Newsletter Archives

• Thinking about installing IE 11 on your Win7 machine?

  Posted on November 18, 2013 at 21:12 CST by woody • Comment in the Forums

  ‘Blurry fonts’ bug KB 2670838 persists with IE11 and Windows 7

  InfoWorld Tech Watch 

  Windows Patches/Security fuzzy fonts, IE 11, KB 2670838, Windows 7

• KB 2670838 fries Firefox fonts

  Posted on May 8, 2013 at 22:44 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  Thanks to Arianna…

  Our old favorite botched Windows update patch, KB 2670838, has even more tricks up its sleeve.

  InfoWorld Tech Watch.

  Windows Patches/Security Firefox fonts, KB 2670838

• MS-DEFCON 3: Install all patches except one, KB 2840149

  Posted on May 3, 2013 at 12:12 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  I’ve been waiting, hoping that we’d get some sort of definitive word on whether the patch for the botched patch last month is working. So far, I’ve heard mixed results, with some people posting on this forum saying the new patch, KB  2840149, is causing problems. I DON’T recommend that you install the patch-of-a-patch KB 2840149.

  You shouldn’t be offered the earlier patch, KB 2823324, which proved so problematic. If you didn’t take my advice and installed that patch (in particular, if you had Automatic Update turned on around April 11), Microsoft sill recommends that you remove it. Use Control Panel’s Add or Remove Programs.

  There are also known problems with MS13-036/KB 2808735, but they’re obscure, and it’s highly unlikely you’ll hit them.

  So I’m straddling the middle, moving to MS-DEFCON 3. Patch reliability is unclear, but widespread attacks make patching prudent. Go ahead and patch, but watch out for potential problems. In particular, avoid installing KB 2840149.

  Let’s hope Microsoft has better luck with the May crop of Black Tuesday patches.

  P.S. If you have Windows 7, don’t install Internet Explorer 10 yet. Give it a while to sink in.

  P.P.S. From the comments:

  @Jack, @Ken –

  I should’ve been more explicit. Yes, please do install KB2670838. That KB article is now up to version 7.0. In theory, if the patch encounters a system that it’ll nuke, the installer will tell you that it didn’t install the patch. If that happens to you, take a look at the KB article and see if there’s a new video driver which doesn’t have compatibility problems. I haven’t heard of any problems with the patch for about a month.

  Windows Patches/Security KB 2670838, KB 2808735, KB 2823324, KB 2840149, March 2013 Black Tuesday

• MS-DEFCON 4: Get patched, but don’t install IE 10 or KB 2670838

  Posted on April 8, 2013 at 09:39 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  With a rather ho-hum collection of patches coming this Tuesday, it’s time to get caught up.

  March’s Black Tuesday patches didn’t ring many bells. But there are two ancillary downloads – and a patch from February that’s still causing problems – that should give you pause.

  First, if you are running Windows 7 and you haven’t updated to Service Pack 1, now’s the time to do it. Microsoft released Win7 SP1 in February of 2011 — yes, more than two years ago — but it just started including SP1 in “automatic update” runs. If you look at your pending updates and SP1 is on the list, block out some time to run it (say, ten minutes, maybe more), and let ‘er rip.

  Second, the late-February patch known as KB 2670838 is still causing problems. The patch should NOT be offered – should not be pre-checked – when you look at the Windows update list. Don’t shoot yourself in the foot, and don’t check the box to install it.

  Third, details are all over the map, but a lot of people are complaining about the new version of Internet Explorer, IE 10, screwing up their Windows 7 systems. Simple solution: don’t install IE 10. If you’re running Windows 8, you already have IE 10, and it doesn’t seem to be causing any problems. If you have an earlier version of Windows, IE 10 isn’t even offered. IE 10 on Win7 seems to be a stinker. Once again, IE 10 is not pre-checked in the update list. Don’t check it.

  As always, avoid installing driver updates from Microsoft (go directly to the manufacturer’s site, or your PC manufacturer’s site), and if you’re offered Silverlight, laugh heartily; uninstall it if you have to.

  With those thoughts in mind, I’m moving us down to MS-DEFCON 4: There are isolated problems with current patches, but they are well-known and documented here. Check this site to see if you’re affected and if things look OK, go ahead and patch.

  Office Patches/Security, Windows Patches/Security IE 10, KB 2670838, March 2013 Black Tuesday, Silverlight, Win7 SP1

• MS-DEFCON 4: Apply all automatically offered patches…

  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 16:42 CST by woody • Comment in the Forums

  … but don’t install the optional ones.

  Microsoft has shed some light on the problems surrounding their truly messed up Automatic Update KB 2670838. And, to their credit, they’ve changed the patch from “Important” to “Optional”. That means if you install all of the currently offered patches, through Microsoft Update, you won’t get stuck with KB 2670838.

  The rest of the February patches seem to be stable, and there’s a big crop of new ones coming Tuesday. So now’s a good time to apply all the Microsoft Update patches that are offered automatically — and ignore the “Optional” ones that will cause you pain.

  I’m moving us down to MS-DEFCON 4: There are isolated problems with current patches, but they are well-known and documented here. Check this site to see if you’re affected and if things look OK, go ahead and patch.

  Windows Patches/Security February 2013 Black Tuesday, KB 2670838

• Microsoft pushes another botched automatic update

  Posted on March 4, 2013 at 22:46 CST by woody • Comment in the Forums

  More details on the KB 2670838 debacle.

  InfoWorld Tech Watch. [Link fixed. Sigh.]

  Windows Patches/Security Blue Screen, KB 2670838, PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA

• KB 2670838 “Platform Update” crashing systems

  Posted on March 2, 2013 at 22:02 CST by woody • Comment in the Forums

  KB 2670838 was released last Tuesday, as part of the second Black Tuesday in February. (Microsoft generally releases non-security-related patches on the fourth Tuesday of the month.)

  Commenter FTWMike noted, “I find it interesting that yesterday “Platform Update for Windows 7 x64-Edition (KB2670838)” was listed as an ‘Important’ and today it’s ‘Optional’ or did I imagine yesterday?”

  You didn’t imagine anything, FTWMike…

  If you had Automatic Update turned on last Tuesday or Wednesday, and you’re running Windows 7 Service Pack 1, you may wonder why Internet Explorer is tossing up a blue screen, “PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA,” blaming the problem on igdpmd64.sys .

  Guess what? Microsoft screwed up the patch. Gosh.

  At first, it looked like the problem only appeared on laptops with hybrid graphics . Now it’s starting to look like desktops are affected too, with or without hybrid graphics.

  An announcement just went up. It appears to come from an official Microsoft source, but there’s some confusion at this moment as to whether the person who posted the announcement represents Microsoft in some way. Anyway, here’s what the post says: “Microsoft is aware of an issue some customers are experiencing when installing KB2670838 on certain laptop systems with hybrid graphics. We are looking into the situation and are considering blocking the update for systems that could be affected. Customers who are experiencing issues on systems that already have installed the update should consider uninstalling KB2670838.”

  At this point, nobody seems to know what caused the problem, but MS is in the process of pulling the patch.

  Full details on the MS Answers blog.

  And the next time somebody tells you it’s OK to turn on Microsoft Automatic Update, you should quote JMBE on that thread: “Same Problem, Pavilion Notebook G7 With ATI Radeon card 6470M card, no update possible voor Card, blue screen. I had to buy new Notebook to do my work. Of topic next time it becomes A Mac”

  UPDATE: More details on my InfoWorld Tech Watch post.

  Windows Patches/Security February 2013 second Black Tuesday, KB 2670838