Windows 10: Windows 11 2025: how to get the update, and why you may not want it right now

Microsoft released the big 2025 update for its Windows 11 operating system just a few hours ago. Called the Windows 11 2025 Update, or Windows 11, version 25H2, it is the annual feature update that Microsoft releases for Windows 11.

The good news is that this year's update will install quickly on many systems. Microsoft released what it calls an Enablement Package, which upgrades the system. The update installs in a matter of minutes, as all relevant packages are already installed on the system.

Users won't have to sit through half an hour or more of update installation and repeated reboots. It installs like a smaller update, but only for devices that run Windows 11, version 24H2, last year's update.

How to get the Windows 11 2025 Update




The rollout of the update has started, but not every Windows 11 device will get it right away. Only systems that run Windows 11, version 24H2 with the latest updates installed will get a chance to grab the update right away. This means that the preview update, some call it beta, for Windows 11, 24H2 needs to be installed on the device.

For that, it is necessary to enable "get the latest updates as soon as they're available" in Settings > Windows Update.

However, there are also known issues that may prevent the installation. Microsoft lists just two on the official Windows 11 25H2 dashboard.

• Problems playing protected content in some Blu-Ray, DVD, Digital TV applications.
• Update installations via WUSA may fail, if installed from a shared folder.

If the past is anything to go by, more known issues will be added to the listing in the coming weeks as the operating system update is slowly making its way on user devices.

Devices that still run older versions of Windows, for instance Windows 11, version 23H2, have to go through extended updated installations. This means longer updates and more reboots in the process, and also a higher chance that something goes wrong along the way.

A brief overview of what is new in the Windows 11 2025 Update


The feature update has a strong focus on AI. Means, if your device is not a Copilot+ PC, you won't get access to the majority of features that Microsoft introduces in the new version.

• Enhanced Archive Extraction: Faster performance when unzipping files.
• Expanded Dark Mode Support: Reduces random white dialog boxes
• Taskbar Pinning Improvements: No need to restart Explorer.exe; users can unpin specific apps
• Taskbar Icon Resizing: Automatically adjusts to fit more apps when space is limited.
• Task Manager Updates: DDR speed in MT/s units, faster process handle release, easier window resizing, improved reliability and accessibility (e.g., keyboard navigation, text scaling), and new CPU Utility metric
• Policy-Based App Removal: IT admins can remove preinstalled Microsoft Store apps via policies.
• Windows Backup for Organizations: Enables seamless device transitions for enterprise users
• Quick Machine Recovery: Recovers devices from critical boot errors
• Improved Security Credential Experience: Redesigned Windows Hello and passkey interfaces.
• Privacy Settings: Displays apps using on-device generative AI models

And plenty of AI features reserved for Copilot+ PCs, some of which will be released later on however, as Microsoft notes on the release notes page.

Should you install the update?


While it may tempt some users to install the feature update early, a cautionary approach to major Windows updates is often the better course of action. The past has shown that major updates do introduce new errors and issues, some of which are not detected by Microsoft during development.

Unless you really need one of the features, it may be wiser to skip the update for now to wait and judge its quality as the weeks pass by.

Now You: Are you excited to install and use Windows 11, version 25H2? What is your take on the update? Feel free to leave a comment down below.

Thank you for being a Ghacks reader. The post Windows 11 2025: how to get the update, and why you may not want it right now appeared first on gHacks Technology News.

read more...

 

Windows 10 to Wiindows 11 eligibility regarding recent nptice that Windows 10 will not be supported after October 2025

I just had notice that my Windows 10 Home computer will not be supported after 2025 and is not upgradable to Windows 11. However after running PC health check it said only problem was the CPU processor which is Intel Core i5-7200U CPU @2.5GHz and which is on their list of CPUs supported by Windows 11? so why isn't my computer eligible for the Windows 11 system?

 

Windows Updated(16299.309).KB4088776 Restart is required to complete.

Hi dalchina. Good news, I followed your suggestion and reinstalled the update and now it appears as "installed correctly" *Biggrin Maybe it was not necessary to run the Windows Update Troubleshooter or maybe if necessary. But using it I do not think it could have worsened something. The installation was very fast, unlike the first time it showed step 1 and step 2 completed.

Thanks for the suggestions and for the time to respond Best regards.


And thanks for the tip of that program, I'll have it on my list.

 

Windows Updates failed to instal

I'm not sure how differant XP media center Edition is but you could clear the history \ cache if these folders are there.

Step 1 Register DLL files.

=================

By trying this step, we can check if the update engines are working properly.



1. Close all instances of Internet Explorer.

2. Click Start and Run, type "Regsvr32 atl.dll" (without quotes) in the Open box and click OK.



Note: There is a space between regsvr32 and atl.dll



3. Similarly, one by one, register the files listed below:



Regsvr32 msxml3.dll

Regsvr32 wuapi.dll

Regsvr32 wuaueng.dll

Regsvr32 wuaueng1.dll

Regsvr32 wups2.dll

Regsvr32 wucltui.dll

Regsvr32 wups.dll

Regsvr32 wuweb.dll

Regsvr32 qmgr.dll

Regsvr32 qmgrprxy.dll

Regsvr32 jscript.dll



Note: If you encounter errors while registering any of these files then skip that file and continue with the next one.



If the issue persists, let's move on to the steps below to verify Windows Update services and temporary folders.



Step 2 Verify the relevant Windows Update services.

=========================================

1. Click Start->Run, type "services.msc" (without quotation marks) in the open box and click OK.

2. Double click the service "Automatic Updates".

3. Click on the Log On tab, please ensure the option "Local System account" is selected and the option "Allow service to interact with desktop" is unchecked.

4. Check if this service has been enabled on the listed Hardware Profile. If not, please click the Enable button to enable it.

5. Click on the tab "General "; make sure the "Startup Type" is "Automatic" or "Manual". Then please click the button "Stop" under "Service Status" to stop the service.

6. Then please click the button "Start" under "Service Status" to start the service.

7. Please repeat the above steps with the other services:



Background Intelligent Transfer Service

Event Log

Remote Procedure Call (RPC)



Note: Event log service is enabled on all of the hardware profiles; this service does not have an option to enable or disable on certain hardware profile.



If it still does not help, let's proceed to step 3.



Step 3 Reload the Update temporary folders.

===================================

One possible cause is that the temporary folder for Windows Update is containing corrupted files. Let's erase all the files there to get the system clean.



1. Click Start, Run, type: cmd and press Enter. Please run the following command in the opened window.



Net stop WuAuServ



2. Click Start, Run, type: %windir% and press Enter.

3. In the opened folder, rename the folder SoftwareDistribution to Sdold.

4. Click Start, Run, type: cmd and press Enter. Please run the following command in the opened window.



Net start WuAuServ



Please test the Windows Update website and let me know the result. If the issue persists, to clarify the issue and provide more accurate troubleshooting steps, please assist me in collecting the following information.