Microsoft is once again rolling out the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, now including a fix for a bug that deleted user files. Also, on board is a new feature in the Feedback Hub which gives users more control over issues.
Over the weekend, Microsoft was forced to pull the Windows 10 October 2018 Update. Users had shown the manual update version of the release was deleting user files like documents and images. It was unknown how long Microsoft would take to issue a fix.
We speculated the company would roll out a fix through yesterday’s Patch Tuesday and that’s what happened. The company says it is just testing the fix at the moment, but it should protect user files. Indeed, the company says further data loss is “one one-hundredth of one percent of version 1809 installs.”
Reported Feature
A new feature in the Feedback Hub has also been added, allowing Insiders to report how severe an issue is. Microsoft explains what the exact problem was and how the fix solves the problem:
“This occurred if Known Folder Redirection (KFR) had been previously enabled, but files remain in the original “old” folder location vs being moved to the new, redirected location. KFR is the process of redirecting the known folders of Windows including Desktop, Documents, Pictures, Screenshots, Videos, Camera Roll, etc. from the default folder location, c:\users\username\, to a new folder location. In previous feedback from the Windows 10 April 2018 Update, users with KFR reported an extra, empty copy of Known Folders on their device.”
Based on feedback from users, we introduced code in the October 2018 Update to remove these empty, duplicate known folders. That change, combined with another change to the update construction sequence, resulted in the deletion of the original “old” folder locations and their content, leaving only the new “active” folder intact.”
General Users
Windows Insider Program users will now decide if this fix works or not. If it does, we guess Microsoft will re-release the Windows 10 October 2018 Update to all users. That will probably happen before the end of the month.
Earlier this week, Insider chief Dona Sarkar advised affected users to contact Microsoft directly. While the company has now fixed this issue for future downloads, there are plenty of users who are already affected.
