Adrian, I'm not going to argue with you. You simply haven't been hit by the latest repackaging of GWX, and it has occurred, in what Microsoft has deemed to be a critical update. What you propose is not completely ineffective, by any means, but it does occasionally allow Microsoft to sneak something through, and many have reported this on multiple occasions on Bleepingcomputer. Here's the link to the Windows 10 Support Forum, which is where most people who have Win7, Win8, or Win8.1 have turned for help on this. The number of threads complaining about the reappearance of GWX through "sneaky means" are legion. Do not be surprised if you eventually end up with GWX again, and through no direct fault of your own. Microsoft is being, to put it mildly, aggressive about getting GWX on, or back on, every machine that they can.
What's interesting to me is the difference in experiences people are having with GWX. I have it running on a Windows 7 laptop, Windows 7 desktop, and Windows 8.1 laptop in my household. If we get a direct pop-up notification on any of these more than once per week that's a notable exception. Others, such as Tom Behler her and many others elsewhere report that it's nagging on an almost hourly basis. I would love to know what triggers the difference in behavior. Brian
