Microsoft reduces the size of major Windows updates by more than a third

Microsoft has announced the Unified Update Platform. This platform should make updating smoother on all Windows 10 versions. Starting next year’s Creators Update, the PC update file size will decrease by approximately 35 percent.

Microsoft claims to have listened to user feedback to make updates run smoother, gain more control over the time of installation, reduce the resources required to update, and decrease the size. “We’re all working on that,” the company claims. One of the results is the Unified Update Platform, or UUP, which Microsoft is releasing Thursday to Insider users of Windows 10 Mobile. Insiders of the PC version can expect the update later this year, followed by those of the iot variant and the Hololens.

UUP provides updates that do not contain a full build, but only the changes made since the last update. This can significantly reduce the size. Major updates, such as last summer’s Anniversary Update, require several GBs and provide a virtually new Windows installation. With UUP, this would become a thing of the past. This results in savings in particular for the PC version of Windows 10, Microsoft claims: the size decreases by about 35 percent. Microsoft is rolling this out from the Creators Update, but Insiders can expect it sooner.

In addition, Microsoft sends less update data to clients and makes its servers do more calculations when analyzing which updates are needed. This more efficient method would relieve mobile devices in particular. In addition, Microsoft is working to update the mobile version in a single hop regardless of the previous build, just as with the PC. Users don’t see any of the new features visually, the changes take place under the hood.