14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 10 will launch with three different update branches that we already detailed during the weekend, and now more information emerges on the way users of the Pro SKU can handle new features and security patches delivered to their computers.
As we’ve already told you, Windows 10 Home users will get new updates when they are released and they will have no option to delay installation, in an effort to keep their computers fully up to date all the time.
As far as users of the Pro SKU are concerned, options to defer updates will also be offered in order to make sure that patches that are causing issues are not installed on their computers, which more or less turns Windows 10 Home users into Microsoft’s new guinea pigs because all testing will be performed on their PCs.
Microsoft says that, although they will be offered the option to delay updates, Windows 10 Pro users cannot do that for more than 8 months after the release of an update. Otherwise, they will be blocked from installing new OS versions and they will be forced to switch to the Long-Term Servicing Branch (LTSB) that allows a delay of up to 10 years.
How updates will be released
Basically, Microsoft will release updates to Windows 10 Home users and analyze feedback to determine whether there are any issues that could prevent the release to the other SKUs. If updates are clean, the company declares them ready for business and pushes them to Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise users, depending on the branch they use.
The Current Branch for Business, available for Pro and Enterprise, thus gets the updates only after Home users test them and help determine whether they’re business ready or not.
The full presentation about the new Windows Update system and the branches that Microsoft will release with Windows 10 is available in the video below.