Microsoft wants to resume W10 October 2018 Update rollout after fixing uninstall bug

Microsoft wants to re-release the Windows 10 October 2018 Update after a break of several days. A new build should prevent users from having to delete files in the Documents folder again.

In the changelog of build version 17763.55 of Windows 10 version 1809, or the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, Microsoft explains the bug. It was a timing bug that prematurely deleted user profiles in specific cases. In a further explanation, Microsoft clarifies that this happened when users applied Known Folder Redirection, but files remained in the old folder.

With Known Folder Redirection, the folders Desktop, Documents, Pictures no longer refer to the default location at c:usersusername but to a new location. With the previous Windows 10 version, users reported that this could sometimes cause empty copies of folders. Microsoft wanted to fix this with the October 2018 Update by removing those duplicates. However, files still present in those ‘old’ folders were also deleted.

According to Microsoft, the number of cases was small, one-hundredth of a percent of Windows 10 October 2018 Update installations. The company also claims to be able to recover deleted files from users. Victims must contact Microsoft customer service for this. However, the company states that it cannot give any guarantees that deleted data can actually be recovered.

To prevent the recurrence of serious bugs in the future, Microsoft is adding the option to its Windows Insider Feedback Hub to provide an indication of the impact and severity of issues found.

Last week, users were shocked to see that they lost files from their Documents folder after implementing the Windows 10 October 2018 Update. Over the weekend, Microsoft decided to temporarily stop the rollout to investigate the problems.

Microsoft is now working towards resuming the rollout of the Windows 10 October 2018 Update. The company reports doing this after making sure there is no further negative impact on users. The update has been released as build version 17763.17 to Windows Insiders coming from an earlier Windows version. Those who were already on Windows version 1809 will get the fix with build version 17763.55, according to Microsoft.

Update, 12.00: Clarified that Microsoft has resumed the rollout for Insiders and plans to launch it broadly if no further issues arise.