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This is particularly scary when combined with Windows' propensity to commandeer everything you plug into it. My only W10 machine is an HTPC in my living room,

This is particularly scary when combined with Windows' propensity to commandeer everything you plug into it. My only W10 machine is an HTPC in my living room, into which I've plugged a 4TB external hard-drive. That box has no other purpose than to run Kodi and serve up my media, so the primary drive inside the PC itself is mostly free and has plenty of hard-drive space. Nonetheless, I periodically open the external itself in the file explorer to sync its contents with my backup drives, and discover that Windows decided to use my external drive to store logs, update files, and other garbage. It seems to have no concept of the idea that an external drive is for my storage, not Microsoft's storage. That lack of separation between the OS update process and userland worries me that the same bug which wipes out user directories could extend to the external, as well. I'd just as soon unplug it before letting Windows 10 update, but then there's that nasty habit of updating automatically without warning me...

Tajnymag 8y ago
If so, have you considered for example the LibreElec distribution? If you don't need anything other than Kodi and an occasional file management, you'd be good.
- AdmiralAsshat 8y ago
  I should have mentioned that it's also occasionally a casual gaming machine. The emulators are all through RetroArch these days, so that migration would be seamless. It's the Steam games that would be the sticking point. I know I could probably get most of them running under WINE, but it's the guaranteed compatibility of a 20-year gaming library that makes it difficult to fully close the door on Windows.
  - Zhyl 8y ago
    Have you tried the new Steam Play (Proton)? In short, steam will now automatically wrap all windows games up with Wine and DXVK. Many many games are now working out of the box without any faff.
    - therein 8y ago
      Yeah, it is actually pretty impressive how well it works and how performant it is. What is upsetting me is that the unsupported games are not unsupported because of the game itself but because of the anti-cheat systems they use not supporting Linux.
wilsonnb3 8y ago
To be fair, I also have no concept of an external drive being for my storage and not OS usage. Storage is storage, especially if it’s always plugged in.

Tajnymag 8y ago

If so, have you considered for example the LibreElec distribution? If you don't need anything other than Kodi and an occasional file management, you'd be good.

AdmiralAsshat 8y ago
I should have mentioned that it's also occasionally a casual gaming machine. The emulators are all through RetroArch these days, so that migration would be seamless. It's the Steam games that would be the sticking point. I know I could probably get most of them running under WINE, but it's the guaranteed compatibility of a 20-year gaming library that makes it difficult to fully close the door on Windows.
- Zhyl 8y ago
  Have you tried the new Steam Play (Proton)? In short, steam will now automatically wrap all windows games up with Wine and DXVK. Many many games are now working out of the box without any faff.
  - therein 8y ago
    Yeah, it is actually pretty impressive how well it works and how performant it is. What is upsetting me is that the unsupported games are not unsupported because of the game itself but because of the anti-cheat systems they use not supporting Linux.

wilsonnb3 8y ago

To be fair, I also have no concept of an external drive being for my storage and not OS usage. Storage is storage, especially if it’s always plugged in.