Back in early 2016, representatives of Microsoft Corporation officially announced that the so-called anniversary update of Windows 10 Anniversary will be available this summer. And so it happened. Starting from 08/02/2016, many users of stationary and mobile systems began to receive (or should have received) offers to install Windows 10 Anniversary Update (Redstone). How to upgrade to a new assembly, if for some reason such a proposal has not been received from the developer, now we’ll consider it. To obtain an update, if it is really needed or an urgent need has arisen for it to be installed, you can use several simple methods that will be discussed in the further description.
Service Pack 1607: What's New?
Judging by the new modification based on materials presented on the official resource of the developer corporation, a lot of changes have appeared in the system. However, this update was only called Redstone at first, and now the update is indicated exclusively by technical means in the form of a version and an assembly.
At the moment, an update is available with the number 1607 (build version 14393.10). How to install the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, now we’ll look at it, especially since at least five simple ways are provided for this. Let us dwell on possible problems.
But what is new in the new assembly? The main aspects of the innovations were improving the intelligence of the Cortana assistant, improving interaction with Android and Windows Phone devices, supporting browser extensions to Edge, introducing ubiquitous biometric authentication of sites, a new system for unlocking a computer system using a companion device, and improving Windows Ink technology for using handwritten stylus input, return to full Skype application, Linux command line appears, use updated with it power, and so on. d. But the first thing that is immediately obvious to the naked eye, it is a modified interface design in black, extended menu "Start" and "Notification Center". Also, some changes were made to the "Taskbar".
But now we focus on exactly how to install the Anniversary Update for Windows 10.
New modification: update options
The following methods are proposed as a methodology for installing this update:
- auto mode;
- update through the standard "Update Center";
- Using the Media Creation Tool
- upgrade using the Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant;
- Install an update using an ISO image.
They are quite simple. But for now, let's focus on stationary systems, not taking Windows 10 Mobile Anniversary Update into account. How to upgrade to a new system modification on mobile devices will be discussed separately. And now, a few solutions for computers and laptops.
Windows 10 Anniversary Update: how to upgrade and what to consider before installing?
As for the update methods themselves, presented above, all of them imply only the use of different means to achieve identical goals. As already clear, user data is not affected, and only system components are subject to change (updating).
As it turns out, sometimes the situation with updates gets out of hand. Problems can begin both during the installation of the update, and at later stages, after its full installation. If the user has any specialized programs, it is better to solve the installation issue with technical specialists, because today there are quite a lot of cases when user applications stop working (it will be quite problematic to return to the initial state). But more on that later.
How to upgrade to Windows 10 Anniversary Update automatically?
So, let's start with the simplest. Based on what was announced by Microsoft representatives, absolutely all users of the tenth version of the system on computers or mobile devices will receive a special notification at the time that they are currently available update 1607.
This is somewhat reminiscent of the situation with the modification of Technical Preview, when a registered user submitted an application and waited for his turn. If you have time to wait, you can not rush. Anyway, sooner or later such a message will appear. The main condition for installation is the availability of uninterrupted communication and access to the Internet. If the user agrees to the installation, the whole process will be completely automatic.
Using Update Center
But there is such a category of users who do not want to wait. For them, in the simplest version, the question of how to force upgrade to Windows 10 Anniversary Update can be resolved by using the usual manual search for updates in the "Update Center".
To do this, go to the section itself and use the corresponding button. Upon completion of the check, the results may include a link to install assembly 1607. If an update is found, a short message will appear on the screen, after which the package will be downloaded, preparation for the update, and installation after confirmation of the system reboot (there may be several reboots).
When the update is installed, the version can be checked through the command line by writing winver in it (the console should be launched on behalf of the administrator).
However, one should not particularly rely on this. How to get the Windows 10 Anniversary Update if the search fails? Easy peasy. For starters, you can use the well-known utility Media Creation Tool, which was originally used to force the installation of the Technical Preview version.
Update via Media Creation Tool
So, we need to install the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. How to update using this utility? Yes, just like the initial build was installed.
We run the utility with administrator rights, after which we agree with the license and select a computer update (in this case, to Windows 10 Pro) with saving user data. The following is a standard process during which the system can be rebooted several times.
Windows 10 Upgrade Tool
If the user does not like the above method, or, even worse, errors and crashes occur, you can try to use the small Windows 10 Upgrade utility, which is downloaded from the official Microsoft website by clicking the update button and downloading the Windows10Upgrade9252.exe executable file to the computer.
How to upgrade to Windows 10 Anniversary Update using it? There is nothing complicated either. It works on the same type as the previous program. We launch the "exe" file on behalf of the administrator, wait for the results of checking the compatibility of the system, follow the instructions of the installer and wait for the installation process to complete.
Update Using an ISO Image
There is another technique that makes it easy to solve the issue of installing Windows 10 Anniversary Update. How to upgrade? Yes, just use the ready-made system image that you need to create in the Media Creation Tool application, indicating the appropriate item at the installation stage.
When the image is created, in the usual Explorer, double-click on it, and after creating the virtual drive use the standard Setup.exe installation file. The following is the standard circuit described above. You can download a ready-made image from the Internet (if you want, even from the official resource).
How to update a mobile system
Finally, consider the mobile version of the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. How to upgrade to this modification on a mobile device?
Unfortunately, in this case, the choice of tools compared to stationary systems is extremely limited. It is best to use manual search for available updates.
You can make it directly on your mobile device. First, go to the settings section, where the update and security menu is selected, after which the phone's update item is used, and then the search button for available updates is pressed.
Immediately pay attention to one more side of the installation of the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. How to upgrade, it is already clear, but the main problem is that the first to receive a new assembly are users who are not tied to mobile operators. As stated, operator versions will become available a bit later.
Possible problems with installing updates
On this question, how to upgrade to Windows 10 of the new modification, leave aside. Consider the possible problems that may arise during the update process.
As usual, the Update Center itself may fail. It may well be that first you will have to apply methods to eliminate his own mistakes. Also, problems can be observed if the special utilities described above are used, but for some reason the download of the package was interrupted or not finished. In addition, although it is argued that the system requirements for computers have remained unchanged, it is hard to believe in this. Therefore, it is better to install update 1607 in the system not with a minimally functional configuration, but at least with the recommended one, and even better, with the configuration above. But even all this does not guarantee that the computer will work normally, because after installing this update, a complete system crash is often observed. What this is connected with, so far no one can really explain.
Is it worth it to do this?
Finally, one cannot ignore the problems of the functioning of user applications that were installed in the old version. Today, user reviews say that some of them simply stop working, executable program files are spontaneously renamed, the system does not recognize programs and their startup files, believing that they are not intended for this modification. Therefore, you need to have one hundred percent confidence that the new assembly is extremely necessary for the user and will not harm the installed software. By the way, a similar situation was observed with the initial technical version, however, then it concerned more free antiviruses and all kinds of optimizers.
Instead of an afterword
In general, as can be seen from the foregoing, the problem of updating to a new anniversary modification of the system is not too complicated. What to use as a means of updating, everyone decides for himself. However, if you approach the update from the point of view of maximum security and carrying out an accelerated procedure, it is best to turn to the help of special utilities, especially since these are official programs that certainly will not harm the system. And, of course, you should pay special attention to the hardware installed on the computer, because, unfortunately, there is no guarantee that the new modification will work on it as expected.
Well, in the situation with mobile devices, the choice is small. The only consolation is that the available update on mobile devices with manual search is determined much more often than on desktop computers or laptops. But here there are pitfalls. First, on the official website you need to look at the list of devices that will support the work of the new modification without any questions. If the custom gadget is not in the list, you will have to install the update at your own risk. Again, there is no guarantee that the system will work. And in the case of installing custom firmware it generally cannot be for all security reasons. So think a hundred times before doing these things.
And one moment. It should be understood that updating the graphical interface and supposedly improving some features of the system ultimately leads to the fact that system resources will be used to a greater extent (user settings for some components may not be saved). You will have to re-configure the system for yourself, turning off everything unnecessary. So judge if you need those features that are offered by the new modification? The same Cortana assistant in the post-Soviet space is not available at all. So what is the point of installing its new functions if the system does not have this component initially?