Windows 11 users herded toward 23H2 via automatic upgrade
(2024/02/21)
- Reference: 1708542906
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2024/02/21/windows_11_23h2_upgrade/
- Source link:
Windows 11 users still clinging to the past are to be dragged into a bright, 23H2-shaped future by Microsoft, whether they want to or not.
Microsoft has [1]added a notification to its Release Health dashboard warning Windows 11 users that it is time for the beatings automatic upgrades to begin. "We are starting to update eligible Windows 11 devices automatically to version 23H2."
As for what eligible means, according to Microsoft, this is "Windows 11 devices that have reached or are approaching end of servicing." [2]Support for Windows 11 21H2 came to an end last year on October 10, 2023, and version 22H2 is due to end on October 8, 2024. Win 11 23H2 itself will endure until November 11, 2025, or just after the plug gets pulled on Windows 10.
[3]
The update comes shortly after Microsoft quashed the last of its [4]compatibility holds in Windows 11 23H2, which affected customers attempting to use the Co-pilot preview with multiple monitors. Icons tended to move unexpectedly between monitors.
[5]Microsoft veteran on how to blue screen your way to better testing
[6]Microsoft warns Dev Drive daredevils to back up or beware after latest build
[7]Moving to Windows 11 is so easy! You just need to buy a PC that supports it!
[8]Microsoft might have just pulled support for very old PCs in Windows 11 24H2
The automatic upgrade rollout will occur in phases and, according to Microsoft, "follows the machine learning-based (ML) training we have utilized so far."
"We will continue to train our intelligent ML model to safely roll out this new Windows version in phases to deliver a smooth update experience."
[9]
So, if it all goes wrong, users can blame AI.
There is some logic in getting all users upgraded and off unsupported versions of Windows. Eligible Home or Pro users who opted to "Get the latest updates as soon as they're available" in Windows Update will likely already be enjoying the delights of Windows 23H2.
[10]
However, there are also good reasons why a user might want to stick with an older version. Issues with patches and updates are very much par for the course, and a customer would be forgiven for sticking with what they know works. That said, doing so means an eventual end to security fixes.
Hence, Windows 11 23H2 has now entered a new rollout phase. One where eligible devices will be automatically updated based on Microsoft's "intelligent ML model." ®
Get our [11]Tech Resources
[1] https://learn.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/release-health/status-windows-11-23H2
[2] https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/lifecycle/products/windows-11-home-and-pro
[3] 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=2ZdaAmIwHBaL4a122C7PzcwAAAMQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/09/making_sense_of_microsoft_copilot/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/21/raymond_chen_windows_notmyfault/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/15/windows_insiders_dev_drive/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/14/microsoft_windows_11_plea/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/13/microsoft_might_have_just_pulled/
[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=44ZdaAmIwHBaL4a122C7PzcwAAAMQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] 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=44ZdaAmIwHBaL4a122C7PzcwAAAMQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Microsoft has [1]added a notification to its Release Health dashboard warning Windows 11 users that it is time for the beatings automatic upgrades to begin. "We are starting to update eligible Windows 11 devices automatically to version 23H2."
As for what eligible means, according to Microsoft, this is "Windows 11 devices that have reached or are approaching end of servicing." [2]Support for Windows 11 21H2 came to an end last year on October 10, 2023, and version 22H2 is due to end on October 8, 2024. Win 11 23H2 itself will endure until November 11, 2025, or just after the plug gets pulled on Windows 10.
[3]
The update comes shortly after Microsoft quashed the last of its [4]compatibility holds in Windows 11 23H2, which affected customers attempting to use the Co-pilot preview with multiple monitors. Icons tended to move unexpectedly between monitors.
[5]Microsoft veteran on how to blue screen your way to better testing
[6]Microsoft warns Dev Drive daredevils to back up or beware after latest build
[7]Moving to Windows 11 is so easy! You just need to buy a PC that supports it!
[8]Microsoft might have just pulled support for very old PCs in Windows 11 24H2
The automatic upgrade rollout will occur in phases and, according to Microsoft, "follows the machine learning-based (ML) training we have utilized so far."
"We will continue to train our intelligent ML model to safely roll out this new Windows version in phases to deliver a smooth update experience."
[9]
So, if it all goes wrong, users can blame AI.
There is some logic in getting all users upgraded and off unsupported versions of Windows. Eligible Home or Pro users who opted to "Get the latest updates as soon as they're available" in Windows Update will likely already be enjoying the delights of Windows 23H2.
[10]
However, there are also good reasons why a user might want to stick with an older version. Issues with patches and updates are very much par for the course, and a customer would be forgiven for sticking with what they know works. That said, doing so means an eventual end to security fixes.
Hence, Windows 11 23H2 has now entered a new rollout phase. One where eligible devices will be automatically updated based on Microsoft's "intelligent ML model." ®
Get our [11]Tech Resources
[1] https://learn.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/release-health/status-windows-11-23H2
[2] https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/lifecycle/products/windows-11-home-and-pro
[3] 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=2ZdaAmIwHBaL4a122C7PzcwAAAMQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/09/making_sense_of_microsoft_copilot/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/21/raymond_chen_windows_notmyfault/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/15/windows_insiders_dev_drive/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/14/microsoft_windows_11_plea/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/13/microsoft_might_have_just_pulled/
[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=44ZdaAmIwHBaL4a122C7PzcwAAAMQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] 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=44ZdaAmIwHBaL4a122C7PzcwAAAMQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
43300
It's barely any different to the previous release. 23H2 seems to have dispensed with fake-Teams, but shortly after installation the 'Copilot Beta' will make an uninvited appearance and pin itself to the taskbar, and New Outlook will also muscle its way in. Nothing really notiecable apart from that.
David 132
I assume both of those require one to be logged in with a Microsoft account not a local one, and as the phrase “over my dead body” is applicable there, I’m not sure if the 23H2 update will have any great value one way or another.
David 132
Oops, missed the edit window. Meant to say “no great value to me ”!
Sounds a little arrogant otherwise…
The Oncoming Scorn
"Sounds a little arrogant otherwise…"
You say that as though it's a bad thing.
Microsoft’s Backward Compatibility Is Legendary
ldo
That’s why users have no trouble upgrading to the latest version as a matter of course, do they.
Assuming you've been installing the regular patch tuesday updates, this update is pretty much literally just a text string change for version numbers. All the actual new functionality was already included in a previous update. If you wanted to force the update on a system that was being blocked it was like a 600K download, and you know most of that is just the overhead of the self-extracting installer.