Samsung has agreed to stop changing the settings for Windows Update on its hardware after getting pressure from users -- and even Microsoft -- to end the practice "within a few days."
"We will be issuing a patch through the Samsung Software Update notification process to revert back to the recommended automatic Windows Update settings ...," Samsung said in a statement Friday.
The move came in response to complaints that the practice could undermine security for Samsung's Windows devices because it interfered with the patch service. Samsung's SW Update, used to offer up its own updates for its PCs and tablets, changed Windows Update's settings to prevent it from automatically downloading and installing fixes from Microsoft. Specifically, SW Update changed the setting to "Check for updates but let me choose whether to download and install them."
Here's how the brouhaha unfolded last week:
Windows Update will play an even more prominent role in Windows 10, which is slated to arrive July 29. The new OS will be delivered to Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users via Windows Update -- the first time the company has used the service for a major refresh. And, once installed, the new OS will automatically download and install updates on Windows 10 Home machines. Windows 10 Home is the main consumer-grade version of Windows. After they upgrade, users will no longer be able to pick which updates to apply, as they can now.
With reports by Gregg Keizer at Computerworld.