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Microsoft stopped supporting Edge on Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 in January 2023, which means Edge 109 was the final browser update available for those operating systems. Still, as revealed by Microsoft at the beginning of this year, the company is willing to release intermittent security updates and critical patches. One such patch has just landed, bringing Windows 7, 8, 8.1, and Server 2012 R2 users an important update. If you are still using pre-Windows 10 versions, do not get too excited about the latest Microsoft Edge update for your old operating system. It is based on Edge 109, the last version to support old Windows releases, and it adds nothing but fixes for security vulnerabilities, namely for heap buffer overflow in WebP in Chromium versions prior to 116.0.5845.187 that allowed a remote attacker to perform an out-of-bounds memory write using a specially crafted HTML page. Here is how Microsoft describes the update in its documentation: Version 109.0.1518.140: September 15, 2023 This update was done for our M109 Windows down-level extended support. We're shipping 109 to Win 7, 8, and 8.1 (including Server 2012 R2 which is based on Win 8.1). Microsoft has a fix for CVE-2023-4863 to Microsoft Edge Stable Channel (Version 109.0.1518.140), which has been reported by the Chromium team as having an exploit in the wild. For more information, see the Security Update Guide. This backport was done to our M109 Windows down-level extended support." It is worth noting that Microsoft will soon stop releasing even those rare security updates. M109 down-level extended support for Windows 7, 8, 8.1, and Server 2012 R2 will end on October 20, 2023. After that, Firefox will become the only mainstream browser actively supporting now-dead Windows versions. Mozilla Foundation plans to keep releasing security updates for Firefox for one more year, with the end of Firefox 115 Extended Support Release (ESR) scheduled for September 2024. As a reminder, according to Statcounter, old Windows versions still account for about 4.45% of all PC users. Source

Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 have officially reached their end-of-life. And now, Google is dropping support for the Drive desktop app on these OSs. Google Drive app enables synchronization between the devices and the cloud. Users must upgrade to Windows 10 or Windows 11 to continue syncing files with Google Drive. According to Google Drive release notes, starting in August 2023, Google Drive will no longer support Drive for desktops on Windows 8/8.1, Windows Server 2012, and all 32-bit versions of Windows. However, users of 32-bit Windows can still access Google Drive through a web browser. In February, Google discontinued support for Google Chrome on Windows 8, 8.1, and Windows 7. This aligns with Google's strategy of breaking services on legacy operating systems. While Google Chrome will continue working after the update, it will no longer receive any feature updates and security patches on devices running these OSs. More recently, Mozilla reveals the end of support date for Firefox on Windows 7, 8, and 8.1. According to a document, customers unwilling to upgrade to Windows 10 or 11 can use Firefox 115 Extended Support Release (ESR) until September 2024. Mozilla pledges to continue shipping security updates for 15 more months. Windows 8 and 8.1 received mixed reviews due to their departure from the traditional Windows interface. Microsoft's decision to sunset these operating systems emphasizes the importance of migrating to a more modern and supported platform. Windows 8.1 holds a measly 0.5% market share, according to StatCounter. Of course, another end of support will probably mean nothing to die-hard Windows 8 fans. It is worth reminding that using a connected PC that no longer receives security updates is not a great idea. Given that more apps are dropping support for the OS aside from Drive, users should finally upgrade to Windows 10 and 11. Google Drive app ends support for Windows 8/8.1 and 32-bit OS in August

steamLike many other services, PC gaming giant Steam is soon dropping support for Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1. The major change will make the Steam client inoperable on these legacy operating systems, with users losing access to their games library unless they are using an updated version of Windows. The support drop will occur on January 1, 2024, with Valve saying that "after that date, the Steam Client will no longer run on those versions of Windows. In order to continue running Steam and any games or other products purchased through Steam, users will need to update to a more recent version of Windows." The change was announced in the latest Steam beta update by the company. Beta versions will now alert players running Windows 7, 8, or 8.1 with an "End of Life" notice with a recommendation to switch or upgrade to a newer version before support goes away. The alert should arrive to the regular Steam client soon as well. "The newest features in Steam rely on an embedded version of Google Chrome, which no longer functions on older versions of Windows," added Valve explaining the reasoning behind the change. "In addition, future versions of Steam will require Windows feature and security updates only present in Windows 10 and above." According to Valve's own survey data, 1.86% of Steam's user base is on the three operating systems getting the boot. The vast majority of Windows users, which amount to 96.37% of total active accounts on the platform, are using Windows 10 (62.33%) and Windows 11 (32.06%). Steam won't run on Windows 7/8/8.1 starting in 2024 as support goes away

Microsoft has released the June Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 7 (KB5014742) and Windows 8.1 (KB5014746). Both updates bring improvements to their respective operating systems but also carry issues that you may have to use a workaround on. Without further ado, here’s what’s new. Windows 7 Improvements This security-only update includes new improvements for the following issue: Printing to a NUL port from a Low Integrity Level (LowIL) process application could cause printing failures. Known issues Symptom Next step After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, “Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer,” and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, "STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)". This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Windows 8.1 Improvements This security-only update includes new improvements for the following issue: Printing to a NUL port from a Low Integrity Level (LowIL) process application could cause printing failures. Addresses an elevation of privilege (EOP) vulnerability under CVE-2022-30154 for the Microsoft File Server Shadow Copy Agent Service. To become protected and functional, you must install the June 14, 2022 or later Windows update on both the application server and the file server. The application server runs the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS)-aware application that stores data on the remote Server Message Block 3.0 (or higher) shares on a file server. The file server hosts the file shares. If you don’t install the update on both machine roles, backup operations carried out by applications, which previously worked, might fail. For such failure scenarios, the Microsoft File Server Shadow Copy Agent Service will log FileShareShadowCopyAgent event 1013 on the file server. For more information, see KB5015527. Known issues Symptom Next step Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Unlike the Windows 11 and Windows 10 updates which will be delivered through Windows Update, the updates for Windows 7 (download) and Windows 8.1 (download) are best being manually downloaded as they won’t come through Windows Update. You can also configure Windows Server Update Services to get the updates. Windows 7 (KB5014742) and Windows 8.1 (KB5014746) June Patch Tuesday updates arrive

Microsoft has released the Patch Tuesday update for Windows 8.1 (KB5014011) and Windows 7 (KB5014012) today as it’s the second Tuesday of the month. Installing them will protect your system against certain vulnerabilities but both also come with known issues. Here’s what each release contains and their known issues. Windows 8.1 Improvements This cumulative security update contains improvements that are part of update KB5012670 (released April 12, 2022) and includes new improvements for the following issues: The Key Distribution Center (KDC) code incorrectly returns error message KDC_ERR_TGT_REVOKED during Domain Controller shutdown. After installing the January 2022 Windows update or a later Windows update on the Primary Domain Controller emulator (PDCe), listing or modifying name suffixes routing by using Netdom.exe or "Active Directory Domains and Trusts" snap-in may fail and you receive the following error message: "Insufficient system resources exist to complete the requested service." The Primary Domain Controller (PDC) for the root domain incorrectly logs warning and error events in the System log when trying to scan outbound-only trusts. Known issues in this update Symptom Workaround Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. After installing updates released January 11, 2022 or later updates, apps using Microsoft .NET Framework to acquire or set Active Directory Forest Trust Information might fail, close, or you might receive an error from the app or Windows. You might also receive an access violation (0xc0000005) error. To resolve this issue manually, apply the out-of-band updates for the version of .NET Framework used by the app. Windows 7 Improvements This cumulative security update contains improvements that are part of update KB5012626 (released April 12, 2022) and includes new improvements for the following issues: The Key Distribution Center (KDC) code incorrectly returns error message KDC_ERR_TGT_REVOKED during Domain Controller shutdown. After installing the January 2022 Windows update or a later Windows update on the Primary Domain Controller emulator (PDCe), listing or modifying name suffixes routing by using Netdom.exe or "Active Directory Domains and Trusts" snap-in may fail and you receive the following error message: "Insufficient system resources exist to complete the requested service." The Primary Domain Controller (PDC) for the root domain incorrectly logs warning and error events in the System log when trying to scan outbound-only trusts. Known issues in this update Symptom Workaround After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, “Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer,” and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, "STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)". This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. You can get these updates through Windows Update or download them manually: Windows 8.1 KB5014011, Windows 7 KB5014012. May's Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 (KB5014011) and Windows 7 (KB5014012) out now

Windows 7 and 8.1 Patch Tuesday updates are now out, here's the complete changelog As is the case every month, Microsoft is releasing cumulative updates for all supported Windows versions. These include the three most recent Windows 10 versions for consumers and a few versions that are supported for specific channels and select SKUs. Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 too are receiving updates, with the latter being reserved for those who have opted to pay for extended updates. As usual, the updates are split into two parts – monthly rollup and security-only updates. Monthly rollup packages are automatically served through Windows Update and security-only updates can be manually downloaded through the update catalog. Starting with Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2, the monthly rollup is KB5003671 and can be downloaded manually from the Update Catalog here. The changelog for this patch includes: Security updates to Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Authentication, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Storage and Filesystems, Windows HTML Platform, and Microsoft Scripting Engine. As for the security-only update, that is labeled as KB5003681 and can be manually downloaded from here. The list of fixes is similar to that of the monthly rollup. Here's the changelog posted by the firm: Security updates to Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Authentication, Windows Fundamentals, and Windows Storage and Filesystems. Both updates share the same known issue that users must be aware of. Here are the problems documented by the firm: Symptom Workaround Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Moving on to Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, the monthly rollup is KB5003667 and can be downloaded from here manually. It comes with the following fixes and improvements detailed in the knowledge base changelog: Security updates to Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Authentication, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Remote Desktop, Windows Storage and Filesystems, Windows HTML Platform, and Microsoft Scripting Engine. The security-only update is labeled KB5003694 and can be downloaded manually from the Update Catalog here. The fixes listed in this patch are as follows: Addresses an issue in the Server Message Block (SMB) protocol which may cause frequent crashes with Stop error 0xA on devices that run Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 (SP1). Security updates to Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Authentication, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Remote Desktop, and Windows Storage and Filesystems. Both these updates share the same set of known issues, with the renaming issue now being there on the list for a long time. Symptom Workaround After installing this update or later updates, connections to SQL Server 2005 might fail. You might receive an error, "Cannot connect to , Additional information: A network-related or instance-specific error occurred while establishing a connection to SQL Server. The server was not found or was not accessible. Verify that the instance name is correct and that SQL Server is configured to allow remote connections. (provider: Named Pipes Provider, error: 40 - Could not open a connection to SQL Server) (.Net SqlClient Data Provider)" This is expected behavior due to a security hardening change in this update. To resolve this issue, you will need to update to a supported version of SQL Server. After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, “Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer,” and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the "How to get this update" section of this article. Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. As is always the case, you can head to Windows Update and check for updates to pull the monthly rollup patches. You can also head to the individual download links for the security-only updates which can only be manually installed. Windows 7 and 8.1 Patch Tuesday updates are now out, here's the complete changelog

Microsoft is releasing updates for all supported Windows versions today as part of its Patch Tuesday updates. This includes the Windows 10 versions currently supported, both completely and for specific SKUs, Windows 8.1, and customers that have opted for extended Windows 7 security updates. However, unlike Windows 10, Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 do not receive mid-month updates and are locked to just one update per month, unless there are urgent security fixes. As usual, there are two types of Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 updates – monthly rollup and security-only updates. While monthly rollups are served through Windows Update, security-only updates can only be manually installed. Both these updates are available for download through the Update Catalog. This month, there is also an IE security update rolling out to Windows 7 and 8.1 users, which you can check out here under KB5005563. To begin with, Windows 8.1 and the corresponding Windows Server release - Windows Server 2012 R2 - users are receiving monthly rollup KB5005613, which can be manually downloaded from the Update Catalog here. The improvements made as part of the update include the fix for the zero-day vulnerability: This update contains miscellaneous security improvements to internal OS functionality. No additional issues were documented for this release. The known issue listed for the update is mentioned below: Symptom Workaround Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. The security-only update is KB5005627 and can be found here for manual download and installation depending on the version. As mentioned earlier, these are not available through Windows Update. The changes and fixes are identical to that of the monthly rollup. Next up are Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1. The monthly rollup heading out to these customers is termed KB5005633 and can be manually downloaded from here. These updates are only available for those that have opted for paid updates. The changes and fixes are as follows: Addresses an issue in which a driver might not install if the driver is signed with more than one code sign signatures. This update also contains miscellaneous security improvements to internal OS functionality. As is always the case, the known issues are separately mentioned in the KB article. Here is the list for Windows 7 users to note: Symptom Workaround After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, "Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer", and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, "STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)". This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. The security-only update for this version is KB5005615 and can be manually downloaded from here. Just like for Windows 8.1, the fixes and known issues in the security-only update are identical to that of the monthly rollup. As usual, you can head to the linked KB articles to read through more information about the updates and useful links. Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 Patch Tuesday updates are now live

With it being the second Tuesday of the month it means it’s Patch Tuesday. Two of the operating systems receiving updates today are Windows 7 (KB5011552) and 8.1 (KB5011564). The improvements and known issues in both of these updates are quite extensive so we’ll copy verbatim what Microsoft had to say. Windows 8.1 Improvements and fixes Addresses an issue in which some low integrity level process apps might print unexpectedly. Addresses an issue that occurs when you try to write a service principal name (SPN) alias (such as www/contoso) and HOST/NAME already exists on another object. If the user has the RIGHT_DS_WRITE_PROPERTY on the SPN attribute of the colliding object, you receive an “Access Denied” error. Addresses an issue in which after the January 2022 Windows update is installed on the Primary Domain Controller emulator (PDCe), listing or modifying name suffixes routing by using Netdom.exe or "Active Directory Domains and Trusts" snap-in may fail with the following error message: "Insufficient system resources exist to complete the requested service. Known issues in this update Symptom Workaround Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. After installing updates released January 11, 2022 or later updates, apps using Microsoft .NET Framework to acquire or set Active Directory Forest Trust Information might fail, close, or you might receive an error from the app or Windows. You might also receive an access violation (0xc0000005) error. To resolve this issue manually, apply the out-of-band updates for the version of .NET Framework used by the app. Windows 7 Improvements and fixes Addresses SHA1 deprecation in Windows Embedded platforms by removing specific SHA1-signed security and non-security fixes and resigned the fixes with SHA2 in this release. Addresses an issue in which after the January 2022 Windows update is installed on the Primary Domain Controller emulator (PDCe), listing or modifying name suffixes routing by using Netdom.exe or "Active Directory Domains and Trusts" snap-in may fail with the following error message: "Insufficient system resources exist to complete the requested service." Known issues in this update Symptom Workaround After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, "Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer", and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, "STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)". This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. The update should be delivered automatically but if you’d like to hurry Windows along head to Windows Update and try to get your system to update manually. It’s worth noting too that this update on Windows 7 is only for customers paying to keep their system up to date. Microsoft releases Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 7 (KB5011552) and 8.1 (KB5011564)

Microsoft has released its Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 7 (KB5021291) and Windows 8.1 (KB5021294) for December 2022. They both contain pretty much the same improvements, however, the Windows 8.1 notes do not list any known issues. It’s important to note that only Windows 7 users who have purchased extended security update (ESU) support will receive the update. Improvements (applies to Windows 7 and Windows 8.1) This security-only update includes new improvements for the following issue: By order of the Fijian government, Fiji will not observe daylight saving time (DST) in 2022. Therefore, clocks do not change by an hour at 02:00 on November 13, 2022. A memory leak in the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS.exe) occurs on Windows domain controllers. This issue is known to occur after installing Windows updates dated November 8, 2022, or later. For more information about the resolved security vulnerabilities, please refer to the Deployments | Security Update Guide and the August 2022 Security Updates. Known issues in this update (Windows 7 only) Symptom Next step After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, “Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer,” and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. After this update or a later Windows update is installed, domain join operations might be unsuccessful and error "0xaac (2732): NERR_AccountReuseBlockedByPolicy" occurs. Additionally, text stating "An account with the same name exists in Active Directory. Re-using the account was blocked by security policy" might be displayed. Affected scenarios include some domain join or re-imaging operations where a computer account was created or pre-staged by a different identity than the identity used to join or re-join the computer to the domain. For more information about this issue, see KB5020276—Netjoin: Domain join hardening changes. Note Consumer Desktop editions of Windows are unlikely to experience this issue. After installing this update, apps which use ODBC connections through Microsoft ODBC SQL Server Driver (sqlsrv32.dll) to access databases might not connect. Additionally, you might receive an error in the app, or you might receive an error from the SQL Server. Errors you might receive include the following messages: The EMS System encountered a problem. Message: [Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver] Protocol error in TDS Stream. The EMS System encountered a problem. Message: [Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver] Unknown token received from SQL Server. To decide whether you are using an affected app, open the app which connects to a database. Open a Command Prompt window, type the following command and then press Enter: tasklist /m sqlsrv32.dll If the command returns a task, then the app might be affected. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. This Windows 7 update is not available via Windows Update. The best way to get it would be to download it through the Microsoft Update Catalog. Known issues in this update (Windows 8.1 only) Symptom Next Step After this update or a later Windows update is installed, domain join operations might be unsuccessful and error "0xaac (2732): NERR_AccountReuseBlockedByPolicy" occurs. Additionally, text stating "An account with the same name exists in Active Directory. Re-using the account was blocked by security policy" might be displayed. Affected scenarios include some domain join or re-imaging operations where a computer account was created or pre-staged by a different identity than the identity used to join or re-join the computer to the domain. For more information about this issue, see KB5020276—Netjoin: Domain join hardening changes. Note Consumer Desktop editions of Windows are unlikely to experience this issue. We have added guidance to KB5020276 and are evaluating whether optimizations can be made in a future Windows Update. This guidance will be updated as soon as those changes are released. After installing this update, apps which use ODBC connections through Microsoft ODBC SQL Server Driver (sqlsrv32.dll) to access databases might not connect. Additionally, you might receive an error in the app, or you might receive an error from the SQL Server. Errors you might receive include the following messages: The EMS System encountered a problem. Message: [Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver] Protocol error in TDS Stream. The EMS System encountered a problem. Message: [Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver] Unknown token received from SQL Server. To decide whether you are using an affected app, open the app which connects to a database. Open a Command Prompt window, type the following command and then press Enter: tasklist /m sqlsrv32.dll If the command returns a task, then the app might be affected. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. The Windows 8.1 update is also unavailable via Windows Update, but you can grab that via Microsoft Update Catalog too. Microsoft outs Windows 7 (KB5021291) and Windows 8.1 (KB5021294) December 2022 Patch Tuesday

If your computers are still running Windows 8.1, a friendly reminder: the operating system (OS) officially has only 30 days to live before it reaches its end-of-support date. Released on October 17, 2013, Windows 8.1 was Microsoft's attempt to address user complaints with Windows 8, such as the lack of a Start button, a confusing user interface, and the inability to boot to the desktop. Windows 8.1 also introduced new enhancements, such as the ability to snap up to four apps on a single display, a new Bing-based unified search system, and deeper integration with SkyDrive (now OneDrive). While the OS received more positive reception than Windows 8, it was still criticized for not addressing many of the latter's issues. To this day, Windows 8.1 has a 2.54% desktop market share worldwide. On January 10, 2023, Microsoft will no longer provide Windows 8.1 with security patches, software updates, and technical support. If you continue using your PC past this date, it will keep on functioning as usual. However, any new vulnerabilities or security flaws discovered in Windows 8.1 will no longer be patched, leaving your PC at risk of malware, phishing, and other security threats. In fact, many ransomware groups exploit unpatched vulnerabilities to infiltrate systems. You might also experience difficulties using some of your programs past Windows 8.1's end-of-support date. For instance, Microsoft 365 apps will no longer work on the OS after January 10, 2023. Microsoft will also block the installation of Microsoft 365 on Windows 8.1 devices. Even Google Chrome will no longer receive updates once Windows 8.1 goes out of support. While you can use other applications, their developers may discontinue support for Windows 8.1 anytime. Finally, you may have to contact third-party support companies to resolve problems with your PC. These businesses may not just be difficult to find, but they may also charge premium prices. At this point, it's best to upgrade your PC to a supported OS. You mainly have three options: Windows 10 The successor to Windows 8.1, Windows 10 does away with the controversial Start Screen in favor of a Start Menu that features an app list and a section for tiles. It also has a virtual desktop feature that lets you run another set of windows without the need to use another monitor. What's more, Windows 10 offers Windows Hello, a security feature that allows users to sign in using a PIN, facial scan, or fingerprint. Microsoft’s free Windows 10 upgrade promotion has already expired. However, you can still upgrade to Windows 10 at no charge by using your Windows 8.1 product key. Note, however, that Windows 10 will reach its end-of-support-date on October 14, 2025, so you will have to upgrade again after a couple of years. Windows 11 Windows 11 offers a slightly different user interface than Windows 10. It has centered taskbar buttons, rounded window corners, and a streamlined Start Menu. Windows 11 also has Widgets, which are dynamic content from Microsoft services and, in the near future, third-party apps. Windows 11 offers better window arrangements and can even run Android apps. Unfortunately, many Windows 8.1 PCs may not be eligible for an upgrade to Windows 11 because of the OS's strict system requirements (this is perhaps why Microsoft is recommending users to buy a new PC once their Windows 8.1 PC becomes unsupported). But if you still want to install Windows 8.1 on unsupported hardware, you can create a bootable USB using Rufus, a utility that can bypass Windows 11's TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot requirements. A word of caution, though: Microsoft does not provide support for Windows 11 on unsupported hardware. If your Windows 8.1 PC somehow meets Windows 11's system requirements, download Windows 11 on Microsoft's website and follow the instructions. A completely different OS If you don't want to upgrade to either Windows 10 or 11, you can always try another OS. For instance, you can use macOS if you want better interoperability with iPhones, iPads, and Apple Watches. Linux, on the other hand, offers various distros and is free to use — a practical option if you’re looking to save money. Exercise caution when choosing this option, however, as some of your Windows apps might not be available on another platform. You may also need to purchase new hardware, which is the case if you move to macOS. Are your PCs running Windows 8.1? What do you plan to do when Windows 8.1 reaches end-of-support? Let us know in the comments section below. PSA: Windows 8.1's end-of-support date is only 30 days away

Windows 8.1 is now displaying full-screen alerts when logging into the operating system, warning that the OS is reaching the end of support in January 2023 and will no longer receive security updates. The notification was introduced yesterday as part of the Windows 8.1 KB5015874 cumulative update, which includes a new EOSnotify.exe program to display a warning that the operating system will soon be unsupported. "January 10, 2023 is the last day Microsoft will offer security updates and technical support for PCs that run Windows 8.1. We are reaching out now to thank you for your loyalty and help you prepare for what's next," reads the Windows 8.1 notification below. Windows 7 End of Support AdSource: XenoPather When displaying the notification, users can click on the 'Remind me later' option, which will cause the notification to be shown again in 35 days. Users can also click on the 'Remind me after the end of support date' option to only show the notification after Windows 8.1 reaches the end of support. Clicking on the 'Learn More' link will bring people to a Microsoft.com web page explaining that Windows 8.1 will soon reach the end of support. Microsoft states that the notification will not appear on managed Pro and Enterprise devices, as well as Windows Embedded 8.1 Industry Enterprise and Windows Embedded 8.1 Industry Pro devices. About EOSnotify.exe Like the Windows 7 full-screen notifications warning users to upgrade to Windows 10, the new Windows 8.1 notifications use Microsoft's EOSnotify program. EOSNotify.exe is located under the C:\Windows\System32 folder and is launched via two scheduled tasks named EOSNotify and EOSNotify2. The EOSNotify task is launched any time a user logs into Windows, and the EOSNotify2 is run once a day. When the EOSNotify.exe program runs, it will check the LastRunTimestamp value under the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\EOSNotify key, and if it has already run that day, it will not show the alert. When a user clicks on the 'Remind Me Later' link in the notification, EOSNotify.exe will create the 'RemindMeLater' value and set it to 1 to indicate that Windows should not show the alert again for another 35 days. If a user clicks on the 'Remind me after the end of support date' link, EOSNotify will create the 'RemindMeAfterEndOfSupport' value and set it to 1, causing the notification only to be shown again after Windows 8.1 reaches end of support on January 10th, 2023. Finally, it is possible to prevent the notification from displaying at all by configuring the 'DiscontinueEOS' value, as shown below. [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\EOSNotify] "DiscontinueEOS"=dword:00000001 While these alerts may be intrusive, users should upgrade to a newer version of Windows before it reaches the end of support. Not doing so will only cause the operating system to become more vulnerable to exploits, malware, and other bugs that may appear over time. Windows 8.1 now shows full-screen 'End of Support' warnings

Microsoft has released Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 (KB5015874) and Windows 7 (KB5015861). They each come with a whole host of improvements and known issues with workarounds. It’s worth noting that support for Windows 8.1 will end in January, so Microsoft urges you to upgrade to a later edition of Windows. The Patch Tuesday update for Windows 7 requires you to have purchased the Extended Security Update (ESU) support. Windows 8.1 Improvements Starting with this release, we are displaying a dialog box to remind users about the End of Support (EOS) for Windows 8.1 in January 2023. If you click Remind me later, the dialog box will appear once every 35 days. If you click Remind me after the end of support date, the dialog box will not appear again until after the EOS date. This reminder does not appear on the following: Managed Pro and Enterprise devices. Windows Embedded 8.1 Industry Enterprise and Windows Embedded 8.1 Industry Pro devices. When you use Encrypting File System (EFS) https://docs.microsoft.com/windows/win32/fileio/file-encryption files over a remote Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) protocol connection, the connection might be unsuccessful. NTLM authentication through an external trust is unsuccessful when serviced by a domain controller that has the January 11, 2022 or later Windows update installed. This issue occurs if the DC is in a non-root domain and does not hold the global catalog (GC) role. Impacted operations may log the following errors: The security database has not been started. The domain was in the wrong state to perform the security operation. 0xc00000dd (STATUS_INVALID_DOMAIN_STATE) Applications might not run after an AppLocker publisher rule is deployed. Addresses a known issue that might prevent you from using the Wi-Fi hotspot feature. When attempting to use the hotspot feature, the host device might lose the connection to the Internet after a client device connects. Addresses a known issue in which Windows Servers that use the Routing and Remote Access Service (RRAS) might be unable to correctly direct Internet traffic. Devices which connect to the server might not connect to the Internet, and servers can lose connection to the Internet after a client device connects. Known issues in this update Symptom Next step Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Windows 7 Improvements When you use Encrypting File System (EFS) files over a remote Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) protocol connection, the connection might be unsuccessful. NTLM authentication through an external trust is unsuccessful when serviced by a domain controller that has the January 11, 2022 or later Windows update installed. This issue occurs if the DC is in a non-root domain and does not hold the global catalog (GC) role. Impacted operations may log the following errors: The security database has not been started. The domain was in the wrong state to perform the security operation. 0xc00000dd (STATUS_INVALID_DOMAIN_STATE) Addresses a known issue that might prevent you from using the Wi-Fi hotspot feature. When attempting to use the hotspot feature, the host device might lose the connection to the Internet after a client device connects. Addresses a known issue in which Windows Servers that use the Routing and Remote Access Service (RRAS) might be unable to correctly direct Internet traffic. Devices which connect to the server might not connect to the Internet, and servers can lose connection to the Internet after a client device connects. Known issues in this update Symptom Next step After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, “Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer”, and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Both of these updates are now available to download through Windows Update if you’re eligible. Your systems will download and install the updates automatically. Windows 8.1 (KB5015874) and Windows 7 (KB5015861) Patch Tuesday updates land

Windows 8.1 will reach its end of life (EOL) on January 10, 2023, and Microsoft will soon start nagging those using this operating system with notifications about its upcoming "death." Microsoft says (via ZDNet) that users will receive messages similar to those the company used before Windows 7's EOL. A message about Windows 8.1 soon reaching its end of life will include options to receive notification later, receive it after January 10, 2023, and learn more. The latter will guide the users to a dedicated support article, where Microsoft explains what end of support means and what users can do. Interestingly, Microsoft says it currently does not offer free upgrade paths from Windows 8.1 to Windows 11 and 10, which means users need to consider buying a license for a newer release. The company also notes that those sticking to Windows 8.1 should consider purchasing a new computer that supports Windows 11 or 10 because those built for Windows 8.1 "are designed with technology that is about 10 years old." Windows 8.1, released on October 17, 2013, was Microsoft's attempt to fix what it broke with the initial release of Windows 8. It brought back the traditional Start menu button alongside the option to boot directly into the desktop instead of the radically redesigned Start menu. Windows 8.1 also included Internet Explorer 11 (rest in peace), improved integration with OneDrive, and other tweaks. Fun fact: Windows 8.1 was the only major Windows update Microsoft allowed you to download from the Microsoft Store, similar to how Apple updates macOS. Windows 8.1 reached the end of mainstream support on January 9, 2018. Unlike its beloved predecessor, Windows 8.1 does not support the extended security updates program that allows companies to pay Microsoft for additional patches after January 10, 2023. Microsoft will start warning Windows 8.1 users about upcoming end of support

Microsoft has released its Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 7 (KB5016679) and Windows 8.1 (KB5016683). They both contain pretty much the same improvements, however, the Windows 8.1 notes do not list any known issues. It’s important to note that only Windows 7 users who have purchased extended security update (ESU) support will receive the update. Improvements (applies to Windows 7 and Windows 8.1) This security-only update includes new improvements for the following issue: Addresses an issue in which Speech and Network troubleshooters will not start. Addresses an issue that might cause the Local Security Authority Server Service (LSASS) to leak tokens. This issue affects devices that have installed Windows updates dated June 14, 2022 or later. This issue occurs when the device performs a specific form of service for user (S4U) in a non-Trusted Computing Base (TCB) Windows service that runs as Network Service. Enforces a hardening change that requires printers and scanners that use smart cards for authentication to have firmware that complies with section 3.2.1 of RFC 4556. If they do not comply, Active Directory domain controllers will not authenticate them. Mitigations that allowed non-compliant devices to authenticate will not exist after August 9, 2022. For more information about this change, see KB5005408. For more information about the resolved security vulnerabilities, please refer to the Deployments | Security Update Guide and the August 2022 Security Updates. Known issues in this update (Windows 7 only) Symptom Next step After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, “Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer,” and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. This Windows 7 update is not available via Windows Update. The best way to get it would be to download it through the Microsoft Update Catalog. The Windows 8.1 update is also unavailable via Windows Update, but you can grab that via Microsoft Update Catalog too. Microsoft releases Windows 7 (KB5016679) and Windows 8.1 (KB5016683) Patch Tuesday updates

Aside from Windows 10 and Windows 11, Microsoft has released Patch Tuesday updates for its two older systems, Windows 7 (KB5012626) and 8.1 (KB5012670). Unlike the Windows 11 patch notes, the ones for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 are quite extensive and so are the known issues. Windows 8.1 Improvements and fixes Addresses an issue in Windows Media Center where some users might have to reconfigure the application on each start. Addresses a memory leak that was introduced by the PacRequestorEnforcement registry key in the November 2021 Cumulative Update that causes a decrease in performance on domain controllers. Addresses an issue in which Event ID 37 might be logged during certain password change scenarios. Addresses an issue in which Windows might go into BitLocker recovery after a servicing update. Addresses an issue in which domain joins may fail in environments that use disjoint DNS hostnames. Addresses an issue that causes a Denial of Service vulnerability on Cluster Shared Volumes (CSV). For more information, see CVE-2020-26784. Addresses an issue that prevents you from changing a password that has expired when you sign in to a Windows device. Known issues in this update Symptom Workaround Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. After installing updates released January 11, 2022 or later updates, apps using Microsoft .NET Framework to acquire or set Active Directory Forest Trust Information might fail, close, or you might receive an error from the app or Windows. You might also receive an access violation (0xc0000005) error. Note for developers: Affected apps use the System.DirectoryServices API. To resolve this issue manually, apply the out-of-band updates for the version of .NET Framework used by the app. Note These out-of-band updates are not available from Windows Update and will not install automatically. To get the standalone package, search for the KB number for your version of Windows and .NET Framework in the Microsoft Update Catalog. Windows 7 Improvements and fixes Addresses an issue in Windows Media Center where some users might have to reconfigure the application on each start. Addresses a memory leak that was introduced by the PacRequestorEnforcement registry key in the November 2021 Cumulative Update that causes a decrease in performance on domain controllers. Addresses an issue in which Event ID 37 might be logged during certain password change scenarios. Addresses an issue that occurs when you try to write a service principal name (SPN) alias (such as www/contoso) and HOST/NAME already exists on another object. If the user has the RIGHT_DS_WRITE_PROPERTY on the SPN attribute of the colliding object, you receive an “Access Denied” error. Addresses an issue in which domain joins may fail in environments that use disjoint DNS hostnames. Addresses an issue that prevents you from changing a password that has expired when you sign in to a Windows device. Known issues in this update Symptom Workaround After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, "Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer", and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, "STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)". This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. The Windows 8.1 update will be updated automatically through Windows Update while the Windows 7 update will be installed automatically through Windows Update if you are an ESU customer. Microsoft releases Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 7 (KB5012626) and 8.1 (KB5012670)

Microsoft has released its Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 (KB5018474) and Windows 7 (KB5018454). To get the Windows 7 update, you will need to be a customer that has purchased the Extended Security Update (ESU). The improvements this month for both versions of Windows are the same, they are as follows: Improvements This cumulative security update contains improvements that are part of update KB5017361 (Windows 7) / KB5017367 (Windows 8.1) (released September 13, 2022) and includes key changes for the following: Addresses an issue that leads to User Datagram Protocol (UDP) packet drops from Linux virtual machines (VMs). Updates daylight saving time (DST) in Chile to start on September 11, 2022 instead of September 4, 2022. For more information about the resolved security vulnerabilities, please refer to the Deployments | Security Update Guide and the October 2022 Security Updates. Known Issues (Windows 7) Symptom Next step After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, "Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer", and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. After installing this update, file copies which use Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files that have 0 (zero) bytes. Known affected Group Policy Objects are related to files and shortcuts in User Configuration > Preferences > Windows Settings in Group Policy Editor. To mitigate this issue, do ONE of the following: Clear the "Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)" check box. Note This might not mitigate the issue for items that use a wildcard (*). In the affected Group Policy, change "Action" from "Replace" to "Update". If a wildcard (*) is used in the location or destination, deleting the trailing "\" (backslash, without quotation marks) from the destination might allow the copy to be successful. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Known Issues (Windows 8.1) Symptoms Next step After installing this update, file copies which use Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files that have 0 (zero) bytes. Known affected Group Policy Objects are related to files and shortcuts in User Configuration > Preferences > Windows Settings in Group Policy Editor. To mitigate this issue, do ONE of the following: Clear the "Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)" check box. Note This might not mitigate the issue for items that use a wildcard (*). In the affected Group Policy, change "Action" from "Replace" to "Update". If a wildcard (*) is used in the location or destination, deleting the trailing "\" (backslash, without quotation marks) from the destination might allow the copy to be successful. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Both of the updates will be available for their respective systems through Windows Update. If you need to download them for an offline installed, then you can get them from the Microsoft Update Catalog (Windows 7 update, Windows 8.1 update). Windows 8.1 (KB5018474) and Windows 7 (KB5018454) Patch Tuesday updates arrive

Following its initial reminder in June, Microsoft has once again reminded users about the impending end of support for Windows 8.1 which happens early next year on January 10th. And just like with Windows 10 version 21H1, the company's focus is once again on moving over users to Windows 11. The company has explained what end-of-support means and why moving over to Windows 11 is a good idea: As of January 10, 2023, computers running Windows 8.1 will still function, but Microsoft will no longer provide the following: Technical support of any issue Software updates Security updates or fixes While you could continue to use a PC running Windows 8.1, without continued software and security updates, your PC will be at greater risk for viruses and malware. We recommend upgrading to a version of Windows that is still supported. A new device that can run Windows 11 makes for an easy transition and a great experience. [...] How is Windows 11 security better than Windows 8.1? Windows 11 is the most secure Windows ever built, with comprehensive end-to-end security that covers antivirus, firewall, internet protections, and more. This means more security features, dashboard displays, and ongoing updates to help safeguard against future threats—all built-in at no extra cost. This also means the end of support for Microsoft 365 (Office) apps, as well as your ability to make purchases from the Microsoft Store. Microsoft also recommends getting a new computer as well and seeing how Windows 11 has pretty stringent system requirements, it is probably a good idea to do so anyway as any CPU over six years old is unlikely to be supported on Windows 11. And the requirements haven't changed with version 22H2 either. Though in the case you opt for Windows 10, hardware requirements shouldn't be a cause for concern. Why should I consider a new computer? PCs originally built with Windows 8.1 are designed with technology that is about 10 years old. Once you move to a new PC, there will be many aspects of Windows that you will find familiar, but also with important software and hardware innovations and capabilities that were not available a decade ago. There is a good reason why Microsoft keeps reminding users of Windows 11. The latest data suggests that only 15% of people have upgraded to Windows 11 from Windows 10. The strict system requirements for Windows 11 have kept many users away. For organizations, it's a big challenge and even a whole year later, only about half the systems are Windows 11-ready according to data from a massive scale survey. Microsoft says Windows 11 and a new PC is the way ahead for the soon-dead Windows 8.1 users

Microsoft has released its Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 (KB5020023) and Windows 7 (KB5020000). To get the Windows 7 update, you will need to be a customer that has purchased the Extended Security Update (ESU). Windows 8.1/7 Improvements Addresses a Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) authentication hardening issue to automatically raise authentication level for all non-anonymous activation requests from DCOM clients. This will occur if the authentication level is less than RPC_C_AUTHN_LEVEL_PKT_INTEGRITY. Updates the daylight-saving time (DST) for Jordan to prevent moving the clock back 1 hour on October 28, 2022. Additionally, changes the display name of Jordan standard time from “(UTC+02:00) Amman” to “(UTC+03:00) Amman”. Addresses an issue where Microsoft Azure Active Directory (AAD) Application Proxy Connector cannot retrieve a Kerberos ticket on behalf of the user because of the following general API error: “The handle specified is invalid (0x80090301).” Addresses an issue where, after installing the January 11, 2022 or later update, the Forest Trust creation process fails to populate the DNS name suffixes into the trust information attributes. Addresses an issue where the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable Runtime does not load into the Local Security Authority Server Service (LSASS) when Protected Process Light (PPL) is enabled. Addresses security vulnerabilities in the Kerberos and Netlogon protocols as outlined in CVE-2022-38023, CVE-2022-37966, and CVE-2022-37967. For deployment guidance, see the following articles: KB5020805: How to manage the Kerberos protocol changes related to CVE-2022-37967 KB5021130: How to manage the Netlogon protocol changes related to CVE-2022-38023 KB5021131: How to manage the Kerberos protocol changes related to CVE-2022-37966 Known issues (Windows 8.1) Symptom Next step After this update or a later Windows update is installed, domain join operations might be unsuccessful and error "0xaac (2732): NERR_AccountReuseBlockedByPolicy" occurs. Additionally, text stating "An account with the same name exists in Active Directory. Re-using the account was blocked by security policy" might be displayed. Affected scenarios include some domain join or re-imaging operations where a computer account was created or pre-staged by a different identity than the identity used to join or re-join the computer to the domain. For more information about this issue, see KB5020276—Netjoin: Domain join hardening changes. Note Consumer Desktop editions of Windows are unlikely to experience this issue. We have added guidance to KB5020276 and are evaluating whether optimizations can be made in a future Windows Update. This guidance will be updated as soon as those changes are released. Known issues (Windows 7) Symptom Next Step After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, "Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer", and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. After this update or a later Windows update is installed, domain join operations might be unsuccessful and error "0xaac (2732): NERR_AccountReuseBlockedByPolicy" occurs. Additionally, text stating "An account with the same name exists in Active Directory. Re-using the account was blocked by security policy" might be displayed. Affected scenarios include some domain join or re-imaging operations where a computer account was created or pre-staged by a different identity than the identity used to join or re-join the computer to the domain. For more information about this issue, see KB5020276—Netjoin: Domain join hardening changes. Note Consumer Desktop editions of Windows are unlikely to experience this issue. We have added guidance to KB5020276 and are evaluating whether optimizations can be made in a future Windows Update. This guidance will be updated as soon as those changes are released. The updates will be delivered via Windows Update but if you need to download them to install offline, you can grab them from the Microsoft Update Catalog (Windows 8.1/Windows 7). Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 (KB5020023) and Windows 7 (KB5020000)

Microsoft plans to end extended Windows 7 support in the first half of 2023, which means no more paid security updates for those unwilling to upgrade to newer versions. The death of Windows 7 also implies the end of support for mainstream browsers, such as Chrome, Edge, and Firefox. Google recently announced plans to stop updating Chrome on Windows 7 and 8.1 in early 2023, but Mozilla has yet to decide when to pull the plug. According to a post on Bugzilla (via gHacks), the browser's developers are considering two options: end support in the first quarter of 2023 or keep updating Firefox on the old Windows versions until August 2023, when the browser will move to a newer Extended Support Release version. The development team says that ditching Firefox for Windows 7 and 8.1 in early 2023 could make their lives a bit easier by removing the need for Windows 7 test automation machines. At the same time, keeping them running for a little longer "is not the end of the world," considering that Firefox still has "a lot of users on Windows 7." According to the latest data from Statcounter, Windows 7 holds almost 10% of the PC market. It is worth mentioning that running an unsupported browser on an unsupported Windows version will not cause your computer to explode, as shown by people still using Windows XP in 2022. Still, accessing the modern internet using software that no longer receives security updates is not the best idea. Those sticking to Windows 7 should get ready to kiss their favorite operating system goodbye and move on to a supported OS with supported browsers. Mozilla is considering extending Firefox support on Windows 7 and 8.1

Microsoft has released its Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 (KB5017367) and Windows 7 (KB5017361). Both updates include improvements and issues for their respective Windows versions, but luckily, the issues have workarounds outlined, so you can get around the problems. Windows 8.1 Improvements This cumulative security update includes improvements that are part of update KB5016681 (released August 9, 2022) and includes key changes for the following issue: This update contains miscellaneous security improvements to internal OS functionality. No specific issues are documented for this release. For more information about the resolved security vulnerabilities, please refer to the Deployments | Security Update Guide and the September 2022 Security Updates. Known issues in this update Symptoms Next step Starting at 12:00 A.M. Saturday, September 10, 2022, the official time in Chile will advance 60 minutes in accordance with the August 9, 2022 official announcement by the Chilean government about a daylight saving time (DST) time zone change. This moves the DST change which was previously September 4 to September 10. Symptoms if the workaround is not used on devices between September 4, 2022 and September 11, 2022: Time shown in Windows and apps will not be correct. Apps and cloud services which use date and time for integral functions, such as Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Outlook, notifications and scheduling of meetings might be 60 minutes off. Automation that uses date and time, such as Scheduled tasks, might not run at the expected time. Timestamp on transactions, files, and logs will be 60 minutes off. Operations that rely on time-dependent protocols such as Kerberos might cause authentication failures when attempting to logon or access resources. Windows devices and apps outside of Chile might also be affected if they are connecting to servers or devices in Chile or if they are scheduling or attending meetings taking place in Chile from another location or time zone. Windows devices outside of Chile should not use the workaround, as it would change their local time on the device. To mitigate this issue, please see Possible issues caused by new Daylight Savings Time in Chile. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Note We plan to release an update to support this change; however, there might be insufficient time to properly build, test, and release such an update before the change goes into effect. Please use the workaround above. Windows 7 Improvements This cumulative security update contains improvements that are part of update KB5016676 (released August 9, 2022) and includes key changes for the following issue: This update contains miscellaneous security improvements to internal OS functionality. No specific issues are documented for this release. For more information about the resolved security vulnerabilities, please refer to the Deployments | Security Update Guide and the September 2022 Security Updates. Known issues in this update Symptom Next step After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, "Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer", and the update might show as Failed in Update History. This is expected in the following circumstances: If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181. If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated. If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article. Starting at 12:00 A.M. Saturday, September 10, 2022, the official time in Chile will advance 60 minutes in accordance with the August 9, 2022 official announcement by the Chilean government about a daylight saving time (DST) time zone change. This moves the DST change which was previously September 4 to September 10. Symptoms if the workaround is not used on devices between September 4, 2022 and September 11, 2022: Time shown in Windows and apps will not be correct. Apps and cloud services which use date and time for integral functions, such as Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Outlook, notifications and scheduling of meetings might be 60 minutes off. Automation that uses date and time, such as Scheduled tasks, might not run at the expected time. Timestamp on transactions, files, and logs will be 60 minutes off. Operations that rely on time-dependent protocols such as Kerberos might cause authentication failures when attempting to logon or access resources. Windows devices and apps outside of Chile might also be affected if they are connecting to servers or devices in Chile or if they are scheduling or attending meetings taking place in Chile from another location or time zone. Windows devices outside of Chile should not use the workaround, as it would change their local time on the device. To mitigate this issue, please see Possible issues caused by new Daylight Savings Time in Chile. We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Note We plan to release an update to support this change; however, there might be insufficient time to properly build, test, and release such an update before the change goes into effect. Please use the workaround above. Both of these updates are available through Windows Update. Note that on Windows 7, you must be an Extended Security Update (ESU) customer to get this update. If you need to download these updates for installation on an offline machine, you can download them from the Microsoft Update Catalog: Windows 8.1 (KB5017367) and Windows 7 (KB5017361). Windows 8.1 (KB5017367) and Windows 7 (KB5017361) get September Patch Tuesday updates

If your devices are still running Windows 7 or 8.1, listen up: according to a recent announcement by Google, the company will officially end Chrome support for the two aforementioned operating systems in line with the tentative release of Chrome 110 on February 7, 2023. While Google Chrome will continue working after the update, it will no longer receive any feature updates and security patches on devices running these OSs. This increases users' and businesses' risks of falling prey to online attacks if they continue to use Windows 7 or 8.1. "You’ll need to ensure your device is running Windows 10 or later to continue receiving future Chrome releases," Google states in its Chrome Help Blog. "This matches Microsoft’s end of support for Windows 7 ESU and Windows 8.1 extended support on January 10th, 2023." Windows 7, which reached its end of support back in January 2020, still has a 10.68% desktop market share worldwide, according to StatCounter. This means that there are still many people worldwide using the OS. Windows 8.1, on the other hand, holds a measly 2.7% market share. Given that more apps are dropping support for the two OSs aside from Chrome, it's best for users to finally upgrade to Windows 10 and 11. Source: Google via AndroidAuthority Google Chrome is dropping support for Windows 7 and 8.1 in February 2023

If you are still using Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 on your PC, or if you are using some older versions of the MacOS on your Mac PC, you will soon lose support for the Nvidia GeForce NOW game streaming app for those operating systems. In a support page that was quietly posted this week, Nvidia confirmed that starting sometime in November 2024, it will stop updating the GeForce NOW app and end its official support. The support page added: The support page did not offer a specific date for when the GeForce Now apps will end the support for those older PC operating systems. The Nvidia support page does note that if you still insist on using a PC with those older operating systems, you can still connect and play on the GeForce NOW service with a supported web browser at its official website. However, it does add that even if a web browser on those operating systems can access the GeForce NOW site they "may not support the latest versions and security updates on legacy operating systems." A post on the Nvidia GeForce NOW blog also reveals what games are being added to the service this week: It also posted what will be added to the service during the month of August: Remember that Nvidia is currently offering 50 percent discounts for both Priority and Ultimate GeForce NOW memberships in both month-to-month and 6-month subscription plans. The big discount is available until August 18. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every single day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of July): 3,313 news posts

It is one of those rare occurrences when Nvidia releases new graphics drivers for now-unsupported graphics cards and/or operating systems. Version 475.14 is the latest driver for systems with Kepler-based Nvidia graphics cards, and it is available for users with Windows 7, 8, 8.1, 10, and 11. Unfortunately, unlike regular Game Ready Drivers, version 475.14 will not make your games or GPU run better. This is a security-only release, which aims to patch some critical security issues. There are no optimizations for new games, no new features, and no bug fixes. Also, this driver is not WHQL-certified since it targets now-unsupported Windows versions, which no longer accept WHQL submissions. If you want to get that, update your graphics card and/or Windows versions. Here is the changelog for Nvidia 475.14: For now, there is no information on what exactly driver 475.14 improves. Nvidia will add details to its Security Bulletin once more users get the latest release: Kepler-based graphics cards include the Nvidia GTX 700 Series and the Nvidia GTX 600 Series. GTX 900 and newer are still supported, so owners of those cards can use the latest Game Ready driver (on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11) with optimizations, fixes, and new features. You can download Nvidia 475.14 from the official website. Full release notes are available here. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every single day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of June): 2,839 news posts

Mozilla had announced back in November of 2022 that it was considering extending the end of support date for Firefox. The company in March of 2023 it revealed the Extended Support Release (ESR) for Firefox that was released later in July of that year with version 115. Mozilla however has recently revealed that it wants to further extend support for its browser. The firm conducted an AMA (Ask Me Anything) in the Firefox subreddit last month in June where the Firefox leadership team joined in. The event included: Bethel Kidane, Senior Product Marketing Manager Andrew Overholt, VP, Engineering, Platform Vicky Chin, VP, Engineering, Desktop, Mobile, and Pocket Byron Jourdan, Senior Director, Product Management Bobby Holley, CTO, Firefox Sheila Mooney, Senior Director, Technical Program Management Ian Carmichael, Senior Vice President, Firefox Aaron Benson, Director, User Experience Among them, Byron Jourdan, Senior Director, Product Management of Mozilla, under the Reddit username ComprehensiveDoor643 revealed that Mozilla plans to support Firefox on Windows 7 for longer. When asked separately about whether it also included Windows 8 and 8.1 too, Jourdan added that it was certainly the plan, though for how long the extended support would last was still undecided: While Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 does not have the biggest share of users according to the latest Statcounter data, Mozilla seems to want to secure this user base and in return offer older Windows version users an updated browser option. This is because Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge no longer support these OSs. Source: Reddit Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every single day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of June): 2,839 news posts

Microsoft has announced the availability of KB5010419, the Patch Tuesday update for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2. Unlike the Windows 11 Patch Tuesday update, which has a slender set of release notes, the Windows 8.1 update has quite a long list of notes and issues. Improvements and fixes This security update includes improvements and fixes that were a part of update KB5009624 (released January 11, 2022) and update KB5010794 (released January 17, 2022). Additionally, this update also addresses the following issues: Updates daylight savings time to start in February 2022 instead of March 2022 in Jordan. Addresses an issue in which virtual machines (VMs) on a Windows server that has Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) enabled fail to start after installing the January 11, 2022 Windows update. Addresses an issue in which Windows stops running with an IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL error. Addresses an issue in which a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) modify operation that contains the SamAccountName together with the UserAccountControl attributes fails with “Error: 0x20EF The directory service encountered an unknown failure.” Adds an audit event on Active Directory domain controllers that identifies clients that are not RFC-4456 compliant. For more information, see KB5005408—Smart card authentication might cause print and scan failures. Aside from this list of improvements, there are also two known issues in this update, here they are and the methods to work around them. Symptom Workaround Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege. Do one of the following: Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege. Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership. Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. After installing updates released January 11, 2022 or later updates, apps using Microsoft .NET Framework to acquire or set Active Directory Forest Trust Information might fail, close, or you might receive an error from the app or Windows. You might also receive an access violation (0xc0000005) error. To resolve this issue manually, apply the out-of-band updates for the version of .NET Framework used by the app. To install this update, just open up Windows Update and apply any available updates. You will also automatically be offered the latest servicing stack update (KB5001403) which should improve the reliability of the update install process. Windows 8.1 February Patch Tuesday update (KB5010419) out now