Windows 10 Autumn Update due on 2nd November

[Arthur]

Only 12 days to go if the rumours are to be believed.

 

Sources: WinBeta / thurrott.com

 

Windows 10 “Threshold 2” is almost ready. In fact, we’re now less than two weeks away from it being publicly available as according to my sources, the update will launch for consumers on 2nd November, lining up with our previous report which claimed it would launch in early November. Microsoft has been working on Threshold 2 for a few months now, bringing a number of additional features to the operating system that were originally slated for the RTM back in July.

 

For those who don’t know, Threshold 2 will include a new Messaging app pre-installed with the operating system that will allow you to chat with friends on Skype. It will also bring SMS texting from the desktop with Cortana, plus a number of other improvements to Cortana as a whole. There are improvements to Microsoft Edge, although extensions are now slated to arrive sometime next year.

 

Threshold 2 also brings new customization options such as the ability to enable an extra column on Start and enable coloured title-bars. Threshold 2 feels like a much more rounded operating system compared to the Windows 10 release in July, and that’s a good thing. Consumers will receive this update automatically, much like any other update starting 2nd November. Of course, until this is officially confirmed by Microsoft, the date could always change.

 

http://changewindows.org/build.php?id=93

 

This is a draft for the final release of Windows 10 Threshold 2 in comparison with Windows 10 Threshold 1 build 10240.

 

Start

• You can now show either 3 or 4 medium tiles per group
  
• Tiles now can have jumplists
  
• The start context menus have been updated to display icons and contain the app's jumplist
  
• Cortana now also works for local accounts
  
• The context menus for tiles have been reorganized
  
  • You can now share apps through this menu
    
  • You can now review apps through this menu
    

  [*]Desktop app tiles now can have their own color

  [*]Start now supports up to 2048 tiles (up from 512)

Desktop

• Context menus have a more consistent look
  
• When colors are set to the taskbar, start and action center, they now also apply to title bars
  
• The look for dropdowns has been changed system wide
  
• Jumplists have a new design
  
• Improved dark and light theming
  
• When you snap a window and select another window to snap beside it, you can resize both windows at once (only horizontal)
  
  • This needs to be enabled under System > Multitasking
    

Tablet mode

• Task View now allows to snap apps to the screen or replace apps
  
• You can now drag apps to the bottom in Task View to close them
  

Lock screen

• Windows Spotlight can now be set as the lock screen on all editions, not just the Home edition
  
• You can now disable the background for the logon screen
  

Features

• Cortana
  
  • Cortana can now understand your inked notes
    
  • Cortana can now track your movies and ticketed events
    
  • Cortana can now warn you for missed phone calls
    
  • Cortana can now save energy when you're away
    
  • Cortana can now sync your messaging and calling history
    

  [*]Your default printer is now the last printer you've used

  [*]You can now use Hyper-V within another Hyper-V guest machine

Microsoft Edge

• Edge has been upgraded from version 20.10240 to 23.10565
  
• EdgeHTML has been upgraded from version 12.10240 to 13.10565
  
• Extended support for HTML5 and CSS3
  
  • Support for the download-attribute in an anchor
    
  • Support for the picture-element
    
  • Support for :in-range, :out-of-range, :read-only and :read-write
    
  • Support for font-size-adjust
    
  • Support for input type=datetime-local
    
  • Support for ellipses
    
  • Support for Object RTC
    
  • Support for HTML Templates
    
  • Support for new input types
    
  • Support for Pointer Lock
    
  • Support for Canvas blending modes
    

  [*]Improved support for ECMAScript 6 and 7

  [*]You can now open proxy settings from within the Microsoft Edge settings

  [*]You can now share media to other screens

  [*]When a page is properly paginated, the next button will light up to go to the next page

  [*]Tabs won't resize when you're closing tabs until your mouse leaves the tab bar

  [*]Edge now shows previews of tabs

  [*]You can now sync your favourites and reading list

  [*]Middle-clicking the Edge-icon will now launch a new window

  [*]The F12 tools can now be docked into the window

  [*]The search engine setting now has its own pane

  [*]The note feature has a new icon

Settings

• The Settings-icon on the taskbar has no longer a background colour
  
• The Settings-tile is now transparent for non-fresh installs too
  
• The Settings app's splash screen now uses the accent colour of the user
  
• The About page now shows the Windows 10 logo in the user's accent colour
  
• Installing apps to another drive has been enabled again
  
• You can now change where Windows has to store offline maps
  
• Changing the scaling settings will now go in effect when changed, without clicking "Apply"
  
• You can now locate your device with GPS and Location tracking in "Find my device"
  
• The Windows Insider Ring now has to be set with a slider instead of a dropdown
  
• The Activation-screen no longer shows a product ID and key but the status if you've been digitally entitled
  
• You can now (dis)allow apps to access your call history
  
• You can now (dis)allow apps to access and send emails
  
• You can now make Windows select the correct time zone automatically
  
• The "Storage" tab now has icons for each file format
  
• You can let Windows notify you when there are issues with any USB-connected device
  
• The Insider settings now show your account details and allow you to stop receiving builds for a limited amount of days
  
• The Control Panel's Theme Settings have been extended, back to the state from Windows 8.1
  

Windows Apps

• Windows Apps now have an opening and closing animation
  
• Windows Apps now can have jumplists
  
• Skype Video has been added as a default app
  
• Messaging has been added as a default app
  
• Phone has been added as a default app
  
• Sway has been added as a default app
  
• All build-in apps have been updated to more recent versions
  

And further

• Improved memory management
  
• You can now share feedback more easily with links to the app's content
  
• Improvements to the text input panel, including expanding when more space is required and punctuation improvements
  
• New emojis have been added
  
• Some icons have been replaced
  
• There is a new system in place to warn you for common issues when using the Insider Preview
  
• The "Environmental Variables" window has been reworked
  
• You can now activate Windows 10 with a Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 key
  
• Windows will now claim to be version 1511, which probably stands for November 2015
  
• The copyright has been changed to 2016
  

[JRowley]

Some good changes, I'm disappointed that you still can't set your physical location manually, mine is auto detected as being in Crewe, I live like 20 miles from Crewe.

[Michael]

Question is, how big will the update be? Will it be easily deployable?

[Arthur]

Question is, how big will the update be?

KB3105514 (20th October cumulative update) is 497MB for 64-bit Windows 10. With all of the changes above it's bound to be quite large (1GB+)?

 

Will it be easily deployable?

It will probably show up in WSUS.

 

You will get the Windows 10 Fall Update the same way you get any other Windows 10 update: Through Windows Update. It will have the same distribution as a security update, meaning that you will get it immediately. Ideally, you will just wake up the PC one day, sign-in, and already be on the new version. The update will be named “Windows 10 November 2015” in Windows Update.

[Arthur]

www.neowin.net/news/threshold-2-now-reported-to-launch-on-next-patch-tuesday

 

The previous deadline was allegedly nixed because Microsoft could not produce a final build by that date. If the company is to stick to this new deadline, it will need to work quite fast, as the build has to be released to Insiders for testing before the official launch and there's only a week left.