PC Professionals Blog

 After a conversation with my software vendor today, I was told that in 2021 Microsoft will be going full on subscription based. Pricing was not released, nor was a set date. I was only guaranteed it will happen this year and will affect the two major products my company sells and supports (Windows 10 Desktop and Windows server). I am waiting to hear if there is any change in CALs or pricing of CALs since everyone will be moving to subscription based software. Pricing has not been released yet, but looking at the Enterprise subscription of $7 per seat/mo.

In addition, Windows 10 there will be a new version called Windows 10x. Microsoft said 10X won’t run on PCs. Instead, it’s intended for stripped-down computers something like a Chromebook, which would run mostly online software. Another 10X computer intended for small business would be less capable than a PC, but have enough processing power to run its own software.

A consumer Windows 10 subscription service (which would replace purchasing the operating system with a monthly fee to use it) has reportedly been discussed within Microsoft.

The idea is that a Windows 10 subscription fee could become part of Microsoft 365, which is currently the online subscription version of Microsoft Office. But subscriptions may not have much appeal to consumers. Microsoft does have a patent on Windows365 which they acquired at the same time as Office365.

Microsoft’s Email server Exchange 2019 is also the last of 1 time purchases for business. During the Redmond, Wash. company’s Ignite technical conference, held last month, Microsoft announced that the next version of its on-premises Exchange Server — the de facto email server in the enterprise — will be available only as a subscription-based product, thus ending licensing that let customers pay just once for the software.

Other details, notably pricing, were missing. Microsoft said that info will be fleshed out before the release of what it dubbed Exchange Next in the second half of 2021.

That means Exchange Server 2019 will be the last in the line of email servers sold as “perpetual” licenses, those that a company purchases with an up-front payment. A perpetual license payment provides the rights to run the software as long as one wants, even after Microsoft halts support.

The 10%-15% increase in cost due to the US putting new tariffs on all electronics imported from China. This is will remain in place until January 1st when it is expected to increase an ADDITIONAL 25% bring the total tariff increase to 40% if the US & China can not come to a mutual trade agreement. More details on this can be found here: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/17/us/politics/trump-china-tariffs-trade.html

I Woke Up & My PC Looks Different.

It seems there is not enough people ready to commit to Windows 10 yet so Microsoft is giving us a kick in ass. We have had an influx of clients calling us complaining about coming into work on Monday morning to find their PC has been upgraded to Windows 10 without any warning. We have had a mixed out come of scenarios for reverting their PCs back to Win7. Sometimes it rolls back without any problems, other times we see the message “An Error Has Occurred” leaving us to either leave Windows 10 on their PC or reinstall Windows 7. Even when the roll back is successful, Microsoft Office is corrupted and needs to be reinstalled. For those of us who are blessed with hard copies of Microsoft Office should be up and running in a few minutes. For everyone else, go find your key cards or your Microsoft store logins and figure out how to re-download it. We have also seen Quickbooks get corrupted as well, particularly versions that are not current.

How & Why Did This Happen?

Most people have Windows Updates set to automatically download and install. Microsoft used that to their advantage and sent the Windows 10 down in an update (guess they thought they were doing you a favor).

It’s Free, Right?

For whatever reason, Microsoft thinks this is necessary but it is not. Windows 7 is good to use until 2021 without any issues. If you don’t like Windows 10 you do not have to upgrade. The only reason to upgrade is if you like the word FREE. But be mindful of what free will get you. There are plenty of “Phone home to big brother services” in the new Operating system and MS says you can turn them off if you don’t like it. What they don’t tell you is there are more services that you are not privy to turn off.  Depending on which version of Windows 10 you upgraded to Automatic Updates are no longer an option to turn off.

I Got Windows 7 Restored, Now What?

First thing, DO NOT TURN OFF WINDOWS UPDATES! “It sounds logical, turn them off and Windows 10 can’t come down.” However, it also prevents windows from getting any security updates which are strongly advised. There are a few ways to remedy the problem. First, change Windows update settings to “Notify me but do not download or install updates”. This works but you will need to manually review, download and install every update. The second way is to check for updates, review them and look for the “Windows 10 Upgrade”. Right click it and select hide. This will prevent it from installing and allow automatic updates to continue to work properly.

If you still need help, give us a call and schedule a repair.

Internet Explorer and AOL Security Breach

Earlier this week, Microsoft announced that a major security flaw was discovered in ALL versions of Internet Explorer.  The security breach has taken the attention of the DHS.  The DHS issued a warning for everyone to aviod using Internet Explorer until Microsoft fixes the problem.  There is current evidence showing hackers are using this bug to take control of people’s computers when they visit certain websites.

Ways to stay secured:

PC Professionals recommends using Firefox or Google Chrome as an alternative web browser.  Even if this security risk didn’t pose a threat, we would still recommend Firefox or Google Chrome over Internet Explorer.  These browsers are faster and more secure.

When you see that Windows Updates have updates available, make sure you install them immediately.

As you know, April 8, 2014 Windows XP is now end of life.  If you are accessing the internet, understand you are at extreme risk for virus and spyware problems since the security issues like this wont be fixed for Windows XP.

AOL also issued a security breach and is stressing anyone using AOL email to change their password right away.

A Ransomware Program is a program that holds the data or functionality of your computer hostage until you perform an action; which is typically to purchase the program or send the virus creator money.

Description of infection:  This infection usually opens up a window as soon as the computer boots, informing the user that their computer has been compromised.  It lists your IP address, adds a small window to the top screen saying that your are being monitored by video, and with the later versions, encrypts your information rendering it completely useless.  The later versions of this “ransomware” are difficult to remove.  Even if removal was successful, the virus creator still holds your information hostage.  There is a secret key that only he/she has, which is needed to decrypt your information.

Signs that you may be infected:

• Your computer has a pop-up screen looking similar to this:(right)
• Your information may not open correctly due to your info being encrypted by the virus creator
• Redirection when trying to surf the web or no connection at all.
• Your files may be hidden as a “scare-tactic”

The removal of these infections in the earlier stages were not as difficult, but the encryption factor was not part of these viruses.

One of the most important things to remember with these viruses is the creators are out to make money. Losing your information do to the virus encrypting your info can be a devastating experience, but actually going through with giving the creator the requested money could have an even worse effect; your credit and identity.

If you are unsure about the legitimacy of a pop up, always seek help before continuing.  Not doing so can sacrifice much more than just your computer.

Here at PC Professionals, we have the solution.  If your information is not encrypted, we can perform a virus removal with the various tools we have.  If your computer is encrypted, we recommend a complete computer rebuild, guaranteeing the infection is gone.  The computer will be restored to the out-of-box state.

Unfortunately, if your info is encrypted, it cannot be saved.  As stated above, the virus creator is the only one that has the secret key to decrypt your information.

After the rebuild is complete, we also recommend you perform a backup and have adequate antivirus installed; which we also offer here at at PC Professionals.

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