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Microsoft To Introduce a New Feature In Windows 10 Which Will Allow Users To Block Installation of Desktop Apps (mspoweruser.com)

Posted by msmash on from the shape-of-things-to-come dept.

Microsoft is planning to introduce a new feature to Windows 10 that will allow a user to prevent installation of desktop apps. The latest Windows Insider build comes with an option that allows users to enable app installations only from the Windows Store. From a report on MSPowerUser: Once enabled, users will see a warning whenever they try to install a Win32 app -- they will get a dialog saying apps from the Windows Store helps to keep their PC "safe and reliable." This feature is obviously disabled by default, but users can enable it really easily if they want.

3 of 307 comments (clear)

  1. Remember Tim Sweeney? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    Looks like he called it.

  2. Re: Done with Windows by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    No, you will continue to use it as the sheep you are

  3. Re:Apple by fyngyrz · · Score: 4, Informative

    Allow me to demonstrate under the latest macOS (10.12 / Sierra):

    1) Go get the screensaver bundle.
    2) Open the .dmg
    3) Now, from the drawer with all the screen savers, drag out Pipes.saver to your desktop. It's perfectly safe. Double-click it to install it.

    Here's what happens:

    First, you get a dialog that says "can't install pipes screensaver" from preferences (preferences is what is normally started when you go to install a screen saver.)

    Then, from the Apple menu or the prefs icon, you go to preferences / security, and there is no button. Just as I described. Pipes.saver is not installed. And prefs will not install it no matter how many times you try this. You can verify this is the case by going to Preferences, and then Desktop & Screen Saver, and looking at the list of available savers. Pipes.saver is not there.

    Okay, so that's the OS install behavior as it stands today.

    Now, take the Pipes.saver file, and drag it using Finder into ~/Library/Screen Savers

    Now again, open preferences / Desktop & Screen Saver, and look at the list. There it is. If you choose it, it runs just fine.

    This concludes our demo of macOS Sierra refusing to install working software from non-appstore vendors.

    --
    I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.