The important part of this announcement is:
"though Microsoft is of course also providing corporations and end users
with workarounds should they wish to remain on their current IE version."
We'll stay on top of this, and provide the recommended work around when
it's available.
Aaron
On 12/15/2011 11:39 AM, Russ Kiehne wrote:
I saw this on another list? Does anyone know anything about it?
We believe this is important enough that you need to be made aware of it.
This is all we currently know about this.
In Major Shift, Microsoft Will Auto-Update Internet Explorer Users.
Microsoft announced this morning that it will begin auto-updating
Internet
Explorer users' PCs to the latest versions of the browser, a situation
that
will vary somewhat according to which Windows version they're using.
This is
similar to how Google's Chrome browser works, though Microsoft is of
course
also providing corporations and end users with workarounds should they
wish
to remain on their current IE version.
"In an evolution to our update model for Internet Explorer, we will be
instituting auto updates for IE users across Windows XP, Vista, and 7
using
Windows Update," Internet Explorer senior director Ryan Gavin told me
earlier this week. "We'll start this process in January in Australia and
Brazil and then gradually scale up and roll it out worldwide."
Microsoft says that this change is good for all of its core browser
audiences, including consumers, developers, and the enterprise. It's good
for consumers because it lets them stay up to date and secure
automatically;
all they need to do is enable Automatic Updates and the browser will be
updated as needed, with no prompts. It's good for developers, because it
lets them focus on the latest web technologies like HTML 5 without
worrying
whether most users are accessing the web with a modern browser.
And it's good for the enterprise because they can continue to use
tools like
Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) and the IE Automatic Update Blocker
toolkits to ensure that they can override this functionality and
update on
their own schedules.
The experience will vary a bit depending on which version of Windows
users
are running.
Those with Windows XP and Internet Explorer 6 will be updated to IE 8,
Gavin
told me, because that's the most recent IE version supported on XP. But
users with Windows Vista or Windows 7 will be updated to IE 9.
Looking ahead, Microsoft will rollout Internet Explorer 10 along the same
lines as previous IE versions, first via several months of manual user
downloads only, followed by the addition of IE 10 to Windows Update.
At that
point, it would be downloaded automatically to all supported Windows
versions.
Today, IE 8 and 9 are offered through Windows Update as an Important
update,
Gavin noted, but the install process requires user interaction and,
often, a
PC reboot. So many users skip the install or forget about it. With this
coming change, IE installs will now be automatic and will occur with
no user
interaction. This ensures that they are always up to date, as is the
case
with security updates and other fixes.
"IE is how millions of Windows customers connect to the Web, so
keeping that
part of Windows updated at all times is critical to keeping them safe
online,"
a Microsoft blog post reads. "With Automatic Updates enabled through
Windows
Update, customers can receive IE 9 and future versions of Internet
Explorer
seamlessly without any 'update fatigue' issues."
Customers who have declined previous installs of IE 8 or 9 through
Windows
Update will not be automatically updated, Microsoft added. And
consumers who
wish to block any IE automatic updates can do so via an IE Blocker
Toolkit.
Versions are available today for IE 8 and 9, and Gavin told me one
would be
made available for IE 10 in the future as well.
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