Spectre and Meltdown Raise Need to Update

We’ve seen lots of patches from chip manufacturers and operating-system publishers trying to resolve the Spectre and Meltdown issues. Their effectiveness is mixed, but there are a couple of things you can do to help protect your systems: backup your files and update your software.

The patches came out quickly last month, and they kept on coming as chip manufacturers and publishers of apps and operating systems tried to close the open doors that Spectre and Meltdown use to get into a computer. If you installed all the updates, even multiple updates from chip manufacturers and software publishers, you did the best you could to mitigate problems.

If you haven’t installed updates for operating systems, applications, firmware, browsers and antivirus protection, do it NOW. If you have not set up your systems to automatically install updates, we suggest you do that now, too. Every supplier with a stake in your success is working ‘round the clock to shore up any weaknesses in their products. The faster you install them, the faster you’ll protect your systems and data.

Here is what you and the computer industry are up against:

Meltdown breaks the most fundamental isolation between user applications and the operating system. This attack allows a program to access the memory, and the secrets, of other programs and the operating system. If your computer has a vulnerable processor and runs an unpatched operating system, you risk leaking sensitive information. This applies both to personal computers as well as the cloud’s infrastructure.

Spectre also breaks the isolation between applications. It allows an attacker to trick error-free programs, which follow best practices, into leaking their secrets and may actually make applications more susceptible to attacks.

While Spectre and Meltdown affect chips, they resulted in computer failures that, in turn, resulted in the losses of apps and data files. In a number of cases in which our clients were affected, we found that Google Chrome was piece of every problem. We don’t say this to point a finger at Google; we note it to make sure you have the latest version of your browser installed.

In the more severe cases, we had to reinstall software systems – with all the cumulative patches – and data files because everything was wiped out. In the most extreme cases, we had to replace computers. This, of course, required that all data files were backed and that all software for operating systems and applications were licensed.

Using subscriptions for operating and application software can eliminate just about all problems associated with keeping your systems up-to-date and licensed. They also can provide access to backed-up data files to help restore your system. The bottom-line benefit is that if your system is struck by some disaster, which can include Spectre and Meltdown, a ransomware attack, or a virus or malware invasion, we can wipe your computers and servers of infections and initiate clean installations of your operating system, firmware, and application software and then restore settings and data.

Without the subscription, you may need to purchase software and then recreate all of your settings as best as possible. And if you don’t have data files in a separate, secure location, you’ll need to find the latest files you have and then restore them in your recreated system.

As we make these points, we are aware that everyone has budget restrictions. However, you need to look at the costs associated with an interruption due to an IT system failure. Any money you may have saved by hanging onto old equipment and software can be wiped by a single event.

By making smart investments to your system, you’ll be able to maximize your security and efficiency. That’s important for home use as well as a business. More and more, we have multiple users conducting some sort of transactions over the internet, and those activities can take place from remote locations. It’s a continuing trend in our use of technology. Subscriptions are a continuing trend, too, in the way we keep our systems ready to do all the things we do.

We can help you make the best decisions to balance your IT needs and available funds. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to discuss your update needs and develop a plan to meet them.

We’re Not Neutral on Net Neutrality

The intended repeal of net neutrality by the FCC will affect all of us. We’re likely to see the first changes as they affect the cost and availability of streamed programming and premium content; less is likely to cost more. We don’t know, yet, how it will affect search engines and your ability to find local businesses or anything else on the internet.

 Let’s start with a quick review of the history of the internet. It began as a level playing field for exchanging information worldwide, and it led to a communications revolution. It mightily disrupted the communications industry’s business models in every way imaginable.

Telephone calls, for example, are free or cost just pennies per minute to almost anywhere in the world. We can even make video calls for free. The internet, in this case, took away a revenue stream from traditional telephone carriers – and added a business capability for the cable TV industry.

Telephone service – or voice communication – became essentially a throw-in for telephone carriers and cable providers. Even if they were restricted in some markets in certain ways, at least one of each plus a satellite carrier could compete for your business. That led to service tiers and bundles of programming that customers were likely to buy.

Cable or satellite TV, in turn, was impacted by the internet. You don’t need a cable connection – or a satellite dish – to get all manner of visual content: TV shows, movies, etc. All you had to do was buy and install a good Wi-Fi system in your home and pay for fast enough internet service, and you could pick and choose what you wanted to watch.

This setup, which has continued until now, has allowed a number of smaller, innovative companies to get into the content business, either as producers or carriers. Companies that have innovated in some way, shape or form have become big-time players in the internet. Google, Amazon, Netflix, Microsoft and the like are relatively new companies that grew rapidly by exploiting technology.

But those companies are not ISPs (Internet Service Providers). The ISP business is essentially comprised of telephone and cable carriers, and that business has been commoditized. How many of us have switched ISPs at the drop of a hat to save a few bucks on basic services or add new features for very little additional cost? How many of us have simply dropped cable or satellite TV?

One of the factors that has contributed to our freedom of choice is Net Neutrality. Simply put, it is a governmental regulation that prohibits any ISP from blocking or slowing down virtually any content from virtually any provider. If you pay for 300-mbs internet service or 1-gigabit service, you can get it at that speed because the ISP can’t block it or slow it down.

That’s different from most cable or satellite TV services. Ever since their inception, they have sold blocks of programming in tiers. The more programming you want, the more you pay. If you want to pay less, you sacrifice choice – or you choose not to get high-definition service. That was OK because with Net Neutrality, you could get programming over the internet, and you could price your service more selectively.

The removal of Net Neutrality means that your internet service will now be bundled like cable/satellite TV programming. You want to stream Netflix or Amazon programming? There could be a premium charge for that. You want to stream sports or news programming? Your ISP can negotiate with the program providers to determine which ones they’ll carry and at what data speeds. No matter how it happens, your cost is likely to go up.

And there’s more. What about your favorite search engine? Why has Google fought so hard to become the dominant search engine? Why does Facebook keep trying to expand its user base? You know why: they can get more advertising dollars. Who doesn’t get any benefit from that now? Your ISP.

With the removal of Net Neutrality, search engines will need to strike deals with ISPs just like programmers have had to do, and then you’ll have to decide on an ISP based on a search engine you might want – as well as what websites you might want to access. Or, will some carriers show preferences for certain businesses? What’s to prevent one from favoring a shopping site over others in return for a higher access fee? What’s to prevent a consumer products company from being priced out of a website presence by bigger, well-financed conglomerates?

All of the innovation that we’ve seen? It’s going to be harder and harder for startups to get a foothold. We think the end of Net Neutrality will lead to higher prices and fewer choices for anything that we’ve become accustomed to finding on the internet. At least that will be the case until something new comes along. You can bet somebody’s hard at work developing the next alternative.

In the meantime, you can count on us to help you navigate the new world of the internet. We can help you select and install the networking equipment you’ll need to be compatible with your ISP and/or TV provider and make sure all interfaces and security systems function properly. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us with any questions you have as Net Neutrality events unfold.

‘KRACKing’ Your Wi-Fi Network

KRACK is an ominously named crypto attack that exploits a flaw in the process of connecting a device and a Wi-Fi network. By allowing network access without the password, effectively it opens up the possibility of exposing credit card information, passwords, and practically any other data on your device. Here’s how to protect yourself – somewhat.

Using WPA2 security, the standard of protection for the past 13 years, is still the way to go, and setting a strong, secure password is just as important as it ever was. But it’s like a lock on your front door. Locks, according to conventional wisdom, keep out honest people. But a lock that’s strong enough to delay a would-be thief was thought to still be effective.

That was until KRACK (Key Reinstallation Attack) was discovered. It exploits a flaw in the four-way handshake process between a user’s device trying to connect and a Wi-Fi network, allowing an attacker to access a network without the password. It’s an equal-opportunity attack, too. It can affect Android, Linux, Apple, Windows, OpenBSD, MediaTek, Linksys and others, but the most current versions of Windows and iOS devices are not as susceptible to attacks because of how Microsoft and Apple implemented WPA2. Linux and Android-based devices are more vulnerable to KRACK.

Fortunately, it’s not a helpless situation. Attacks can only be successful when someone has access to the wireless network you’re on at the time of the attack. That means you need to be especially careful on public networks. You can further help yourself by:

  • Making sure you’re up to date with all available security patches
  • Using a VPN, which will encrypt your internet traffic
  • Visiting only websites that use HTTPS, though it’s not a guarantee you’ll be safe.

We’ll keep you updated on developments against KRACK, and we can help you now by taking a look at your systems and security to make sure you’ve maximized your protection. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us for an appointment.

Tips from Orlando

Although we played as much as anyone who visits Orlando, we got a lot of work done at Microsoft’s annual tech conference. When I looked at my calendar, I had booked 21 sessions for the week, each session some 75 minutes long, and I probably walked some 40 miles in the expo. I narrowly avoided DBP – otherwise known as “Death by PowerPoint – surviving to get some useful information in many places.

As useful as the sessions were, some of the best learning took place offline while walking the expo hall with fellow members of The Crew. I joined The Crew several years ago. We’re all independent IT consultants, and we stay in touch all year long through a variety of ways, including phone calls. We can turn to each other when we have questions, and my Crew members have been an invaluable resource everywhere we go.

That includes Orlando. When one of members gave a presentation at the conference, we turned up to support him – and we wound up helping him out when he experienced “technical issues.”

Walking the expo gave us access to the best and brightest in the Microsoft arena. All of the booths were staffed by software engineers from Microsoft and its affiliated companies, and we got to talk to them in depth. We could talk about problems we’ve experienced or features we like and get more in-depth knowledge. We learned about workarounds for problems and ways to use advanced features in software and hardware.

Here are my three favorite take-aways from the conference.

  1. Many people who use Microsoft One Drive like to use # and % in their file names, but the system would not accept names with those characters. One Drive now allows you that option, so go ahead and # and % to your heart’s content.
  2. The fall update of Windows 10 will include more capabilities for One Drive. You’ll be able to sync large libraries of files on demand and be able to open files without having to download them.
  3. You can add the ability to share calendars in Outlook or native applications on mobile devices. The feature is not automatically available; you need to re-share calendars each time you want to sync them. While it’s a bit of a pain, all you need are valid permissions for sharing, and you can differentiate each person in the group by color. We can help you set it up.

To borrow an old phrase, we passed the last exit on the information super highway light years ago. With conferences like Microsoft’s annual event, we can be the roadside service resource that keeps you moving. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us at any time with any questions or service requests.

Verizon Forcing Email Decision; We Recommend You Exit

Verizon is dripping out the announcement that it will migrate its email business to AOL, which the communications giant acquired in 2015. It’s a rolling process that will take place over the next several months, and everyone will get specific instructions based on your account. Your clock will start ticking when you get an email notification from Verizon, and you’ll have the choice of: 1.) migrating to AOL and keeping your Verizon email address or 2.) exiting to an email provider such as Outlook or Gmail. When you get your email, you’ll have a short time to make your decision. If you don’t choose one option, you’ll lose access to your “verizon.net” account. Here’s why you should take the second option.

Keep in mind that you can make the switch from Verizon now and retain access to your Verizon contacts and messages for six months. If you don’t decide, Verizon will close out your email accounts. If you have copiers, scanners, servers and other equipment that rely on email addresses to function, those devices will stop working after you choose your options or your time runs out.

We think Verizon is leading a move by utility companies – phone and cable carriers – to get out of the email business because it’s too complicated and time-consuming to provide as a free service. Just to get this out of the way, Verizon’s first option, switching to AOL, is less complicated right now. You’ll be able to keep your existing addresses, with “verizon.net,” but you can keep your addresses and log in through AOL’s system from now on. That might be a temporary solution because you can keep all your contacts.

But we don’t like it for the long term. While you may think that you’re getting a lot of spam now through your Verizon filters, we think that will increase with AOL. Spam is more than a nuisance; it’s a way for hackers to get into your system. Although you can catch most hacking attempts with common sense, hackers know that if they throw enough spam at you, one of them will get past even the most vigilant user. We don’t think security is a major concern. AOL tightened up its security after it was hacked in 2014, before Verizon bought it.

However, we think the “utility company” extensions will disappear as those companies get out of the email business. That means you’ll need to make a switch at some point, and it makes sense to do it now, before you add more contacts. Switching now may make particularly good sense for copier and scanning companies and other similar service providers that use email addresses. We’ve had some Verizon email addresses for some services, and we’re moving away because those addresses will disappear at some point.

We recommend switching to an email provider that will be in the business for the long term, such as Outlook or Gmail. You should be able to keep that address for as long as you like. Besides not having to worry about losing the email address, you’ll gain much more flexibility in shopping for a new ISP. We know it’s a hassle to move all your contacts and messages and tell people your new address. It’s also a pain when people don’t update their own contact lists or when autofill puts in an old address. For all those reasons, you might as well start to move away from Verizon/AOL, as well as from any other utility.

The two email services that come to mind are Outlook and Gmail. In listing the option to move away, Verizon tells you to follow the instructions from your new provider. You could also get your own domain and have that hosted through Outlook or another email service provider. You can keep your domain for as long as you like, and because you’ll be hosting it and calling the shots, you can do away with the advertising that seems to be more prevalent and more annoying.

Regardless of which new provider you choose, you’ll need to establish your new email address and set up your mailbox – or mailboxes – before you close out your old one. Then, you can follow the steps to transfer addresses and messages and set up your rules for how you manage messages.

We can help you in two ways:

  1. Choose an email provider: Outlook and Gmail are two that come to mind, but there are many others, and each one has its own strengths and weaknesses, depending on what you need. We can review the ways you access email, such as a computer, phone or tablet, and whether you need integration and/or collaboration tools.
  2. Set up your new account and transfer all the data: This is extremely critical. Although your new service will have instructions and although you’ll be able to find help through online forums, it’s not always easy to get right settings for your new account and then transfer your contacts and messages. It’s also not easy to back up all of contacts and messages. If you don’t have an accessible back-up and you make a mistake in the transfer process, you could need to jump through hoops to get it all done – at the least – or lose everything – your worst-case scenario.

If you have a “verizon.net” email address, call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us as soon as you get a notice to discuss your options (keep your address, keep your address temporarily or switch immediately to a new email service). If you have an April 13 deadline approaching, and you need to have a plan in order now. If you didn’t get an email, you will, and you’ll need to be prepared to make important decisions quickly. It wouldn’t hurt to start planning now. You can spend hours and hours of frustration solving this issue, or you call us to handle your transition without stress.

Your Next Mobile Phone is All About the Apps

If you’re in the market for a new mobile phone, it won’t be a Windows phone. With Windows 10 as the operating system for less than 1 percent of the mobile market, Microsoft is killing its mobile phone. It’s all about the apps – more specifically about app developers.

With Android and Apple accounting for more than 99 percent of the worldwide mobile market, app developers have put all of their efforts into those systems. Apple generally gets the nod to get an app first, but selling an app to Android can be equally enriching for developers.

Both Apple and Samsung are expected to release new phones this year, the iPhone 8 and Galaxy S8, respectively. Samsung needs a replacement for its ill-fated 7 series, and Apple needs new energy for its 8 series. Whichever manufacturer and OS you choose, you’ll find plenty of features and power – and an abundance of apps.

The apps are critical because we use our phones for just about everything but talking. We shop, find restaurants, use navigation to find the best route to places we’ve gone to for years, research healthcare options, watch TV and movies, read newspapers…

We’re not only untethered from a desktop computer or television, we can do or watch anything on our phones as long as we have internet access. Why, we don’t even need to reach into our wallets for charge cards to make some purchases. Apple, Google, financial institutions and merchants all have secure apps that help protect your credit card information through series of transfers between the merchant and your account. This is one of those few instances in which convenience can be more secure.

According to the website Statista, there were some 2.2 million apps available from the Apple Store as of this past January, and there were a similar number available from Google Play last year. Microsoft, by comparison, had 669,000 apps available from its Windows Store. While gaming apps are in decline, which some parents may find hard to believe, Smashing Magazine reports the biggest growth is coming in customization apps, such as launchers, icons, wallpaper and lock-screen apps. The next growth area is newspapers and magazines.

Other categories for app growth include:

  • Productivity tools
  • Lifestyle and shopping solutions
  • Messengers and social apps

The trend toward mobile apps shows no signs of letting up. With slightly less than half the world’s population owning smartphones, you know there’s an upside waiting to be tapped. A growing number of major companies in the world see mobile devices as a catalyst to transforming their businesses, and the value of mobile apps is expected to more-than-triple by 2020. With mobile apps and Bluetooth integrating with our cars and homes as well as just about every aspect of our lives, apps will fuel the growth of mobile devices, and more users will demand more apps.

We happen to like Apple phones and tablets because we believe they work better with Outlook for email and calendars and because we believe its proprietary OS offers better security. But we are impressed with the creativity that Android’s open software spawns. For most users, either OS will run apps equally well. Your choice may simply come down to the cost of the device and the best plan you can find from a wireless carrier or provider. We can help you whittle down the daunting number of considerations in mobile device selection – and we can help you set up your device to integrate with other systems, including storage options. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to discuss your mobile device needs or with any questions you have about using your apps more efficiently.

Reasons to Reboot

We get a lot of calls and emails about computers not performing as expected. It’s amazing what a good reboot can do – if you really do it.

Rebooting cleans up a lot of the electronic junk that builds up as you go in and out of applications, open and close files and content from the Internet. Like anything else that piles up, all the electronic junk blocks access to your disk space and RAM (random access memory) for applications, files, email and Internet browsing. After two or three weeks of keeping email programs, applications and files and websites open, you’ve essentially clogged your system’s electronic arteries.

A reboot flushes all that stuff out of your RAM. One way to characterize RAM is that it’s like a pad of notepaper. When you run out, you need to erase some information on the pad or get another pad. Rebooting is like erasing the paper in the notepad. It lets your computer start with a fresh, clean slate when you restart, and in most cases, that solves a lot of performance issues.

We always ask our clients with performance problems if they’ve rebooted their computers, and they invariably say they have. When we get into their systems through remote access, we see something different. When we get into conversations, some people with laptops think that they have rebooted their systems just by closing the lid for a few seconds and then opening it back up. Others, with desktop computers, think that shutting off the monitor reboots the computer.

Unfortunately, neither of those actions will reboot a computer. Here’s what you need to do. First, save all open files and emails and bookmark web pages if you want to retain easy access to them. Then, close all applications. You should do the same with phones and tablets before rebooting them.

For a PC or Windows-based computer running Windows 10, click the Windows icon on the task bar on the lower left side of your monitor and then click on the “start” icon on the left. You’ll have the option to restart the computer, which will reboot it.

For Windows 8, point your mouse to the lower-right corner of the screen, move it up and click Settings. Click Power and then click Restart.

For a Mac, you can follow this simple, 3-step process:

  1. Press the power button (or press Control+Eject) and, when a dialog box appears, click the Restart button.
  2. Choose the Apple key and then click Restart.
  3. Press Control+Command+Eject (or Control+Command+Power button).

For phones and tablets, you can power off the device for 10 to 30 seconds and then power them back on.

For all computers, you can hold the power button until the unit shuts itself off. We consider this a last resort because it stops the system with an electronic jolt. But if nothing else works, this will do it. Let it stay off for 10 to 30 seconds and then restart it.

Sometimes, restarting in “Safe Mode” allows your computer to perform some diagnostics and verify basic systems are in good working order. With a Windows7 computer, press the F8 key when you turn on the computer, and then use the Arrow keys to navigate to “Safe Mode” and hit enter.

Windows 10 is more involved, but it’s not that hard once you get into the routine. Follow these steps:

  1. Click or tap the Start button, and then the Power button. You’ll see a Restart button. Hold down the Shift key when you select Restart
  2. When you get the full-screen menu with six options, select Troubleshoot>Advanced options>Startup Settings.
  3. Click the Restart to begin the reboot. You’ll get to a Startup Settings option.
  4. Use the Arrow key to navigate to Enable Safe Mode or Enable Safe Mode With Networking

For a Mac, immediately press and hold the Shift key. The white Apple logo will appear on your display. Release the shift key when you see the login window.

Because “Safe Mode” limits your computer’s capabilities, we recommend restarting in your regular mode once you see everything is functioning properly.

We recommend you reboot your systems no less than once a week as a preventive measure. It shouldn’t be much of an inconvenience. We still remember when we had to reboot computers several times a day. If your system is still sluggish after a reboot, contact us by phone – 973-433-6676 – or email for a remote diagnostics session.

Holiday Cheer from Microsoft and Apple

Microsoft and Apple have put some new, high-price goodies on the market for the holidays. In a word, they’re getting “touchier” as tablets get more computing capability and computers use more touchscreen technology.

If you’re looking for an apples-to-apples comparison…no pun intended…maybe that should be oranges-to-oranges comparison, that may be tough. Both are pricey and feature Intel i5 and i7 processors. Each will do fine for those willing to spend the money. That said, here’s what we like and what you can expect.

Microsoft is heavily promoting its Surface Studio as a highly creative tool for design tasks that have long been associated with Macs. A tablet that acts like a computer, it starts at $2,999 and can go up to $4,199, and it can be used with a variety of tools, including the Surface Dial and Surface Pen, which enable you to draw on the screen. Because it’s a Microsoft product, it comes with Windows 10 Pro and a 30-day trial of Microsoft Office.

The Studio has four USB 3.0 ports (one high power port), a full-size SD™ card reader (SDXC compatible), a mini display port and a headset jack, and it has a high-resolution display and graphics card for artistic and gaming applications.

If you don’t need all the Studio’s computing power, you can choose the Surface Book at $1,499 or the Surface Pro 4 at $899. The trend we see is that mobile users who need more computing power and the flexibility of a tablet for mobility and touchscreen/keyboard capability will be looking more closely at a Surface.

Microsoft is also rumored to be planning to release a Surface phone in the spring of 2017.

The MacBook Pro doesn’t have the Dial or a pen, but its more advanced models have the Touch Bar, which is a strip just above the keyboard. It’s more like something you would find on a tablet. It appears and disappears as needed to give you shortcuts to the controls, sliders, menus and tools that relate to the task at hand. As you tap, swipe or drag the Touch Bar keys, you see the results of your actions. Touch Bar can help you access favorite websites in Safari, answer (or reject) incoming FaceTime calls or get predictive suggestions of the words you may want to use when writing, just like with iOS devices.

With Touch Bar opened to outside app developers, you may see it for many apps, and you can still use versions of the physical function keys, such as for adjusting screen brightness or speaker volume, that used to reside above the keyboard.

MacBook Pro has a big track pad, which we rate as a plus, and the 15-inch model has four USB-C ports — that double as Thunderbolt 3 ports — which can be used for Thunderbolt, USB, DisplayPort, HDMI, VGI, and charging. The USB-C ports are new technology. The basic 13-inch model only has two USB-C/Thunderbird 3 ports. This means you may need a dongle to attach certain hardware. There’s no SD card reader, which could be a problem for photographers.

We’ll have a MacBook Pro in a few weeks, and we’ll see how it’s all set up.

If you’re thinking about either or both of these systems, contact us by phone – 973-433-6676 – or email to discuss how you plan to use it and your budget considerations. We’ll also be able to guide on what to expect when integrating your purchase(s) into your home or office network – and among multiple users.

Windows 10’s Summer Storm

Microsoft’s free upgrade to Windows 10 for eligible computers will end July 29. But rather than just let the offer expire, the company is actively pushing out upgrades. You can expect a storm of activity as part of the effort. If you don’t want to upgrade, here’s how you can batten down your electronic hatches.

Our best advice right now is to let it happen – sort of – and undo it with a rollback. Just make sure you roll back to your version of Windows 7 or 8 within 30 days of the download (and possible installation). Here’s why we believe this is the best course of action. Again, just to remind those of you who could be affected, Microsoft has a free upgrade offer for eligible computers running Windows 7 and 8. The free offer will end July 29. Starting July 30, the upgrade to Windows 10 will cost $119.

In a “big brother” way, Microsoft knows which computers are eligible and which ones have been upgraded. That’s because there’s a chip in your computer that has the information about the version of Windows that was installed when the computer was assembled. It’s not all that bad of a system because Microsoft can use it to push out the correct updates on an as-needed basis to make sure you have all the latest security patches and bug fixes. It takes the onus off you to download and install them. Microsoft also knows which version of the OS you have, such as the Home or the Pro, and that prevents you from, for example, downloading and installing the Pro when you’re entitled only to the Home.

On the other hand, it can be highly intrusive for the upgrades. We’ve had a number of instances in which clients have accessed their computers – at work and at home – in the morning and found a message from Microsoft to continue with the installation of Windows 10. Or, we’ve had clients tell us that all of a sudden, in the middle of the day, their machines started acting funny and then they received messages to continue the Windows 10 installation process.

Naturally, none of these clients had taken advantage of the offer, but Microsoft can’t distinguish if that was by oversight or intent. (Add your own comment here.) Essentially you have two options:

  1. Go through the entire installation and then roll your system back to Windows 7 or 8.
  2. Don’t accept or agree to the terms and conditions.

Each option has its own set of consequences.

If go through the installation and then roll it back, that’s a major time suck. However, we have not encountered any problems with getting old systems back and running again. If you don’t accept or agree to the upgrade, you will lose your entitlement to the free upgrade – at least so far as we can determine. We have not gone through the process of trying to reclaim it.

To make your best decision on whether to accept the upgrade to Windows 10, make sure you are clear on what you need.

We firmly recommend the Windows 10 upgrade because it has a lot of new security measures, and the support for security and bug fixes are crucial to keeping data safe. For home and SOHO systems and for offices that are not using highly customized application software, the upgrade should work well. However, if your application software will not work with Windows 10 or not work as well as it should, we recommend that you keep your present Windows OS. Application software developers and publishers are working to upgrade most packages, but we all know that it’s a complex endeavor.

If you need to reinstall Windows 7 for any reason, it’s still a pain, but Microsoft has released an update to cover all the updates as a one-time deal. That will ease the pain somewhat, but the longer you wait – assuming you have a choice about when to do it – the more updates you’ll need to install manually going forward.

If you have any questions at all about Windows 10 and any other version of the OS, please contact us as soon as possible by phone – 973-433-6676 – or email. We can answer your questions or schedule any work that needs to be done to keep your system running smoothly and safely.

Windows 7 Pain Management

Windows 7 is still a viable operating system for many businesses, but as more users and software application publishers migrate to Windows 10, using the older system can be very painful. Managing that pain isn’t easy, especially when you have a large, highly customized application package that simply can’t be upgraded to work with Windows 10.

The problem comes when you need to reinstall your Windows 7 operating system. There is just no easy way for this OS, which is 11 years old. In technology terms, that’s more than just a ripe old age. In real-time terms, that old age creates a lot of problems.

The re-installation problem requires you to follow these steps:

  1. Install Windows 7 using your valid installation disk. That’s pretty easy, but don’t get overconfident.
  2. The installation process will ask – really, require – you to download and install Service Pack 1. It’s the only service pack that Windows ever issued for Windows 7. Nor has Microsoft ever released a “roll-up,” which would be a compilation of all updates since Service Pack 1.
  3. So, after you have downloaded and installed Service Pack 1, you’ll need to run Windows Update to get all the critical security upgrades and patches.

Windows Update has more than 200 important updates. You need to start the sequence, and then, you need to pay attention. There are numerous points along the way where you need to reboot your computer to complete the installation of an update. Then, you need to continue Windows Update.

We have reinstalled Windows 7, and it has taken us two to three hours with a fast Internet connection. If you have a slow connection, it can be like riding a bicycle on the New Jersey Turnpike.

If a re-installation is something you must do, we can walk you through the steps. However, you must be asking why all of your application software can’t just run on Windows 10?

For highly customized software, such as a Sage accounting program that one of our clients uses, there is a compatibility issue as well as a financial consideration. Windows 10 has a number of security features that will not work with a Windows 7-based application program. They are not issues you can solve simply by not using all the features. The application software must be compatible with the OS. The financial consideration is that an upgrade to the accounting package would be $15,000. The cost of the time to reinstall Windows 7 is nowhere near that, and that’s probably the pain-management equivalent of taking aspirin until the pain goes away.

If you are fortunate to have some planning time, you can manage the pain more effectively by talking with the app publisher about updates. Those are always difficult for the app publisher because customized programs take a lot more of their time. They need to write the upgrades into their basic package and then to several steps farther to add your customization. Customized software packages have a lot of moving parts.

Some other factors to consider as you migrate is how much you need to keep everyone together. If you have a senior executive moving to Windows 10 ahead of most of the people in the department, how will that affect everyone’s ability to use the same applications. Windows 10 and Windows 7 versions may be quite different.

In addition to the application aspects of the software, will there be major security gaps between the older and newer versions? As we are harping, security is extremely critical in today’s business-computing world. When you leave certain doors open to get the work done, you may leave an opening for an outsider to come in and compromise your system’s integrity.

If you see your business coming to a crossroads, contact us as early as possible by email or telephone – 973-433-6676. The more time we have to look at your options, the better your probability of having the best possible outcome in managing the pain of transitioning your OS and application software to a more stable, efficient and secure system.