Microsoft plans to do away with intrusive Windows 10 updates thanks to machine learning

Microsoft has taken a decidedly aggressive approach with Windows 10, with the operating system regularly interrupting users in order to push updates and installations. The introduction of the snooze button last year did little to quell complaints of random reboots, prompting the company to look into machine learning to teach Windows 10 when is best to update per user.

The random, pushy nature of the operating system has made PC use quite the burden in recent years, not knowing whether you’ll encounter an intrusive prompt mid-way through reading this very sentence. Luckily, Microsoft’s Windows Insider chief Dona Sarkar is keen to tell those affected that the company has indeed heard you.

“To alleviate this pain, if you have an update pending we’ve updated our reboot logic to use a new system that is more adaptive and proactive,” explains the chief. “We will not only check if you are currently using your device before we restart, but we will also try to predict if you had just left the device to grab a cup of coffee and return shortly after.”

Microsoft is currently trialling the predictive methods internally, bundling them within test builds 17723, better known as Redstone 5 due out later this year, and 18204, also known as 19H1 due to its scheduled launch in the first half of next year. Despite “promising results” from the tests, the company hasn’t confirmed when the feature will go live within a full build, but its inevitable release is sure to please many PC users out there.

KitGuru Says: Windows 10 update prompts have become the butt of all jokes, regularly referenced when something unexpected happens – even in eSports rehosts. It’s about time that Microsoft finally fixed its model to allow its users to, well, use the operating system without interruption.

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