14 DAY TRIAL // The April 2019 Patch Tuesday will be the last one to bring us delta updates for Windows 10, according to a change announced by Microsoft in late 2018.
The software giant originally planned to retire delta updates in February 2019, but the company extended the deadline to April for Windows 10 versions 1607, 1703, 1709, and 1803.
Windows 10 October 2018 Update (version 1809) does not receive any new delta updates.
According to Microsoft’s schedule, April 9 will be the last delta update rollout, with the company to then go forward with express updates and full cumulative updates for Windows 10.
Delta updates have been particularly useful for users because they include only the components that changed from the previous rollout. This means that a system that’s already up-to-date doesn’t have to download a new full cumulative update, but only the delta update, that includes the changes exclusively, obviously in a smaller package.
Full cumulative updates and express updates only
Going forward, Microsoft will bet big on express updates, which bring a series of benefits, especially when it comes to the size of the download per each release.
“A device leveraging express updates will use network protocol to determine optimal differentials, then download only what is needed, which is typically around 150-200 MB in size each month. Ultimately, the more up to date a device is, the smaller the size of the differential download,” Microsoft explained in the original announcement.
The company has also updated the KB articles of the latest cumulative updates for the said Windows 10 versions with warnings that delta updates would be retired next month.
“Reminder: March 12th and April 9th will be the last two Delta updates for Windows 10, version 1803. Security and quality updates will continue to be available via the express and full cumulative update packages,” the warning reads.