Microsoft secretly installs Windows 10 update to annoy you into upgrading to Windows 11 – and not for the first time
- A new patch is quietly being pushed to Windows 10 (and 11) PCs
- It will force upgrades under certain circumstances to keep the PC supported
- This update means more nagging prompts coming to your PC
Windows 10 users – and those running an outdated version of Windows 11 – are secretly getting an update pushed to their PCs that will allow Microsoft to force a future update to the operating system (to keep it in support), as well as nagging users about it too the running out of support.
New saw the implementation of patch KB5001716, which the site notes was quietly installed on Windows 10 PCs following the release of the October cumulative update. (It was also pushed to devices running Windows 11 version 21H2, which lost support over a year ago).
The patch is essentially an update to Windows Update, and Microsoft notesTo: “When this update is installed, Windows may attempt to download and install feature updates on your device if your currently installed version of Windows is approaching or has reached support.”
Microsoft also notes: “After this update is installed, Windows may periodically display a notification informing you of issues that could prevent Windows Update from keeping your device up to date and protected against current threats.”
This means that KB5001716 makes it possible to present notifications to Windows 10 (and 11) users telling them that their device is running an unsupported version of Windows that has passed its expiration date for updates and is therefore unsafe. For Windows 10 users, this will likely translate into further attempts to move to Windows 11.
In some cases, considering the first point that Microsoft notes, the update may (eventually) also be forced on your PC, as we see happening when a certain version of Windows 10 or 11 becomes unavailable and no longer supported for further upgrades .
Analysis: Repeated performance – the strange history of KB5001716
What Microsoft is doing here is trying to keep your device safe, so in some ways it’s a completely understandable measure. As you may recall, Windows 10 now has less than a year of support left.
There are problems with the approach here, though: namely the stealthy way the update appears on PCs. After you check for updates, it seemingly just lands on your system – boom – without any warning.
What’s also strange is that if you search the Internet for KB5001716, you will discover that there is a history of this update mysteriously appearing on PCs. As reported on various forums such as RedditKB5001716 was released in April 2024 and was also sent to PCs in October 2023.
What gives? That’s a good question. Presumably these are revisions of KB5001716 – custom updates – that will be reshipped on Windows 10 (and 11) PCs. However, in some cases in the past, there were errors caused by the reinstallation, which somehow apparently conflicted with previous installations of the patch. If you recently received a message that KB5001716 could not be installed on your PC, this is probably what happened.
The apparent solution to these scenarios is to go to the Windows Update page (in Settings) and click View update historyThan click Uninstall updates at the top of the panel. Now scroll back to find the previously installed KB5001716, select it and delete it. Reboot, go back to Windows Update and check for updates again – after which the latest version of KB5001716 (for October 2024) should install properly (hopefully).
You apparently can’t bypass this update, as it’s a necessary upgrade for Windows Update (it’s possible that it also does other things in the background, aside from the reminders to upgrade and everything else mentioned in the support notes).
We should clarify that this won’t force a Windows 11 upgrade on a Windows 10 PC that isn’t compatible with the stricter requirements for the latest OS – but it will probably keep nagging you about upgrading (for your own good, Microsoft would obviously argue ).
Indeed, we’d be surprised if a Windows 11 upgrade started automatically even if the PC in question was compatible – but we suspect this might happen. Normally, forced upgrades are for feature updates, which means new versions of your current operating system, such as 24H2, which recently released as this year’s annual update for Windows 11. Migrating to an entirely new operating system, such as switching from Windows 10 to 11 is a much bigger move.
