Skip to main content

Windows 10 October 2018 Update won’t launch in October after all

windows 10 october update
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Windows 10 October 2018 update which was slated for — you guessed it — October, looks unlikely to release in that month at all after further delays pushed back its secondary roll out. The latest round of fixes addresses issues with dragging files from a zip archive in Windows’ File Explorer, adding to a growing number of patches that have been released to Windows Insiders since the original release of the update in early October.

Initially launched on October 2 as part of Microsoft’s Surface event, which saw the debut of new devices like the Surface Studio 2 and Surface Pro 6, the Windows 10 October 2018 update brought with it a number of new features, including better smartphone integration and improved screenshot editing capabilities. However, it was quickly plagued with dangerous bugs that caused data deletion and driver incompatibility. It was bad enough that Microsoft pulled the update and sent it back to its testers to try and iron out some of the bugs.

Since then we’ve received multiple reports of additional bug fixes and it’s still not clear when the wider Windows 10 user base can expect to receive the update. What is clear is that it isn’t going to release in October — we’ve simply run out of time.

When it does become available, however, we do know that it won’t have a nasty zip archive bug that was recently patched out. As Ars Technica describes it, the problem would see the dragging and dropping of files from zip archives not provide a prompt to the user to see if they want to overwrite a file with the same name. The Windows 10 17763 build that comprises the October 2018 Update was instead simply ignoring files with the same name and not copying them over.

The patch for that particular flaw is now with the slow and release rings of Microsoft’s Windows Insider program, so should be about ready for the main release build. It joins additional patches for the data deletion, audio issues, and driver compatibility problems that have plagued the premium Windows update. It’s all very late though, pushing back the release of the update well beyond when it was initially planned to see widespread adoption.

Editors' Recommendations

Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale is the Evergreen Coordinator for Computing, overseeing a team of writers addressing all the latest how to…
If you have an AMD GPU, stay away from the latest Windows Update
Two AMD Radeon RX 7000 graphics cards on a pink surface.

A quick PSA: If you own one of AMD's best graphics cards and you like to tweak the settings, now is not a good time to download the latest Windows Update. According to users on the AMD forums, the KB5030310 update really doesn't agree with AMD's Adrenalin Control Panel. While it's not the end of the world, this isn't the first Windows update in the last few months that has caused problems.

It appears that every time people restart their PCs, their Adrenalin settings are all reset back to default. This means that any changes made to things like AMD's Anti-Lag or Hyper RX will disappear upon every boot. Fortunately, the graphics driver itself is unaffected.

Read more
Microsoft Copilot sounds great. Here’s why I definitely won’t use it
Using Windows 11 copilot to summarize a document.

A lot of Microsoft's September event was dedicated to Copilot, Bing Chat, and other AI-driven features. In a way, the updates made to laptops like the Surface Laptop Studio 2 almost felt like an afterthought. It was a real AI fest -- and no wonder, as Microsoft has certainly created something bragworthy.

Despite how impressive Copilot seems to be, I can't see myself actually using it. It's a neat party trick, but my concerns with the AI outweigh any upsides it might have.
AI everywhere

Read more
The best Windows apps for 2023
dell xps 13 2018 review version 1541544414 screen hero2

There are plenty of apps available in the Microsoft Store, but the best Windows apps can remain elusive. Calendar apps are a popular choice for those looking to improve productivity, and there are plenty of free apps you can choose from if you don't want to pay for the privilege.

To help you choose, we’ve put together a list of the best Windows 10 and Windows 11 apps for every user to try out, whether you want better productivity or just seek to be entertained.
Best Windows apps for productivity

Read more