Windows Update automatically changing user settings - again
After Patch Tuesday this week (October 9), some Windows Vista users noticed something strange: Windows Update had changed their Automatic Update settings and rebooted their machines automatically without their consent.
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12.10.2007 Group Policy Settings Reference Windows Vista Beta 2
This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the administrative template files(admx/adml) delivered with Windows Vista Beta 2 (build 5384).
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26.8.2006 Group Policy Settings Reference for Microsoft Windows Vista RC1
This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the administrative template files (admx/adml) delivered with Windows Vista RC1 (build 5600).
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13.9.2006 Microsoft Denies Changing Windows Vista Settings without Users' Consent
Microsoft denied that it is messing around with the settings of the Windows Vista operating systems without the users' consent.
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15.10.2007 Windows Live Safety Settings Unveiled
Microsoft on Tuesday confirmed plans to offer a new service that gives parents more control over the Internet content their children can view without supervision. Called Windows Live Safety Settings, it includes content filtering for the Web, contact list management tools for communication services, and online activity reports.
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15.3.2006 Prevent 1.0 - Stop Unauthorized Copy, Delete, Move & Change of Settings
I am sure everyone has faced the situation where either their friends, colleagues, family member of kids renaming, deleting important files or changing settings like wallpaper, screen resolution etc. this is typical with younger sibling.
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17.9.2009 A Mac user switches to Vista?
Say something critical about Microsoft and Windows and no one bats an eyelash. But write anything even faintly judgmental about the Macintosh and in comes a flood of hate mail from Mac users. The worst part is the tone of most, which generally tend toward religious zealotry. So before I begin, let me begin by saying any e-mails of that type that are sent in response to this story will be deleted, with no reply.
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3.2.2007 User reports shipping Vista is different from RTM
ONE OF our readers already bought Vista OEM from Overclockers. He installed it and got back with a few first impressions. And he reckons that the OEM Vista is not the same as the RTM (release to manufacture) he tried before.
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1.2.2007 Windows Vista Multilingual User Interface
Multilingual User Interface packs for Windows Vista and Windows XP Professional are not as easy to come by as Microsoft partners and customers would expect. The general presumption seems to be that the MUI packs are available as separate downloads from the Redmond Company
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22.6.2007 Windows Vista Multilingual User Interface Available for Download
With the introduction of Windows Vista, Microsoft has evolved the MUI architecture, breaking the intimate connection between the language resources for the user interface and the operating system's binary code.
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3.1.2008 Windows Vista Beta2 users to run as standard user
David Cross a Director of Program Management with Windows Security has posted today over at the UAC blog that the users accounts created on Windows Vista Beta2 will be standard users. Yep, thats right...not an Admin, not a Protected Admin, but a standard user.
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3.4.2006 Turn Off or Disable User Account Control (UAC) in Windows Vista
User Account Control (UAC) is a new security feature in Windows Vista that requires all users to log on and run in standard user privileges mode instead of as administrator with full administrative rights, thus prevent unauthorized or accidental changes that could destabilize the computers or allows virus and malware to exploit the system-level privileges provided to the local administrator to attack the network security, compromise computer safety and privacy, and damage files and settings in the network.
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19.12.2006 Jim Allchin explains Windows Vista User Account Control
One of the most basic conundrums in computer security is the constant trade-off between security and usability. At the end of the day, if security is too complicated to use, then it simply won't be used.
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24.1.2007 Windows Update Blocker Tool Kit - Block Automatic Windows Vista SP2 Update
After availability of Windows Vista Service Pack 2 for public download I am sure many users would have already installed Vista Service Pack 2 to see the performance improvements and its advisable to install Windows Vista sp2 as it has many noticeable changes and also includes all the fixes released after Vista sp1.
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27.5.2009 Stop the Windows Vista Features and Services Harvesting User Data for Microsoft
There is a constant flow of communication between Windows Vista and Microsoft. A collection of features and services across Microsoft's latest desktop operating system exchange data with locations on the Internet, including those belonging to the Redmond company.
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19.8.2007 Multilingual User Interface (MUI) Packs for Windows Vista SP1 Updated
Starting with April 15, 2008, all the 36 different editions of Windows Vista Service Pack 1 have been available for download, in accordance with all the languages supported by the RTM edition of Microsoft's latest Windows client.
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23.4.2008 Windows 7 In Box – All Windows 7 Settings at One Place
So you have recently switched from Windows Xp to Windows 7 and finding it difficult to change simple settings like System settings, keyboard & Mouse settings, managing user accounts, starting various Windows tools etc.
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13.11.2009 Microsoft plans to issue non-update update for Win 7
Microsoft will spit out dummy updates for Windows 7 beta testers next week that will probe the forthcoming operating system’s updating abilities.
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20.2.2009 Windows Update versus Ubuntu Update
A few months ago, Steve Ballmer publicly noted that Windows Vista was “a work in progress.” That inspired a predictable outpouring of Vista-bashing.
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15.7.2008 Windows 7 - Next Generation User Interface
One thing is clear, although starting from the summer of 2007 and ending in the first half of this year, the main focus for Microsoft has been building Windows Vista SP1, Windows XP SP3, in terms of the Windows client the company did much more than just service packs.
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28.5.2008 Next-Generation Windows 7 User Experience
With Windows 7 Milestone 1 released in December 2007, Microsoft managed to give a taste of the user experience that is coming with the successor of Windows Vista.
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18.7.2008 Windows 7 User Interface and Interaction
Windows 7 will undoubtedly take the graphical user interface and the interaction model to the next level not only as far as the Windows client is concerned, but also in terms of the content designed to integrate seamlessly with the operating system.
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11.11.2008 Vista's User Account Protection: one click and it's gone
Vista's biggest security enhancement is "User Account Protection" (or "User Account Control" ) which pops up and asks for user authentication before software can make any administrative changes to the system.
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9.9.2006 User paid to uninstall Windows XP
A Sheffield man has won a refund from Dell for not installing Microsoft's Windows XP on a laptop he bought from the PC giant. Freelance programmer Dave Mitchell ordered a Dell laptop on 21 October, and the machine was delivered a few days later.
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15.11.2006 Office 2007 :: First impressions of an average user
OK, well perhaps I am not the average user, but I can say with my hand on my heart that I have never installed any of the Office 2007 Betas and, for what it's worth, not really followed the Office 2007 developement program with as much energy as others.
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2.12.2006 The First Look at the IE8 Beta 1 Graphical User Interface
Expect little and you won't be disappointed. This has got to be the rule for Internet Explorer Beta 1.
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3.3.2008 Windows 7 User Interface – The Superbar - Enhanced Taskbar
One of the elements of the Windows graphical user interface that is evolving past what end users have come to traditionally associate with it is the Taskbar.
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4.11.2008 Windows Aero Is Old News – Introducing LucidTouch User Interface
If you think that Microsoft's journey into the development of natural user interfaces has stopped with the availability of Surface, then think again. The Redmond company is hard at work in a collaboration with Mitsubishi Research to produce LucidTouch.
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24.8.2007 Microsoft patent app shows off new user interface for mobiles
Just in time to my previous column if the Windows Mobile touchscreen interface is ready for single-hand use, the United States Patent and Trademark Office yesterday unveiled a patent which was given to Microsoft (Application Number: 11/765,684).
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14.10.2007 Life after Aero, Microsoft Cooking Improved User Interface for Windows 7
It might not sound like all that much, but it is a definite confirmation that there is life after Windows Aero. And as far as the scarce details on Windows 7 go, any palpable piece of information goes a long way.
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24.5.2008Microsoft responds to mysterious Automatic Updates issue
A quick note regarding automatic update settings getting changed...
We have been hearing some questions recently regarding
Tuesdays update release changing automatic updating settings. We have received some logs from customers, and have so far been able to determine that
their AU settings were not changed by any changes to the AU client itself and also not changed by any updates installed by AU.
We
are still looking into this to see if another application is making this change during setup with user consent, or if this issue is related to
something else. We are continuing the investigation, and as I have more information I will update this post.
If you are running
into this issue, your help would be greatly appreciated. You can contact
support, and they can walk you through the steps necessary to provide logs and other useful data.
Nate
Clinton
Program Manger
Microsoft Update
winbeta.org -
13.10.2007Group Policy Settings Reference Windows Server 2008
This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the Administrative template files (.admx/.adml) delivered
with Windows Server 2008. The policy settings included in this spreadsheet cover Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP
Professional, and Windows 2000. You can configure these policy settings when you edit Group Policy objects (GPOs).
In addition,
this spreadsheet includes the following categories of security policy settings:
- Account Policies (Password Policy, Account
Lockout Policy, and Kerberos Policy)
- Local Policies (Audit Policy, User Rights Assignment, and Security Options)
- Event Log
- Restricted Groups
- System Services
- Registry
- File System policy settings.
Note: This
does not include security settings that exist outside of the Security Settings extension (scecli.dll), such as Wireless Network extension, Public Key
Policies, or Software Restriction Policies.
winbeta.org -
06.02.2008Quickly find your privacy settings on Windows Live
Since Windows Live got updated to Wave 3, we saw Microsoft expanding into the field of Social Networking. It introduced the concept of śProfilesť,
where you are able to show off what you want to show to others, and also the śWhats Newť feed which shows you what others want to show you. Every user
using Windows Live, including all Hotmail and Messenger users (who may or may not be aware of the new social networking side of Windows Live Wave 3),
now has a Profile. Although this is an exciting update for some, this update also caused some concern about privacy and user permissions “ what if you
dont want to show everyone else what youve been doing online?
winbeta.org -
07.01.2009Windows Live OneCare changes Automatic Updates
Amid reports that Windows Live OneCare changes settings in Windows Update to allow for automatic installation of important updates, the official word
from Microsoft is that this is by design. When first installing OneCare, the setup informs the user that proceeding will change computer settings to
automatically download and install important updates from Microsoft Update. Settings for recommended and optional updates are not changed. Even during
Tune-up, OneCare checks, and then prompts the user if there are missing software updates or if Automatic Updates settings have been changed.
“ OneCare is built for people who dont want to worry about protecting and maintaining their PC. This behavior is by design and is not unique
to the latest version of OneCare. It helps ensure that your computer continues to receive important updates as soon as possible after they are
released. We are evaluating user feedback and will be revisiting how we communicate the installation details of Windows Live OneCare as we are
continually working to improve that experience. In addition, OneCare was built with privacy in mind, and Microsoft takes that very seriously –
every new feature or setting change is reviewed and approved by Microsoft’s privacy experts .”
neowin.net -
26.10.2007Automatic Update Not Making Unauthorized Change
Microsoft has responded to recent web posts claiming that last weekÂ’s automatic update actually changed peoples update settings on their computer.
The company is still looking into the issue, if you experienced weirdness after updating last week, hit the link above and report it.
We have been hearing some questions recently regarding TuesdayÂ’s update release changing automatic updating settings. We have received some
logs from customers, and have so far been able to determine that their AU settings were not changed by any changes to the AU client itself and also
not changed by any updates installed by AU.
jcxp.net -
15.10.2007Why installing Vista SP1 might fail via Windows Update
When you try to install Windows Vista SP1 via Windows Update you can get error: Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is not available for installation from
Windows Update and is not offered by Automatic Updates.
To help ensure a positive update experience, Windows Update will temporarily not
offer Windows Vista SP1 to systems that have the following device drivers. In some cases, these device drivers are problematic on Windows Vista-based
computers when you update to Windows Vista SP1. By installing updated device drivers, you will resolve the issue and enable Windows Update to offer
Windows Vista SP1.
Click read more to view a list of drivers that don't work well with Vista SP1:
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
20.03.2008PDC 2008: Sinofsky acknowledges Vista UAC is a problem, Windows 7 adds options
Giving a nod to developers who've apparently given a lot of feedback, as well as "certain commercials," Microsoft's platform chief Steven
Sinofsky acknowledged that perhaps User Account Control in Windows Vista may have been...a little annoying. In turn, Windows 7 has additional UAC
settings...
betanews.com -
28.10.2008An Update For Windows Update
An infrastructure update has been planned for Windows Update client. The gradual roll-out of this update will begin in late July. This update will
occur automatically to any system configured to either receive updates “automatically” or “notify” customers that new updates
are available for download.
For enterprise customers who use Windows Server Update Services or Systems Management Server, all updating,
including the WU client, is controlled by the network administrators, who have authority over the download and install experience. Windows Vista
customers who select “never check for updates” in their WU settings will not receive this update until they manually install updates from
Windows Update.
In this particular update, there will not make any changes to the way WU looks or feels, instead the following have been
improved:
- The length of time it takes Windows Update to scan for updates
- The speed in which signature updates will be delivered
Detailed information on this is posted on the
Microsoft Update blog.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
05.07.2008Tweak MCE PowerToy Available
for Download
Tweak MCE gives you
access to systems settings and
options not normally exposed
in the Windows XP Media Center
Edition user interface,
including remote control
settings, Skip and Replay time
customizations, user interface
options, and more. It also
helps you to optimize Media
Center Extender for plasma and
non-CRT displays. It works
with Update Rollup 2 for
Windows XP Media Center
Edition
2005.
Syst
em
Requirements:
-Supported
Operating Systems: Windows XP
Media Center
Edition
Dow
nload:
Tweak MCE
PowerToy..
winbeta.org -
08.11.2005Turn Off the Obnoxious HP Driver UAC Popup Update Check in Vista
If you are using Vista and have an HP printer, especially of the All-In-One variety, you've probably noticed that once a week or so you get this
obnoxious User Account Control popup dialog out of the blue asking for permission to run some Hewlett Packard update process called hprbupdate.exe.
winbeta.org -
02.10.2008Microsoft's OneCare silently changes Automatic Updates
Microsoft Corp.'s consumer security software changes the Automatic Updates (AU) settings in Windows XP and Vista without telling users or getting
their approval, a researcher said today -- behavior that may explain recent reports of patches being installed and systems rebooting without
permission.
When Microsoft responded to new charges of silent changes last week, however, it denied that AU settings were ever
altered without user approval, and it didn't mention OneCare as a possible culprit.
Scott Dunn, an editor at the "Windows
Secrets" newsletter,
reported this
morning that OneCare silently changes AU settings as it installs. No matter what AU setting the user selected previously, OneCare's installer
quietly changes it to the fully automatic option.
winbeta.org -
25.10.2007User Account Control Virtual Lab
The TechNet team has a
released a virtual lab
that lets you get some
experience with User Account
Control even if you haven’t
installed it on any of your
machines. And if you have
Windows Vista installed, the
tutorials can help you learn
about User Account Control in
a more structured way. My only
caveat about these labs is
that Windows Vista is much
cooler in person. These
desktops are running the
Windows Standard theme, which
looks like Windows 2000, and
the performance is not 100%
snappy. But it is a good
primer on UAC
basics. There are
also labs on the new firewall,
group policy settings, and the
User State Migration Tool.
http://www.micro
soft.com/technet/traincert/vir
tuallab/vista.mspx<
/P>
-
Alex Heaton
microsoft.com/windowsvista -
29.05.2007Windows Search 4.0 to Become Available on Windows Update
Since Windows Search 4.0 (WS4.0) was
released to the web on
June 3rd, we've seen a good number of downloads, and a number of positive responses from customers who started using it. Users are telling us
that they're seeing better performance and reliability of search after WS4.0 is installed. As a result, we feel it's time to make WS4.0
available to the broader audience.
In late July WS4.0 will become available for installation off Windows Update. Customers
using Windows XP will see WS4.0 available as an Optional update, meaning they can manually install it from update.microsoft.com. Windows Vista customers will see the update as a
recommended update. Depending on the Windows Update settings on your Windows Vista SP1 client, WS4.0 may be installed automatically, updating
the search capability in Windows Vista SP1.
winbeta.org - 22.07.2008
Get Ready for Windows Live
"Vegas!"
Microsoft continues to crank
out more Windows Live
services. The latest, for
which selected testers just
received invites, is a
"Family Safety Settings"
service, code-named "Vegas."
From early
information on the
LiveSide.Net site, it seems
the new Live service will be
an outgrowth of the parental
controls settings in Windows
Vista, which are known as the
"Windows Vista Family
Safety" feature.
On a related note,
Microsoft has revamped the
user interface for MSN Search,
which we believe (but are not
entirely sure) is known as
Windows Live Search these
days.
jcxp.net - 16.02.2006
Windows Vista Demo Readiness Toolkit
With a comprehensive demo script, sample content, and a preconfigured installation including user accounts and applications, you have everything you
need to demo with Windows Vista with virtually no effort.
NOTE: Installing the Demo Readiness Toolkit will completely erase all
data on your hard drive and create a Windows Vista Demonstration PC. Be sure to use a machine that can be re-formatted. Do you demonstrate Windows
Vista features? Or maybe you demo 3rd party applications, services, solutions and/or hardware with Windows Vista? With the Demo Readiness Toolkit,
your workload just got a whole lot lighter! With a comprehensive demo script, sample content, and a preconfigured installation including user accounts
and applications, you have everything you need to demo with Windows Vista with virtually no effort. No more searching for the right software, creating
user accounts, tweaking settings, or writing product/feature messaging - now you can focus on your pitch, NOT on building a demo environment.
winbeta.org - 29.05.2008
Latest iTunes 8 update causes Vista user headaches
Some Windows users are getting the infamous "blue screen of death" after installing the iTunes 8 update, which some say tracks back to extra
software that is being installed along with the software...
betanews.com - 12.09.2008
Microsoft planning updated UI for Windows Update
Beginning next month Microsoft will start an upgrade to the Windows Update and Microsoft Update services. Microsoft plans to start the
infrastructure update in late August, claiming "it will take a couple of months to complete the rollout." The update is required to "maintain and
improve service quality, reliability, and operations." The update will simply improve the user interface for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008
computers running Windows Update, adding a more visible and detailed description of updates as well as improvements in how users are notified about
service packs. If you currently apply your updates automatically then this update will not modify the look and feel of Automatic Updates.
Read full story.....
neowin.net - 17.07.2009
Office 2003 Service Pack 3 imminent?
Microsoft just published a
download for Office 2003
Service Pack 3 Administrative
Templates (ADM). I guess this
means Office 2003 SP3 is
around the corner.
The download includes
updated Group Policy
Administrative Template files,
OPA files, and an updated
Microsoft Excel workbook that
lists the Administrative
Template policy settings and
OPA settings.
This
download includes the
following updates:
-
Policy settings that provide
the ability to block file
format settings to prevent
users from opening or saving
specific file types and file
formats in Microsoft Office
Excel 2003, Microsoft Office
PowerPoint 2003, and Microsoft
Office Word 2003.
-
An updated Excel 2003 workbook
(Office 2003 Group
Policies.xls) that describes
policy settings listed in the
various Administrative
Template and OPA files. It
supports changes to the Office
2003 SP3 policy settings.
Note: This update
replaces the previously
available Office 2003 Service
Pack 2 Administrative Template
(ADM), OPAs, and Explain Text
Update download.
winbeta.org -
25.07.2007Windows XP Service Pack 3 RC2 via Windows Update (Public Availability Program)
Windows XP Service Pack 3 Release Candidate 2 is available to the public. Specific registry settings will allow you to be offered SP3 via Windows
Update.
Download the script and run it on a machine currently running Windows XP Service Pack 2. The script sets a registry key
on your system. The registry key is required for Windows Update to recognize your machine as a valid target for Windows XP Service Pack 3 RC2.
Versions of Windows XP Service Pack 3 prior to Release Candidate 2 should be removed before attempting to use the registry key.
Windows Update will not offer Release Candidate 2 to machines with previous versions of the Windows XP Service Pack 3 beta.
It is
recommended that you apply the resulting update package to an activated, genuine copy of Windows XP, in a test environment. As with any pre-release
software, it is also recommended that you back up files and settings on your machine before applying this update package.
winbeta.org -
20.02.2008Controlling Group Policy Security Settings Refresh and Application
There is no question that Group Policy inside Active Directory is the most efficient and logical way to configure and maintain security for all of
your domain controllers, servers, and desktops. The question becomes how to maintain and control the application of the security settings, as well as
the refresh of settings that you make in a Group Policy object (GPO)? There are many ways to control how security settings are refreshed and
controlled, some of which are already occurring on your network now and can be tweaked if you want to go down that path. This article will go into the
different methods that are available for controlling how security settings refresh and apply from Group Policy.
winbeta.org -
06.08.2008
