Back in March, Microsoft said it was halting all optional Windows 10 updates. The company said the move was designed to ease pressure on developers during the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting stay/work-at-home measures. As the world emerges cautiously from the viral crisis, Microsoft is taking the same approach.
According to the company, options Windows 10 updates will return in July. When Microsoft announced the postponement of updates, the company reasoned it would reduce the pressure on dev’s.
“We have been evaluating the public health situation, and we understand this is impacting our customers. In response to these challenges we are prioritizing our focus on security updates,” said Microsoft at the time.
The delay in optional Windows 10 updates started in May and included this month. That means when they return in July, they will have been postponed for two months.
Microsoft has announced returning optional updates will be rolled out differently to before. If you’re unfamiliar with the company’s monthly update structure, it uses A, B, C, and D releases. These letters simply denote the week of the month:
- A (1st week of the month) – Microsoft Office updates
- B (2nd week of the month) – Update Tuesday (Patch Tuesday)
- C and D (3rd and 4th weeks of the month) – Cumulative optional updates for non-security fixes
As the name suggests, optional Windows 10 updates are not downloaded automatically and must be installed manually. Microsoft says its C and D week updates will differ when optional releases return in July.
Microsoft says these updates will not be called “Preview” updates. Furthermore, they will be available only to users on Windows 10 and Windows Server 1809 and newer. Microsoft is also aiming to streamline the releases. The company says all Preview updates will arrive on the C week of the month.
Weeks A and B will remain the same, while for the time being there will be no releases on Week D each month.
