Microsoft is ready to pull the plug on VBScript, making it optional in Windows 11 24H2
After decades of service, Microsoft is deprecating VBScript -- or Visual Basic Scripting Edition. The deprecation process will first see VBScript being changed into an optional, on-demand feature with the release of Windows 11 24H2, although it will be enabled by default.
The timeline continues into 2027 when VBScript will remain a FOD (feature on demand), but will be disabled by default. Ultimately, Microsoft will carve the feature from Windows completely, and the company has published advice about the implications.
Microsoft is deprecating VBScript in Windows
Microsoft has quietly announced plans to deprecate VBScript in "future releases of Windows". The company has not been more specific about the timeline than this, but there are some details about the deprecation process.
As part of a phased withdrawal, VBScript (Visual Basic Scripting Edition) was initially removed from Internet Explorer, and before being killed off in Windows completely, it will become an optional component. While a useful scripting language in its day, VBScript became something of an abused security nightmare, and has since been replaced by PowerShell.