Newsletter Archives
-
MS-DEFCON 4: Time to get November Windows and Office patches applied
It’s up. I figure it’s time to get the November patches pushed onto your machine. I’ve seen very few problems with this month’s patches – a welcome change from the past year or so.
InfoWorld Woody on Windows.
If you have Win7 or 8.1, follow How to cautiously update Windows 7 and 8.1 machines .
For those in Group B, the update you want from the Microsoft Catalog is here:
Win7 32-bit: http://download.windowsupdate.com/c/msdownload/update/software/secu/2016/11/windows6.1-kb3197867-x86_2313232edda5cca08115455d91120ab3790896ba.msu [NOTE: My earlier link was incorrect!]
Win 8.1 64-bit: http://download.windowsupdate.com/d/msdownload/update/software/secu/2016/11/windows8.1-kb3197873-x64_cd0325f40c0d25960e462946f6b736aa7c0ed674.msu [NOTE AGAIN: My earlier link was wrong. Thanks, everybody.]
If you have Win10, follow my new Win10Tip Apply updates carefully
As usual, if you have any problems, tell me all about it!
-
What you need to know about today’s 14 security bulletins
Lesson #1: WAIT!
As long as you don’t use IE or Edge, you’re fine. Wait to see if there are any problems with this month’s patches before you even think about installing them.
InfoWorld Woody on Windows.
UPDATE: If you have trouble installing any of the Win10 patches, get over to Reddit and ask johnwinkmsft or jenmsft.
-
MS-DEFCON 2: Block Auto Update to avoid non-security Office patches
First Tuesday of the month means it’s time for a slew of Office non-security patches. Traditionally they roll out as Optional, Recommended. Last month we had a couple dozen patches, including one (KB 3183373) that was pulled because it crashed Excel.
Save yourself some drama and make sure Windows Automatic Update is turned off. See the “Automatic Update” tab at the top of this page. If you’ve been following along, you already have Automatic Update set to “Never” or “Check but don’t download.”
In addition, if you’re using Office Click-to-Run (from Office 365), you might want to switch its automatic updating off, too. Microsoft describes how in KB 2753538.
The Excel you save may be your own.