yes it does.
      https://www.anandtech.com/show/14078/microsoft-brings-dx12-to-windows-7

      Although m$ did conspire with intel and amd to block modern cpus.

    4. DaveyK said on December 8, 2019 at 6:17 pm
      Reply

      I’d also like to query the “OS Improvements” bit. I run a mixture of Windows 7 as my primary PC’s OS (a recent Ryzen system with no driver issues), plus I have W10 LTSC on my laptop. I’m yet to really see useful new features – DirectX 12 aside of course, and I suppose the newer Task Manager is good – although also available for Windows 7 if you grab ProcessExplorer (Microsoft developed tool). OK there’s also a few useful tweaks from a security perspective, but end user features? Not seen a single decent one.

      All I see are regressions, such as the awful Start Menu, mess of having both Control Panel and Settings, lack of control over updates etc. My laptop works well enough, but it’s annoying how many 3rd party utils, tweaks and hacks are required to beat Windows 10 into a usable state…

      1. Anonymous said on December 9, 2019 at 3:25 am
        Reply

        @DaveyK
        “a recent Ryzen system with no driver issues”
        That’s because Windows 7 is still supported. 7 Support will end soon in one month.

        ..that’s what happened to my XP computer, the motherboard broke and I had to buy new but there’s no XP driver for that motherboard at all.

    5. Jimmy said on December 8, 2019 at 5:22 pm
      Reply

      I’ve been using Windows 10 since 2015 on various PCs at work and at home. I agree that for new hardware it probably makes more sense, but if you already have an older PC with Windows 7 you gain almost nothing by upgrading to 10 and there’s a high chance it will annoy you in some ways.
      Both have their pros and cons, sure, but overall I like 7 better.

      So I don’t like your patronizing tone as if we’re all just ignorant luddites sticking with Windows 7 out of spite. Some of us have evaluated the options carefully and made an informed choice.

    6. jern said on December 8, 2019 at 4:12 pm
      Reply

      I took my Win7 offline when Win10 was released and it’s been running “without an issue” that whole time. Actually, I don’t care about “newer software.” I’m running a nearly 20 year old version of Quicken on my Win7 machine – it runs perfectly I might add. I’m with Yuliya on this one. OS improvements? Which ones? As far as your assertion that individual users don’t make a difference – you’re simply wrong.

    7. Yuliya said on December 7, 2019 at 9:34 pm
      Reply

      >It does not even support DirectX and …
      you what?

      >missing out on the OS improvements
      which ones? i’m not seeing any, and i use both 7 and ltsc

      1. John Monsour said on December 18, 2019 at 9:59 am
        Reply

        That’s what I was like…. What? DX11 Dawg… If ya didn’t know, now ya know, ladu…. Widnows key R type dxdiag….. Was that guy for real? I mean dx has been out since like windows 98, before that it was opengl which is stilled used today mostly for 2d. but yeah man you think windows 10 just magically had 12 update revisions of direct x…..? Come on man….? Windows 7 is great. People like the gui….. the interface has been the same for almost 30 years… It’s hard to get used to something that is pushing more toward tablet and touch screen…. I mean why not just give several different variation choices? Windows 10 is the most effiect and stable os microsoft has ever released though. Hand’s down. Also It’s not as resource intensive as win vista especially, windows 7, or windows 8.1 mce which is what I prefer.

  52. Sebas said on December 7, 2019 at 7:06 pm
    Reply

    The same idea as the POSReady for XP, which stopped working a few months ago. 17 years after XP came out.

    If true, That means a glorious future for W7, I think with the silent approval of MS. Well a wild guess anyway :-).

  53. Sevenforever said on December 7, 2019 at 5:58 pm
    Reply

    Good news. I’m staying on Windows 7 until Microsoft starts listening. There’s still no way to easily disable telemetry, everything they rewritten in modern is useless, and they still push sponsored bloatware from their store on to pro edition users.

    1. Anonymous said on January 2, 2020 at 3:12 am
      Reply

      Guess you’ll be waiting a while, because Microsoft doesn’t listen.

      1. Anonymous said on January 14, 2020 at 10:16 am
        Reply

        A while will mean probably forever, since Microsoft really doesn’t care about home users who don’t want to upgrade. Businesses tho, these are what M$ really cares about.

  54. didihu said on December 7, 2019 at 5:57 pm
    Reply

    where is the batch file please ?

  55. sp808 said on December 7, 2019 at 5:43 pm
    Reply

    Nice one! Will $never$ install win10 crap.

    1. Anonymous said on December 26, 2019 at 11:23 pm
      Reply

      hah. yes you will :D

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