Way back in 2017, Microsoft announced the schedule by which it would phase out support for Adobe Flash in its web browsers. Well, the time has come: Microsoft will remove Flash from Windows in July.
“To help keep our customers secure, Microsoft will remove the Flash component from Windows through the KB4577586,” an update to a previous Microsoft blog post notes. “Additionally, please note that when you update to Windows 10, version 21H1 or later, Flash will be removed.”
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That KB update, called Update for Removal of Adobe Flash Player, will be included in the Preview Update for Windows 10 versions 1809 and above starting in June, Microsoft adds. It will then be included in every subsequent cumulative update as well.
Then, starting in July, KB4577586 will be included in the latest cumulative update for Windows 10 versions 1607 and 1507 as well. The KB will also be included in the Monthly Rollup and the Security Only Update for Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012, and Windows Embedded 8 Standard. So, all supported Windows versions.
Interested in removing Flash right now? It’s not a bad idea: You can download and install KB4577586 manually right now.
dftf
<p>Remember the update above only removes the <em>Flash Player </em>that came built-into Windows 8.x and 10; if you want to remove the ActiveX and NPAPI versions that could be installed separately, go to helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/uninstall-flash-player-windows.html to download Adobe’s uninstaller (or look in "<em>Programs and Features</em>" or "<em>Add or Remove Programs</em>").</p><p><br></p><p>Old versions of <em>Google Chrome</em> (and other Chromium-based browsers, like <em>Brave</em>, <em>Opera</em> and <em>Vivaldi</em>) may also still have a built-in Flash player installed; be sure to check each browser installed is up-to-date, as all recent versions do not support Flash. (For <em>Firefox</em>: again, I’d advise being on the latest version, though you can also go to the "Plug Ins" section and disable Flash there if for some-reason you need to run an older version of it. Or just uninstall the "NPAPI" version from Windows itself.)</p><p><br></p><p>As stated above, from 21H1 onwards, it will no-longer be part of a Windows 10 install-image; 20H2 will be the last to come with it.</p><p><br></p><p>In terms of other stuff from the past you could uninstall also, remember "Shockwave Player" and "Adobe Air" are both also no-longer supported; and "Silverlight" dies this October. For most average non-business PCs thesedays, you can likely get rid of "Java", too.</p>