Windows 10 SDK preview build 18985 now available for developers

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This release brings the build number up to the latest Windows 10 build available to Fast ring Insiders.

What you need to know

  • Windows 10 SDK preview build 18985 is now available.
  • This release matches the latest Windows 10 build available on the Fast ring.
  • Developers can download SDK preview build 18985 now from the Windows Insider site.

Another Windows 10 SDK preview build is now available for developers. The latest release pushes the build number up to 18985, which is the same build number for the latest Windows 10 preview release on the Fast ring. The updated SDK is now available to download from the Windows Insider website.

The release notes for this build are the same as prior releases, but here's a recap:

Tools updates

  • Message Compiler (mc.exe)
    • Now detects the Unicode byte order mark (BOM) in .mc files. If the If the .mc file starts with a UTF-8 BOM, it will be read as a UTF-8 file. Otherwise, if it starts with a UTF-16LE BOM, it will be read as a UTF-16LE file. If the -u parameter was specified, it will be read as a UTF-16LE file. Otherwise, it will be read using the current code page (CP_ACP).
    • Now avoids one-definition-rule (ODR) problems in MC-generated C/C++ ETW helpers caused by conflicting configuration macros (e.g. when two .cpp files with conflicting definitions of MCGEN_EVENTWRITETRANSFER are linked into the same binary, the MC-generated ETW helpers will now respect the definition of MCGEN_EVENTWRITETRANSFER in each .cpp file instead of arbitrarily picking one or the other).
  • Windows Trace Preprocessor (tracewpp.exe)
    • Now supports Unicode input (.ini, .tpl, and source code) files. Input files starting with a UTF-8 or UTF-16 byte order mark (BOM) will be read as Unicode. Input files that do not start with a BOM will be read using the current code page (CP_ACP). For backwards-compatibility, if the -UnicodeIgnore command-line parameter is specified, files starting with a UTF-16 BOM will be treated as empty.
    • Now supports Unicode output (.tmh) files. By default, output files will be encoded using the current code page (CP_ACP). Use command-line parameters -cp:UTF-8 or -cp:UTF-16 to generate Unicode output files.
    • Behavior change: tracewpp now converts all input text to Unicode, performs processing in Unicode, and converts output text to the specified output encoding. Earlier versions of tracewpp avoided Unicode conversions and performed text processing assuming a single-byte character set. This may lead to behavior changes in cases where the input files do not conform to the current code page. In cases where this is a problem, consider converting the input files to UTF-8 (with BOM) and/or using the -cp:UTF-8 command-line parameter to avoid encoding ambiguity.
  • TraceLoggingProvider.h
    • Now avoids one-definition-rule (ODR) problems caused by conflicting configuration macros (e.g. when two .cpp files with conflicting definitions of TLG_EVENT_WRITE_TRANSFER are linked into the same binary, the TraceLoggingProvider.h helpers will now respect the definition of TLG_EVENT_WRITE_TRANSFER in each .cpp file instead of arbitrarily picking one or the other).
    • In C++ code, the TraceLoggingWrite macro has been updated to enable better code sharing between similar events using variadic templates.
  • Signing your apps with Device Guard Signing
    • We are making it easier for you to sign your app. Device Guard signing is a Device Guard feature that is available in Microsoft Store for Business and Education. Signing allows enterprises to guarantee every app comes from a trusted source. Our goal is to make signing your MSIX package easier. Documentation on Device Guard Signing can be found here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/msix/package/signing-package-device-guard-signing

Breaking changes

  • Removal of api-ms-win-net-isolation-l1-1-0.lib: In this release api-ms-win-net-isolation-l1-1-0.lib has been removed from the Windows SDK. Apps that were linking against api-ms-win-net-isolation-l1-1-0.lib can switch to OneCoreUAP.lib as a replacement.
  • Removal of IRPROPS.LIB: In this release irprops.lib has been removed from the Windows SDK. Apps that were linking against irprops.lib can switch to bthprops.lib as a drop-in replacement.

As with previous releases, the updates and changes from the release notes come alongside a number of API updates, changes, and removals. You can find the full rundown in Microsoft's post announcing the update. Developers can install build 18985 next to previous SDKs in Visual Studio 2017 and 2019.

Dan Thorp-Lancaster
Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl.