Microsoft Admits It Updated Some Windows 10 Computers To Newest Build Despite Users Telling It Not To Do That (bleepingcomputer.com)

Catalin Cimpanu, writing for BleepingComputer: The admission came in a knowledge base article updated last week. Not all users of older Windows versions were forcibly updated, but only those whose machines were running Windows 10 v1703 (Creators Update). This is the version where Microsoft added special controls to the Windows Update setting section that allow users to pause OS updates in case they have driver or other hardware issues with the latest OS version. But according to reports, a Microsoft snafu ignored these settings and forcibly updated some users to Windows 10 v1709 (Fall Creators Update).

Comments

Tame Windows Updates, the sure way

[Rashkae]

Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Services -> Windows Update -> Properties -> Change Startup to "Disabled". Reboot

Don't forget to re-enable periodically to catch up on updates, also will be needed for some Hardware drivers that download from Microsoft. Avoid IE or Edge Browsers, and use 3rd party AV. Job done, and system downtime is drastically reduced.

Re:Tame Windows Updates, the sure way

[Khyber]

Changing it to disabled doesn't help at all.

You have to explicitly deny the updater services and executables all permissions.

And apparently that doesn't work because as I was typing that, the machine rebooted on me, and installed updates.

Microsoft is explicitly violating the CFAA, here.

Re:Tame Windows Updates, the sure way

[Anonymous Coward]

If you have thousands of computers you then just use Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) and you control if, when and which updates install... You don't even need a domain for that.

Re:Tame Windows Updates, the sure way

[omnichad]

On computers with diagnostics reporting disabled, Windows uses Update Assistant to force the upgrade even with Windows Update disabled.

Microsoft has lost almost all trust from its users.

Re:Tame Windows Updates, the sure way

[Solandri]

I can confirm what the others are saying - disabling the Windows Update service doesn't work to stop this. I've disabled it for months due to an incompatibility with the graphics drivers it kept trying to install. A few weeks ago, the same time I started getting messages saying I *had* to update to 1709, the Update service started re-enabling itself without my authorization.

I couldn't use 1709 because for some reason it broke about a third of my installed apps, but the damn thing kept installing itself. It caused me all kinds of headaches, including almost causing me to go over my ISP's quota because it kept downloading the 1709 update again (5 GB) every time I rolled it back so I could use my computer. Eventually I gave up, blocked off an evening so I could reinstall all the apps it broke. That's when I discovered not only were the apps broken, they couldn't be uninstalled nor reinstalled. I ended up having to roll back the 1709 update, uninstall the affected apps (which uninstalled fine in the previous version), do the 1709 update, then reinstall the broken (now uninstalled) apps. Didn't finish until well past 3 am.

I'm seriously thinking of going to go back to Windows 7.

Re:Tame Windows Updates, the sure way

[john.r.strohm]

It was a bug the FIRST time they did it.

It was a screwup the SECOND time they did it.

This is the THIRD time they've done it. From the article: "This incident marks the third time in the past year when Microsoft has mistakenly updated v1703 users to v1709. It happened before in November 2017 and January 2018 when Patch Tuesday security updates accidentally upgraded some users."

Goldfinger's Rule: "Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action."

Claiming that this is just another bug... Sorry, Elmo, that dog just won't hunt.

This is what led me to switch to a Mac

[SuperKendall]

I've been using a Mac for a long time now. The main reason I switched at the time, is that Windows security updates were fickle like this - they would just drop in unannounced and start modifying things. It's depressing to see this is basically still the case.

On a Mac, you can just let an update sit essentially forever and truly upgrade on your own schedule. Don't want to take in patches or software updates until you've finished some critical work? Well that's fine. Or maybe wait two years to update a secondary laptop that's working perfectly well for light use? Sure why not. Maybe you like to wait a while for user reviews of an update to come in for some less common hardware you are using? Good idea!

On Windows systems I used to own, every time I connected to the internet felt like a gamble, would I be able to use this system this morning? Or indeed for the whole day at all if an update went sideways? I literally sometimes would use the system offline specifically to avoid the risk of updating.

I firmly believe the main reason Windows have stayed as primary systems in so many companies, is that in a corporate environment updates are managed by IT and so come in at generally convenient times (though even there I was stuffed a few times when I came in on the weekend to do some programming and an update would drop).

Re:The horror

[Anonymous Coward]

but I wanted to run without the latest security patches!!!

With Windows It's not always that simple. Sometimes you just want to reboot quickly or access your machine in a hurry and find yourself stuck installing a lengthy patch cluster so if you are in a hurry and the damn "Try Later" button is not working it can be very annoying.

Re:it's really bad

[omnichad]

I'm pretty sure that was the Spectre/Meltdown update and not the 1709 update the caused this. Something similar happened with BIOS-booting PCs too. I've come across 4 or 5 and the fix has been to manually uninstall the update package in the preboot environment after fixing the bootloader. Sometimes reinstalling the update worked fine.

Endless entertainment....

[LVSlushdat]

I used/supported Windows for 20 years as a sysadmin. When I retired in 2010, I decided I was done with anything MS, and switched my home systems from dualboot Win7/Linux to JUST Linux. Since I'd been using Linux off/on since 1994, starting with Slackware, it was a particularly easy "switch".. Now I laugh my ass off at the abuse MS heaps on those who, for whatever reason, STILL us MS products, especially Windows 10. Being retired, I have copious "playtime" and I tried Windows 10 when it first came out and was astounded at the lengths MS went to to get their product on every possible machine. They took a LOT of tricks out the malware writers playbook to shovel their shit everywhere they could.
These endless reports of Windows doing whatEVER the hell it wants on computers *should* tell all you need to know about *your* computer, if you still use Windows.. hint: *YOUR* computer has become MS's computer, and they just let you use it, except when they want to use it.. As I said, ENDLESS ENTERTAINMENT....