MAS <3
Bonus: If you use the new TSForge method, it’s a permanent hardware registration. Meaning you’ll never have to activate Windows again, just connect to the internet and it’ll do it’s thing when it calls home.
It also has ESU support for Windows 10, so you can register for the extended security updates after it reaches EOL completely free.
Just a tip: If you installed Pro or better you can use Group Policies (gpedit.msc) to strip the OS bloat down slightly more than the Home versions. Education and Enterprise also have the telemetry spyware completely removed. But they have a few extra things you’ll probably never use and you’ll want to disable (like their terrible Remote Desktop stuff, Work Folders, etc.)
(I dual boot for gaming. So I know the pain.)
I’ve actually seen medical offices setup similarly. Some random computer in a back office with all of their patient data on it, completely exposed to the internet, protected by nothing but a few Windows Firewall rules limiting the connections to a few IP blocks. Just so they can share information office-to-office for say… a root canal and dental crown to be done on the same day, but at 2 separate locations due to limited space.
I’d run out of fingers if I were to count the number of times I’ve seen similar setups, 3-4 toes would be needed at least.
Fun Fact: I once worked with a team that were mapping Iran’s internet infrastructure… for reasons. One of the ways we were able to zero in on the more important systems was because we kept finding these weird Cisco routers that had Telnet exposed to the open internet. All of which just so happened to share neighboring IPs (or close enough) with some pretty serious government systems. Fun times.
I’m not a CISCO tech, so I don’t know the specifics beyond that. But I do remember that the Telnet connection would permanently ban any IP that failed even a single password attempt. So they had that going for them, I guess lol
A good example: their SN30 Pro has a bad bluetooth chip in it that makes Xinput support really laggy (I don’t know the specifics). It’s been years now, and had a few firmware updates, but there’s still been no fix. It works great for everything else though, so I still keep it around.
Just a warning for anyone thinking of buying one after reading this…
Open-Shell can fix that when you’re forced (at gunpoint, obviously) to use Windows ;)
Let me introduce you all to: Sassy the Sasquatch. Made entirely in MS Paint.
Oh, in that case, I assume they have you running Pro or Enterprise? If so, ignore what I said about disabling the Remote Desktop and Work Folder stuff. Work Folders especially though, they’re a complete pain (or were) and used pretty frequently. So you’ll probably be working with them a bit.