A client had issues because their browser was failing to open websites. They also wanted their computer cleaned up. The browser (Internet Explorer 9) would not upgrade to Internet Explorer 11 so they were happy to use Google Chrome instead.
The next day when they found when the tried to open Outlook 2010 they received the error message: You need Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 or later to use the feature.
The upgrade of their Microsoft Internet Explorer from Internet Explorer 9 to Internet Explorer 11 had failed. What wasn't noticed was the failure in installing Internet Explorer 11 had removed Internet Explorer 9. There was no longer any Internet Explorer available for Outlook to use.
The Microsoft site now only has Internet Explorer 11 to download and install. All previous versions have been removed. This a shortcoming of Microsoft's approach. In my opinion Microsoft should provide an archive of older versions of software but instead removes older software. Perhaps to push people to upgrading. The result is users are forced to look to third party sites to find older Microsoft software and often that means potentially exposing users to malicious sites.
The user was happy to continue to use Google Chrome as their browser. Given Windows 7 reaches end of life in under a year, Google Chrome means they'll most likely be able to continue using their computer into 2020, whilst Internet Explorer may no longer be supported. The real problem is Outlook required an active version of Internet Explorer to work.
I was able to download a copy of Internet Explorer 10 from a third party site (softonic.com) and scanned the file to ensure the file contained no malware. However, the installation did not appear to complete successfully, or at least there was no message at the end and the install screen just disappeared.
At this point I was stuck. There was probably a partially installed version of Internet Explorer 11 installed, but not working and not registered in the Registry. Next I decided to uninstall Internet Explorer 11 which can be seen in Add/Remove Programs if you show all the updates. There was a very old version of Internet Explorer 11 from around 2011 installed. Even though the computer had Internet Explorer 9 as the active browser, Internet Explorer 11 had previously been installed but not active. I ran the uninstall on Internet Explorer 11.
Weirdly what then happened was the more recent install of Internet Explorer 11 appeared in the list of software. Internet Explorer 11 still wasn't working. I ran the uninstall of Internet Explorer 11. At this point Internet Explorer 10 now became available. I tried to again install Internet Explorer 11 which again failed so it was not possible to upgrade to the latest version of Internet Explorer for Windows 7.
At this point the user had Internet Explorer 10 installed and their Outlook was again working. Whilst not ideal, the user had everything they wanted. Outlook was working and they were happy to use Google Chrome. The potential benefit of Google Chrome is it may continue to work when Windows 7 reaches end of life whereas Internet Explorer 11 may no longer be supported.
It is not particularly satisfying when a computer won't install all the latest updates. Sometimes however it isn't economically feasible to fix an issue and it is necessary to reach a compromise. To fix this computer may require a complete reinstall and the cost would far exceed the value of the computer, which in this case was around eight years old. The user was kept informed at all times and from their point of view, everything is working and they have a path going forward into 2020.
Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support
PS. If you download software from a third-party site make sure you perform appropriate scans to check the software is safe.
The next day when they found when the tried to open Outlook 2010 they received the error message: You need Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 or later to use the feature.
The upgrade of their Microsoft Internet Explorer from Internet Explorer 9 to Internet Explorer 11 had failed. What wasn't noticed was the failure in installing Internet Explorer 11 had removed Internet Explorer 9. There was no longer any Internet Explorer available for Outlook to use.
The Microsoft site now only has Internet Explorer 11 to download and install. All previous versions have been removed. This a shortcoming of Microsoft's approach. In my opinion Microsoft should provide an archive of older versions of software but instead removes older software. Perhaps to push people to upgrading. The result is users are forced to look to third party sites to find older Microsoft software and often that means potentially exposing users to malicious sites.
The user was happy to continue to use Google Chrome as their browser. Given Windows 7 reaches end of life in under a year, Google Chrome means they'll most likely be able to continue using their computer into 2020, whilst Internet Explorer may no longer be supported. The real problem is Outlook required an active version of Internet Explorer to work.
I was able to download a copy of Internet Explorer 10 from a third party site (softonic.com) and scanned the file to ensure the file contained no malware. However, the installation did not appear to complete successfully, or at least there was no message at the end and the install screen just disappeared.
At this point I was stuck. There was probably a partially installed version of Internet Explorer 11 installed, but not working and not registered in the Registry. Next I decided to uninstall Internet Explorer 11 which can be seen in Add/Remove Programs if you show all the updates. There was a very old version of Internet Explorer 11 from around 2011 installed. Even though the computer had Internet Explorer 9 as the active browser, Internet Explorer 11 had previously been installed but not active. I ran the uninstall on Internet Explorer 11.
Weirdly what then happened was the more recent install of Internet Explorer 11 appeared in the list of software. Internet Explorer 11 still wasn't working. I ran the uninstall of Internet Explorer 11. At this point Internet Explorer 10 now became available. I tried to again install Internet Explorer 11 which again failed so it was not possible to upgrade to the latest version of Internet Explorer for Windows 7.
At this point the user had Internet Explorer 10 installed and their Outlook was again working. Whilst not ideal, the user had everything they wanted. Outlook was working and they were happy to use Google Chrome. The potential benefit of Google Chrome is it may continue to work when Windows 7 reaches end of life whereas Internet Explorer 11 may no longer be supported.
It is not particularly satisfying when a computer won't install all the latest updates. Sometimes however it isn't economically feasible to fix an issue and it is necessary to reach a compromise. To fix this computer may require a complete reinstall and the cost would far exceed the value of the computer, which in this case was around eight years old. The user was kept informed at all times and from their point of view, everything is working and they have a path going forward into 2020.
Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support
PS. If you download software from a third-party site make sure you perform appropriate scans to check the software is safe.
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