Internet Explorer 11 (IE11) to be retired on 15 June 2022

[Koldov]

I saw the GPO, but we are not using Edge... pretty much went down the Chrome route early on before Edge became a proper alternative to IE.

[jthompson]

Disabled by GPO here (the "Disable Internet Explorer 11 as a standalone browser" option), with an enterprise mode site list set up for the one thing that we need that for (CCTV dash).

 

The June CU doesn't do anything to IE, I don't think. You'd still be able to launch IE it's just that it's not supported any longer. It will get removed by an update later this year, I suspect, although the MS article about suggested that it wasn't going to be done via Windows Update, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[chaplic]

I saw the GPO, but we are not using Edge... pretty much went down the Chrome route early on before Edge became a proper alternative to IE.

 

I would still flick that switch. I anticipated a need to run IE after mking that change but after a while of faffing about coudln't find a solution, it really does suppress IE quite well.

 

Though I am expecting there are businesses out that that have just put * in IE mode...

[Koldov]

Don't remove IE if you're using IE mode anywhere.

 

So 'IE mode' in Edge still requires the guts of IE, just not the 'standalone browser'?

 

Disabled by GPO here (the "Disable Internet Explorer 11 as a standalone browser" option)

 

Do you mean that it redirects to Edge on your machines, do you know what happens when you set that GPO and don't have Edge installed?

[jthompson]

So 'IE mode' in Edge still requires the guts of IE, just not the 'standalone browser'?

 

 

 

Do you mean that it redirects to Edge on your machines, do you know what happens when you set that GPO and don't have Edge installed?

 

Correct. IE mode in Edge uses the underlying DLLs, etc. that make up the Trident engine. That's not going anywhere yet, it's just the standalone IE application that's being phased out.

 

With that GPO option set, launching iexplore.exe results in a message box saying "This action is restricted. For more information, please contact your system administrator". There's just an OK button for that, which when clicked launches Edge. If you don't have Edge, I guess it just won't launch Edge after not launching IE.

Edited June 16, 2022 by jthompson

[msi_school]

A little off topic but I saw an amusing post about the IE End of Life date

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/sysadmin/comments/vcsbs7/my_condolences/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share

[Jaan]

So....... how do we download Chrome now on fresh installs

 

[Koldov]

Theres a GPO you can set which basically redirects any call to IE to edge. MS are coming out with patches in the coming months, but the switch setting is pretty comprehensive. Don't remove IE if you're using IE mode anywhere.

 

Disabled by GPO here (the "Disable Internet Explorer 11 as a standalone browser" option), with an enterprise mode site list set up for the one thing that we need that for (CCTV dash).

 

The June CU doesn't do anything to IE, I don't think. You'd still be able to launch IE it's just that it's not supported any longer. It will get removed by an update later this year, I suspect, although the MS article about suggested that it wasn't going to be done via Windows Update, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

OK, so to enable this GPO it appears I need to download and install the latest ADMX as it doesn't appear in our Group Policy options.

 

However, although there 'might' be no issue with this (as the latest ADMX are Windows 11 based and we have no intention of going there for a long time):

 

http://www.edugeek.net/forums/windows-11/228106-where-do-i-install-windows11-admx-files.html#post1957517

 

There is the chance of something going a bit wrong, so bearing this in mind does anyone know the specific ADMX files needed to copy in to the store to enable it?

 

I have seen there was the option of copying them from a machine with the latest ADMX so it should work if I can find the individual files from the ADMX download?

[CHiLL]

OK, so to enable this GPO it appears I need to download and install the latest ADMX as it doesn't appear in our Group Policy options.

 

However, although there 'might' be no issue with this (as the latest ADMX are Windows 11 based and we have no intention of going there for a long time):

 

http://www.edugeek.net/forums/windows-11/228106-where-do-i-install-windows11-admx-files.html#post1957517

 

There is the chance of something going a bit wrong, so bearing this in mind does anyone know the specific ADMX files needed to copy in to the store to enable it?

 

I have seen there was the option of copying them from a machine with the latest ADMX so it should work if I can find the individual files from the ADMX download?

Bear in mind that Windows 11 ADMX templates are not backwards compatible with Windows 10. Microsoft recommend using the ADMX templates for the OS that you have the majority of on your domain.

 

I have installed the Windows 10 21H2 ADMX templates and "Disable Internet Explorer as a standalone browser" is there.

[Koldov]

Bear in mind that Windows 11 ADMX templates are not backwards compatible with Windows 10. Microsoft recommend using the ADMX templates for the OS that you have the majority of on your domain.

 

I have installed the Windows 10 21H2 ADMX templates and "Disable Internet Explorer as a standalone browser" is there.

 

Well, there seems to be some confusion amongst us then (if you read the link I put in the post, someone is saying pretty much the opposite)...

 

Yes, I totally agree with only installing the ADMX for the OS on the network, which is why I asked if I could pull just the relevant ones instead of all of them.

 

This due to the fact that I need IE disabled, but the only options I got from asking that question was use the GPO...

[chaplic]

Or just set via reg key

 

Disable Internet Explorer 11 as a standalone browser (admx.help)

[Koldov]

Quick bump on this as having set the appropriate GPO (and verified in REG) I can still open IE11!

 

 

Will the GPO only take affect if you have Edge installed (as I see that it is listed as a prerequisite) that can't be right can it...?

 

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/deployedge/edge-ie-disable-ie11

 

You can't disable IE11 via GPO unless you have another MS browser installed...?

[chaplic]

Should work with any browser; will require your desired browser to be set as default though. Can't see anything wrong there otherwise unless a HKCU key is somehow contradicting it.

[6Foot2]

Link: Microsoft Is Forcibly Removing Internet Explorer From Your PC | WIRED

 

MICROSOFT'S INTERNET EXPLORER deserved to die. Or at least to be put out of its misery. The 27-year-old browser has long been bogged down by performance and security problems, and Microsoft has fully moved on to its Edge browser. (While nearly everyone else has moved on to Google Chrome.)

 

Microsoft officially murdered the beleaguered IE last year, though its ghostly presence still lingers on Windows PCs around the world. In an effort to scrape up the remains, Microsoft has now begun automatically removing instances of Internet Explorer from users’ computers. A software update to the Edge browser that began rolling out this week will permanently disable Internet Explorer 11 on any Windows computer that still has it installed.

 

In some ways, it is a fitting end. Microsoft had a habit of forcing Internet Explorer into nearly everything, to the point where the practice sparked a federal antitrust suit against the company in 1998. Going in and forcibly removing the software feels like a characteristically overbearing end to the cycle.

 

Of course, all things are just made of stardust, and the fragmented remains of Internet Explorer will continue on in some form or another. Visual elements of the browser like its icons and shortcuts will remain on desktops until a Windows update due later this year zaps those too, and Microsoft says it will support some basic compatibility features with Internet Explorer within the Edge browser until 2029.