Articles about Windows 10 updates

Having already taken steps to decrease the size of updates for Windows 11, Microsoft is doing the same for Windows 10.

The company describes this by suggesting that "Windows 10 is becoming more like Windows 11", although this is something of a stretch. What it means in practice is that Microsoft has used various techniques, including removing reverse differentials from the cumulative update package, to shrink update sizes quite considerably.

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Hold on to your hats, folks, because Microsoft is at it again. In a move that’s sure to ruffle some feathers, the tech giant has announced* that starting October 2024, just one year before Windows 10 reaches its end of support, the company will charge a whopping $61 per device for the first year of Extended Security Updates (ESU). And get this – the price will double every consecutive year for a maximum of three years! If you’re late to the party and join in Year Two, you’ll have to cough up the cash for Year One as well since these updates are cumulative. Talk about a slap in the face!

Now, let’s be clear: these Extended Security Updates are meant to be a temporary bridge for organizations that need more time to transition to Windows 11. They’re not intended to be a long-term solution. But let’s face it, for many businesses and individuals, upgrading to Windows 11 isn’t as simple as flipping a switch. There are compatibility issues, hardware requirements, and not to mention the hassle of migrating entire systems. So, this move by Microsoft feels like it's holding users hostage -- pay up or risk being left vulnerable to security threats.

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The importance of installing the latest patches and fixes for Windows cannot really be overstated. As well as helping to boost security and fix problems, updates can also add new features to Windows.

While there is a lot to be said in favor of enabling automatic updates, there's nothing wrong with performing manual check as well or instead. Unfortunately, Microsoft has hidden the option to check for updates away in the Settings app meaning it is a pain to access. Here's how to add an update check option to the context menu in Windows 11 and Windows 10.

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The issues caused by updates for Windows 10 have been varied and plentiful. With each new batch of updates, anyone willing to install them finds they are playing an unwitting game of Russian roulette; the patch may fix some problems, but the chances are that they will introduce new ones as well.

This month's KB5001330 update -- just like the non-security preview version from the previous month, KB5000842 -- was just the latest in a long line of bug-riddled updates. This time the plethora of problems includes a performance hit for a number of games and to help with this, NVIDIA has a simple (if slightly controversial) solution.

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Another Patch Tuesday has rolled around, and this month sees Microsoft releasing a bumper crop of update for Windows 10. In all, April's updates address a total of 108 flaws, 19 of which are considered Critical.

Four of the critical flaws are Exchange vulnerabilities discovered by the NSA, and there are also fixes for no fewer than five zero days. The patches also include fixes for an incredible 89 Important issues.

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Since adopting the Chromium engine, Microsoft Edge has come on in leaps and bounds. Much like Internet Explorer before it, the original version of the browser was much maligned, and now the time has come to retire it.

For some time, Microsoft has been trying to encourage hangers-on to migrate to the Chromium-based version of Edge, and now it's time for drastic action. In an upcoming update to Windows 10, the company is getting rid of legacy Edge once and for all.

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