Update for Windows 7 and 8.1 adds Windows 10 download tool

Microsoft has quietly rolled out an update for Windows 7 and 8.1 with which the files for the upcoming Windows 10 release can be downloaded. The ‘recommended’ update must be installed manually.

It concerns Windows Update KB3035583. According to Microsoft’s description, this update adds new notifications to Windows Update to notify the user when new updates are available. A closer inspection of the relevant patch files by the Myce website shows that among the installed files is also an executable that appears to be intended to download the installation files of Windows 10.

In a configuration file called config.xml there are additional URLs that seem to point to, among other things, a download location and an address to measure the number of visits. The file also contains references to ‘phases’ in which, presumably shortly before the public release of Windows 10, the user is informed via pop-ups about the arrival of Microsoft’s latest operating system.

It is not yet clear whether the KB3035583 update will be given the status of a ‘recommended’ update in a later phase, so that it will be installed automatically. Microsoft is expected to officially release Windows 10 in mid-2015. The first year, the upgrade to the new OS will be free for Windows 7 and 8.1 users.