Just upgraded to Windows 10, now what should I do?

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I recently upgraded my 64x desktop from Windows 7 Home to Windows 10 Pro (1903. Build 18362.239) and made sure to keep my computer disconnected from the internet while doing so.  Before I reconnect, I want to make sure I know what to do in order to avoid buggy updates and block telemetry issues.  Recommendations about what to do with Bitlocker settings and what to do in regard to OneDrive and Windows Security settings would also be greatly appreciated!

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To control Windows Updates in Win10, these are my recommendations for GUI settings and Group Policy settings (Semi-Annual Channel is no longer available) and the reasons I chose them. To move to a later version is simply changing the Feature deferral to the appropriate number of days.

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crimsoncricket

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Make a complete backup of your system prior to Internet connection.

On permanent hiatus {with backup and coffee}
offline▸ Win10Pro 2004.19041.572 x64 i3-3220 RAM8GB HDD Firefox83.0b3 WindowsDefender
offline▸ Acer TravelMate P215-52 RAM8GB Win11Pro 22H2.22621.1265 x64 i5-10210U SSD Firefox106.0 MicrosoftDefender
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crimsoncricket

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geekdom wrote:

Make a complete backup of your system prior to Internet connection.

Do you mean I should make an image of my system?  If so, could you recommend a guide on how to do that (especially one detailing how to do it using DVD-Rs)?

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There are many flavors of backup software used by many people in this forum. I’m sure some those people can recommend their choices.

I use the plain-vanilla backup that came with the system and is now tagged as Backup and Restore (Windows 7).  Things don’t have to be fancy; they just have to work.

Get yourself two or three external hard drives with USB connection. These are going to be your backup drives — 1TB or so and make sure you get a study reliable brand. Swap them out each time you make a backup. Backup often, backup everything, and make sure the system image is included in the backup.

Make a system repair disc (using one of your DVD-R) and make sure it boots. Label it and place it somewhere where you can find it easily. Someday you will need it.

On permanent hiatus {with backup and coffee}
offline▸ Win10Pro 2004.19041.572 x64 i3-3220 RAM8GB HDD Firefox83.0b3 WindowsDefender
offline▸ Acer TravelMate P215-52 RAM8GB Win11Pro 22H2.22621.1265 x64 i5-10210U SSD Firefox106.0 MicrosoftDefender
online▸ Win11Pro 22H2.22621.1992 x64 i5-9400 RAM16GB HDD Firefox116.0b3 MicrosoftDefender

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areader, crimsoncricket

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Just to add, after you get group policy set to delay “Feature Updates”, keep in mind that we are at Defcon 3 so let it update 1903 to 18362.592 before setting “Quality Updates” to 30 days.

Don't take yourself so seriously, no one else does 🙂
All W10 Pro at 22H2,(2 Desktops, 1 Laptop).

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crimsoncricket

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Would you consider a WD “My Passport” portable hard drive or Seagate Backup Plus Ultra Touch to be sturdy and reliable?

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Any external USB disk will be better than no backup. Choose whatever you can afford and use it regularly.

To check the external disk is behaving install a free SMART monitoring program and query the external disk regularly – CrystalDiskInfo or Hard Disk Sentinel trial.

cheers, Paul

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Ascaris

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I’ve got 2 WD My Passports and a Seagate GoFlex, and they’ve all done well.  It’s hard to say which models of hard drive are truly reliable these days, as a manufacturer can have a really bad model and a really good one from the same series, and there would not be any obvious way to know– you can’t necessarily tell just by “Seagate” or “WD.”  If there were HGST-branded external drives, that might be one to look at, but HGST is a division of WD now, so who even knows.

As Paul T wrote, any backup is better than no backup.  The external backup drives should last a long time, since they’re not going to accumulate a lot of in-use hours (be sure to unplug them when you’re not using them, so that they are isolated from the potential threats you’re trying to mitigate with backups).  I personally buy externals from Seagate or WD on price and capacity, lacking any other reliable statistics. I have multiple externals, and I rotate from one drive to the next when performing the backups, so if one fails, the other will still be decent (and my main backup device is my “backup server,” which is really just a spare PC with 11 TB worth of hard drives installed).  Redundancy mitigates the odd failure of a backup drive.

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Paul T wrote:

Any external USB disk will be better than no backup. Choose whatever you can afford and use it regularly.

To check the external disk is behaving install a free SMART monitoring program and query the external disk regularly – CrystalDiskInfo or Hard Disk Sentinel trial.

cheers, Paul

But DO NOT leave your backup drive(s) connected…only when doing an actual backup. FWIW, Many folks use free Macrium Reflect to image / backup.

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Ascaris

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