Microsoft goes into Windows lockdown for builds from May, citing 'public health situation' (yes, the coronavirus spread)
- Reference: 1585123386
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/03/25/microsoft_stops_windows_preview/
- Source link:
"We have been evaluating the public health situation, and we understand this is impacting our customers," the Redmond software giant said. "In response to these challenges we are prioritizing our focus on security updates."
Come May, the biz told customers, it will stop distributing optional non-security releases for all Windows client and server products ranging from Windows 10 v1909 through Windows Server 2008 SP2.
Google halts Chrome, Chrome OS releases to avoid shipping flawed code, prioritizes security fixes amid coronavirus crunch [1]READ MORE
Microsoft will continue to distribute Patch Tuesday security updates, known as the B release, but preview releases, designated C and D in the company's release terminology, will be suspended.
Windows C and D releases are scheduled to occur on the third and fourth weeks of the month, respectively. They're intended to allow Windows customers to test non-security related fixes before they arrive in the following month's B release.
The timing of the decision indicates that Microsoft believes the current health crisis, and perhaps various state stay-at-home orders, will affect work schedules through May or beyond. Reports have said the stay-at-home orders in California and Seattle will remain in place until at least the first week of April, but no definitive end date has been specified.
The Register asked Microsoft whether it believes the global coronavirus situation will cause delays through May but the company declined to comment. A spokesperson pointed to [2]the posted reference document as the best resource at the moment.
Google recently [3]paused its Chromium release cycle on account of the chaos created by work schedule adjustments arising from health concerns. That in turn has delayed releases for Chrome, ChromeOS, and Chromium-dependent projects like Electron.js.
Video game maker Konami [4]announced COVID-19-sparked manufacturing and shipping delays for its PC Engine Core Grafx mini products earlier this month.
In terms of Microsoft's more notable delays, pausing C and D releases may not be as significant as delays that held up Windows Vista, its [5]2018 Spring Creators Update , or its Surface Earbuds. But if the risks accompanying the novel coronavirus aren't mitigated soon, more substantial delays affecting a broader set of companies and products may follow. ®
[1] https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/03/19/google_halts_chrome_releases/
[2] https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/release-information/windows-message-center#405
[3] https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/03/19/google_halts_chrome_releases/
[4] https://twitter.com/konamieu/status/1235852906856730624
[5] https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/04/17/waiting_for_windows_10/
Re: "preview releases [..C and D..] will be suspended"
Joking aside, this is a smart move right now, slowing down the release cycle will protect business later in the back to work phase, when users who have not been put on un paid leave return to work and turn their devices back on.
Re: "preview releases [..C and D..] will be suspended"
Not causing the great internet crash of 2020 will be a good thing!
Win-10 could also become stable enough (gasp) to be considered almost usable for serious business activities.
My work machine has a current reboot cadence similar to win95
Devistating
In this time of crisis I need the daily distraction of evolving features, incompatibilities and random crashes.
Admission of Incompetence
So Microsoft is finally getting around to acknowledging that their current methodology of "continuous fiddle-faddle" is not only unsupportable but is inimical to their customers. I think they were told that a LONG LONG LONG LONG LONG time ago.
Seems maybe it finally sunk in.
Re: Admission of Incompetence
Next they'll announce that they're moving to annual instead of 6 monthly releases to improve productivity.
Re: Admission of Incompetence
It's like an admission that frequent, forced and poorly tested updates are inherently unsafe normally, and downright dangerous now.
This is good
I can show this article and the one about Chrome to my PM and say "your release schedules that were crazy even before the pandemic need slowing down". Or something along those lines.
So basically Microsoft are Self Isolating?
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Might bring back the same phenomenon as Windows NT 3.51. They had so much time to work on bug fixes (waiting for IBM's PowerPC port) that it was really solid!
Gonna get myself a snapshot of that for the next 2 years :)
"preview releases [..C and D..] will be suspended"
And that will not delay anything because they'll just be folded into the B release. No problem, right ?