Microsoft releases new Windows 10 preview for PCs ahead of November update, promises it’s ‘very fast and smooth’

Microsoft today released a new Windows 10 preview for PCs. Unlike the past few builds, this one doesn’t have any new features and is instead “focused on bug fixes and general improvements.” Gabe Aul, Microsoft’s vice president of the Engineering Systems team, claims this build is “very fast and smooth, and makes a great daily driver.”

Windows 10 is a service. As we wrote in our deep dive on how Microsoft is still building Windows 10, this means Windows Insiders are getting new builds even though the operating system launched in July.

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Indeed, rumor has it Microsoft plans to release a “Threshold 2” update this month that will bring many of the features and fixes in Insider builds to all Windows 10 users. According to well-known journalist Paul Thurrott, this cumulative update will be called the Windows 10 Fall Update (it will be identified as version 1511 (where 15 = 2015 and 11 = November).

It thus makes sense that Microsoft isn’t adding any new features in this release. Here is the list of bug fixes in today’s Windows 10 build:

• The issue where any audio playing (like music from Groove, or videos from the Movies & TV app) gets reduced by 75% for a period of time after a notification pops up from Action Center is fixed.
• Pressing the power button on your Surface Pro 3 should put your Surface Pro 3 to sleep instead of shutting it down.
• We fixed an issue reported by Windows Insiders where a disksnapshot.exe command prompt window would flash randomly.
• Windows should now remember your previous login type. For example, if you log in with a PIN — it will prompt you for a PIN next time instead of another type.
• We fixed an issue where Tab previews in Microsoft Edge were appearing as black if the page was not scrolled to the top, and web note clippings were also appearing as black.
• Small form-factor devices, like the Dell Venue 8 Pro, that boot with rotation or virtual mode screen size set larger than the physical screen size should no longer experience a bluescreen on upgrade.
• Apps and games should download from the Store more reliably.

Nonetheless, this build still has two known issues:

• After upgrading from one Windows 10 Insider Preview build to another Insider Preview build, Skype messages and contacts will disappear from the Messaging + Skype app. You can get Skype messages and contacts back by navigating to “C:\Users\\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.Messaging_
  8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache” in File Explorer and deleting or renaming the “PrivateTransportId” file. After deleting or renaming that file, go to the Skype video app and sign out of Skype and sign back in.
• The Insider Hub might be gone after upgrading to this build. You can get Insider Hub back by going to Settings > System > Apps & features and clicking “Manage optional features”, choosing “Add a feature” and selecting Insider Hub.

Today’s update bumps the Windows 10 build number from 10576, made available to testers on October 29, to build 10586. The update should arrive overnight for testers (your PC has to be plugged in, and be on or sleeping). If you’re OK with the above known issues and want to get build 10586 now, head to PC Settings, select “Update and recovery,” then “Preview builds,” and click the “Check Now” button.

The November update won’t be a new build, but simply a bigger download via Windows Update. That said, Microsoft has yet to confirm when exactly it will arrive.