Windows 10's first major update rolls out

Martin Brinkmann
Nov 12, 2015
Updated • Jul 5, 2017
Windows, Windows 10
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25

Microsoft announced today that the first major update for its newest operating system Windows 10 is rolling out to users across the globe. The update, dubbed Threshold 2 by Microsoft during development, is the first major update of the operating system.

The company announced the launch of the update on the official Windows Experience blog earlier today, mentioning that Windows 10 has reached a point with it in "platform maturity" where it can be recommended confidently to whole organizations for deployment.

The update features changes that Windows Insiders have tested for a while. Notable updates are performance improvements and updates to the official system browser Microsoft Edge.

windows 10 update threshold 2

Microsoft does not reveal many of the improvements that went into the update on the blog post. If you read Ghacks regularly, you know about some of the updates already.

  1. Activation improvements. It is possible now to enter a Windows 7 or Windows 8 product key to activate Windows 10 directly. The main advantage of this is that you don't need to have access to a device running a previous version of Windows to upgrade anymore, as the product key is all that is needed for that now.
  2. Cortana supports new features and handwriting. The digital assistant can track movies and ticketed events for you, warn you about missed phone calls, sync your messaging and calling history, and understand inked notes. Plus, it works for local accounts as well now.
  3. Microsoft Edge has received numerous improvements including better support for HTML5 and CSS3 technologies, upgrades to its rendering engine, media sharing support, tab previews and more.
  4. Colored Title Bars make a return in this build. Gone are the days where white was the only color available for program windows. Visit PC Settings > Personalization > Colors and make sure "Show color on Start, taskbar, action center, and title bar" is set to on. This affects only the active window and not those that are inactive
  5. New Privacy options: Email and call history access for applications can now be turned on or off under Privacy.
  6. New "Find my Device" option to locate it with GPS and location tracking.
  7. Options to install apps to another drive are enabled again.
  8. The (Control Panel) Theme Settings have been reverted back to those of Windows 8.1 and earlier systems.
  9. New default apps: Skype Video, Messaging, Phone and Sway.
  10. Updates of all built-in apps.
  11. Improved memory management.
  12. Option to resize apps that are snapped side-by-side.
  13. Start Menu maximum tile size increased to 2048 from 512.
  14. The Environment Variables Editor has received a much needed update.
  15. Apps support jumplists now.

It introduces new IT-related features on top of the general changes.

  1. Windows Update for Business - Adds update management options for organizations, for instance to scale deployments or set up device groups with staggered deployments.
  2. Windows Store for Business - Offers a way to "find, acquire, manage and distribute apps to Windows 10 devices" including options to publish apps to a private store.
  3. Mobile Device Management - Enables IT to manage the full range of Windows devices including desktop PCs, laptops, phones or tablets.
  4. Azure Active Directory Join - "Empowers IT to maintain one directory, enabling people to have one login and securely roam their Windows settings and data across all of their Windows 10 devices".
  5. Ability to turn off all Telemetry data for Enterprise customers.

It may take a while before individual Windows 10 machines will pick up on the update.

Now You: What's your take on the first big update for the operating system?

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Windows 10's first major update rolls out
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Windows 10's first major update rolls out
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Microsoft announced the roll out of the first major update for Windows 10 today. The update introduces new features and improvements to the OS.
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Ghacks Technology News
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Comments

  1. Becky said on December 6, 2015 at 6:42 pm
    Reply

    I am by no means a computer wizard. I have been able to download my Win7 through the Win 8 and Win8.1 and eventually to Win 10. Life was good. Now with this Nov update it has stripped my computer of everything back to Win 7. But, mind you has left unusable Win 10 icons and my system says its there still has Win 10 in one place but system restore says it has Win 7. I’ve been on microsoft website backwards and forwards and can’t find anything to help restore my Win 10!

  2. kp said on December 5, 2015 at 1:34 am
    Reply

    I hate how they automatically changed my theme settings. They could have done the updates and left the settings as they were. Now i’m trying to change the titlebar color back to the one I had. Unfortunately, they grouped it with the start, taskbar. They should have kept them separated. Any way I can change the titlebar to the accent color, while keeping the start, and taskbar off (not accent color)?

  3. NewWindows10User said on November 21, 2015 at 6:47 pm
    Reply

    Hi there Martin, according to Kyhi over at tenforums.com, Microsoft seems to have pulled build 10586 from all 3 sources (Media Creation Tool/TechBench and Windows Update sometime last night.

    Now, both the Media Creation Tool and the ISO from TechBench are now build 10.10240.16480.

    I wonder what happened?

    Source link http://www.tenforums.com/windows-10-news/29549-first-major-update-windows-10-available-today-post474742.html#post474742

    1. Martin Brinkmann said on November 21, 2015 at 6:56 pm
      Reply

      Strange. Well, we won’t know for sure until Microsoft reveals the reason.

      1. NewWindows10User said on November 22, 2015 at 3:11 am
        Reply

        Looks like Microsoft has finally responded…

        “The November update was originally available via the MCT (Media Creation Tool), but the company decided that future installs should be through Windows Update. People can still download Windows 10 [Build 10240] using the MCT tool if they wish. The November update will be delivered via Windows Update.

        Microsoft has not pulled the Windows 10 November 10 update. The company is rolling out the November update over time – if you don’t see it in Windows Update, you will see it soon.”

        Source link: http://www.winbeta.org/news/microsoft-explains-disappearance-of-the-windows-10-november-update

  4. Jon said on November 17, 2015 at 5:49 pm
    Reply

    So they released the update anyway in order to meet the deadline? And if they already knew about the problem then why didn’t they take the time and issue a last minute fix for it?

    I really don’t understand this new Microsoft. Do they even have a testing team? Nowadays all their updates are broken in one way or another.

  5. frustrated said on November 13, 2015 at 12:19 pm
    Reply

    On an HP Stream 7 tablet running Windows 10 I was able to download the 1511 update. However it would freeze/stop at
    40% showing in the large circle, and a bottom line mentioning 23% drivers. Long press of the power button would restore the previous Windows 10.

    The solution for installing the 1511 update I found was to remove the micro SDHC card in the tablet!

    Microsoft apparently knew/knows about this, but released it anyway. See:

    http://winsupersite.com/windows-10/how-fix-40-freeze-during-install-windows-10-build-10586

    which mentions a tweet from Gabriel Aul suggesting this solution.

    1. Charlie said on November 21, 2015 at 6:45 pm
      Reply

      HP, LOL.
      Cheers from Florida.

  6. Neal said on November 13, 2015 at 10:35 am
    Reply

    I installed it. I noticed it brought back onedrive even though I disabled it before. It also defaulted some of my file associations.

    1. insanelyapple said on November 13, 2015 at 1:24 pm
      Reply

      Some user on arstechnica claims that they reverted lots of settings to post-installation defaults: http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/11/windows-10-november-update-features-fixes-and-enterprise-readiness/?comments=1&post=30114315

      Insider Preview was also reverting settings during build to build upgrades but that’s rather normal for such type of software but definitely RTM version shouldn’t do that, it should keep user settings but since nowadays MS doesn’t care about users opinion or pretends to care, it’s not surprising at all.

  7. NewWindows10User said on November 13, 2015 at 5:14 am
    Reply

    Downloaded the ISO via TechBench and used the older Windows USB/DVD Download Tool to create a bootable USB. Installation went just fine.First time all the drivers installed without a hitch. Finally no more 10 sec. of black screen flickering after booting up.

    I am so happy that I no longer need to use a reg hack to change the lock screen image, it is now a built-in option.

    However, I am kind of disappointed that third-party visual styles (using Uxstyle) are no longer working properly in build 10586.3. Keeping fingers crossed for a fix soon.

    Great website by the way.

    1. Neal said on November 13, 2015 at 10:38 am
      Reply

      Could you post a link to the updated iso?

      1. NewWindows10User said on November 13, 2015 at 3:56 pm
        Reply

        @ Neal

        Here is the link I used to download Windows 10 build 10586.0 (http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/techbench) after 1st update it will become Windows 10 build 10586.3.

        Choose “Windows 10” in the edition drop down, press confirm, then select your language, press confirm again. Download either the 32-bit (2.8 GB) or 64-bit (3.7 GB) and the Links will be valid for 24 hours.

        Windows 10 N version is for the European users and the K version for the Korean users. These editions do not feature Window Media Player, Music, Video, Sound Recorder and Skype. “Windows Single Language” has only one language pre-installed.

        I use the older Windows USB/DVD Download Tool (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/windows-usb-dvd-download-tool) because it has always worked very well for me. Maybe I am just missing something, but the new Media Creation Tool needs to download the ISO first before creating a bootable USB. I couldn’t find an option to use a ISO on my PC. Please keep in mind, this tool has not been updated since 2009, but it has always worked creating a bootable USB for Windows 7 or 10 flawlessly for me each and every time.

        Hi there Martin, I hope it is okay to post these links here.

      2. Martin Brinkmann said on November 13, 2015 at 4:33 pm
        Reply

        Legit links are always welcome. Thanks!

  8. Gabriel said on November 13, 2015 at 2:16 am
    Reply

    Is anyone else getting this: “We couldn’t get online to download your updates. We’ll try again later, or you can check now. If it still doesn’t work, make sure you’re connected to the Internet.” ?

  9. Tom Hawack said on November 12, 2015 at 11:44 pm
    Reply

    Point 1- Activation improvements seems fundamental to me and makes me wonder why it hasn’t been made available from the very start. Is it because Microsoft is considering it necessary after a disappointing first success?

    Also, I agree with insanelyapple about how the “Ability to turn off all Telemetry data for Enterprise customers [only].” can allow a “platform maturity” qualification of the OS. Maturity is not only functionality, it is as well respect of the user, of his choices. I remain bothered as well by the impossibility to refuse automatic Windows Updates. These two points, telemetry (privacy) and updates (liberty) are as dissuasive as a veto for me, at this time.

    I hope flexibility will be brought to Win10 — including the two points mentioned – within the eight next months. Fot the time being : no thanks.

    1. hirobo2 said on November 13, 2015 at 9:43 pm
      Reply

      them two r teh reasons I will never touch Win10

  10. bill said on November 12, 2015 at 8:55 pm
    Reply

    is there a way to roll back, my computer wont authenticate on the network here since the update and cant figure out why

    1. Decent60 said on November 14, 2015 at 2:27 am
      Reply

      @bill, have you “forgotten” the network yet?
      If not, doing so could help with some authentication problems.
      Another, tho potentially more hazardous way, is to do win+x go to device manager, find your network card, and uninstall it (don’t delete the drivers!!!!). Wait a few seconds and once it’s off the list, right-click on any of the categories and hit “scan for hardware changes”.
      Beyond that, you’ll have to ask for Microsoft’s help to resolve it (which they probably won’t do).
      This would also be a good time to invest into data backup software so that you can backup before install major updates.

    2. John said on November 12, 2015 at 11:14 pm
      Reply

      Ofcourse there is, pull out the Windows 7 installation DVD and put it in the computer, have fun. (sorry, couldn’t resist ;) )

      1. bill said on November 13, 2015 at 7:09 pm
        Reply

        im so fucking pissed off at this update right now

      2. Corky said on November 13, 2015 at 9:30 am
        Reply

        Welcome to the wonderful world of Windows 10 Bill, where you’re only ever an update away from a broken PC.

      3. bill said on November 13, 2015 at 12:59 am
        Reply

        windows 10 was working before this particular update, and i would like to roll back to before the update, turns out i could, but it also turns out it doesnt remove everything the update added and my 802.1x authentication is all messed up now.

      4. Tom Hawack said on November 13, 2015 at 12:11 am
        Reply

        You should have resisted. Many users have, still are encountering disappointments with Windows 10 and a weird smile to their worries is often the answer of an uneducated upstart crow.

        @bill, of course you can roll back. Requires a few little things to know of which you’ll easily find the details on the Web : there are many users in your situation. I haven’t installed Windows 10 therefor I wish not to resume the process in an unqualified way.

  11. insanelyapple said on November 12, 2015 at 8:41 pm
    Reply

    Considering the “Ability to turn off all Telemetry data for Enterprise customers.” I don’t see any “platform maturity” here.

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