Microsoft Begins Forcing Windows 10 1803 Customer Migrations To May 2019 Update
If you have a system running the Windows 10 April 2018 Update (version 1803) or earlier, Microsoft is about to push a forced upgrade on you – and you will have little recourse to prevent it from happening. Microsoft made its intentions clear leading up to and during the launch of the Windows 10 May 2019 Update (version 1903) earlier this year.
Customers have balked at the idea of being forced into a newer version of Windows against their will — especially if their current build is functioning nominally — but Microsoft sees its motives as security-based.
“Keeping these devices both supported and receiving monthly updates is critical to device security and ecosystem health,” Microsoft writes. PCs running Windows 10 1803 will no longer be supported or eligible for updates starting November 12th (ending 18 months of official support), so Microsoft is getting the ball rolling early.
Microsoft will first start delivering the forced update to PCs running the Home and Pro versions of Windows 10 to “ensure adequate time for a smooth update process.” Even with the forced updates, users will still have a one-time 35-day “get out of jail” card before they enter the point of no return.
The software giant isn’t taking this move lightly, and adds these words of caution:
Our update rollout process takes into consideration the scale and complexity of the Windows 10 ecosystem, with the many hardware, software, and app configuration options users have, to provide a seamless update experience for all users. We closely monitor update feedback to allow us to prioritize those devices likely to have a good update experience and quickly put safeguards on other devices while we address known issues.
At this point in its lifecycle, the Windows 10 May 2019 Update has encountered fewer showstopping bugs than its October 2018 Update predecessor, but it hasn’t been completely trouble-free.
