Microsoft Declutters Windows 11 File Explorer in the Name of Euro Privacy (theregister.com) 55
Microsoft will strip several features from Windows 11's File Explorer for European users to comply with privacy regulations, the company says. The changes, affecting Entra ID accounts in the European Economic Area, remove Recent, Favorites, Details Pane, and Recommended content sections that previously tracked user activity.
These features relied on collecting user data to display recently accessed files and personalized recommendations. The privacy-focused update, part of Windows 11 preview build 26120.3281, results in a streamlined File Explorer interface.
These features relied on collecting user data to display recently accessed files and personalized recommendations. The privacy-focused update, part of Windows 11 preview build 26120.3281, results in a streamlined File Explorer interface.
Where can I get that version? (Score:3)
Instead of 'Euro trash', it is 'Euro smash'...in case you do need to run Windows as your operating system.
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Use a Dutch VPN proxy to download it?
There is an untold number of them available for peanuts and many other bonuses, from what I hear.
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You can turn them off those capabilites in regedit; some can be done in settings for file explorer. There are also scripts that will turn those and other off if you really don't want them.
I wonder if Microsoft has some scripts too.
You know, the kinds of scripts that turn those and others back on even if you really don’t want them..
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You can turn them off those capabilites in regedit; some can be done in settings for file explorer. There are also scripts that will turn those and other off if you really don't want them.
I wonder if Microsoft has some scripts too.
You know, the kinds of scripts that turn those and others back on even if you really don’t want them..
No doubt. I have a system with Windows 11 Pro for Workstations that I set up, updated after loading, loaded software on, then took off the network and locked down hard. No Microsoft News, no Microsoft Store, none of the usual nonsense that runs on boot. I just completely decluttered it and kept the network turned off. The last three days when I boot it it pops up an Edge browser window with Microsoft News in the URL line stating, "Let's get you back online!" And I get notices every couple days that the viru
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>And I get notices every couple days that the virus database is out of date and it needs to be back online in order to operate best.
No shit. It's almost like virus databases have a created on date and an expiration date, and programmers aren't fucking stupid so that they know out of date definitions won't protect a system from new threats. Shocking I tell you!
And no, an air gap will NOT protect you from newer threats carried in on physical media.
>Why do they want their OS to be as intrusive as possibl
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>And I get notices every couple days that the virus database is out of date and it needs to be back online in order to operate best.
No shit. It's almost like virus databases have a created on date and an expiration date, and programmers aren't fucking stupid so that they know out of date definitions won't protect a system from new threats. Shocking I tell you!
And no, an air gap will NOT protect you from newer threats carried in on physical media.
>Why do they want their OS to be as intrusive as possible? Shouldn't it just stay the fuck out of the way and let the user do what they need to do with the system?
PEBKAC issue. Not Microsofts fault you didn't disable notifications and antivirus. Which can both be done on W11 pro.
Notifications were shut off when the system was set up. They keep turning back on randomly. And I had every service shut off I could shut off and still have a system running. Where's the "fuck off Microsoft" flag in control panel? Because apparently the settings I set up mean absolutely nothing.
And fuck off with the "air gap won't protect you" bullshit. I never load anything else on this system specifically because I want it to keep running for my DAW. If I could escape Windows altogether and get my plugins
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Again, PEBKAC.
GPedit is your friend. You are running a pro version of the OS. Supposedly. I haven't had persistent notifications for over a year and a half, through every monthly, and now major version update. I also used GPedit only notify when updates are ready to download and only download and update when I'm good and ready. It has all the tools you want for disabling everything you want. Learn how to use them.
It also isn't THAT hard to use a search engine to find out how to disable Windows Defender.
>
Re: Where can I get that version? (Score:2)
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But the changes you make in regedit will probably be rolled back the next time Windows runs updates. I managed to get Win11 to show me a contextual menu in Explorer with all of the items that software I'd installed had registered... until it rebooted and reverted to the summarised version which hides all the useful stuff and only shows things I never use.
Re:Where can I get that version? (Score:5, Interesting)
It’s still Windows 11. Can’t imagine how much more telemetry needs to be turned off still. Even these privacy tweaks were merely the Microsoft negotiated terms.
IMHO if you can get your hands on it, the best version of Windows to run if you must is probably Win10 LTSC variants.
Re:Where can I get that version? (Score:4, Funny)
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Canadian Windows for the win!
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Im almost imagining Microsoft thinking "Lets do the Facebook Australian gambit, we'll take away beloved features and blame the government, and people will get angry and the government will back down", thinking people will somehow be annoyed at all the shit and advertising clutter being gone lol
Re:Where can I get that version? (Score:5, Interesting)
They make a version called Windows 11 N Home/Pro which is for the European market, and a K version for Korea. The main difference is that Media Player and a few other things are not bundled.
It's not clear if this update applies to normal Windows installs too. Hopefully it does, and will work in the UK as well.
In any case if you select "English (International)" as your language when setting up Windows it disables a lot of the crap anyway.
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Naa, no sane versions for US citizens. At least collectively, you voted for this. If you personally did not, my condolences.
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The special version of Word will also include an update to Clippy to allow you to ask for a pardon should you be guilty of a certain set of crimes (insurrection, hiring assassins, bribing officials, etc).
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in case you do need to run Windows as your operating system.
If you're running Windows on the metal, you're doing it wrong.
If you're doing anything other than what you absolutely must do with Windows, you're doing it wrong.
If you give Windows internet access without whitelisting connections, you're doing it wrong.
Microsoft has never been trustworthy.
It's particularly sad that practically every government institution runs Windows, especially when there are privacy mandates. It shouldn't even be legal to handle FTI on Windows, for example, since the license permits Mic
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The features they remove are the same features I turn off when I can. Some I can't but I can shrink them so that they don't dominate.
Impossible To Store Locally (Score:5, Insightful)
One would think you could easily get around this by going back to 1990's code and storing this locally on the machine.
Clearly, it has become impossible to guarantee Microsoft won't scrape the data on your local hard drive.
--
And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free - John 8:32
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Store locally? But then how will I cloud sync it across my devices? It was easy in the 1990s. I could only afford one computer.
Also I'm not being facetious here. This is precisely the point of these modern features.
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Things like syncthing exist. And there is a myriad of other techniques to sync devices without having the data readable by a third party. It's a matter of choosing to do so.
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You missed my point. My point is that choice is not something typically left up to consumers, it's something made by vendors on consumers behalf and that the vendor in question very much has syncing of everything being a core feature of all their current products. If you don't want a OS that syncs across devices that is cloud targeted, then quite frankly in the past 10 years Windows has not been for you. Heck even your clipboard can be sent to the cloud.
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It's a file explorer. I don't remember the last time I wanted that sort of stuff synced across computers, other than maybe twice. The first time when moving to that computer when it was new, and the second when I move to a new computer.
Beyond that, everything I do on the computer doesn't need to be synced across all my computers. Knowing I accessed my tax documents on my home PC isn't exactly relevant to me on my gaming PC, for example. Or on my handheld PC.
Recents? Favorites? I never set up a PC the same w
Privacy My A**, Those are Useful Features (Score:1)
Just hoping they keep their "regulations" on their side of the pond. I _want_ favorites and recents.
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So does Microsoft and its advertising, and data harvesting partners.
Re:Privacy My A**, Those are Useful Features (Score:4, Insightful)
Just hoping they keep their "regulations" on their side of the pond. I _want_ favorites and recents.
You may want them, sure. The question is do you want everyone else knowing them?
(Consider the answer. Your browser history is my next example.)
Re: Privacy My A**, Those are Useful Features (Score:2)
Re:Privacy My A**, Those are Useful Features (Score:5, Interesting)
I, for one, am glad they get rid of these "features". Having favorite files or folders only leads to disorganized folders, filled with copies and drafts. I don't want explorer to show me what I worked on last week. It's really nice if you work on a classified proposal, only to have it leak because you share your screen in a Teams call and explorer shows this info. And finally, I definitely don't want Microsoft or its partners to have access to my work history.
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> And finally, I definitely don't want Microsoft or its partners to have access to my work history.
Agreed, but it's getting harder and harder to do. Sure, if you have the might of your government setting up your IT you might be okay, but any less than that, you're basically screwed.
As much as I love Linux, and even MacOS, it's not at all clear what the solution is. Macs are getting more 'enterprise manageable', so maybe that's the future. I'd be very happy with that, but I'm not sure I can see it happeni
Re: Privacy My A**, Those are Useful Features (Score:5, Insightful)
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Technically possible sure, if you use your computer as a standalone single purpose device. For that I recommend not running Windows. Windows has very much fully adopted a multi-device approach, and to synchronise recently used files between devices relies on a cloud.
Think this is far fetched? Windows defaults to all user profile settings being synced. Defaults to browser bookmarks and history synced. Bugs you to synchronise Documents to OneDrive. Forces unified online accounts with local PINs per device. Ev
Re: Privacy My A**, Those are Useful Features (Score:3)
They were useful, until MS enshittified them. Yes, I use these features in my windows 7 install, and they run just fine for me.
What MS did (removing features instead of de-enshittify them) is called malicious compliance. I hope the EU fine them for that.
In other words ... (Score:5, Insightful)
Microsoft will strip several features from Windows 11's File Explorer ...
These features relied on collecting user data to display recently accessed files and personalized recommendations.
They'll still collect the data, but just won't show it being used ...
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They'll still collect the data, but just won't show it being used ...
Follow up story: Microsoft fined $45bn by EU. Top Rated Slashdot comment: OMG why can't the EU compete, why can they only tax Microsoft! Scandal!
Great. And long filepaths? (Score:3)
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NTFS supports 65535 characters in the file path. The 255 character limit is artificially placed in Windows for MSDOS compatibility and can be disabled in the registry.
Don't criticise your elders without understanding them young padwan.
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Has done for a long time.
Remove 260 character path limit, apply this registration entry:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem]
"LongPathsEnabled"=dword:00000001
To restore it the default 260 character path limit:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem]
"LongPathsEnabled"=dword:00000000
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Not all applications support more than 260 chars. You can turn that on but it probably won't solve anything.
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File Explorer doesn't have a problem with long file paths. It's a simple compatibility switch for MS-DOS file paths. You can disable the limit in the registry.
Who cares? (Score:2)
But for the rest, who cares?
There are several good browsers with better privacy, dump Edge and use them!
A what? Entra ID? (Score:3)
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I love how the page about what it is can't just come out and say it's a new SSO system, they have to list a bunch of features instead so people don't say "you mean like Active Directory?"
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Anyone who says "like Active Directory" fundamentally doesn't understand EntraID. AD isn't remotely cloud focused nor is it a SSO system federated across platforms from Microsoft.
Ignoring the features just to try and draw a comparison to some other system with different capabilities is really dense. You may as well say Linux is just Windows since both OSes just run apps.
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As that comparison page says, you can use it to do the same things, but it requires a couple of extra pieces. And there is also AD cloud.
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As that comparison page says, you can use it to do the same things
There is a comparison page, you should read it. Like properly read it, not just note that there's a table comparing the two. Specifically note that one heavily features cloud based solution and the other local solutions. They are different products for different purposes.
And there is also AD cloud.
No there's not. It was never called AD Cloud. It was called Azure AD. Do you want to know what it's called now? Wait for it. ... This will blow your mind: .... "Entra ID"
It's something you'd know if you even remotely had a look at what this
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Given where it appears in the Azure portal, I had assumed that Entra ID is the new name for Azure Active Directory.
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No need to assume. You're 100% correct. But worth noting is that Azure AD is fundamentally different to running a classic AD system.
By the way the title of the webpage for Entra ID is "Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory)"
Microsoft improving windows (Score:2)
Re:Microsoft improving windows (Score:4, Insightful)
Given how turds can be polished and actually look quite spectacular when they are I'm not sure what point you're making. Anyone using Windows now is doing so because they have to or they prefer to. If you have to live with a turd why not benefit from a bit of shine on it?
The Recent pane is actually useful (Score:2)
Favorites, Details, Recommend, those can go away. But I use the Recent files list all the time. It's great for when you download something, or scan something, or save something, and then want to open or upload it in another app, without having to navigate the file folder tree to find it.