hotfix

In a move surely to upset many users, Microsoft has said it will be ditching support for Windows 7 and 8.1 on most new PCs. Some other PCs will lose support next July, earlier than many expected. The change is to do with the Skylake micro ... architecture for processors released by Intel in August 2015. Many PCs purchased recently will be running Skylake, as will most in the future. Until now, Microsoft had promised to offer extended support for Windows 7 until January 2020 and for Windows 8.1 until January 2023. Extended support means Microsoft continues to fix bugs and issue security updates, ... (view more)

Microsoft has officially dropped support for Windows 8. The move leaves an estimated 30 to 50 million devices needing an upgrade to get security and usability updates. The move, which takes effect with this weeks updates, is potentially confusing as ... Windows 7 is still supported by Microsoft. Additionally, this isn't the usual support timetable that applies to older editions of Windows. Instead, Microsoft is simply dropping support for Windows 8 where users haven't applied the first major batch of updates. Previously that was known as a service pack, but in this case Microsoft chose to ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Brian W. writes: " Dear Dennis, I was interested in your article about update KB3122947 . I am having the same experience with KB3116908 which has failed 9 or 10 times now, with the following error message: 'Some update files are ... missing or have problems. We'll try to download the update again later. Error code: (0x80070570).' This is yet another Cumulative update for Windows 10 Version 1511, dated December 2, 2015. Do you have a set of instructions on how to fix this one? " My response: As you've mentioned, KB3116908 is a cumulative update for Windows 10 - and is also ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Sam G. writes: " Dear Dennis, My Windows Update won't update. It happened when I upgraded to Windows 8.1; I had over 100 updates to download. I managed to download most of them but there were a few that failed. Windows Update says ... the error code is 8007045B on the failed updates . I did a search for 8007045B in Google but the information is conflicting, confusing, and for the most part all the articles I've read go around in a loop. I also came across an article on PC World which says to do revert my restore point - but that didn't work, either. Apparently ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader 'Mike' writes: " Dear Dennis, Thanks for your helpful site. I enjoy reading your advice and keeping up with the news. My question relates to the KB3000850 patch , which is a major update for Windows 8.1 for x64-based systems. It ... is a whopping 775 MB download; it first appeared as an 'optional' download, and then later as 'important'. I've tried installing KB3000850, but it has failed to install on 4 separate occasions. Googling KB3000850 gets into stuff way beyond my understanding, but one page by Woody Leonhard said not to install it . I ... (view more)

As expected and according to Microsoft's Windows lifecycle page, Windows 7 mainstream support officially ended on January 13, 2015. It means there will be no more significant updates to the Windows 7 operating system, other than security updates. ... The end of mainstream support is in line with Microsoft's general policy of offering support for its operating systems five years after being released, followed by extended support for a further five years. The only exception to this policy was Windows XP, where the total support period lasted for 13 years. That was largely because the system ... (view more)

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DOHS) has warned that users should switch away from Internet Explorer until a serious bug has been fixed. It's the first big security scare since Microsoft stopped supporting Windows XP earlier this ... month. The bug doesn't have a glamorous nickname and is instead simply known as CVE-2014-1776. When triggered, the bug allows for remote code execution, which means a third party would have full control over a remote PC without the need for credentials or consent from the PC owner. By clicking on a malicious link or by visiting an infected ... (view more)