At least, in the enterprise world where service contracts are an important part of any volume purchase agreement, and must be invoiced yearly, things are a bit more explicit. But since so many IT administrators also dole out advice on home and personal gear and software, as well as take care of company or organization assets, you might want to let your users know that they’ll be able to opt out of automatic renewals in the future if they choose to do so.

Cynics see this tactic as a way to keep company revenue streams topped up, because they virtually guarantee ongoing cash flow once users sign up for a subscription. Both companies explain this maneuver as a way to help protect customers, especially by making sure they can keep their security software up-to-date. It will be interesting to see how their bottom lines fare as a result of this ruling (companies that do business in NY state are now required to refund such charges at user request, as long as users ask for a refund within the 60-day period following the posting of fees to a credit or debit card, bank account, or other payment instrument).

Personally, I think auto-renewal is a good thing, but that consumers shouldn’t be forced into accepting the arrangement. I also think that companies should be required to send a notification 60 days before auto-renewal occurs, and include opt-out information and links in such e-mails to make it easy for consumers who don’t want to stay on that bus to get off if they choose. I already get this level of service from companies based in the EU (where this sort of treatment is the norm), so US-based companies should be able to do likewise.

• The OS demonstrates only limited built-in malware blocking capabilities: it cannot block 84% of common malware elements, including some of the most common and well-known malware and spyware versions.
• Some malicious code was able to install at administrative privilege level, execute code, and use a keylogger, but Windows Defender could neither detect nor stymie its installation or run-time activities.
• Signature updates for malware were also observed to be “extremely slow” on Windows Vista.

What’s the point? Try this quote for size “…security experts…cautioned users that the default malware blocking software as well as the anti-virus programs of Microsoft may fail to provide them comprehensive protection…” Duh!?

When it comes to news like this, I’d like for them to tell me more about what they learned in doing their analysis, and how other threat prevention mechanisms fared as well. Everybody knows that additional protection is necessary for Windows PC active on the Internet, and most corporate security policies require specific and more powerful antimalware coverage anyway. What would have been more interesting and potentially useful would have been a comparison of effectiveness for leading antispyware programs (including Webroot’s own Spyware Sweeper, PC Tools Spyware Doctor, and so forth and so on), as well as speed comparisons for signature updates and scanning for XP, Vista, and Windows 7.

I’m hoping more and more of that detailed information becomes available as Windows 7 heads for commercial release in October. And gosh, would I ever love it if somebody stepped up to fund an organziation like Virus Bulletin for the anti-spyware community. There may never be an AntiSpyware 100 (AS100) like the VB100 if what I know about spyware remains true — and things show no signs of changing in this regard — but it would be nice to have AS80-plus or AS90-plus ratings to help separate the merely adequate antispyware packages from the real star performers. To me, that would be some real news!

She focused on more centralized planning, and better coordination to create a more cohensive and intuitive look and feel for Windows 7. She also worked hard to eliminate the scores of pop-ups, alerts, and notification that system developers mean to be informative, but which bedevil ordinary users who simply want nothing more than to get them out of the way (to me, this finally explains the consolidation of alerts into the Windows 7 Action Center, and why only generic alerts get issued periodically–I hadn’t realized the noise had gone away, but had definitely noticed its reduction subliminally).

According to the story, Larson’s mantra is best stated as “user in control’ (hooray, what a simple but significant concept). The goal was “…to build an operating system people could use without studying first, one that would let them get right to reading the news or sending email without dragging them down a rabbit hole of setting and configurations. A system with manners…”

Larson-Green is already at work on Windows 8, though her group is still engaged in occasional tweaks to Windows 7 (though this will freeze solid in mid-July when the RTM version goes to OEMs for the October 22, 2009 release). Larson-Green says she plans to measure how well Windows 7 is doing “…by conversations she overhears at Best Buy and comments posted by bloggers.” Her hope is that people will like it. If my recent experiences in getting to know and writing about Windows 7 in the past three months are any indication, I don’t think she’s going to be too disappoointed.

Of the 10 bulletins issues, half (5) are critical, and fill some gaping widely-known holes in MS security. Chief among these: the dual WebDAV gothas for IIS publicized in May (explained in this Ryan Naraine blog from 5/19) and the infamous Pwn2Own vulnerability discovered in March at the CanSecWest conference in Vancouver.

I downloaded mine for Vista yesterday and they appear to have installed and taken without a hitch. You’ll probably want to start testing these right away, if you don’t plan to deploy them as-is.

Here’s the deal, in broad strokes:

• Windows 7 hits store shelves on 10/22/2009, ostensibly to have it ready for the holiday buying season (lots of others outside MS are speculating it’s more of a pre-emptive strike against Android which becomes available at the end of October)
• The Windows 7 Upgrade Option will kick in “soon” which permits those who purchase a new and qualifying PC to exercise  “…a special deal to upgrade to Windows 7…” Look for Brandon to blog about this program with dates and more details as “soon” becomes “real soon,” I guess! (According to TechARP, a usually reliable source for leaked MS secrets, this will happen on July 1.)
• RTM should occur some time in mid-July, with Windows Server 2008 R2 following in the same time frame.

OK, now what  I want to know is when MSDN and TechNet subscribers can lay hands on the RTM version. I hope we’ll see some more information on that very soon. Not only am I itching to get and use this code, I’m also working on a book that we’re going to have to review very thoroughly to make sure it agrees with the RTM version in all respects and in every screenshot. Stay tuned!

Although ED-PC can see all local machines, Vista says not connected

I conducted a little research into this situation and learned that this problem has persisted since Microsoft introduced SP1 for Vista — I guess I should be grateful it waited this long to bite one of my systems — and that there’s no easy fix available. I tried leaving, then rejoining my local workgroup, rebuilt my TCP/IP protocol stack, uninstalled then reinstalled my NIC driver — all to no avail. Looking over the various fixes others have attempted — see this discussion on the MSDN Forums entitled “Windows Vista – LAN working properly, but Vista says I’m not connected,” for example — I see I hit most of the high points. But since nobody else has been able to fix this, either I supposed I shouldn’t feel so bad.

Nonetheless, I can’t help it. It bugs me no end when things don’t work like they’re supposed to, and I can neither fix them nor figure out why or how they broke. Maybe that’s what keeps me banging my head against Vista after all these years, eh?

• Windows Vista Business
• Windows Vista Enterprise
• Windows Vista Home Basic
• Windows Vista Home Premium
• Windows Vista Ultimate

On the Server side, 32- and 64-bit versions for standard processors are available, plus a version for Itanium-based systems as well.

There’s also a TechNet article available dated 5/26/09, entitled “Service Pack 2 for Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista.” This is where most people will want to go to grab their downloads, because you can get separate versions here for ISO (the preceding item in the initial paragraph), but also separate links for x86, x64, and ia64 (Itanium) versions are also available. You’ll also find a link here to the Windows Service Pack Blocker Tool, and a FAQ that describes its recommended uses.

It will still be a while before Windows Update provides automatic access to Windows Vista SP2, so you may want to give the TechNet link above a visit in the meantime.

According to the MU Team, Vista (and Windows Server 2008, which share a common code base) SP2 “…will be available in the coming weeks on the Download Center (DLC), and also through Windows Update and WSUS.” But according to Nick Clark, by way of Mary Jo Foley, automatic updates for Vista SP2 won’t start getting pushed until June 30, 2009.

Why such a long delay before automatic push? Enterprise users should know this answer better than anybody else. Rolling out any service pack, including SP2, takes prior testing and may involve possible remediation or even a postpone/no-go decision, which in turn takes time. This approach also leaves the door open for some organizations to use the Microsoft Service Pack Blocking Tool to prevent the SP2 update from being applied prematurely.

As for me, I started testing various SP2 versions (including a slipstreamed install for both x86 and x64 versions) a couple of months ago. I liked what I found and saw enough to switch my production units over to SP2 in the last week (thanks to my MSDN subscription), and believe that many others will want to switch over to SP2 as time and opportunity permit. In fact…knock on wood as I write this…I haven’t had a single stability problem with my production machines since the day after installing that service pack (I did, however, have problem during the reboot phase of the install on one of those machines and got tagged in Reliability Monitor for an unexpected shutdown when I had to hit the reset button to get the SP2 install to continue through the reboot phase successfully). Other than that, it’s been surprisingly smooth sailing on the sometimes choppy Vista waters ever since! Look at the “monotonically increasing trend line” in Reliability Monitor since 5/14 (the day after my install on the problem machine).

Starting the day after the install (5/14) an unbroken upward trend.

Not Klingon script, just Klingon tranliterated into the Roman alphabet

As it turns out this is really just the Sophos Threat Detection Test with interface screens dubbed into Klingon. I have four things to say about this software product (provide yourself with appropriate derisory sound effects for each one, please):

1. Some companies obviously look farther for new markets to exploit than others.
2. The product is a clear testament to the ability to separate UI from underlying functionality.
3. Some software engineers obviously have too much time on their hands.
4. Did April first come late this year?

Even so, it’s a real hoot. Check it out. Perfect for those security-conscious Trekkies on your gift list, too.

1. After downloading the program, run Windows7UpgradeAdvisor.msi

Win7 Upgrade Advisor launch screen

2. Click Next, then click the checkbox to accept the EULA

It's OK to run this beta software: It only scans your machine.

3. Supply an installation target folder, or stick with the default (that’s what I did).

By default the program goes in the Program Files folder hierarchy

4. Wait while the program installs itself on your system.

Wait while the program installs (took under a minute on my PC)

5. When installation completes, you can close Microsoft Installer.

6. Next, navigate to Start, All Programs, where you’ll find an entry for Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor Beta. Fire that puppy off!

7. As the program runs, you’ll get a circulating progress bar. Whereas the Vista version took about 4 minutes to complete on this computer, the Windows 7 version finished in just under 3.

While the program scans your system and hardware, the progress bar circulates.

8. When the program finishes you’ll see a summary screen pop up. This one simply indicates I won’t get everything from Windows 7 that I got from Windows Ultimate (thank goodness! .

From Vista Ultimate (source OS) the only upgrade target is Windows 7 Ultimate: I can do an in-place upgrade.

9. More details on the hardware checks indicate I have a fast enough CPU, sufficient RAM and disk space, and my graphics card can handle Aero.

This system passes all requisites with flying colors!

In future blogs, I’m going to try other systems with the tool, including a modest notebook, a netbook, and an older single-core machine, and I’ll report on those results. This tour should give you a pretty good idea about where to get the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor beta, and how to use it yourself.