Cumulative Updates for Windows 10 need to be normalized

Late last week Microsoft released their third update for Windows 10 since the operating system became widely available on 29 July 2015.

That is an update per week so far and whether this will be the normal pace of keeping Windows 10 up to date remains to be seen.

What does appear to be the norm is that routine bug fixes and performance enhancements for Windows 10 will arrive in the form of these Cumulative Updates (CU).  

A CU means it contains all of the past fixes that were issued in previous CUs plus any new updates/fixes.

This latest CU was issued under Knowledge Base article number 3081438 and the accompanying KB article simply contains the statement

“This update includes improvements to enhance the functionality of Windows 10.”

That is Microsoft speak for bug fixes and performance enhancements.  Other than a very long list of files that have been updated in this CU there is no other information available in the article.

While many of us would like to know exactly what bugs and issues were addressed that is the real geek side of us looking for that info. However, it does not appear that Microsoft is going to be issuing those types of detailed statements with these CUs. Eventually they will become routine updates to the operating system and be accepted by users much like the daily updated signatures for Windows Defender which anyone hardly takes notice of anymore.

That is the goal of Windows as a Service (WaaS) - to make these updates just part of the background fabric of Windows 10.

Larger updates, such as Threshold 2 this fall and the expected Redstone packages in 2016, are expected to provide feature additions and significant updates to the OS including items that did not make the cut to be in the 29 July release of Windows 10.

Those updates should draw a lot more attention than these CUs do because they are bringing increased functionality to the OS and there is plenty of feedback in Microsoft’s coffers to continue to build out the OS over the next several years.

Plus, the whole numbering of these Cumulative Updates feels a bit like the Rocky movies doesn’t it? At some point we just have to stop counting them and accept them as just a normal element of keeping Windows 10 updated.

But, wait...there's probably more so be sure to follow me on Twitter and Google+.