Post
by bphlpt » Mon Jul 16, 2018 7:44 pm
True, but ...
If you needed or wanted to use the files involved with the update, and you were content and were able to do so before the update existed, and applying the update caused something to break for you, then you are left with few options.
You can choose to not apply the update, as 5eraph and many others choose to do, hoping that eventually MS comes up with an update that does not have the problems that this one does for you. In the meantime, you will continue to be nagged to apply the update, unless you choose to hide it, and you will continue to use a file that is not "secure", from a threat that you might or might not ever run into, depending on your computing uses and habits and whatever other virus and threat protections that you employ.
You can choose to apply the update. You might be one of the lucky ones that are not effected by the various problems that many folks have reported after they applied the update. Or you might decide that being "protected" is more important than whatever problems the update causes. However, since MS obviously does not do the amount of testing with an update that they used to before releasing it, or to be fair the sheer number of different hardware platforms and software applications in use today make such thorough testing essentially impossible, can you be completely assured that this update really "protects" you from the existing possible threat or that it doesn't open up the possibility of a new threat that hasn't been discovered and exploited, ... yet? But hey, at least you won't be nagged to apply the update, and you will be as "secure" as everyone else that applied the update. On top of that, again, you might not ever run into the potential threat this update "protects" against anyway. And if MS ever does release an update that fixes the problems with this one, it should apply easily.
Or you can choose to apply a modified version of the update. The modified version uses an older version of one of the files involved in the update, with it's version number changed so that the OS, and MU/WU, does not know that the update has not been completely installed. As a result, you won't be nagged to install the update, and this modified version does not seem to cause the problems that the original one does. True, you won't be completely "secure" IF you ever run into the potential threat that exists, and IF that threat targets something that the modified file is involved with, and IF that treat can even effect you, depending on your computing uses and habits and whatever other virus and threat protections that you employ. But are you any less secure than if you simply did not apply the update? In this case I don't think so. In my mind, the risk is no different than if you hid the update. You aren't nagged to install an update, and you aren't completely protected from a threat that targets a particular version of a particular file. However, you will be able to take advantage of the "improvements", if any, in any of the other files provided in the modified update. And if MS ever does release an update that fixes the problems with this one, it should also apply easily.
So, while if I were 5eraph I would probably have included the modified update, he probably chose the safer option of not including either version, leaving the end user with the choice of which option to use. Only you, as a user of your system, with your OS and applications installed, knowing what your computing uses and habits are, knowing whatever other virus and threat protections you employ, and knowing the level of risk that is acceptable to you, can decide which approach best meets your needs. Regardless of which option you choose, any future update from MS should easily apply.
Just my thoughts and opinions on the matter.
Cheers and Regards
