By Linda Lindquist
Microsoft keeps fixing and adding new features to Windows 10. This is good! Sometimes your computer is updating, and you are not sure what is happening.
You have probably seen your computer installing Windows 10 updates. Updates require a computer restart; and usually occur outside of the 8 am – 5 pm active hours of computer use. You may see a notification on the taskbar that “a restart is required to finish updates”. You may see “update and shutdown” on the power button. During the restart, you will see on your screen “Configuring Updates” and “Do Not Turn off Your Computer”.
The steps that are visible during an update are:
- Manufacturer’s logo
- 0% – 30% – older versions of Windows 10 code is being removed.
- Black screen – restarting.
- 30% – 100% – new versions of Windows 10 code is being put into place.
- Then you see your welcome screen to log into your computer
To check for Updates and Configure Windows Update Settings, Click Start Menu, Settings, then Security and Updates
- Active Hours (link) – you can customize your active hours if you use your computer during different hours than 8 am – 5 pm
- Advanced (link)– I like turning on these settings: update all Microsoft software, download updates automatically, notify if as restart is required.
- History – click to see the current version of your operating system.
- Check for Updates – click to see if there are any Windows 10 Updates. When ready, a Feature Update may be offered to Download and Install (it is ok to do this)
- Optional Updates (link) – click to see if there are any hardware driver updates (these are from component manufacturers to make hardware work better)
There are two types of updates:
- Weekly Fixes: Every Tuesday night, your computer downloads bug fixes and security updates that Microsoft has tested. The restarts may take 5-10 minutes to install these updates.
Feature Updates: Twice a year (in June and December), Microsoft reissues Windows 10 with new features and all past fixes. The version looks like v2009 interpreted as 2020 September. The updates can take 1-2 hours to complete, depending on the performance of your
