The “Get Windows 10” app sits patiently in the Windows 7 system tray, waiting patiently for it’s next victim.

Last week Microsoft started  pushing their Windows 10 upgrade on Corporate users whose computers are connected to domains. The easy upgrade path is nice, but there are a lot of reasons you wouldn’t want to upgrade. Fortunately, they made it pretty easy to block the upgrade on domains if you have a Group Policy setup.

1. Go to Group Policy Management and find the domain policy that your users use.
2. Right-click on the policy and choose “Edit”
3. 

   Group Policy Management Editor

   Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update.
4. Set “Turn off the upgrade to the latest version Windows through Windows Update” to “Enabled.”

When your computers reset or receive an updated Group Policy by running “gpupdate /force” the Upgrade to Windows 10 app should tell you that the administrator has blocked upgrades.

I had some trouble getting this to work as a local policy on non-domain computers, so I took the alternate route of installing GWX Control Panel.

One of the best features with Veeam 9 is that you no longer need to RDP to the server that houses Veeam to restore files or change backup settings. It can now be done from a console installed on a local desktop. On the PC you want the console installed, just put the disc in or mount the ISO. Instead of choosing to install the full suite, choose “Veeam Backup & Replication Console.” The installer will check to make sure your computer has all the dependencies installed.

When it’s installed, point the Console to the Veeam Server’s IP Address or Host Name, and type in the required username and password. You’ll now be able to run Veeam without remotely connecting to a server! Enjoy!