I run virtual machines, spanning a wide range of vintages. I have Microsoft’s OS ranging from Windows 3.11 for Workgroups through Windows 11. In all the modern-to-semi-modern editions, I’m used to having to check for updates, then opting to download and install them, until the screen reads “You’re up to date”.
My Windows 10 (64-bit) virtual machine today is telling me “You’re not up to date”, but it does not show any updates below that to download and install. It acknowledges farther below that that “Your PC is enrolled to get Extended Security Updates”, so WTF?
Anyone who speaks Microsoft as a first language able to clarify for me what it is that I’m supposed to do here?
It’s likely because Microsoft stopped making updates to Windows 10 this past October. AIUI, they will still be providing updates to Windows Defender for Win10 users for a while, but are no longer making any new updates and security fixes to the base program.
If your system could be upgraded to Windows 11 then I can understand it telling you that you’re not up to date. Apple does something similar. If the computer is on the last supported major OS for that particular hardware, and it’s fully caught-up on all the minor updates within that OS, then it’ll say you’re up-to-date. However, if you’re still running an old OS on hardware that could upgrade, then it’ll nag you to do so. So your Windows VM probably meets the requirements for Windows 11, and that’s the only pathway left to be fully up-to-date anymore.
That would make sense but… although the software that RUNS the VMs is capable of meeting Windows 11’s requirements, the Windows 10 virtual machine was created earlier, and it has some kind of “fingerprints” from the earlier software that causes it to disallow upgrading to Windows 11. And on the Windows Update screen, it says so.
No, it nags you to update even if the hardware does not meet their new requirements for Windows 11.
My hardware is not acceptable for Win 11, according to their checker*, but they still nag me.
* My hardware could actually run Win 11, (others are doing so with the same Dell machine) if I was willing to hacks to install Win 11 despite the hardware checks. But I don’t see any attraction in Win 11 worth this hassle.
So far my favorite Windows OS is/was Windows 7 Professional.
Which is kinda consistent because my favorite MacOS is/was 10.8.6, “Snow Leopard”. In both cases, the last gasp for a really nice 3-D GUI. I still don’t understand why both systems retreated back into a flat dull linear interface that’s as close to drawing on paper with a ruler and pen as possible.
Possibly, at least in the case of Windows 8, because they were designing it to work on tablets as well as desktop/laptop machines. One of the reasons that Win8 was poorly received was that it wasn’t friendly to use with a keyboard and mouse (and that’s why 8.1 followed just a year later).
What do you use the VMs for? Are you running a Windows museum?
Do they actually contain important permanent data, or are they just ephemeral toy environments? Can you wipe it and just make another VM from a fresh Windows 10 image?
You can get an ISO with the updates up to the Oct 25 end of life baked in: Windows 10 Download | MAS
You’ll probably have to reactivate Windows again afterward, unless your VM’s “hardware” is similar enough to be fingerprinted the same… not sure how that works.
Yeah, absolutely agreed. The ones after it are crap. 11 is outright adware.
There are some applications or developed software packages that are specific to some of these older environments. That’s also sort of a museum, but not just an OS museum, stuff that I once had set up within those environments that I was proud of.
For instance, I have a Windows NT 4 FileMaker Server 5 environment that I can log into as a guest from MacOS 8.6 (SheepShaver) or Windows 95 (Parallels).
Microsoft did NOT stop making updates for Windows 10 in October. They just stopped providing them for free. If you pay for it, you can get all the (useless, IMHO) updates, at least for a year.
It’s all part of a scheme to make more money FROM the customer, either by charging what was once free, or forcing them to upgrade to a system that allows MS to get more data (which they sell for $$) from the customer.
The genius art of Microsoft is to get the greatest amount of feathers from the goose with the least amount of hissing.
