Okay, here's the text of the article. Don't know whether the links in the
article will come through, but you'll at least be able to read the text. And
I haven't edited out the ads, so you'll just need to arrow down through them
and pick up the thread on the other side.
Earlier this year
Microsoft
MSFT +0.15%
warned users that
Windows 7 has serious problems
. I dismissed its claims as a desperate attempt to shift copies of Windows
10 (and
I still do), but now Microsoft has warned of a new serious Windows 7 problem
that
is very real – even though it makes
no sense whatsoever…
In short: Microsoft has made a seemingly small yet completely bizarre tweak
to Windows
Update on Windows 7 and confirmed it is crippling many users’ PCs.
The tweak? It switched the status of Windows 7 update KB3133977 from
‘Optional’ to
‘Recommended’. The bizarre part? Despite acknowledging the problems,
Microsoft knew
they would occur in advance and it has no plans to do anything about it.
Windows 7 users are being pushed to upgrade to Windows 10. Image credit:
Gordon Kelly
Windows 7 users are being pushed to upgrade to Windows 10. Image credit:
Gordon Kelly
Ok, let’s put some meat on these bones.
PCs That Suddenly Won’t Start
It all centres around Asus motherboards.
Now 27 years old, Asus is one of the largest PC component makers and
supplies motherboards
to many of the world’s biggest PC makers. Recently it enabled Secure Boot in
UEFI
on all its motherboards. This wasn’t a problem for older PCs because Windows
7 didn’t
support Secure Boot, that is until KB3133977 came along in March and enabled
it.
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Initially the fallout was small. Asus
confirmed
the problem, Microsoft
confirmed
the problem. But the best news was KB3133977 was an optional Windows 7
update so
it had to be manually installed to take effect. The solution was simple:
just steer
clear of KB3133977 (aka do nothing) and you’d be fine.
Then last month – for some bizarre reason – Microsoft made KB3133977 a
‘Recommended’
update. The result was every user running Windows 7 and default Windows
Update settings
(the vast majority) would find the update now installed automatically.
And then everyone with an Asus motherboard was hit.
Read more – Windows 10 ‘Anniversary Update’ Has Great Secret Features
A Global Problem
As InfoWorld’s Windows expert Woody Leonhard
notes
“I’m now seeing problems reported from all over the globe about Windows 7
machines
that suddenly won’t boot”. Affected machines simply show a red box which
says:
The Windows 7 warning screen hitting PC owners with Asus motherboards who
install
update KB3133977. Image credit: Asus
The Windows 7 warning screen hitting PC owners with Asus motherboards who
install
update KB3133977. Image credit: Asus
All of which does nothing to pinpoint the problem or solve it for those
without a
second secured boot device. In short: you’d be screwed.
The Good News And Staying Safe
The good news is Asus has now
issued a workaround
to get PCs booting up again. Furthermore Asus must take some of the blame
for not
reacting faster when KB3133977 presented a potential landmine and issuing
new updates
to its motherboards.
How do you know if you have an Asus motherboard in your Windows 7 PC? Go to:
All Programs > Accessories > System Tools
and select System Information
. This will list your PC’s components, including the motherboard.
One downside: some major PC makers like
Dell
and HP rebrand the motherboard as the computer’s model number. In which case
you
should do a web search on your model or call the manufacturer directly.
The Bad News And What Comes Next
As for the bad news? It’s Microsoft’s reaction.
On the plus side, Microsoft did update
the support document
for KB3133977 with a warning which states: “After you install update 3133977
on
a Windows 7 x64-based system that includes an Asus-based main board, the
system does
not start”.
But Microsoft also uses the document an opportunity to promote upgrades to
Windows
10:
Microsoft's KB3133977 support page now advises users to install Windows 10
to fix
their problems. Image credit: Microsoft
Microsoft’s KB3133977 support page now advises users to install Windows 10
to fix
their problems. Image credit: Microsoft
Microsoft has also done nothing to modify KB3133977 or release a new patch
so users
with Asus motherboards don’t run into this problem in the first place.
Furthermore,
at the time of publishing, KB3133977 remains a ‘Recommended’ in Windows
Update for
Windows 7.
Needless to say, conspiracy theorists will have a ball seeing it as yet
another new
way Microsoft can push users to Windows 10. Especially with upgrade rates
slowing
in April. This in itself is remarkable given the increasing number of
heavy handed
and
devious ways
Microsoft has been pushing Windows 10 onto Windows 7 and Windows 8 users.
Regardless, the message is clear: life is going to become increasingly
uncomfortable
for Windows 7 users from now on. Whether they like it or not…
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