Windows – need to download a ‘new’ version of Windows 10

windows 10windows-10-upgrade

My computer has recently been nagging me that my version of Win10 is "reaching its end of service soon" and that I need to download a newer version to continue to get support.

I am working with a Dell Precision 3530 running Windows 10 Pro. I've been getting updates right along whenever they come available.

In all my years of using computers, I've never had to download a "new" version of the OS that I'm already running. Has MS quit renaming newer OS's and just decided to stick with Win10 as a name?

I also can't find anywhere how big the download would be and I'm on a limited connection. Does anyone know the size in gigabytes? Why are they doing this as opposed to just sending me more updates? Do I even need to worry about it?

Best Answer

Windows 10 is different from older operating systems. It comes with Feature updates that require you to download and update. Microsoft advised us of this strategy some years back and (so far) our Operating System is Windows 10 Version xyz.

You can see what version you are on in Start > Settings > System > About. If you are at V1909 or earlier, you need to do a Feature Update to get to V2004 or V20H2 (now the current version).

For individuals (not businesses), you cannot disable this feature permanently. You can stop updates (pause updates) for a short while and schedule restarts to "off" hours. That has proven valuable to me as I am never interrupted by unscheduled restarts.

If you need to do a Feature update to get current, it is about a 3 GB download.

Once you are at Version 20H2 (the current version) Microsoft has said updates will become smaller. That seems to be true on my machines.

Smaller updates have been made possible by utilizing a new process called "Feature Update through Windows 10, version 20H2 Enablement Package". Microsoft is including core components for the future to spread out and somewhat reduce the downloading and installation time.

To get the enablement feature, it is best overall to get to Version 20H2 and then the enablement feature will be automatically installed.

A good reference for this discussion above is here:

Windows 10 Enablement Feature

Going forward: It is easiest overall to keep your system up to date by planning and utilizing Patch Tuesday. This is the second Tuesday of each month. It is good to plan for this and doing the monthly updates. I have found this to be easier than waiting for once or twice each year. Patch Tuesday keeps security up to date as well.

Bear in mind that older computers (usually over 7 or 8 years old) may not accept the most current Windows Update. Microsoft has (common source of information) about 16 Million computer / driver combinations. As they fix the older driver issues, they will update as soon as is practical. Some computers just reach end of life.

Follow up Note on Enablement 3/21/2021: At the time I posted this answer and again this evening (3/21/2021) there have been small cumulative Windows 10 Updates (causing restarts which can be scheduled). Microsoft is very apparently working on the enablement features. It does appear to be a work in progress.

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