- A new update from Microsoft will permanently disable Internet Explorer 11 on most commercial and consumer versions of Windows 10.
- Users will not be able to roll back these changes and any attempts to launch Internet Explorer will see users redirected to Edge browser instead.
- Microsoft has been slowly pulling support for the legacy browser, however, it will still be available for certain versions of Windows 10.
The once-ubiquitous Internet Explorer has died a slow death. Microsoft officially pulled support for the browser last year in June, and it has since lived on in a vestigial form through Edge’s IE Mode. In the months since the browser still received support for Windows Server 2022 and earlier versions with long-term service extensions in place.
This would only be for Windows 10, as Windows 11 doesn’t even include the Internet Explorer app.
Now, a new update from Microsoft will see the Windows 10 version of Internet Explorer permanently disabled, according to Neowin.
Microsoft announced this final nail in the coffin in December, with the Redmond tech giant writing, “Today, February 14, 2023, the retired, out-of-support Internet Explorer 11 desktop application will be permanently turned off using a Microsoft Edge update on certain versions of Windows 10.”
“E11 visual references, such as the IE11 icons on the Start Menu and taskbar, will be removed by the June 2023 Windows security update (“B” release) scheduled for June 13, 2023,” it added.
While for most users the Internet Explorer app will be removed and all attempts to use the app will redirect users to Microsoft Edge. Corporates and other organisations that have migrated to Edge with IE mode to handle legacy use cases will apparently not be impacted by the update.
However, Microsoft warns firms that have not done so may have their operations impacted after the update.
The app will remain in support (though out of scope) for these versions of Windows 10, for the desktop version of Internet Explorer 11:
- “Windows 8.1 (note: Microsoft Edge version 109 will be the last supported version on Window 8.1,
- Windows 7 Extended Security Updates (ESU) (note: Microsoft Edge version 109 will be the last supported version on Windows 7),
- Windows Server SAC (all versions),
- Windows 10 IoT Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) (all versions),
- Windows Server LTSC (all versions),
- Windows 10 client LTSC (all versions),
- Windows 10 China Government Edition,
- Internet Explorer mode in Microsoft Edge
- Internet Explorer platform (MSHTML/Trident), including WebOC and COM automation.”
After the legacy browser-killing update is rolled out to both consumer and commercial devices, there will be no way to undo the change, says Microsoft.
The update will be rolled out from Tuesday 14th February over the next few weeks, as per company policy.
[Image – Rubaitul Azad on Unsplash]
