There are new builds for both PC and mobile. 16176 has been released for the desktop and 15204 for mobile. Like the last update, not a lot of feature updates, but more on the back end. There is also a smaller list of devices that are supported on the mobile side, so some people may be disappointed in the dwindling Windows Phone support.

Today we are excited to be releasing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 16176 for PC to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring. We’re continuing work to refine OneCore with some code refactoring so that teams can start checking in new code. So, you still won’t see any noticeable changes or new features in new builds just yet.

J.D. Power has ranked the Microsoft Surface tablet above Apple’s iPad and Android tablets. The Surface Pro earned a 855 out of 1000 score among tablet owners, making it the number one mostly due to the high rankings in features and the styling and design. I own both the Surface Pro 4 and an Apple iPad. Both are amazing devices, but the Surface Pro is superior in many ways. The iPad is still a very capable tablet, but it is only a tablet whereas the Surface Pro is a full fledged PC and much more powerful. I don’t regret either purchase and still use both almost daily.

In features, Microsoft is the highest performer in three areas: variety of pre-loaded applications; internet connectivity; and availability of manufacturer-supported accessories. Microsoft Surface users have the highest incidences of accessory use, which underscores the device’s versatility. These accessories include a stylus (48% vs. 27% industry average); physical keyboard (51% vs. 14%); and mouse (27% vs. 6%), all of which have higher satisfaction. Microsoft also achieves the highest ratings in these features attributes: variety of input/output connectivity and amount of internal storage available.

The first of the Redstone 3 builds is available for Fast Ring Insiders for Windows 10. Grab 16170 from Windows Update now! Not a whole lot of new features, just behind the scenes things.

Also, the Windows Insider Program for Business is now available for the IT professionals out there.

Using corporate credentials will enable you to increase the visibility of your organization’s feedback – especially on features that support productivity and business needs. You’ll also be able to better advocate for the needs of your organization, and have real-time dialogue with Microsoft on features critical to specific business needs. This dialogue, in turn, helps us identify trends in issues organizations are facing when deploying Windows 10 and deliver solutions to you more quickly.

We’ll be rolling out even more tools aimed at better supporting IT Professionals and business users in our Insider community. Stay tuned!

The Windows 10 Creators Update rolls out with a phased approach starting April 11th, but for those users that really want it early, Microsoft has an Update Assistance that will allow you to update to the most recent update.

For the those of you who are eager to get the Creators Update right away, you will be able to initiate the update manually, starting on April 5^th, via Update Assistant. This option is intended for advanced users on devices running a licensed version of Windows 10.

Now that the Creators Update is completed, Microsoft is not resting on it’s laurels. They are continuing to work on the next build, Redstone 3. The new builds are a lot of refinements and behind the scenes fixes rather than the new features. Be sure to check your Insider settings in Windows to make sure you’re setup to grab the new updates, or turn it off if you don’t want to continue.

That’s because right now, we’re focused on making some refinements to OneCore and doing some code refactoring and other engineering work that is necessary to make sure OneCore is optimally structured for teams to start checking in code. Now comes our standard warning that these new builds from our Development Branch may include more bugs and other issues that could be slightly more painful for some people to live with. So, if this makes you uncomfortable, you can change your ring by going to Settings > Update & security > Windows Insider Program and moving to the Slow or Release Preview rings for more stable builds.

The Windows 10 Creators Update is slated to push to all users of Windows 10 on April 11th as a free update. I knew we were getting very close to the release with those most recent builds!

A lot of great new features for those that haven’t been a part of the Windows Insider builds.

Today, I’m excited to share our latest update to Windows 10, the Creators Update, will begin to roll out on April 11. The Creators Update is designed to spark and unleash creativity, bringing 3D and mixed reality to everyone and enabling every gamer to be a broadcaster. Beyond creativity, it brings new features to Microsoft Edge, additional security capabilities and privacy tools, and so much more.

Thursday, Friday, Monday…. A build each day! Bugs getting fixed with each one. Build 15063 has been released for both PC and Mobile. Lots of people talking about this being very close to RTM. Judging by the speed they are squashing bugs and how many known issues are left, I’m sure that we are very close!

Other changes, improvements, and fixes for PC

• We fixed a reliability issue from Build 15061 resulting in Microsoft Edge hanging and becoming completely unresponsive.

• We fixed an issue for Insiders where the localized files and registry keys associated with any additional language packs on the system would not be installed after enabling .NET Framework 3.5.

Seems like only yesterday we got build 15060. Well, it was! Today, we are greeted with 15061. Some good fixes for some issues that some people were experiencing.

Other changes, improvements, and fixes for PC

• We fixed an issue resulting in some unexpected visual distortion when watching certain mp4 videos in Movies and TV on recent flights.

• We fixed an issue resulting in OOBE crashing when you tapped the birthday date field when creating a new account and email address.

• We fixed a recent issue resulting in certain VPN connections being unexpecting missing from Network Connections.

• We fixed an issue where in recent flights, some Direct3D 9 games might periodically fail to launch. To work around this, it was necessary that your default display resolution be the recommended setting for your system. You can now return your display configuration to your preferred settings.

Fast Ring Insiders will be able to update to build 15060 on the PC. Several more fixes are in this build. Definitely getting very close to the Creators Update full release!

Other changes, improvements, and fixes for PC

• We fixed an issue resulting in the Settings icon appearing plating in the taskbar. This issue also resulted in another issue now fixed, where if Settings had been pinned to Start, the tile would become greyed out after the first time it was clicked. Thank you all for your feedback on this.

• We fixed an issue resulting in 3rd party IMEs not showing up in Settings after being installed.

• We fixed an issue in Microsoft Edge where quickly typing and deleting characters into a website’s search box while using the MS Pinyin IME might result in the IME becoming stuck and the website showing “Not responding”.

• Surface Pro 3 and Surface 3 devices should no longer fail to update to new builds if a SD memory card is inserted if you have the latest Surface drivers and firmware installed.

• We fixed an issue where taskhost.exe might crash after pressing Tab while quickly typing in UWP app sign in fields, resulting in not being able to type for a few seconds.

• We fixed an issue for Insiders where, after a crash, Microsoft Edge might fail to launch again for a few minutes because previous instances were still suspended in the background.

• We fixed the issues occurring when exploring pages using the F12 Developer Tools in Microsoft Edge with cross-origin iframes (e.g. the DOM explorer shows only the iframe DOM, the Console frame selector doesn’t list the iframes, etc.).

For those folks using Windows Server 2012, you’re in luck. The mainstream support for Server 2012 has been extended due to the timing of the release of the latest version – Server 2016. The new extended dates have been moved up to 10.10.2023, with mainstream support ending 10.9.2018.

The Lifecycle Policy for Windows Server 2012 states that Mainstream Support will be provided for five years, or for two years after the successor product (N+1, where N=product version) is released, whichever is longer. Microsoft will also provide Extended Support for the five years following Mainstream Support or for two years after the second successor product (N+2) is released, whichever is longer.