Windows 10 - Build 17682 & 17686 - Some return to stability

On May 31 and then June 6 respectively MS released Windows RS5 builds 17682 then 17686 to Fast Ring and Skip Ahead insiders.

 These two builds started to return some level of stability to RS5 - which in my experience across my various test platforms was pretty much a mess.

 With several of the previous builds - of all my test machines only my basic desktop configuration - a Dell Inspiron 3647 with no touch, pen or hello capabilities was able to consistently download and install updates without some sort of GSOD or other failure.  

 Even 17682 had real problems with my laptop - an HP Elitebook 745G3 which runs an AMD Pro12 8800-R7 CPU/GPU combination.   Drivers would not install properly or at all and you often had to spend an hour or more post update - correcting those kinds of basic hardware support items.

 From a feature perspective 17682 continue to improve on the Sets feature - if your device actually had it enabled.   Two of my machines do and yes the ability to launch additional apps is now present - but as I've stated in another post - I'm not 100% on the value of Sets right now.  With that stated there definitely appears to be some lag in systems without Sets enabled.   

 MS needs to address that issue if they are actually going to include the Sets capability in RS5 for release.  Sets in a feature that can be turned off or on but right now there is a pretty good performance penalty for turning it off.  

 MS also implemented "S" mode - so limiting app installation via the Store only in the Apps & features settings area.    

 It also added Remote Server Admin Tools (RSAT) support - which for some was a nice addition.   

 17686 was actually a pretty small update from a feature perspective - making some improvements to "Locale" settings and language support.

 There is a Bug Bash event June 22 - July 1 - so I expect two more updates before then.   But I have the feeling that we've seen most of the new features in RS5.  Sure we may see some more updates to Settings which has been the prolonged attempt to remove some of the legacy capabilities like Control Panel - which b the way you still need to perform certain tasks.

 After the BB event - I expect a lull as MS goes through it's new fiscal year transition and so we might not see much in July - but then the pace will pick up in August through September.  Hopefully MS won't stumble like they did with 1803.

 The real question to me will be how the reorganization of the Windows teams and demphasis on Windows as a LOB within MS will impact it in the long term.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

ASUS RT-AC68U Router & WDS - a nice solution for a large home.

I recently had a newer Asus RT-AC87U Router die.  The wireless chipset never seemed to work well and first the 5Ghz bands started to fail and then the 2.4Ghz failed leaving my 25 wireless device household high and dry. So after some due diligence I decided to replace with 2 of the older RT-AC68U and implement a Wireless Distribution System (WDS) configuration. In the past - I've mentioned an open source router OS called DD-WRT.  The Asus routers come pre-installed with their version of DD-WRT.  Asus does utilize their own UI overtop DD-wrt and overall I do not like nearly as much as the traditional UI - but core dd-wrt capabilities are there.   Additionally you can flash the RT-AC68 with native DD-WRT if your so inclined. In my previous configuration I was also using an older Linksys 4200 running dd-wrt configured in Client Bridge mode that allowed clients to connect to the Linksys as well as use some of the bands to connect back to the RT-AC87U. While it worked - I felt that
Read more

Solar Storage - 2023 Update

  A few years back I published a 2 Part post discussing Solar Energy systems.  The discussion focused on all the due diligence and prep work needed and what were some of the key considerations around designing and implementing a solar system. One of the discussion points was around solar storage or batteries.  What were the use cases for batteries and if they were a good investment and should you incorporate them into your design. Back in 2020 - the math around batteries said no - that you wouldn't be able to break even on the cost of a storage system over its normal warranty life of 10 years. So here we are three years later and so I figured it was time to revisit.   There are two primary uses cases for solar storage.    First is what's called peak offset or peak shifting.  This is a concept where you utilize stored solar generation to run your home during what many utilities call Peak Periods that are part of a general category of rate plans known as Time of Day (TOD) plans.
Read more

Home Automation Platforms + Matter - Early Observations

For those of us who have been involved in automating homes by adding "smart" devices from light switches to thermostats, cameras, sensors, controllers, etc - there was always a challenge with managing the wide range of devices. While each OEM had their own app that would allow you to control their devices - you'd often end up with anywhere from 4 - 10 apps that were required to manage the entire home.  And depending on your product choices you also had to have hubs to communicate from your Wifi network to other RF networks like Zigbee or Z-Wave.  With many of these "hubs" they had native support across multiple vendors or you had to add plugins or provide specific OEM support. Some OEM apps were great, some sucked, but it became challenging to provide a solution for a client where they could easily manage their home on their own.  Between having to maintain multiple credentials/logins across the apps and even communicating which app controls what - it sometimes
Read more