Win10 1809 Designated for Broad Deployment
Man, I have to laugh! Just yesterday (March 28), John Wilcox in the MS Windows IT Pro Blog posted that “version 1809 has transitioned to broad deployment.” This occurs, just as the buzz about 1903 is starting to escalate. In fact, people are speculating that it could show up as early as next month (April 2019). Of course, we know that MS has designated this next release as 19H1. This means that it could show up as late as June 30, and still hit its stated mark. Indeed, I have to believe that with Win10 1809 designated for broad deployment, a later date now seems more likely than an earlier one. This could buy MS some apparently much-needed time, because the latest Slow Ring release (Build 18362) has been withdrawn from circulation. The latest release is waiting on pending bugfixes related to updates for Build 18356.16.
This cheerfully ominous connected cloud graphic adorns Mr. Wilcox’s proclamation of “broad deployment” for 1809.
What Does Win10 Designated for Broad Deployment Really Mean?
In the afore-linked blog post, Mr. Wilcox explains that 1809 transitions to this state “based on the data and feedback we’ve received from consumers, OEMs, ISVs, partners, and commercial customers.” My interpretation is that recent telemetry has showed fewer issues. I’d guess, too, that the volume of complaints or issues reported from those constituencies has dropped to normal levels. Thus, MS has put 1809 into full general release, 5.5 months after its initial foray. It emerged on a Tuesday; the following Friday, it disappeared (11/13 and 16, respectively).
Wilcox goes on to report that “Windows 10 Enterprise and Windows 10 Education, version 1809 will be serviced for 30 months from its November 13th release date.” Given that my last blog post featured speculation that MS is hopeful that users might skip from 1803 directly to 19H1/1903, I wonder how many Enterprise and Education users will adopt the 1809 feature update anyway. That same post also reported shockingly low uptake of 1809 at this point in the release cycle. I wonder if the transition to “broad deployment” changes that current and painfully slow uptick at all. We’ll see!