Starting today, Microsoft is initiating the first phase of the new Windows 10 optional updates experience that allows users to pick and choose what non-security updates and drivers they wish to install.
In September 2019, we reported that Microsoft was introducing a new section to Windows Update called 'Optional updates' that contains all of the optional updates and drivers that are not required for the proper functioning of Windows.
Users will be able to access the new Optional updates interface through a link in Windows Update titled 'View optional updates'. Once clicked, users will be shown a list of optional drivers and updates that they can install if they wish.
Günter Born confirmed that the Windows 10 UI change will not occur until Windows 10 2004 (20H1) is released.
"The changes to Ux for Windows 10 20H1 detailed here will not be backported to previous releases. For older versions of Windows Manual drivers are obtained via Device Manager (same as Optional drivers were)," Kevin Tremblay of Microsoft stated.
More choices for hardware developers
As part of the rollout starting today, Microsoft is allowing hardware developers to mark their drivers as 'Automatic' or 'Manual' to specify how drivers should be delivered to Windows users.
If a driver is set to Automatic, it will be included in Microsoft's normal Windows Update experience and automatically downloaded and installed on applicable systems.
This allows hardware developers to roll out new drivers and test them with a small amount of Windows users for reliability before pushing them out to a wider audience.
"Allowing Automatic drivers to be offered to Windows 10 clients during throttling via the new Windows Update UX, enabling support teams to quickly address driver issues in the field without waiting for a full release."
If a developer marks a driver as 'Manual', the driver will be considered optional and only appear in Windows 10's new Optional updates interface.
Microsoft believes these changes will help their customers "get the highest quality, and most reliable drivers faster and with less friction."
These changes are scheduled to go live before 5:00 PM on February 19th, 2020 PST and will most likely be enabled through server changes on Microsoft's end.
As of right now, these changes are not visible in Windows Update on Windows 10 1909. If you see this feature go live, please let us know and share a screenshot.
BleepingComputer has contacted Microsoft with more questions regarding this new feature but has not heard back as of yet.
Update 2/20/20: Updated with information about UI changes not coming until Windows 10 2004 (20H1).
Comments
Starkman - 1 month ago
I neither need nor want MS's driver downloads. I'll get them myself. Thank you!
NoneRain - 1 month ago
Some drivers updates come with security fixes, you should want those installed automatically... This option for hardware developers is great for us, and it should exist from the beginning... better late than never I guess lol
fromFirefoxToVivaldi - 1 month ago
It should be up to the user whether they want the update or not. I'm ok with updates being pushed automatically to everyone by default, but there should be a switch to turn that off and install them only with the user's approval.
Phydeux - 1 month ago
MS tried leaving it in the hands of the user, and that failed. Average users treat their computer like a toaster, you turn it on, get what you need out of it, and turn it off until needed again. They refused to send crash reports when offered, and when they started being automatic, they would cancel them. Thus Microsoft couldn't get a lot of useful data to analyze in order to find driver and application faults. And people refused to bother with Windows Updates because they didn't deem them important or didn't want to inconvenienced by reboots. So problems went unreported, and fixes were delayed or never came out.
Now they've taken to doing both automatically and that upsets the advanced users who like controlling their own computer despite the fact that Windows 7, 8, and 10 have become SIGNIFICANTLY more stable and reliable after crash reporting and updating were taking out of users' hands.
The fact is, you have three choices:
If you want complete control of your PC, go build your own Linux install to your specifications.
If you want complete hands-off maintenance, get a Mac.
But if you want something that's middle-of-the-road and has the most compatibility to everything else, use Windows and accept that there are updates and drivers out there that others NEED even if you don't want them.
Some-Other-Guy - 1 month ago
Phydeux says...
"Windows 7, 8, and 10 have become SIGNIFICANTLY more stable and reliable after crash reporting and updating were taking out of users' hands."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Way Wrong Answer!
All versions of Windows have become SIGNIFICANTLY more stable and reliable after crash reporting and updating are taken out of MICROSOFTS hands
I can make any version of Windows more stable and reliable than Microsoft Updates will ever do, but that doesn't mean anyone can
MS updates can make Windows more secure, as long as security is the only focus of the updates
Security and Reliability are two completely different issues however
Ascaris5 - 4 weeks ago
"MS tried leaving it in the hands of the user, and that failed."
No, it didn't fail. The owner of the hardware is the ultimate authority of that hardware, and previous versions of Windows did as they were told... if the owner turned off updates, updates would not happen. That's not "failed." That's "performing as intended."
If a given user found that he became infected by malware that an update would have prevented, that's not failure of the system... that's a self-inflicted wound by the owner of the hardware. If people want to be dumb, that's their prerogative, and it's not up to Microsoft or anyone else to protect them from themselves.
I'd have to ask for a citation on that bit about all of the bugs that never got reported and were never fixed under the old system. Under that old system, Microsoft had a dedicated quality assurance department, and it was their job to discover and report bugs. They had tools and expertise in finding problems that would not easily be seen by regular people using their PCs.
They're gone now, a victim of Microsoft's desire to save money. If Microsoft's concern was motivated at all by the desire to find bugs, they would not have canned the people whose job it was to find bugs.
The real reason that MS insists that consumers have no choice about telemetry and updates is that they're the new beta testers, for software they paid for. It's not that the update system used by Windows versions prior to 10 had failed... it had worked quite well for 15 years prior to the release of Windows 10. Windows was of a commercially acceptable level of stability during that time, particularly if one followed the old rule of thumb of waiting a while before upgrading to a new release version. I used Windows XP for more than 10 years, and it was just boringly reliable (said tongue in cheek... "boring" in that it didn't give me any problems to solve, but I liked it that way).
What the old update system didn't work for was Microsoft's "vision" of not having a QA department. It used to be that reports from out in the field were an extra layer of bug detection on top of that provided by the QA people, so while it was nice to have, it wasn't necessary. Now the QA people are gone, and the first line of defense is a bunch of volunteer "Insiders" who are often more interested in the party atmosphere and joking about ninja cats and taco hats than in actually doing anything useful. Those who actually do want to test Microsoft's product for free are techie types using their own PCs, and tech-savvy people know better than to than to run beta software on their real, daily use PCs. Much of the limited testing tends to be in VMs, a situation which doesn't result in a broad variety of hardware types being tested.
As a result, the first time a new Windows version sees such a variety of bare-metal installations is when it's released to consumers, who don't know any better than to run what is de facto beta software on their actual daily use PCs. They've not been told it's beta software, nor were they given a choice about whether to run their actual, daily-use PCs on that beta software. They're cannon fodder for the benefit of corporate users of Windows, who get more options regarding updates and telemetry than do the consumers.
It is unconscionable for MS to make people beta test their own commercial software to save some money. It doesn't matter what "works" in Microsoft's scheme... all that matters is that an OS should serve, unequivocally and exclusively, the needs of the hardware owner, as defined by himself. Putting a band-aid on Microsoft's decision to get rid of QA should not be part of that deal.
"Now they've taken to doing both automatically and that upsets the advanced users who like controlling their own computer despite the fact that Windows 7, 8, and 10 have become SIGNIFICANTLY more stable and reliable after crash reporting and updating were taking out of users' hands."
How do you figure updating was taken out of the hands of Windows 7 and 8.1 users? MS backported some of the telemetry, and they also backported the ill-advised update wrap-up system, but the hardware owners were still in full control of updates (and still are, if they're using those versions).
Windows 7 could not have been more stable on my machines when I used it. It simply never had any issues (unless I caused them, which I knew I was doing)... I could go into the Windows reliability monitor and show you the flat line at 10 of 10 reliability, day in and day out. It's always been the case that a lot of the crashes MS gets blamed for are caused by hardware issues or by driver code they did not write, while the actual MS code was of high quality. It's simply not accurate to say that their QA didn't work back then.
"If you want complete control of your PC, go build your own Linux install to your specifications."
Already done. I used and was happy with Windows for 25 years, from 1990 to 2015, but with Windows 10 the way it was, and is, there's just no way. As the old saw goes, "I didn't leave Windows. Windows left me." When Windows stopped being a product that was meant to serve my needs and started being one to serve Microsoft's needs, it was no longer the same Windows I'd been using for all that time. It's not that Linux is super great or that suddenly I've become a crusader to end all commercial software... it's just the only real option at this point. Fortunately, it works very well for me, including running all of my Windows games and applications for which I can't find Linux native versions.
"But if you want something that's middle-of-the-road and has the most compatibility to everything else, use Windows and accept that there are updates and drivers out there that others NEED even if you don't want them."
If others NEED them, let others HAVE them, without bothering anyone who doesn't NEED or WANT them.
Phydeux - 1 month ago
You (and I) represent the minority of the minority of Windows users. Most basic users don't have a clue what a driver is, much less what it does. And if you want better drivers, fine, apply them, but don't whine just because Microsoft comes out with updates for the masses on a mass-produced platform.
fromFirefoxToVivaldi - 1 month ago
They should add a toggle (disabled by default) to make all driver updates manual.
Lchavpin - 1 month ago
My computer system recently was pushed automatically to update with the KB4528760. After that the system not longer have access to file sharing and printing. No network access. Can't see or have access to server or other computers. Microsoft obviously is pushing users to get updates with undesired results.
noelprg4 - 1 month ago
Lawrence
only in Windows 10 version 2004 & onward for the Optional Update experience as Born recently reported:
https://borncity.com/win/2020/02/20/windows-10-changes-in-driver-updates/
not gonna happen with the 1903/1909 & earlier versions of Win10 as I saw a quote there:
"The changes to Ux for Windows 10 20H1 detailed here will not be backported to previous releases. For older versions of Windows Manual drivers are obtained via Device Manager (same as Optional drivers were)."
Lawrence Abrams - 1 month ago
Thanks! Updated the article to include this info.