14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has released new updates for Windows 10 versions to provide devices with the latest microcode patches shipped by Intel.
These updates were first published in August 2018, but they have been re-released with additional improvements for Windows 10.
Today’s updates are the following:
KB4465065 – Windows 10 version 1809 KB4346084 – Windows 10 version 1803 KB4346085 – Windows 10 version 1709 KB4346086 – Windows 10 version 1703 KB4346087 – Windows 10 version 1607
As explained in the official changelogs available on the pages linked above, these new updates come with three different improvements, as it follows:
| Spectre Variant 3a (CVE-2018-3640: "Rogue System Register Read (RSRE)") |
| Spectre Variant 4 (CVE-2018-3639: "Speculative Store Bypass (SSB)") |
| L1TF (CVE-2018-3620, CVE-2018-3646: "L1 Terminal Fault") |
Microsoft explains that the Spectre Variant 4 mitigation is turned off by default in Windows 10, and users need to enable it manually even after installing the update.
“By default, this mitigation is turned off for Spectre Variant 4 (CVE-2018-3639: "Speculative Store Bypass (SSB)"). Please make sure that mitigation against Spectre Variant 4 (CVE-2018-3639: "Speculative Store Bypass (SSB)") is enabled for Windows client and Windows Server through the registry settings,” the company explains.
Instructions on how to enable the mitigation for client and server devices are available on these pages.
The next Windows 10 cumulative updates will be released next week as part of the February 2019 Patch Tuesday cycle. Additional security fixes will be included, and there’s a chance the improvements detailed above will be part of the rollout as well. As usual, all Windows 10 versions will be serviced, but for Home and Pro SKUs, only Fall Creators Update (version 1709) and newer are supported.