Tag: windows 10

UCheck is a software updates checker for Windows. It is a freemium product, which means that it is available as a free, limited version, and a commercial version. The price of the commercial version starts at $12 per year.

Earlier this week, I reviewed WingetUI, an open source program to install, uninstall and update software programs on Windows. UCheck promises similar functionality, but the free version is limited to updating and uninstalling software on the system.

The Premium version, available for $12 per year, adds the installation of software, scheduled scans, email support and Enterprise use to the mix. There is also a Technician’s version, which adds scripting, portable configs and license.

The free version of UCheck was used for this review.

UCheck Free overview

The program is available as a portable and setup version. The interface displays the three main sections, updates, installed, and download, on start. Free version users see several “upgrade” links and offers there as well.

You may want to visit the program settings before you run a scan. The General section reveals that Telemetry data is send by default and that the program is configured to run on startup. You may disable both options there. There is also an option to scan apps that start on Windows automatically, which is an interesting feature.

The settings are also home to exclusions, which accepts folders and files, and custom locations, which can be used to include portable software programs in the scanning.

Activate the Scan button in the main interface to find out which installed (and portable) programs have updates.

The program lists the number of programs with updates, as well as the number of installed programs after the scan.

Select “pending updates” to take a look at the list of outdated programs UCheck discovered during its scan.

Programs are listed with their name, company / developer, location on the local system, and the current and latest version. Filters and a search are supported to display only some results.

The Action menu lists options to update individual programs, to skip this update, and to add them to the list of exclusions. The free version supports batch updates, but you need to start UCheck Free with elevated rights for that. There is a button in the interface that does that.

You may now check one or multiple programs and activate the “update selected” button to download and install updates for the selected applications in one operation. Note that there is no “select all” checkbox, which would make things comfortable.

It is unclear where the downloads come from, as this is not revealed by the application. The database is community powered, which explains why it is large and well maintained.

Comparison to winget and WingetUI

When you compare UCheck to winget, you will notice that UCheck supports more programs than the default winget database. Winget detected about 20 programs with updates on a test system while UCheck over 140.

One reason for that is that UCheck includes the Downloads folder of Windows by default. Depending on use, it may store a large number of applications.

WingetUI is easier to use, there is no doubt about that. It suffers from the same lack of a larger software database though. Another difference is that both “wingets” support the installation of portable programs, which is reserved to paid versions of UCheck.

UCheck does include information about available Windows Updates though.

Closing Words

The end of SUMO, probably the best software updates monitor for Windows, has left a hole. UCheck comes close to what SUMO offered, but you may need the commercial version to really take advantage of some of its features.

The program could use a few usability features, such as an option to check all / uncheck all programs in the updates listing. Nothing major, but these would improve usability for some users.

All in all, UCheck is a well designed program that delivers exactly what it promises. The Premium version is worth a subscription, as it adds scheduled scans and some other features to the app.

Now You: do you use software updaters?

This is a review of WingetUI, an open source program for Windows that many users will find useful.

I wrote an article on the package manager winget for Windows yesterday on Ghacks. It is an integrated command line tool in newer versions of Windows to uninstall, install or update programs.

WingetUI takes the capabilities of winget and puts a shiny user interface around them. If you prefer to use a graphical user interface, WingetUI is a great option.

First the basics. WingetUI is an open source application for Windows. You can download the latest version from its GitHub respository and install it or run a portable version.

WingetUI supports winget but also other package manager and tools. These include Scoop, Chocolatey, Pip, Npm and PowerShell Gallery. Advanced users may configure the client to do their bidding exactly, but it works well without any advanced configuring.

WingetUI: core functionality

The main WingetUI interface is divided into three tabs: discover packages, software updates, and installed packages.

• Discover packages — This tab features a search to find programs and options to install one or multiple apps at once.
• Software updates — This tab checks for updates of installed programs. You may update all or some programs using it.
• Installed packages — The tab lists the installed programs of the system.

Discover Packages

Use this to find applications to install. Just type an application name or part of it in the search field and wait for the results to show up.

The program lists package names and IDs, the available version and the source. Note that you may change sources in the preferences. If you just want to use winget, you need to disable all other sources. Some sources, for instance Scoop, are disabled by default.

A double-click on a file display additional information about it. This may include a list of features, a short description and tags.

WingetUI lists package parameters as well, which may be used to change installation parameters.

Check one or multiple programs and select “install selected packages” to download and install them on the system. Several options are available at the top:

• Install selected packages with administrative rights.
• Skip the hash check when installing the selected packages.
• Do an interactive install for the selected packages.

Unless you activate the interactive install option, you may notice that most installations happen silently in the background for the most part.

Software Updates in WingetUI

The Software Updater lists all installed applications that are not up to date. It lists names and IDs, as well as the installed version and the latest version.

You may use it to update all out of date apps in one swift operation. Just activate the “update selected packages” button to download and install updates for the selected Windows programs.

It is a quick and easy process. Note that you may still get UAC prompts to allow updates, but it is definitely quicker than updating programs manually.

A right-click displays some options. You may ignore certain updates using the right-click menu. This is important if you don’t want a program to install a certain update. One reason for that is that the update may introduce bugs or changes that you want to avoid.

The package details offer information, including links to the official websites.

Installed Packages

Installed packages offers an overview of all programs installed on the system. WingetUI displays names, versions and the installation source, which is useful information.

You may use the information to check the source, e.g., if it was installed locally, from the Microsoft Store or using a package manager.

While you may barely use native Windows apps or Microsoft Store apps, others may appreciate the functionality.

Closing Words

WingetUI is a powerful frontend for winget and some other package managers. It is a useful tool to find outdated programs on a Windows system and get these updated in batch mode.

While it may not pick up all oudated programs, as it does not support portable apps installed from other sources, it does a great job at taking care of the rest.

Running it from time to time is a good way of keeping a system’s software up to date.

Windows 10, the operating system that barely anyone loved when it first came out, is supported until October 2025 by Microsoft. The operating system is still widely used with a commanding lead over Windows 11.

Statcounter, for example, lists Windows 10’s usage share at about 68% and Windows 11’s at just 26% as of November 2023. Windows 10’s usage share will drop until October 2025, but it seems unlikely that Windows 11 will overtake it by then.

A percentage of Windows 10 devices is compatible with Windows 11. These can be upgraded to Windows 11 and a good portion will likely be upgraded in the coming 2 year period.

Millions of Windows 10 devices are not compatible with Windows 11 on the other hand. Microsoft changed the operating system’s hardware requirements. Main restrictions affect the processor and also the TPM security component.

A Windows 10 support extension is coming

Microsoft confirmed yesterday that it will offer Extended Security Updates for Windows 10. These extend the life of the operating system beyond the official date.

Notable is the inclusion of individual consumers. When Microsoft launched ESU for Windows 7, it restricted the offer to Enterprise and business customers.

This changes under Windows 10. Everyone, basically, may extend support of Windows 10 beyond October 2025. This option comes at a price though. Microsoft did not reveal it at this point.

A look back at ESU for Windows 7 may provide estimates. Microsoft increased the cost of support each year.

Businesses could get support extensions for Windows 7 Pro for $50, $100 and $200 per device. Enterprise customers paid half of that. To extend support by three years, businesses paid Microsoft $350.

Microsoft might use the same system for Windows 10 and consumer devices. The company has no vetted interest in keeping users on Windows 10 and likely won’t make the offer too cheap.

Some might say that Microsoft’s main motivation behind the move is to avoid the risk of losing millions of users to alternatives.

As a reminder, here are the available options that Windows 10 users have if they want to keep the device:

• Keep on using Windows 10 without updates.
• Keep on using Windows 10 with Extended Security Updates.
• Keep on using Windows 10 with third-party security updates by 0Patch.
• Keep on using Windows 10 and use ESU updates or other updates restricted to certain editions or subscriptions unofficially.
• Upgrade to Windows 11 (enforce upgrade if hardware is incompatible).
• Migrate to Linux.

The right option?

Most options make sense. You may not want to run Windows 10 without security updates support, but all other options work for a period or even indefinitely.

The selection between an ESU and a 0Patch subscription is not as straightforward as it looks on first glance. 0Patch subscriptions cost about $25 per year, whereas Microsoft is likely going to charge a multiple of that.

Microsoft patches are official on the other hand and they include patches for security issues that are not critical. 0Patch focuses on high-risk security updates for the most part.

The upgrade to Windows 11 is a free option. It works for most devices, even those that are incompatible. Running Windows 11 on incompatible devices is not all that different from compatible ones. A few features may not work, but the main inconvenience is that feature updates require another compatibility check.

You could install a feature update every second year, as Microsoft supports all major Windows 11 versions for 24 months. Still, you need to bypass the compatibility checks again when updating.

Microsoft fuelled uncertainties by stating that it can’t guarantee any update or support if a device is incompatible. At least the update part of the statement is unsubstantiated up to this point.

Linux is another option, but it has the highest hurdle of them all. There is no direct migration path from Windows to Linux. This means that users need to back up data, install Linux and import that data to Linux after installation. Other issues include that some programs are not available for Linux, but there are usually alternatives.

Gaming has improved on Linux in the past couple of years, but there are still games that you can’t run on the platform.

Closing Words

ESU for Windows 10 adds another option for home users, which is good. No one is forced to subscribe, but users may do so to extend support.

Now You: do you run Windows 10? What will you do in 2025?

Hundreds of million of Windows 10 devices will run out of support in 2025 with no option to upgrade to a new version of the operating system.

Up until now, every version of Windows could be upgraded to a new version. All Windows versions reach end of support eventually. Microsoft stopped support for Windows 7 and 8 just recently, but this did not place users in a cul-de-sac. The upgrade path to Windows 10 allowed them to continue using their devices.

Things changed with the release of Windows 11. Microsoft changed the system requirements for the first time in a long, long while. The last big change dates back to Windows Vista, which Microsoft released in 2007 to the public.

From that moment on, Windows users had the reassurance that they’d be able to upgrade their devices to a new version when the currently installed version ran out of support.

Windows 11 requires a fairly modern processor and a security chip, TPM. Bypasses are available to install Windows 11 on devices that don’t meet the requirements. It is an artificial limit, not one born out of necessity.

Windows 11 does run better on modern PCs, but that is true for nearly anything else. Most Windows users who run older hardware know about the limitations. Most may prefer to continue using a newer version of Windows over the other choices that they have right now.

Microsoft confirms end of Windows 10 Support

Microsoft published a new support page on November 16, 2023 that some see as confirmation that Microsoft won’t extend support of the operating system.

The most important sentence on the page is the following one:

The Windows 10 end of support date of October 14, 2025, is unchanged.

The statement confirms Microsoft’s decision to end support of Windows 10 in October 2025. While it is very likely that Microsoft will stay true to this, at least for consumers, it can also be read as confirmation of the current plan.

Microsoft will give Enterprise and business customers an extension. There is little doubt about that. The system, first launched for Windows 7 about three years ago, allows these customers to extend the life of the operating system.

Windows 7 got a three-year life extension this way. Companies had to buy the extensions, but it meant that they could continue using these devices for up to three years.

Windows 10 will likely get the same deal, at the very least. A three year extension would allow commercial customers to use Windows 10 devices until October 2028. By then, Windows 12 and even Windows 13 may be out already.

What you can do about this

If your Windows 10 device is incompatible with Windows 11, you may wonder what you can do about it.

Microsoft recommends buying a new Windows 11 PC. That is an option, but it will result in millions of devices being put in the trash.

Users have quite a few options, but not all are equal:

• Continue running Windows 10 at the expense of security and stability.
• Upgrade to Windows 11 by bypassing the system requirements.
• Migrating to Linux.

The first option may look like the worst of the three options. There are mitigations, however. First, third-party security patcher 0Patch will support Windows 10 with security patches for years after Microsoft ends its support. The company focuses on critical issues and it costs a couple of Dollar per year, but it is an option to continue using Windows 10 and feel a bit safer about it.

If Microsoft extends support for Enterprise and business customers, some clever folks will find ways to install these patches on user devices. The same happened when Windows 7 ran out of support, and it will happen again in two years time.

Installing Windows 11 on unsupported hardware is another option. It makes a few things less comfortable and some, mostly minor, features may not work, but it ensures continued security updates for the device.

The one big downside to this is that feature updates include additional requirement checks. This means, in essence, that you need to run bypasses at least every two years to continue receiving updates.

Migration to Linux is the most daring option. It is an entirely different operating system and there is no direct migration path. Some apps and programs may not be available on Linux either.

Good news is that you will be able to use the device for a long time.

Remember Cortana? Most may not remember the personal assistant that Microsoft baked into Windows. Even though it was rather mediocre, Cortana actually provided better Windows functionality than Microsoft’s new lovechild Windows Copilot.

Included in Windows 10, Cortana was Microsoft’s answer to Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa. It was a voice-activated tool designed to help users in various ways. Core functions included asking Cortana for directions, to add entries to a Calendar, open Windows apps or look up the weather forecast.

A tiny group of users liked Cortana. The vast majority ignored it and a small group of dedicated users tried various hacks to remove Cortana from their devices.

Microsoft announced the end of Cortana support this year. It was clear for a while that Cortana did not play a big role anymore in Microsoft’s plans and the deprecation of the app and service sealed its fate.

Now there is Windows Copilot and AI. Windows Copilot is not Cortana 2.0. At this time, it is mostly Bing Chat as a sidebar in Windows. Microsoft did highlight that Windows Copilot would support Windows-specific features, but it never published a full list and gave only a few basic examples.

Tip: you can disable Windows Copilot in Windows easily.

Cortana vs. Windows Copilot

Let’s start with Cortana. The personal assistant reacted to specific voice commands. Microsoft has an entire Help page on its website — still — that lists some of these.

Here is a selection of what you could use Cortana for:

• Open Windows applications and Settings.
• Look up Calendar information, including finding time to meet with someone.
• Looking up Meeting information, including booking meetings.
• Find out about people in an organization.
• Make lists and set reminders.
• Get definitions and answers to questions.
• Make calculations, including currency conversions.
• Get weather information.
• Look up the latest news.
• Control and play music.
• Get directions.

Windows Copilot supports just a few of these options and some new ones. Microsoft describes Copilot’s Windows-specific functionality in the following way:

Need to enable Bluetooth or connect a new pair of headphones? Copilot can help. Not sure of the best way to capture a screenshot? Ask Copilot to do it for you. Copilot in Windows can change the way you use your PC and inspire you to try new things that you may not have thought of before. It is where productivity and creativity meet.

Microsoft improved Copilot to add at least some of the promised features. You may now ask Copilot to launch a Windows app and it will do so.

The process is somewhat complicated though. Write “open firefox” and press Enter to send the command to the AI. It will then process it in the cloud, which may take a couple of seconds, to return a “dialog box” in the end. You need to activate this box to start the program.

You can also open Start, type firefox and press Enter to launch the application this way. This is faster and does not require an Internet connection.

Similarly, Windows Copilot may open the Settings app or control, very specific, devices, such as Bluetooth. When asked to open the wireless Settings, Copilot returned a button to open the Settings and another to turn on Bluetooth. Not exactly what the command wanted.

Windows Copilot supports some of the other features that Cortana supported. You can get the weather forecast, get directions, or to make calculations.

The AI produces strange answers sometimes. When asked about next week’s appointments, it returned information about typical pregnancies.

News is another weakness of Copilot, as it has no real-time access at the time. When you ask the AI about recent events, e.g., latest Football or Soccer scores, you will inadvertently end up with old information. The weather report is accurate, however.

Copilot’s weaknesses and flaws

Windows Copilot has certain weaknesses and flaws that make it less of an ideal assistant or partner on Windows.

Two of the main issues are that it requires an Internet connection for all of its functionality and that it lacks access to (most) real-time information.

The Internet requirement delays certain commands, including the opening of programs on the system. In fact, users still need to click on a button to launch a program, provided that Windows Copilot identified it correctly.

A better approach would be to process certain commands locally. It makes no sense to send the “open app” command to the Internet to return a button that the user needs to click to launch it.

Another issue is hallucinations. The AI may sometimes return information that is not accurate or unrelated to the user’s request.

Closing Words

Microsoft’s work on Windows Copilot continues; this is a good thing, as it needs work to become a useful tool for some users. Right now, it loses out against the deprecated Cortana in many regards.

The fact that most Windows users ignored Cortana or did not like it does not help make a case for Windows Copilot either.

Only time will tell whether Windows Copilot will become a useful tool for Windows users and administrators, or if it will land on Microsoft’s growing pile of deprecated services in the next couple of years (only to be replaced with the next big thing).

Now You: do you use digital assistants or AI tools?

Optional Windows Updates fly under the radar on many Home systems. They come as different types. The most common is the monthly non-security preview update for Windows 10 and Windows 11.

There are other optional updates, e.g., bug fixes, other non-security updates and also improvements.

Up until recently, administrators had to search for optional updates manually on Windows to install them. This changed with the introduction of a new setting in Windows Updates.

Administrators who open Settings > Windows Update on Windows 11 see the “Get updates as soon as they’re available” option there. The same option is also available on Windows 10.

Microsoft explains on this Help page that the setting allows users to get “the latest non-security and feature updates as soon as they become available”. The caveat; Microsoft says that this only applies if the update becomes available for the device.

In other words: while it ensures that the update is installed when it becomes available, it still leaves it to Microsoft when that happens.

The following happens when the functionality is enabled in Settings. The device “will be among the first to get the latest non-security updates, fixes, improvements, and enhancements” says Microsoft. The setting does not affect security updates, which will still be pushed to devices, even if set to Off.

The “check for updates” button of Windows Updates also downloads and installs the most recent updates for the device.

The Group Policy gives administrators more control over the functionality.

Optional Windows Updates Group Policy configuration

Administrators may use the Enable Optional Updates policy to control the installation of these updates on managed devices.

1. Open the Start Menu, type gpedit.msc and select the Edit Group Policy from the results. This launches the program.
2. Navigate to Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates >B Windows Components > Windows Update > Manage updates offered from Windows Update > Enable optional updates.
3. Set the policy to Enabled to configure the delivery of optional options. Set it to Disabled to turn off the optional updates delivery on the device.

A menu lists the three configuration options when Enabled is selected.

• Automatically receive optional updates (including CFRs) — This installs the latest optional updates on the device. It includes Controlled Feature Rollouts and optional cumulative updates.
• Automatically receive optional updates — Same as above, but without Controlled Feature Rollouts.
• User scan select which optional updates to receive — The user is in control via Windows Updates in Settings.

Notes on optional updates and their delivery

At least some optional updates need to be considered beta. This is true for the optional non-security updates that Microsoft releases about two weeks before their inclusion in the regular cumulative updates for the operating system.

Most Windows users may want to skip the installation of optional updates, especially on production machines.

It is also a good idea to create backups regularly, not Windows Backup though, as it doesn’t include all data. Windows includes some restoration functionality, but it has failed for some users in the past.

Closing Words

Administrators may want to disable Optional Windows Updates on most managed devices to limit potential issues that could arise from the installation. Home users may also want to block these for the most part. There is still the option to activate the “check for updates” button, if you read about a new update that you want to install.

Now You: how do you handle optional updates?