Windows 8 performance has been unsatisfactory, especially in the enterprise. In the past few months, I asked dozens of customers whether to consider upgrading to Windows 8, and no one said yes.
But Microsoft's Windows 8.1 update is not as bad as Windows 8, you can use the familiar user interface. The other good news is that you have a lot more choices.
The seven features in Windows 8.1 are listed here. These features may allow you to change your mind and deploy in an enterprise environment:
Windows 8.1 offers two versions of the enterprise ——pro And the enterprise version. The Professional Edition will include domain/group policy interaction and execution as well as BitLocker encryption (a significant improvement from Windows 8). Windows 8.1 Enterprise Edition includes Windows To Go, which allows the operating system to run from a USB drive. The Enterprise Edition also includes familiar technologies such as AppLocker, BranchCache, and DirectAccess. The Windows 8.1 Basic Edition is still the launch version of the home user. You will not be surprised to see that this version will enter the enterprise through Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), so you'd better start thinking about how to control it.
Work Folders is the biggest new feature for Windows 8.1 for businesses. Work folders share and sync files through the cloud. Essentially, SkyDrive is integrated into the operating system, but you need a Windows Server 2012 system. But I can still hear now, "How do all the sensitive client information end up on Joe's computer in Europe?" There are still many security implications and considerations.
The two major improvements around BYOD are Workplace Join and Open MDM. The former allows users to register their own systems through the corporate network while allowing IT to control what users can and cannot do. Open MDM has an application programming interface that allows third-party mobile device management (MDM) vendors to offer Windows 8.1 integration. This is a huge improvement.
The Metro interface makes traditional PC users hostile. Microsoft has returned to the start button, but it just takes you to the modern Metro UI. If you still want to use the traditional Start Menu feature, you still need something like Start8, I haven't found anyone to want to. I don't know why Microsoft will make such settings in a few decades to drive people away from the desktop. It is clear that some aspects are related to money.
The Windows 8.1 update continues Windows Defender integration and improvements, including network behavior monitoring and tighter integration with Internet Explorer 11. In most organizations, Windows Defender technology is a complement and does not replace third-party anti-malware.
Printing using Near Field Communication (NFC) is possible. This is another feature of Windows 8.1 for BYOD users. BYOD users can build NFC into their mobile devices. In my own experience, I suspect that there are more problems than this solves. But in the long run, NFC printing is an available choice for those mobile and tablet users, and most of them ignore this.
The built-in Skype is suitable for old-fashioned Skype users, and perhaps also the National Security Agency.
Windows 8.1 has some other little-known pitfalls that can lead to corporate security issues. The first is that the Smart Search feature is activated by default. Ironically, this means that Microsoft monitors your search on the local system in a "Scroogle" manner.
In addition, if a user logs in with a Microsoft account, SkyDrive starts by default. This may not be a big problem for traditional Windows user logins, but you can see my updates. SkyDrive—— cloud file sharing —— means more security risks.
Finally, I still like Windows 8, but I am a small department, deploying and maintaining Windows 8.1 in the enterprise is another matter. Some recent improvements in Windows —— especially the built-in management tools —— in BitLocker and Windows 8.1 Enterprise Edition make companies more trustworthy. This is your decision, or choose to ignore.