14 DAY TRIAL // We already know that Windows 10 Anniversary Update is going to be big, and a recent roadmap published by Microsoft during the week provides us with a quick look at some of the new features coming in this version.
One of improvements that Microsoft will include in the upcoming Anniversary Update is the possibility of “using companion devices to unlock your Windows PC,” thus giving users the option to skip the password screen and use Passport-based authentication.
At first, options will be quite limited, and customers will only be allowed to use a Microsoft Band 2 or “other device that integrates with the Windows 10 Companion Device Framework (CFD,” but the company admits that other third-party devices could be supported too.
“Use your Microsoft Band 2, or other devices that integrates with the Windows 10 Companion Device Framework (CFD), as companion device for Microsoft Passport based authentication. With this a device like the Microsoft Band 2 or other third party devices, they can become an external second factor of authentication which can be used to unlock your Windows 10 PCs,” the full text published by Microsoft reads.
How the new unlocking method could work
Microsoft also explains how companion devices can be used for the Windows unlock experience, giving four different examples in this regard.
First, users could attach the companion device to the PC via USB and touch a button on it to unlock the computer or tap the companion device to an NFC reader for instant authentication.
A more advanced system requires users to “carry a phone in their pocket that is already paired with PC over Bluetooth. Upon hitting the spacebar on their PC, their phone receives a notification. Approve it and the PC simply unlocks.”
And last but not least, a fitness band, such as the Microsoft Band 2, can be used to authenticate the wearer and then perform a certain gesture, such as clapping, to unlock the PC.
Such a behavior is expected to be part of the upcoming Windows 10 Anniversary Update that’s projected to launch in July. Specifics on the release date are not yet available, though.