Microsoft's first Windows 10 ESU Patch Tuesday release fails for some

On the eve of its Ignite conference, Microsoft has managed to break the first Extended Security Update (ESU) for many commercial Windows 10 customers. The November 11 update, KB5068781, fails to install on devices activated via the Microsoft 365 admin center, throwing a 0x800f0922 (CBS_E_INSTALLERS_FAILED) error message. "The …

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"business as usual"

"For Windows 10 users, it appears that business as usual is more the order of the day." - certainly because business as usual is working to generate more profits.

[Benegesserict Cumbersomberbatch]

evolving into an agentic OS

For this to happen, hundreds of offspring of the non-agentic OS have to be born, most of which die because they are worse at being an OS that is either agentic or non-agentic. All except the one that comes along that is both viable as an agentic OS and more useful than the non-agentic version.

That doesn't sound like what's happening.

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: evolving into an agentic OS

You're describing evolution by natural selection, survival of the fittest. What they're proposing is evolution by artificial selection, survival of the profitable.

[Outski]

Re: evolving into an agentic OS

Remember that, in the context of "survival of the fittest", fittest means most suited to prevailing conditions which, in the MS environment, means, does it squeeze maximum revenue for minimum input? If so, it's the fittest, so will survive.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: evolving into an agentic OS

Perhaps the word "agentic" is simply evolving to mean "crap" generically, rather than the more specific instances of dystopian or dysfunctional horror to which it has previously been confined.

[Anonymous Custard]

"evolving into an agentic OS."

Computer says no?

[Dave K]

"evolving into an agentic OS."

Here we go again, MS doing what they want to do - not what users want them to do. Truly the era of enshittification shows no signs of abating...

[vtcodger]

An Agentic OS

Indeed. The concept of an "agentic OS" sounds kind of interesting. Perhaps one will evolve someday. But why on Earth would any sane business perform gratuitous risky surgery on their cash cow? Is it really possible that the entire tech industry have, as it appears, simultaneously lost their everloving minds?

[Aladdin Sane]

Re: An Agentic OS

They're all in a race to be the first to "get it right", thus sparing themselves when Skynet achieves sentience

[Rich 2]

Re: An Agentic OS

It is rather odd. An AI bubble is one thing - it’s just a bubble like blockchain or the metaverse.

But the lunacy around AI has evolved way beyond that. All the tech companies, almost without exception, seem to have been snorting the same “shit” and seen to be on a “we gotta get AI into everything right NOW or WE WILL DIE!!!!” mindset. And none of them are listening to their customers, most of which are screaming NO!!!!!! It is, quite literally, crazy.

It will be interesting to see where it ends

[mirachu]

Re: An Agentic OS

We are indeed living in interesting times. I hate it.

[David Hicklin]

Re: An Agentic OS

> We are indeed living in interesting times. I hate it.

All I can say is Thank God I am retired and out of this at a $worksplace.

At home I can choose my own OS.

[nobody who matters]

It has always appeared that almost every previous W10 update has either been broken or has broken something when installed. I can't think that anyone is particularly surprised that the first ESU update would do likewise.

[Nematode]

It's deliberate. Yet another tactic to get people off W10. Or at least, they really don't give a ????, and are not doing any testing. Or even any decent coding.

[Anonymous Coward]

I think such a conspiracy would need competence which MS no longer has, now it has Coprolite insted.

[Roland6]

Not quite a conspiracy, MS are demonstrating consistency through the regular messing up of W11 and other updates…

[nematoad]

Really?

Pavan Davuluri boasted that the operating system was "evolving into an agentic OS."

I thought, naively, the the job of an OS was to get out of the way and let you use the PC as you see fit.

Sort of like a janitor going around dealing with all the messy little details like file systems and process control, so that you don't have to.

Instead this bozo is proposing that MS takes the reins and relegates you to an onlooker whilst your "agentic" OS does whatever MS has instructed it to do.

Instead of Windows being your servant MS now proposes that it would like to turn the OS into your co-equal if not your master.

That is likely to go down like a lead balloon when people find out what that actually means.

[Nematode]

Re: Really?

Yes, not dissimilar to politicians migration from serving their constituents and the wider idea of democracy to the money-and-notoriety-grubbing animals* they have by and large become. And from companies selling wares in order to enrich everyone involved to enriching billionaires at an astonishing annual growth rate but not those who work in these companies.

Cynical? Moi?

* sorry, that's insulting to animals.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Really?

"That is likely to go down like a lead balloon when people find out what that actually means.", outside of the commentariate of the El Reg I'm afraid the vast majority really don't care. The OS just comes with the device they chose based on colour or TikTok recommendations or is selected and managed by their employer.

I know the term 'sheeple' is unloved but is is apt, the majority of people on this earth would rather not think for themselves if they can help it. And the majority of businesses selling things to them or exploiting them are really very keen that they don't start.

So tbh MS, Google, Meta and every other company enshittifying their products as fast as possible, really can get away with doing whatever they like and the majority will lap it up like cream.

[TVU]

"Microsoft's first Windows 10 ESU Patch Tuesday release fails for some"

^ This is what happens when you sack all your human quality control testers* so that the poor Windows users now have to do that job.

*If I recall correctly, that mass sacking happened back in 2014.

[Anonymous Coward]

And diverse hardware was replaced with VMs for testing.

[Groo The Wanderer - A Canuck]

Microsoft is the "Swedish Chef" {Muppet) of the industry. Every day it's "Bork! Bork! Bork!"

[FuzzyTheBear]

Frankly ..

What did you expect from MS ? For updates to go smoothly and flawlessly .. sorry .. ill be on the floor laughing for a few minutes ..

[DS999]

You know I almost wonder

Whether Microsoft has been doing A/B testing of having humans and AI do the QA of their patches, and they've decided they're willing to accept more failures from AI in the short run in exchange for being able to lay off the small army of QA staff they have when AI reaches parity?

[druck]

Re: You know I almost wonder

They laid off the QA staff a decade ago. You can't hallucinate up quality.

[Anonymous Coward]

Gosh

It’s like they don’t know what they’re doing…

[Donn Bly]

Agentic OS?

Agentic OS? I would rather have a Geriatric OS. I want a mature operating system that has experience, follows procedure, that does what it is told, and does it well. An operating system that enables me to run the applications that I want and need, and notifies me if there is a problem or has a suggested change of procedure.

I do NOT want an agentic OS that ignores the instructions given to it to do what it "thinks" is best like a newbie employee. If I tell it to open the pod bay doors, I want to open the pod bay doors dammit!

[Nate Amsden]

I'll wait

I'm patient, give them a year to figure out this ESU stuff maybe I'll sign up then..

[PeterM42]

Re: I'll wait

Don't hold your breath!