SMB1 was created by IBM back in 1983, with a proud age of almost 40 years, the “Server Message Block” protocol has of course been a risk for modern networks for a long time. However, SMB1 has not been an important component since 2017. Because since the Fall Creators update for Windows 10, it is only optional on Microsoft operating systems.
It is rarely used, as Microsoft does in a Contribution explains: “The Home and Pro editions still had the client, allowing users to connect to the large number of third-party NAS devices for home users and small businesses that only supported SMB1.” In concrete terms, this means that the protocol automatically deactivated itself if no active use was detected for 15 days. Since version 1809 of Windows 10, SMB1 is no longer installed in Pro versions.
At some point it’s completely over
Now the Redmond-based group is taking it a step further: “And now it’s time to finish the last remaining piece. If you install a Windows Insider Dev Channel build in any variant of the Home Edition, the SMB1 client will not be installed.”
So this effectively means that there is no longer an issue of an Insider Preview of Windows 11 in which SMB1 is still enabled by default. This will also be standard from the next feature update of the current operating system, writes the Redmond group.
If you still need SMB1, you can activate the protocol manually. In the future, however, Microsoft wants to completely remove SMB1 from Windows, if you still need it, you will have to resort to an external installation package (from Microsoft).
