Microsoft fixes the ESU blues for Windows 10 users
(2025/07/11)
- Reference: 1752242592
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/07/11/microsoft_esu_fix/
- Source link:
Even as its market share is finally eclipsed by Windows 11, Windows 10 is still alive and in need of fixes. Alongside the replacement of the Blue Screen of Death in Windows 11, Microsoft has released a fix for the Extended Security Updates wizard to Windows 10 Insiders.
The [1]fix has reached the Release Preview Channel for Windows Insiders and addresses a problem encountered by some users with the Windows 10 Extended Security Update (ESU) enrollment wizard.
The wizard, which is used to keep Windows 10 security updates rolling even after support for many versions officially ends in October, had a tendency to crash when some users clicked "Enroll now." Affected users would see the wizard appear to start up and the window open then abruptly shut down.
A lot of the rise is being driven by the US... Other geos are also transitioning, but at a slower pace. A similar picture would have happened even without the tariff confusion, but the pull-in of demand has exacerbated this
According to Microsoft, "this occurred due to incomplete app registration." The update, currently in the Windows 10 Release Preview Channel for Windows Insiders, "addresses that issue to ensure a smoother enrollment experience."
Or might we suggest that Microsoft simply keeps the updates rolling for all users sticking with Windows 10 and not bother with enrollment wizards? Just a thought.
[2]
Other [3]changes in the Release Preview Channel, this time for Windows 11 24H2, include the [4]ditching of the infamous Blue Screen of Death in favor of the Black Screen of Unexpected Restart. The replacement is part of Microsoft's Windows Resiliency Initiative (WRI), announced in 2024 after the [5]CrowdStrike update incident that disrupted millions of Windows devices.
[6]
[7]
The ESU fix comes as Windows 11 finally surpassed the market share of Windows 10. Asset management outfit Lansweeper [8]joined the chorus this week and noted the usage of Windows 11 by corporations had passed the halfway mark at 50.6 percent. According to Lansweeper's figures, the increase of 16.8 percent since the beginning of 2025 marked "the most substantial migration surge to date, driven by Microsoft's upgrade campaigns, new hardware rollouts and growing awareness of the looming EOL deadline."
"But while global numbers are trending in the right direction, the reality is that nearly half of all business devices are still running an OS that will no longer be supported in just a few months; Windows 10 reaches EOL on October 14, 2025."
[9]
Kieren Jessop, a research manager at industry watcher Canalys, cautioned that a lot of the rise was being driven by the US. He told The Register : "Other geos are also transitioning, but at a slower pace. A similar picture would have happened even without the tariff confusion, but the pull-in of demand has exacerbated this."
[10]We're number 1! Windows 11 finally overtakes Windows 10
[11]Microsoft dangles extended Windows 10 support in exchange for Reward Points
[12]Remember it'll cost ya to keep the lights on for Windows 10
[13]30 percent of some Microsoft code now written by AI - especially the new stuff
As for what happens next, Jessop noted that "there is a long road ahead to complete the Windows 11 transition." After all, Windows 7 still accounted for 25 percent of the market when many versions supposedly breathed their last in January 2020, and it seems highly likely that Windows 10 will linger on for a while yet.
Jessop had some words of comfort for hardware vendors: "While this transition is comparatively slow, it somewhat helps the overall demand curve of the PC market in the long run. If it takes until the second half of 2026 for Windows 10 to drop to 25 percent, those devices replaced thus far are typically older than 2020.
"After the Windows 10 wind down is more or less complete, that's when a potential refresh cycle of COVID-era purchases will start." ®
Get our [14]Tech Resources
[1] https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2025/07/10/releasing-windows-10-build-19045-6156-to-the-release-preview-channel/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2025/07/10/releasing-windows-11-build-26100-4762-to-the-release-preview-channel/
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/26/microsoft_bsod_goes_black/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/crowdstrike_validator_failure/
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://www.lansweeper.com/blog/itam/is-your-business-ready-for-windows-11/
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/04/windows_11_market_share/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/25/microsoft_free_esu_tier/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/05/windows_10_esu_program/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/30/microsoft_meta_autocoding/
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
The [1]fix has reached the Release Preview Channel for Windows Insiders and addresses a problem encountered by some users with the Windows 10 Extended Security Update (ESU) enrollment wizard.
The wizard, which is used to keep Windows 10 security updates rolling even after support for many versions officially ends in October, had a tendency to crash when some users clicked "Enroll now." Affected users would see the wizard appear to start up and the window open then abruptly shut down.
A lot of the rise is being driven by the US... Other geos are also transitioning, but at a slower pace. A similar picture would have happened even without the tariff confusion, but the pull-in of demand has exacerbated this
According to Microsoft, "this occurred due to incomplete app registration." The update, currently in the Windows 10 Release Preview Channel for Windows Insiders, "addresses that issue to ensure a smoother enrollment experience."
Or might we suggest that Microsoft simply keeps the updates rolling for all users sticking with Windows 10 and not bother with enrollment wizards? Just a thought.
[2]
Other [3]changes in the Release Preview Channel, this time for Windows 11 24H2, include the [4]ditching of the infamous Blue Screen of Death in favor of the Black Screen of Unexpected Restart. The replacement is part of Microsoft's Windows Resiliency Initiative (WRI), announced in 2024 after the [5]CrowdStrike update incident that disrupted millions of Windows devices.
[6]
[7]
The ESU fix comes as Windows 11 finally surpassed the market share of Windows 10. Asset management outfit Lansweeper [8]joined the chorus this week and noted the usage of Windows 11 by corporations had passed the halfway mark at 50.6 percent. According to Lansweeper's figures, the increase of 16.8 percent since the beginning of 2025 marked "the most substantial migration surge to date, driven by Microsoft's upgrade campaigns, new hardware rollouts and growing awareness of the looming EOL deadline."
"But while global numbers are trending in the right direction, the reality is that nearly half of all business devices are still running an OS that will no longer be supported in just a few months; Windows 10 reaches EOL on October 14, 2025."
[9]
Kieren Jessop, a research manager at industry watcher Canalys, cautioned that a lot of the rise was being driven by the US. He told The Register : "Other geos are also transitioning, but at a slower pace. A similar picture would have happened even without the tariff confusion, but the pull-in of demand has exacerbated this."
[10]We're number 1! Windows 11 finally overtakes Windows 10
[11]Microsoft dangles extended Windows 10 support in exchange for Reward Points
[12]Remember it'll cost ya to keep the lights on for Windows 10
[13]30 percent of some Microsoft code now written by AI - especially the new stuff
As for what happens next, Jessop noted that "there is a long road ahead to complete the Windows 11 transition." After all, Windows 7 still accounted for 25 percent of the market when many versions supposedly breathed their last in January 2020, and it seems highly likely that Windows 10 will linger on for a while yet.
Jessop had some words of comfort for hardware vendors: "While this transition is comparatively slow, it somewhat helps the overall demand curve of the PC market in the long run. If it takes until the second half of 2026 for Windows 10 to drop to 25 percent, those devices replaced thus far are typically older than 2020.
"After the Windows 10 wind down is more or less complete, that's when a potential refresh cycle of COVID-era purchases will start." ®
Get our [14]Tech Resources
[1] https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2025/07/10/releasing-windows-10-build-19045-6156-to-the-release-preview-channel/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2025/07/10/releasing-windows-11-build-26100-4762-to-the-release-preview-channel/
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/26/microsoft_bsod_goes_black/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/crowdstrike_validator_failure/
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://www.lansweeper.com/blog/itam/is-your-business-ready-for-windows-11/
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/oses&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aHE1FIRtTnfeOESlbTeCBwAAAcA&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/04/windows_11_market_share/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/25/microsoft_free_esu_tier/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/05/windows_10_esu_program/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/30/microsoft_meta_autocoding/
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
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