Microsoft Promises to Take a Slower Pace with the Re-Release of October 2018 Update

Rafia Shaikh
Microsoft windows 10 security windows 10 tamper protection

Microsoft had surprised many back in October when it pushed Windows 10 October 2018 Update to everyone. The company also skipped the rollout for the Release Preview ring - a strategy that proved to be almost fatal for version 1809 which was put to a pause for several weeks.

The company today started the re-release process of Windows 10 October 2018 Update (or what should be called "November 2018 Update") but has promised to take a slower, more measured approach.

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"While the April Update had the fastest Windows 10 update rollout velocity, we are taking a more measured approach with the October Update, slowing our rollout to more carefully study device health data,"  John Cable, Director of Program Management, Windows Servicing and Delivery wrote in a blog post today (emphasis is ours).

Microsoft slightly modifies how "check for updates" works to avoid problems

One of the biggest concerns that were reported after the release of Windows 10 October 2018 Update is how the "check for updates" button works in the Settings app. While users would click on it just to see if there are any new updates available for their PCs, the clicking action would begin the installation process without receiving any further confirmation or consent.

Due to this, it was estimated that tens of millions of PCs may have downloaded version 1809 even though their PCs weren't actually ready. In today's announcement, Cable wrote that the company has slightly modified how check for updates would work.

While the ideal solution to this problem would be to display an additional prompt to get user consent, Microsoft has currently limited the functionality to at least some extent. Cable writes:

We will offer the October Update to users via Windows Update when data shows your device is ready and you will have a great experience. If we detect that your device may have an issue, such as an application incompatibility, we will not install the update until that issue is resolved, even if you “Check for updates,” so you avoid encountering any known problems. For those advanced users seeking to install the update early by manually using “Check for updates” in settings, know that we are slowly throttling up this availability, while we carefully monitor data and feedback.

This seems like a phased rollout strategy where the company wouldn't show an update on a machine on which it wasn't currently available. However, this limitation would at least help protect some users against accidental installations.

We would still advise you not to click on "Check for updates" unless you are ready for the installation process to begin. Also, make sure you create a backup to avoid any surprises.

If you are ready to take the risk but Windows 10 October 2018 Update isn't available for your machine, you can download the ISOs directly from here. But, if you are going to run this on a daily driver, we will recommend you to wait a couple of weeks to see if there are any further issues plaguing the latest Windows 10 version.

- Version 1809 is here but can your PC run it?

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