Comment by EvanAnderson 2 days ago
Workarounds to what?
Windows, just like any other operating system, has its set of contrivances for different functions (in this case automated installation). Having used RedHat Kickstart I don't see it as hugely different.
have you tried installing win11 and creating an account without internet access?
After their most recent shenanigans, the writing is on the wall, the nails are in the coffin - https://www.pcgamer.com/software/operating-systems/microsoft...
They've disabled the ability to finish Windows installation without having an internet connection and connecting your Microsoft account.
> According to a Windows Insider blog post announcing Preview build 26200.5516 (KB5054687) the bypassnro.cmd script has been removed in order to "enhance security and user experience of Windows 11."
> "This change ensures that all users exit setup with internet connectivity and a Microsoft Account."
lol.
Never been a better time to jump ship to Linux, honestly. I held out for ages because I was a princess and wanted everything to be perfect. I used Linux 24x7 as an admin and developer, but from afar and never locally as my daily driver. Finally bit the bullet July '23 and it has been nothing but smooth sailing.
I just deployed three new Windows 11 Pro machines yesterday (two HP, one Dell) with local accounts. The HP OEM image was pre-24H2 so it doesn't count, but the Dell machine was 24H2.
I booted to the OOBE, hit <SHIFT>-<F10>, ran:
REG ADD HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\OOBE /v BypassNRO /t REG_DWORD /d 1
shutdown -r -t 1 -f
Pro doesn't have an option to join a domain in the default OOBE. I think that went away in some iteration of 10.
Pro definitely doesn't because the above procedure is what I always have to do to get joined to a domain without creating or using a Microsoft Account. (And then I've got a local account to clean up.)
I don't think this is the way it should be, but just to answer your question, you'd go through the normal setup for a single user PC, then join AD in the Settings app.
Older versions of Windows allowed domain join in the OOBE. It was handy.
you can also do ipconfig /release in some contexts (works in hyperv but never in the real world for some reason sigh)
Yes-- that particular procedure is a workaround. My first post was asking why unattended installation, arguably a feature, is some kind of "workaround".
I assume this is being posted/upvoted in terms of “workaround for Microsoft Account requirement”. I actually mostly like Windows, but that particular thing they're pushing is more infuriating than any other, and there have been lots of others.
See the page's description for “Allow Windows 11 to be installed without internet connection”:
> This effectively runs the oobe\BypassNRO.cmd command, which was discovered by Reddit user AveYo. You still have to click the I don't have internet button during Windows Setup.
> Only check this option if your computer really does not have internet access. If you just want to create local (“offline”) user accounts in Windows 11, you can always do so in the _User accounts_ section of this form.
Thanks for that. I didn't even think about the whole Microsoft Account requirement in the context of unattended installs.
I like Windows quite a bit. I get unreasonably angry when the ability to see the source code would be useful, or when I can't minimize irritations by recompiling. I feel that way about all closed-source software, though. By and large I'm happy to use it for some things. I've used it a long time. I don't dislike it.
What's happening w/ Windows, though, fills me with frustration and sadness. The Microsoft Account requirement is absolutely asinine. The Windows 10 and later UI changes are ridiculous. The continued push to take away user rights on computers they own, by sinking DRM tendrils deeper into the OS, is frustrating.
It feels like developers w/ little to no real world experience using Windows and who have no ability to stand up to the whims of UI "designers" (who also don't seem to acutally use Windows), sales and marketing, and the copyright cartels have been put in charge of Windows.
It’s not an asinine requirement when you think of how users would otherwise have to store Bitlocker recovery keys. Microsoft would have to give up device encryption for the masses if there was no automatic off-device key storage.
For those that truly care to use a local account, there’s a SKU for that.
> For those that truly care to use a local account, there’s a SKU for that.
Curious if you mean LTSC or Enterprise or something else? https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/microsoft.power...
The problem with a lot of the other SKUs is the lack of a good way to buy a single license legitimately from Microsoft: https://old.reddit.com/r/Windows10LTSC/wiki/acquisition
I have used grey-market sellers in the past and had a great experience buying working individual licenses of Visual Studio, Office, Windows Server (I set up a domain so I could get my Group Policy on and kill the crap that way), and Windows 10 Enterprise (minimum SKU where the Telemetry-disabling GPO does anything). I only ever had one code that didn't work, and the seller immediately replaced it with one that did. Yes I know they're probably all bought with stolen credit cards, but once you activate it they don't take it back so I don't care lol
I haven't attempted to use Windows 11 at all though so I dunno if Windows 11 Enterprise would let me join my domain without Microsoft Account like 10 Enterprise does. I have zero desire to find out even once the 10 “““EOL””” date comes :(
Again: preferring a default is not a reason to take away an important choice.
I can see the argument for bitlocker for laptops, due to easier theft, but for desktops the tradeoff against being able to swap disks is one to consider.
(I'm in an odd position: I tried to avoid using my Microsoft account for a new PC, gave up and logged in, then it decided the account was somehow unsuitable and gave me the local account I wanted anyway.)
I just stick to qubes, thanks but nothanks. To treat every OS as hostile seems to be the sane solution these days.
Using Qubes is orthogonal to what operating systems you're running as guests within it. Every OS is hostile, if only passively (leaking information to the network in the myriad of ways that have become acceptable today, for example).
Workarounds on Linux systems are necessary for possible hardware compatibility issues or bugs which are not intentional.
Workarounds for commercial OSes are necessary to avoid user-hostile behaviors that are completely intentional and likely to get worse over time.