Announcing Windows ... 10?

[Jammrock]

The only major issue with the Win10 update I've seen is VPN software. Cisco AnyConnect and VPN will break networking if the version is too old and not Win10 compatible.

Some normal driver issues. The audio one I mentioned. Some video cards/drivers are still crashing some. Driver maturity will take care of most of these issues and is pretty common with new Windows builds.

[cjolley]

Interesting, AnyConnect had deleted my gateway setting on exit every time for about the last year. Very annoying.
There was an update a few weeks ago that fixed it. It also had a different looking UI.
Gave a vpn/remote desktop session to work a try now that I'm on 10 here and no problems at all.

[Umfriend]

How long will the free upgrade be available? I am looking at a new laptop come Skylake and do not want to risk upgrading my current laptop. Although, I do back it up using WHS2011 so I could probably do it...

[Elie]

I just received the notification and it said my CPU's are not supported LOL.

I am running a pair of AMD Opterons. Yeah yeah very old I know
Upgrading system shortly.

[Fat Tone]

Windows 10 downloads (Akamai traffic) severely hampered internet for us at work this morning. We were down to <5% of our usual bandwidth. Grr.

[Jammrock]

How long will the free upgrade be available? I am looking at a new laptop come Skylake and do not want to risk upgrading my current laptop. Although, I do back it up using WHS2011 so I could probably do it...

1 year from launch. That makes it free until 28 July 2016.

1 Windows Offer DetailsYes, free! This upgrade offer is for a full version of Windows 10, not a trial. 3GB download required; internet access fees may apply. To take advantage of this free offer, you must upgrade to Windows 10 within one year of availability. Once you upgrade, you have Windows 10 for free on that device.
Windows 10 Upgrade Offer is valid for qualified Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 devices, including devices you already own. Some hardware/software requirements apply and feature availability may vary by device and market. The availability of Windows 10 upgrade for Windows Phone 8.1 devices may vary by OEM, mobile operator or carrier. Devices must be connected to the internet and have Windows Update enabled. Windows 7 SP1 and Windows 8.1 Update required. Some editions are excluded: Windows 7 Enterprise, Windows 8/8.1 Enterprise, and Windows RT/RT 8.1. Active Software Assurance customers in volume licensing have the benefit to upgrade to Windows 10 enterprise offerings outside of this offer. To check for compatibility and other important installation information, visit your device manufacturer’s website and the Windows 10 Specifications page. Windows 10 is automatically updated. Additional requirements may apply over time for updates.
2 The availability of Windows 10 upgrade for Windows Phone 8.1 devices may vary by OEM, mobile operator or carrier.

[Maggi]

HeyO ...

I downloaded an ISO of Win10 x64 Pro, unpacked it and updated my clean 2nd installation of Win7 x64 Ultimate from there.

So far, all seemed to have gone well, I can still use my "old" Win7 and dual boot to Win10.

I was particulary interested in how much difference DX12 could make to my GTX670 SLI setup and the pure graphics performance has increased by 10-15%.

Major letdown are the most recent NV driver, which introduced heavy blue flickering in dark areas when running 3D in SLI mode.
Cross checking with my Win7 setup, I see the same issue, so NV screwed up SLI in the 353.62 drivers for Win7 & Win10.

So I'll sit and wait for new drivers.

...

On another note, does any of you guys know about a fee and good/real firewall for Win 10 ?
All I found is a 3rd party tool to better configure the built in firewall, but seeing MS' history, I'd rather use a proper one.

Cheers,
Maggi

[Jammrock]

The built-in firewall is actually really good. Has been for some time.

The firewall is part of the Windows Filtering Platform (WFP) which is used for networking security. All network traffic goes through WFP. Most of the 3rd party AV and firewalls no longer actually use their own hooks and drivers to filter traffic. They use the WFP APIs to create rules and monitor traffic for malicious intent. They basically become WFP managers.

The default rules are designed to keep the average user safe enough without them constantly calling support to modify their firewall. Those who want more security can modify the rules in order to meet their own needs. A tool that modifies the rules to meet your needs is sufficient to keep your computer safe. The only time you would need something more is for IPS/DPI like security.

[UtwigMU]

3d party PC firewalls are work of devil.

They cause more problems than they solve as software is not tested against them.

[dZeus]

3d party PC firewalls are work of devil.

They cause more problems than they solve as software is not tested against them.

the built-in firewall works quite well.

In Windows 10 I use it to block the outgoing 'search' functionality, that continues to send data to a-0001.a-msedge.net even after disabling the 'search online' option in the search box. Hopefully that was a bug rather than intended behavior...
Can be fixed by editing the pre-defined outbound 'Search' rule in the advanced firewall, and selecting 'block the connection'.

Otherwise Windows 10 Pro RTM runs quite well on my VMware Fusion virtual machine (I installed my insider copy on a VM). Haven't migrated any of my physical machines yet, but plan to do that over the next few months. Funnily enough, none of them show the Windows update upgrade path ('reserve a copy'). Probably because one is too old (Thinkpad T43) and the other uses a Lenovo OEM version of Window 8.1 (Thinkpad X240). Would like to get rid of the recovery partitions on the X240 when I do the Windows 10 install...

[UtwigMU]

I reinstalled Celeron D machine 64-bit P4 based with 1,5GB RAM and Ati something GPU with Windows 7 and it offered upgrade to Windows 10.

(I upgraded to 2GB and I upgraded CPU to Core2Duo after that).

[VJ]

Does the insider program continue?
I was on build 10130 and installed the final iso as update. It says I'm activated and in the update section I have the option to continue to get preview builds. The installation is on a computer that never had another Windows installed.


I'm also tempted to update my laptop (old Pentium-D 1.2 GHz, 1 GB); it got the update notification. Only thing that is stopping me is that I don't have an external device to boot from (it refuses to boot from my USB DVD drive, and cannot boot from pendrives) - it is an old problem which has to do with compatibility between my dvd drive and the laptop. But if the upgrade fails, I will have a hard time installing a new system on it. (I have a clean Ghost image of Windows 7, but I need to recover it from a running Windows). I'll check at work if the admin does not have a usb dvd drive I could borrow if things go south...

[Jammrock]

Does the insider program continue?
I was on build 10130 and installed the final iso as update. It says I'm activated and in the update section I have the option to continue to get preview builds. The installation is on a computer that never had another Windows installed.

The insider program continues. As long as your computer is on Insider you do not need a purchased/legally obtained license. Participation in the Insider program is essentially your license.

If you discontinue Insider you must provide a valid Win7+ license.

[Marshmallowman]

Can't get either of my PCI-ex tv tuners to work but they work fine in windows 7 on the same machine.
Tuner finds nothing in windows 10, and sometimes crashes the whole system.
At least they don't crash my system EVERY time I try tuning like on win 10 preview versions.

It seems to use the same driver for win 7 and 10, same on windows update and pinnacle/pctv site

[VJ]

The insider program continues. As long as your computer is on Insider you do not need a purchased/legally obtained license. Participation in the Insider program is essentially your license.

If you discontinue Insider you must provide a valid Win7+ license.

Great! It is not a critical machine, so I have no problem staying in the insider program. I noticed that they introduced something I provided feedback on: a local username can now associated with an MSN account! I probably was not the only one with this idea, but the solution is what I suggested!

Is it still possible for others to join the insider program?

Can't get either of my PCI-ex tv tuners to work but they work fine in windows 7 on the same machine.
Tuner finds nothing in windows 10, and sometimes crashes the whole system.
At least they don't crash my system EVERY time I try tuning like on win 10 preview versions.

It seems to use the same driver for win 7 and 10, same on windows update and pinnacle/pctv site

My Compro E900f has no issues, although on early Windows 10 builds it also acted up. Windows 10 finds the correct drivers (but not for the ir receiver).

Just curious: which software do you use? I use NextPVR. The card came with its own software, but I like NextPVR better (I do lose the component input, but was not using that one anyway).