Windows 7 Users Are Unable To Shut Down PCs, Cause Still Unknown

Microsoft has officially ended support for Windows 7 but it seems that it is being forced to continue doing so anyway and it has only itself to blame. While the EOL for the operating system means it will no longer provide security updates and bug fixes, it doesn't mean it would render Windows 7 computers unusable. Yet that seems to be the case as the number of complaints about suddenly broken Windows 7 computers rise, including one that is preventing users from shutting down at all.

Microsoft recently pushed out an update to fix what it broke in an attempt to notify users that Windows 7 has "expired". Owners of computers running that version were suddenly greeted by a black wallpaper that they naturally objected to and very vehemently. Microsoft conceded but yet another and more serious problem seems to have cropped up.

For the past 24 hours and more, Windows 7 users are complaining that they are being told they have no permission to shut down their own computer. Of course, they've been able to do so normally in the past which only deepens the mystery.

Various causes and workarounds have been presented but not all of them work for everyone. Microsoft has only recently acknowledged that it has received reports, not that it has confirmed the issue. It also hasn't given any word yet on a more definitive fix.

It will have to push out a fix, of course, despite the end of official support for Windows 7. And it better take care not to introduce yet another showstopping bug while doing so. Not unless it wants to be accused of using such tactics to push people to upgrade to Windows 10, which is also a recipe for a lawsuit.