I’ve long argued that in making Windows 10 free
In a new official blog post Microsoft has admitted Windows 10 needs to improve in these areas and that significant changes are on the way:
“Prior to the Creators Update, Windows 10 made most of the decisions for you regarding when updates would be installed and didn’t provide ways to tailor the timing to your specific needs,” explained John Cable, Microsoft Director of Program Management within the Windows Servicing and Delivery (WSD) team. “What we heard back most explicitly was that you want more control over when Windows 10 installs updates. We also heard that unexpected reboots are disruptive if they happen at the wrong time.”
Cable’s confession is commendable. Windows 10 has suffered several high profile blunders when reboots happen at the wrong time thanks to its overzealous attitude to restarts and I’ve also been contacted by many users hit by this, including a scientist who lost thousands of dollars of data after Windows 10 rebooted with an update while it was still being processed.
Cable’s solution? With the Windows 10 Creators Update (coming next month) users will get far more options:
“For example, you can specify exactly when you want an update to occur (including the ability to reschedule an update if your original choice ends up being less convenient than expected), or ‘hit the snooze button.’ The ‘snooze’ capability allows you to pause the update process completely for three days when you need uninterrupted time on your device. In addition, we are widening the ‘Active Hours’ time so Windows doesn’t install an update at times when you want your device to be ready to use.”
Windows 10 will give you more control over your updates in the Creators Update. Image credit:... [+]
It’s a good start, though Microsoft still has work to do here as the updates themselves lack transparent language making it difficult to know what is being installed in the first place. Furthermore Cable doesn’t bring up that the Creators Update has more powerful controls hidden away in Settings > Update & security > Advanced. Here (at least in the current beta builds) consumers can delay the installation of updates for up to 35 days - something previously limited to Pro editions.
But the Microsoft confessions don’t stop there. In the same blog post Michael Fortin, CVP of Windows and Devices Group Core Quality, also stressed that “new privacy-centric features [are] coming in the Creators Update. This new functionality will make it easier to choose the privacy and diagnostic data collection settings that are best for you.”
Windows 10 diagnostic data will also get more granular with the Creators Update which launches in... [+]
Again it’s commendable but this sort of control really should have been in from the start. And what motivated all these about-turns? Cynics will point to the stagnation of Windows 10 adoption since Microsoft began charging for upgrades, but those more forgiving will at least be pleased to see the platform slowly heading in the right direction.
Yes, the high cost of moving to Windows 10 just got a little lower…
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