Microsoft today announced that the Windows 10 April 2018 Update has reached full availability. That means that every device that is running a prior version of Window 10, and is compatible with the April 2018 Update, should now be able to receive the upgrade via Windows Update.
In addition to reaching full availability, Microsoft says that the April 2018 Update is the fastest version to reach 250 million devices. In fact, the update managed to achieve that benchmark in less than half the time it took its predecessor, the Fall Creators Update, to do the same.
An AI-powered rollout
According to Microsoft, the speed with which is has been able to roll out the April 2018 Update comes down to an AI and machine learning approach that it initially piloted during the Fall Creators Update rollout.
Microsoft was able to train a model to specifically target devices that its data indicated "had a great update experience." With the April 2018 Update, Microsoft expanded this initiative in scope to better target devices as it continued its rollout.
From Microsoft:
Our AI approach has enabled us to quickly spot issues during deployment of a feature update, and as a result has also allowed us to go faster responsibly. In fact, the April 2018 Update is officially the fastest version of Windows 10 to reach 250 million devices, achieving that mark in less than half the time it took the Fall Creators Update!When our AI model, feedback or telemetry data indicate that there may be an issue, we quickly adjust and prevent affected devices from being offered the update until we thoroughly investigate. Once issues are resolved we proceed again with confidence. This allows us to throttle the update rollout to customers without them needing to take any action.
As with prior updates, the April 2018 Update certainly hasn't been without its issues. However, the company touts that it has seen an overall reduction of 20 percent in issues related to system and driver stability.
What's next?
Currently, Microsoft is preparing its next major update, codenamed Redstone 5, for an expected release later this fall. While the rollout of Redstone 5 will likely take a similar approach as previous updates, targeting a small circle and expanding from there, it's likely Microsoft's AI efforts will continue to speed things up even further.
If your PC hasn't yet been updated to the April 2018 Update, then it should be available now via Windows Update.
