Over three months after its first release, Microsoft has finally started the automatic rollout of Windows 10 version 1809 (via ComputerWorld). Last month, the company made the October 2018 update fully available for “advanced users” who manually check for updates in Windows Update, but this new “phased rollout” means that the major update will roll out too many more PCs.
“We are now starting our phased rollout to users via Windows Update, initially offering the update to devices we believe will have the best update experience based on our next generation machine learning model,” the company explained yesterday in an update on the support page for Windows 10 version 1809. It’s not the first time that Microsoft uses machine learning to identify which users can safely install the update on their PCs, but if you’re running Windows 10 Pro, we remind you that you can pause automatic updates in settings (a feature coming this year to Windows 10 Home users with the 19H1 update).
Even though the propagation of Windows 10 version 1809 should accelerate over the coming weeks, there are still four upgrade blocks in place due to compatibility issues with certain Intel display drivers, AMD GPU drivers, F5 VPN clients, and Trend Micro’s OfficeScan and Worry-Free Business Security software. Microsoft is still working with its partners to resolve these issues, but the company isn’t giving an ETA for now.
The October 2018 update is pretty unique in the history of Windows 10 update, as Microsoft had to pause its rollout after discovering a serious file deletion bug. The company has since been very cautious following the re-release, and according to AdDuplex the update was installed on less than 10% of Windows 10 PCs last month. Let us know in the comments if you have already received the update on your PC, and if you don’t we also invite you to check out our detailed review.
