From Windows 7 to Windows 10...and back again

[sgtsabai]

As mentioned before there are ways to stop windows from upgrading. Please do the reseach. Lots of info out there. The very first is to stop automatic "updates". Install GWX control panel and run, leave the monitor on. It will find and delete win 10 applications and stop others. Stay up to date on the the list of no-no's to download as optional/recommended/important. Even if you get rid of them, they will come back the next time microspurt Tue. rolls around. Be very careful with windows enhancement etc. Here is the list I have to date, I do not guarantee this is all. I do not install any except security updates, and even then I'm a bit suspicious, until I check and see if any are on a no-no list. If you have delete and when they show up again hide.

........KB3097877....3083324.....3083710.....3022345....3068708.......3095249.........3035587.......2952664......2977759.......3112343.........3112336......3083710......3083711.....2976978......3139929......3146449......3065987.......3065988......... There is one in particular that is insidious in trying to get into your computer, I forget which one but I've hidden many times. I expect it will be back next updates. I don't want spying win10 malware, period.

[Bantex]

If it ain't broke Don't fix it

Exactly why I'm still running on Vista which was released November 2006.

Windows 10 or 10 year old OS, I'll stick with the old stuff.

Edited June 11, 2016 by Bantex

[allexx]

I keep my win 7 as long as possible.

[korkenzieher]

Everyone's experience seems to vary - but many haven't been exactly good. I tried the free upgrade (W7 -> W10) because for the large part I only use W7 for browsing and as an electronic typewriter.

Much of the 'serious work' gets done on Linux Mint (which I also recommend as a relatively easy intro to the Linux world - though as some have offered, it does occasionally need a bit more knowhow. I don't think it is any worse than Windoze - but people have an inbuilt body of experience with M$ which makes the learning curve seem steeper. Mint would do almost everything for me except Lightroom, and Visual Studio. There are alternatives, I know, but they aren't really an option.

My first issues with the W10 upgrade was that it told me my firewall was incompatible (!) with W10 and would be deleted. Bad start.

It also said it would remove my recovery partition (Why?) which, in the end, fortunately it didn't.

I spent a considerable amount of time adjusting privacy settings to the extent that eventually I crippled it. It had awful screen resolution issues which, given that it mainly would be used for surfing and WTP was a major issue. Reverting to W7 for me, while a no brainer choice, didn't work! The roll-back failed completely, and effectively bricked my computer.

Fortunately, as I mentioned, the rercovery partition *wasn't* blown, and I was able to do a fresh install (not recovery) of the W7. This also had some glitches first time around, meaning I had to redo the recovery clean install. No real idea what happened.

I also maintain a list of patches which I keep off my laptop. Here is my list with some comment about what they effect (get-hotfix is a Powershell command to check if the patch / update is installed)

Most telemetry and additionals are related to the Consuler Experience program - ie, Microsoft phoning home with your voice, browsing habits, usage statistics etc. At least 1, maybe 2 updates have also patched Internet explorer so that it is W10 friendly. Since that also contains security related issues in the wake of (I think) the LIBC patching from last year, I felt pretty much obliged to intall it. The result is that I now use Vivaldi and Firefox and never start up IE.

# Telemetry
get-hotfix -id KB2952664,KB2977759,KB3021917,KB3035583,KB3068708,KB3075249,KB3080149,KB3022345,KB3123862
# Windows Update Client
get-hotfix -id KB2990214,KB3050265,KB3065987,KB3075851,KB3083324,KB3083710,KB3102810,KB3112343,KB3135445,KB3138612
# Internet Explorer Security
get-hotfix -id KB3139929,KB3146449
# Additionals
get-hotfix -id KB3038314,KB3046480,KB2592687,KB2923545,KB2994023,KB2726535,KB2660075,KB2999226,KB3095649,KB3077715
get-hotfix -id KB3112148,KB3123862,KB3118401,KB2876229,KB2970228,KB2977728,KB2978092,KB3102429,KB3097877
# My Additional set
get-hotfix -id KB2505438,KB2670838,KB971033,KB2902907,KB3063822,KB2976978,KB3012973,KB3044374,KB3075853,KB2506928
get-hotfix -id KB2545698,KB2760779,KB3083711,KB3083325

Edited June 11, 2016 by korkenzieher

[lvr181]

My laptop upgraded to Windows 10 without my consent about ten days ago. I was, to put it mildly, rather angry. My laptop had never missed a beat in over four years running Windows 7. I had decided that I was happy as things were, and didn't want to risk a change.

Anyway, everything seemed fine for the first week, and then one morning I turned it on and the start button for the live tiles just wasn't working. I googled the problem and tried every single remedy I could find online. Nothing worked. I even contacted an online engineer from Microsoft, who spent about two hours just trying everything I had done earlier. Again, nothing worked, even doing a system restore. In the end I had to set up a new user account, and I'm currently using that.

As I understand it, I have about another two and a half weeks to revert back to Windows 7, and it is good to know that the process is quick and simple.

Upgrading to Win 10 seems to stop Restore Point. When I upgraded this laptop (Toshiba Satellite, 2 years old) a few months ago, my first act was to open up a new restore point. Otherwise quite happy with Win 10. I have set the Desktop up to look as close as possible to Win 7.

On a 5 year old HP laptop I have, I tried Win 10 and lost the use of the function keys! So I reverted back to Win 7 and there it can stay.

[Suradit69]

You could of just downloaded a graphics driver and fixed all that but i went back to 7 after 10 due to frequent crashes when watching movies and utube.

Ill try 10 again maybe next year when it has matured abit as it does have dx12 for gaming

When I changed from Windows 7 to 10 on my old (HP 3 year old) desktop, all was well until a graphics driver update took place. Had two crashes and reverted to 7, followed by another crash. Decided it was time to get a new Windows 10 compatible computer and store purchased (legitimate) Windows 10 installation.

All was well until the Windows 10 menu and taskbar ceased to work. Since resolving that, everything seems to be working quite well. I like Windows 10, but it was a rough journey getting here.

[fasteddie]

Try "never10", supposed to stop 10 upgrade and also clears any 10 files off your pc. Still monitor my updates though, so far, so good.

[slipperylobster]

Mine never updates, unless I give it permission to do so.

Right now, everything works great...for 5 years !

I love the programs I have (mostly for composing/recording) for use when I play my guitar. When you update your operating system and software, then your old hardware can no longer keep up with the new stuff. Things can start getting expensive, as you try to keep your hardware up to specs with the new operating system and new software demands.

I just leave my windows 7 alone. I don't worry about Window updates or trying to install windows 10. I don't run out and upgrade my software either...(unless there is something I just have to replace). I simply turn off windows updates, and notifications.... Lots of things I turn off. Of course, I run security software and scan for viruses and malware. Also clean residuals and bad active x files..etc. Defrag. and everything is like new.

Basically, you can be playing catch up forever....thinking newer is better. Sometimes you are actually degrading your current capabilities as Microsoft packs on security patches and updates. Not all of these are beneficial. Some of these patches and updates actually cripple your capabilities and box you in.

Edited June 11, 2016 by slipperylobster

[savagerb]

My laptop upgraded to Windows 10 without my consent about ten days ago. I was, to put it mildly, rather angry. My laptop had never missed a beat in over four years running Windows 7. I had decided that I was happy as things were, and didn't want to risk a change.

Anyway, everything seemed fine for the first week, and then one morning I turned it on and the start button for the live tiles just wasn't working. I googled the problem and tried every single remedy I could find online. Nothing worked. I even contacted an online engineer from Microsoft, who spent about two hours just trying everything I had done earlier. Again, nothing worked, even doing a system restore. In the end I had to set up a new user account, and I'm currently using that.

As I understand it, I have about another two and a half weeks to revert back to Windows 7, and it is good to know that the process is quick and simple.

[savagerb]

Hey guys not sure if it has already been mentioned but if you are reverting back to Windows 7 and don't want to be prompted to upgrade to 10 all the time simply download "never10" off google and install it, it's free and will stop Windows from trying to automatically update you and will stop the stupid update pop ups, also go into control panel and turn off notifications

[gjoo888]

Upgrading to Win 10 seems to stop Restore Point. When I upgraded this laptop (Toshiba Satellite, 2 years old) a few months ago, my first act was to open up a new restore point. Otherwise quite happy with Win 10. I have set the Desktop up to look as close as possible to Win 7.

On a 5 year old HP laptop I have, I tried Win 10 and lost the use of the function keys! So I reverted back to Win 7 and there it can stay.

Windows 10 doesn't "stop" the Restore Point feature, but you do have to configure it before you can add restore points, restore your system, etc.

[BuaBS]

Try "never10", supposed to stop 10 upgrade and also clears any 10 files off your pc. Still monitor my updates though, so far, so good.

An app called "never10" ... that is just so humorous ! I'm sure the nerds in Redmond find it hillarious....

[fasteddie]

Try "never10", supposed to stop 10 upgrade and also clears any 10 files off your pc. Still monitor my updates though, so far, so good.

An app called "never10" ... that is just so humorous ! I'm sure the nerds in Redmond find it hillarious....

What's Redmond?

[savagerb]

Try "never10", supposed to stop 10 upgrade and also clears any 10 files off your pc. Still monitor my updates though, so far, so good.

[savagerb]

Screwed up my last reply, I never realised fasteddie mentioned "never10" just before I did, I have been using this programme for a few weeks now and has been running like a charm stops all Windows 10 update prompts and doesn't disrupt the other updates etc, I highly recommend it

[fasteddie]

Screwed up my last reply, I never realised fasteddie mentioned "never10" just before I did, I have been using this programme for a few weeks now and has been running like a charm stops all Windows 10 update prompts and doesn't disrupt the other updates etc, I highly recommend it

Have you turned auto updates back on?

[ozyjon]

Disclaimer;

I have no problems with Windows 10

in reality i do, i don't want it anywhere

near me,, why,, IT SPIES ON YOU, so

what's the problem? the problem is not

Microsoft, it's them getting hacked then

me being compromised, but i have a

really good antivirus program,,, so did

Mr. Zuckerberg, and see what they did

to him...

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/07/technology/if-mark-zuckerberg-can-be-a-hacking-victim-so-can-you.html?_r=0

[dazzz]

seems like the op and a lot of people give up instead of doing a little work to fix the problems . I have 4 desktops and 2 notebooks in my house all running windows 10.
One notebook is 7 yr old running old graphic card . I have on my desktops old nvida card , gtx620 ,gtx630 a newer gtx650 and a new gtx750 ti all work ok but when you update to windows 10 you have to update your display driver
same as you have to install display drivers on a new windows.Nvidia is so easy, download nividia geforce and it will tell you if you have any updates and install the drivers for you.
I think windows 10 is great and is activated so it is legal . The only problem i had was the wifi card on my 8yr old notebook would not work with windows 10 so i bought a usb wifi adapter , works fine>
Windows 10 is excellent , no problems. When you are installing windows 10 make sure you click custom install (all tiny letters so you may miss ) and then unclick all the microsoft monitoring softeware including cortona , then no problems

[BuaBS]

Try "never10", supposed to stop 10 upgrade and also clears any 10 files off your pc. Still monitor my updates though, so far, so good.

An app called "never10" ... that is just so humorous ! I'm sure the nerds in Redmond find it hillarious....

What's Redmond?

The softies : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Redmond_campus

[mtls2005]

I upgraded a PC from 8.1 to 10 recently. The first thing I tried was right-clicking on context-sensitive sub-menus, and it took ~ 5 minutes for the sub-menu to pop-up. That was painful, so I went back.

Was I doing something wrong? Anyone else have this issue?

[The Usual Suspect]

I was running Windows 7 Home Premium and thought I would upgrade to Windows 10 because it was free and the most recent version. After a couple of days with Windows 10, I wasn't impressed in the slightest. I found the platform unfamiliar and problematic (at least for me). I switched back to Windows 7 thinking it would be as simple and smooth as Microsoft touted before my upgrade. Since I switched back, I have had nothing but problems. It is definitely NOT the Windows 7 that originally came with my Lenovo laptop. It's sticky, freezes up constantly and some of my previous programs were either not there, or malfunctioned. I even tried a clean install, but to no avail. Big mistake.

[manfredtillmann]

you don't have to put up with ms win 10, there are consumer friendly alternatives:

https://linuxmint.com/

check it out.

With all due respect, Linux isnt consumer friendly to those with minimal tech knowledge. It's come a long way to be an out-of-box experience, but still requires a more than normal understanding.

There is a consumer friendly, easy, I just want to do simply stuff and not worry about under the hood OS, it's called OSX

yes, that's how it used to be. but not anymore. as i wrote: check it out, nothing could be simpler.

i installed 'mint' on my new toshiba lap top some 6 months ago after losing hours of my life and a fair bit of money to w10 (check out my earlier posts on that one)

i have not had one single issue since, she just works, and works, and works. no crashes, no re - installs, no hardware not working. nothing! and the updates are 2 minute jobs every 2nd day without re - boot.

the 'under the hood' business seems to be what w10 users have to put up with these days.

[Rob13]

The latest version of Linux(17.3) is very user friendly. I switched over a couple months, if you're comfortable with Windows 7 you'lll be able to use Linux 17.3.

Easy to install and it's all free too.

[lostinisaan]

I upgraded my computer to windows 10. I could not figure out anything even how to turn of

my computer. Within two hours I had uninstalled Windows 10. I was very happy.

I was always wondering why you have to use the start button when you want to switch the thingy off......

You might not know what "power" means? How could you "uninstall" ( it's a "roll back") W 10 if you didn't even know how to switch it off?

Are you still happy?

[lostinisaan]

I was running Windows 7 Home Premium and thought I would upgrade to Windows 10 because it was free and the most recent version. After a couple of days with Windows 10, I wasn't impressed in the slightest. I found the platform unfamiliar and problematic (at least for me). I switched back to Windows 7 thinking it would be as simple and smooth as Microsoft touted before my upgrade. Since I switched back, I have had nothing but problems. It is definitely NOT the Windows 7 that originally came with my Lenovo laptop. It's sticky, freezes up constantly and some of my previous programs were either not there, or malfunctioned. I even tried a clean install, but to no avail. Big mistake.

When I'm using W 7 now it's like having XP in front of me. W 1- Pro works without problems, all my programs are doing fine and I wouldn't like to go back to W 7.

Have you ever heard of youtube before? You can look up anything regarding W 10. Not long and you'll have to pay for W 10. You had it.

[Mobi]

One of my main concerns in upgrading to W10 is Thunderbird. Has anyone used Thunderbird on W10?

I tried Googling but the answers from Mozilla don't seem to be that clear.

Anyone?

[manfredtillmann]

One of my main concerns in upgrading to W10 is Thunderbird. Has anyone used Thunderbird on W10?

I tried Googling but the answers from Mozilla don't seem to be that clear.

Anyone?

t-bird upgraded this morning on my linux mint. i just had to acknowledge and authorize by entering my password.

the upgrade was running in the back ground while i was using t-bird.

no re - boot, no shut - down... i would not even know if i had not authorized it. as one does with almost every linux update!

can't recall the last time i had to re - boot.

[kekalot]

One of my main concerns in upgrading to W10 is Thunderbird. Has anyone used Thunderbird on W10?

I tried Googling but the answers from Mozilla don't seem to be that clear.

Anyone?

wow, not sure if genuine question or not but.. of course Thunderbird is working, I can't even name one single program that doesn't work properly with Windows 10 and I use quite a few.

in fact the only issue i ever had with windows 10 was the first day of public release Media Player Classic HC did not open my files anymore, was looked up and fixed within the minute.

for some reason people think it's some kind of Metro mess like Windows 8 was, it's not really. i'd suggest people get Classic Star Menu via ninite (look ninite up maybe?)

this isn't a beta release

[Mobi]

One of my main concerns in upgrading to W10 is Thunderbird. Has anyone used Thunderbird on W10?

I tried Googling but the answers from Mozilla don't seem to be that clear.

Anyone?

wow, not sure if genuine question or not but.. of course Thunderbird is working, I can't even name one single program that doesn't work properly with Windows 10 and I use quite a few.

in fact the only issue i ever had with windows 10 was the first day of public release Media Player Classic HC did not open my files anymore, was looked up and fixed within the minute.

for some reason people think it's some kind of Metro mess like Windows 8 was, it's not really. i'd suggest people get Classic Star Menu via ninite (look ninite up maybe?)

this isn't a beta release

It was genuine alright.

I had assumed there wouldn't be any problems, but after reading this thread and then googling on the matter, I did find some people who had some problem and couldn't really understand the answers. It would certainly be a catastrophe if I lost all my Thunderbird files.

[wpcoe]

I also use Thunderbird on Windows 10 with no problems. I think the only e-mail problems with Windows 10 that I've read about have ironically been with Microsoft's own Outlook program.