Microsoft's Unified Update Platform means smaller Windows 10 build downloads after Creators Update
Back in November, Microsoft started to talk about its Unified Update Platform (UUP), with the promise that differential packages would lead to a reduction in the size of updates for Windows. Now the company has announced that the same technology means new builds of Windows rolling out to Insiders will also be smaller, and it's something everyone will enjoy from later in the year.
It's an idea that's not entirely removed from the differential sync technique that's due to arrive in OneDrive -- another change that sees Microsoft reducing bandwidth usage. Smaller Windows Update downloads and smaller sizes for major updates to Windows itself will hit the retail version of the operating system from Windows 10 Creators Update onwards.
As a quick recap, differential packages help to reduce the size of downloads by ensuring that only the changes since the last update was installed are downloaded. It's something that both PC and mobile users will be able to take advantage of. Microsoft explains: "Differential download packages rely on re-using files on your current OS to reconstruct the newer OS. This could include copying files as-is that have not changed between builds, or it could involve applying "binary deltas" or "diffs" to old files to generate newer files. Differential download packages are smaller and can take a shorter amount of time to download."
The rollout of UUP bits to Windows Insiders is not, in itself, new, and the fact that it has been used to deliver new builds for a little while now means that Microsoft is able to share some information about the reduction in download sizes that have been seen. Microsoft points out that the builds rolling out to Insiders are smaller than retail customers may experience, due mainly to the frequency with which Insiders' computers are updated.
The company also says:
It's also important to note that Windows Insiders may not get a differential download packages even if we ship them. A baseline build has to be set for differential download packages and if that baseline build is newer than the build Windows Insiders are updating from (in the case where they are not on the latest flight) -- they will receive a larger download.
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