14 DAY TRIAL // The final update for Windows 7 breaks down the desktop wallpaper, and more than a week after it shipped it, Microsoft finally admitted that this is indeed a known bug and a fix is coming.
However, the more interesting bit is who will be getting this new Windows 7 update. Officially, Windows 7 no longer receives security updates and hotfixes after it reached the end-of-support deadline on January 14.
So technically, Microsoft can very well ignore this bug and leave it unpatched. However, given that customers paying for extended security updates also need a fix, Microsoft will indeed develop one, and most likely, these computers will be the only ones where the wallpaper bug will be resolved. In other words, if you’re a home user still running Windows 7 on your system, you may not get the fix anytime soon.
Microsoft’s wording on who gets the fix and who doesn’t is a bit vague:
“We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release, which will be released to all customers running Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1.”
The wallpaper bug
So what exactly happens after installing the last update? Shipped as KB4534310, this update breaks down the desktop wallpaper in a way that turns a custom background to black when the wallpaper mode is set to Stretch. Microsoft says there is actually an easy workaround: use any other mode than Stretch, so if you switch to Fit, Fill, Tile, or Center, the wallpaper should be displayed correctly.
Furthermore, the software giant recommends users to “choose a custom wallpaper that matches the resolution of your desktop,” as the bug would be avoided this way and the photo would be displayed correctly.
The next Patch Tuesday when Windows 7 could theoretically get a fix takes place on February 11.