Microsoft moves to Always On VPN, DirectAccess is now a relic from the past.

[D.Draker]

DirectAccess is the latest feature to hit the list of deprecated features in Windows client and server editions. For those unfamiliar, DirectAccess was introduced in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 as a new method for clients to connect to their corporate networks without installing a VPN. However, with time, Microsoft developed new network capabilities to improve the experience, and now it is ready to replace DirectAccess with a better alternative.

 

According to the official documentation, Microsoft suggests migrating from DirectAccess to Always On VPN:

DirectAccess is deprecated and will be removed in a future release of Windows. We recommend migrating from DirectAccess to Always On VPN.

Microsoft has a dedicated page that describes why users should move from DirectAccess to Always On VPN and how IT admins can implement the change. You can check it out on the official Microsoft Learn website.

Besides DirectAccess and NTLM, in 2024, Microsoft deprecated Driver Verifier GUI, NPLogonNotify and NPPPasswordChangeNotify APIs, TLS server authentication with short RSA keys, and Test Base for Microsoft 365.

As a reminder, deprecated and removed features are not the same. Components that are no longer in active development may remain in the operating system for a while and even continue to work. However, they do not receive new functionality or fixes. Eventually, Microsoft deletes them from Windows, as was the case with WordPad, which is no longer part of the upcoming Windows 11 version 24H2 update.

You can track the list of deprecated features in client Windows versions here. Recently, we also published a list of features Microsoft no longer develops in Windows Server 2025, so check it out here.

Source:

Taras Buria · Jun 11, 2024 17:22 EDT · HOT!6

https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-to-remove-directaccess-from-windows-recommends-switching-to-always-on-vpn/

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Klemper]

Probably a very good idea, I recently had so much trouble with a simple search on DuckDuckGo from my real London IP.

https://msfn.org/board/topic/186217-solved-xcom-failedscriptvendor/?do=findComment&comment=1266413

[Dixel]

Nice, but only if Microsoft will flatten to the ground those pesky sites that always want to see your IP so they can track you. Cloudfare, for example. Otherwise - useless, and it looks more like a marketing strategy. If such sites will still block that VPN, too, this whole idea serves no purpose to us.

[Dixel]

17 hours ago, Klemper said:

Probably a very good idea, I recently had so much trouble with a simple search on DuckDuckGo from my real London IP.

Microsoft VPN will surely work with Bing.

[xrobwx71]

As long as the VPN connection is good, then yeah. 

 

Google added a VPN to Android and it's always on. (You can toggle it off if needed) I leave it on and have no issues.  Pixel 8 Pro

[vinifera]

never used one/never had need for one

Edited June 15, 2024 by vinifera

[NotHereToPlayGames]

3 hours ago, vinifera said:

never used one/never had need for one

me neither

it only shifts "trust" from one party to another

[D.Draker]

5 hours ago, NotHereToPlayGames said:

it only shifts "trust" from one party to another

Good! In this case we (at least) know who will read through our communications! That VPN is supposedly aimed to use SHA 2, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SHA-2

SHA-2 (Secure Hash Algorithm 2) is a set of cryptographic hash functions designed by the United States National Security Agency (NSA), NSA are the good guys, I don't mind 

them reading my emails, I don't plot against America. 

[Saxon]

Being 100% of the time without VPN doesn't look "clever" per se.

[Tripredacus]

I don't think I've ever used that function and I don't think my company has either. They set up VPN tunnels in the network but I think that the OS is agnostic to it.