Microsoft to force install the Microsoft 365 Copilot app in October (bleepingcomputer.com)

Less clickbait coverage from ghacks: Copilot App will install automatically on Windows for many users, but there are exceptions https://www.ghacks.net/2025/09/15/copilot-app-will-install-a... (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45249782)

Notably:

- You can opt out (Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Copilot > Enable the "Turn off Windows Copilot" policy)

- You won't get it if you're in the EU

- You'll only get it if you have an M365 app installed (not all windows users)

Now that Steam has Proton, my only remaining need for windows has evaporated. Good riddance.

This is a great sign that uptake is low and someone needs a good Q4 on their performance figures for bonus season.

Huh. I have a force install of GNU/Linux on my Windows machine scheduled for October as well. That's a weird coincidence.

The harder they squeeze...

I installed Linux - Debian 13 with the Gnome desktop - on a few machines which used to only run Windows. These machines are used by non-technical family members aged 14 to 50. When starting the machine they get the choice between booting either Debian or Windows with files on the older Windows installs being available from within the Linux sessions.

I recently checked which system was used most and was surprised to see that this ended up being Debian, on some machines Windows was not even started after I explained the workings of the machines. Linux has been 'ready for the desktop' for decades now while Microsoft is doing its best to make Windows less and less suitable for general-purpose desktop use. Even their former strongholds have withered, especially gaming is now better done on Linux than on recent Windows iterations. I suspect they know this and are trying to reap the last remaining fruit before the plantation succumbs to the self-inflicted disease since I see no other explanation for their clearly user-hostile actions.

Life is too short to use Windows...

I had resisted upgrading to Windows 11 and was just on the cusp of doing it, but now I will never, ever upgrade. I don't care about security aspect of Windows 10 anymore. I don't trust Microsoft. They had a few good years after Nadella joined where they were doing decent things but now they have resumed their monopolistic behavior and shoving things down our throats like Recall and this shit and I'm done with it. I'll switch to MacOS before I upgrade to Windows 11.

They're slipping it past you. Nobody is forcing you to install the update. Nuance.

Meanwhile I am still getting charged for the app even though it is part of my subscription.

OMG, the bloody marxist Europeans AGAIN limiting the freedom of choice and free speech of American mega-corps!!1ONEohenee

:)

You know it's great software when they shove it down your throat instead of making you pay extra for it.

To any microsoft workers: is this stuff really getting zero pushback internally? It is clear power users don’t want it and that is sort of who copilot is pitched towards vs the masses.

If they are uninstallable why is this such a big deal? Isn’t there some popular powershell script around they removes all the stuff?

At some point I'm sure they'll force Microsoft Recall on everyone. But they'll do so piecemeal so there's less outrage.

We get Copilot at work. From what I can see the Copilot app is just the Copilot web interface in its own container and webview, though I've not gone poking at it.

Considering the web page in a browser can easily eat >5gb RAM just to display a single conversation (it's honestly mind boggling; how can something use 5gb of memory and a noticeable amount of CPU just to display relatively little and lightly formatted text?), having it self-contained makes killing it to reclaim memory easy.

For those of you wanting to get more angry, the "menu key" on my new Thinkpad has the default action of Copilot and the Copilot logo printed on it. On the other hand, he Ctrl key is finally in the -r-i-g-h-t- left place at least...

What's Microsoft thinking here? We got Windows on our kids' laptops and it's a pain to do anything with every time, just an amalgamation of decades worth of UIs held together with duct tape, looks terrible and performs even worse than it looks. When I'm thinking of the next big upgrade, Windows isn't even on the list of options anymore, and that's not even an ideological statement in any way.

I keep shutting the stupid thing off.

My work PC has the app, because but like Onedrive and NewOutlook, the Windows app has fewer features, more bugs, and is more difficult to use that the Web app. At this rate Linux with Microsoft Web apps will have superior feature set than their 'Native' Windows apps.

I miss those innocent days in the early 2000's when Microsoft was still evil but the internet's non-ubiquity meant they couldn't realistically expect to force this kind of thing on their users.

Reality is really in a bad place when kids who grew up listening to Franz Ferdinand are nostalgic for Windows Vista. It's like a Slovenian nostalgic for Tito.

If you find yourself needing to install Windows 11 for some reason (I'm doing my best to avoid it), you can try this to create a stripped-down Windows 11 installer with most of the crap removed:

https://ntdotdev.wordpress.com/2025/09/06/tiny11-builder-sep...

I would love to see a chart of how long it takes windows to load by year.

It power on instantly, and now it’s minutes.

Bloat bloat bloat.

Besides Excel, CAD/CAM programs and maybe games? Is there really a reason to use windows?

How many monthly “active” users is that?

Must be time to trick the market again. “Look guys, AI demand is still growing!”

A man climbs the mountain to seek wisdom from the old sage. He bows and says:

-- In October, Microsoft will force Microsoft 365 Copilot upon us all.

The sage furrows his brow, strokes his beard, and replies:

-- Tell me then... what the hell is Microsoft 365? A calendar?