[German]As of May 16, 2019 Microsoft has re-released a new version of the reliability update KB4023057 for Windows 10, version 1507 to version 1803. Here are a few details about this update.
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What is Update KB4023057 for?
Update KB4023057, titled 'Update to Windows 10, versions 1507, 1511, 1607, 1703, 1709 and 1803 for update reliability', is cyclically rolled out by Microsoft. It is available for Windows 10 V1507 (RTM version) up to version 1803 (but not for the current version 1809). Microsoft writes within the support article that this update brings improvements in the reliability of the Windows Update service.
This update includes reliability improvements to Windows Update Service components in Windows 10, versions 1507, 1511, 1607, 1703, 1709, and 1803. It may also take steps to free up disk space on your device if you do not have enough disk space to install Windows updates.
This update includes files and resources that address issues that affect the update processes in Windows 10 that may prevent important Windows updates from being installed. These improvements help make sure that updates are installed seamlessly on your device, and they help improve the reliability and security of devices that are running Windows 10.
This is in fact the same text as for the previous releases. So Microsoft leaves its users pretty much in the dark as to what exactly is to be improved in reliability.
It should also be noted that Microsoft does not distribute this update in corporate environments. Therefore, I guess this update is just removes all actions a home users may take to block the update. In addition, the update may free up enough disk space on the system drive to run through updates and feature updates.
This is what you should know about the update
The update is officially only available via Windows Update, i.e. no download from the Microsoft Update Catalog or distribution via WSUS (the latter is logical, since this affects managed corporate environments). Without any tricks (to block the update) all home users will get this update installed. So they can't defend themselves against this update.
At this point we would like to point out another discrepancy. Microsoft only rolls out the update KB4023057 to home users. According to my last blog post Patchday Windows 10 Updates (May 14, 2019), only Windows 10 version 1507 to version 1703 receives updates for Enterprise SKUs. Windows 10 Home and Pro are out of support in these versions. On the other hand, the support article for update KB4023057 states that Windows 10, version 1507 to version 1803 is supported. This makes sense only, if Microsoft wants to upgrade old Windows 10 versions on home user devices to newer builds. This could get nasty for some users, if they blocked new feature update due to compatibility issues with drivers and/or software.
The update deeply interferes with the existing Windows 10 installation, cleans user-set update blockers, creates free disk space on the system drive if necessary, resets the network connection and more. More details about this cyclically released update can be found in the article Windows 10: Update KB4023057 re-released (02/14/2019). Another special feature is that this update is installed as an app and may cause installation errors (see my older blog post Windows 10: Update KB4023057 re-released (01/16/2019)).
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It secrecy like this from Microsoft that is forcing me to extend life on Windows 7, and migrating to non-Microsoft products. They've lost sight of the customers and THEIR concerns, to focus solely on their own.
It's much akin to an electric utility deciding that 75 volts A.C. is better than 220 V.A.C., and notifying customers that they'd better buy all appliances (or pay for a step-up transformer) to continue having electricity (or, in case of solar, backup electricity) at all.