Microsoft promises smaller Windows 11 updates with UUP • The Register

Subsequent month Microsoft will begin providing on-prem Unified Replace Platform (UUP), which guarantees to ship smaller and sooner uploads of Home windows updates.

The promise is 30 % smaller – and sooner – consumer downloads for updates and different capabilities that Microsoft says will make life simpler for Home windows admins. Nonetheless, getting this tech would require a one-time 10GB obtain for enterprises to their varied on-premises Home windows 11 gadgets with the primary UUP replace, which is due on March 28.

“UUP is turning into the default and solely strategy to obtain high quality updates,” Thad Martin, principal program supervisor at Microsoft, wrote in a Tech Neighborhood blog post.

“Which means it’s best to plan for a further 10GB obtain to distribution factors (not endpoint purchasers) with the March twenty eighth replace. That is a one-time 10GB obtain for updates for Home windows 11, model 22H2 per structure (AMD64 and ARM64).”

The cumbersome obtain is foundational to the on-premises replace administration capabilities in UUP, equivalent to needing much less disk house and fewer reboots for updates, Martin wrote.

The chunky boi is put in onto a top-level server that takes the Home windows updates from the cloud. The updates are then meted out to a number of distribution factors, with every distribution level sending out the downloads to a number of endpoint purchasers.

Microsoft launched UUP in 2016 and for greater than a yr has been working to hurry up the downloads.

In Home windows 11 model 21H2, the redesigned cumulative replace lowered the package deal dimension by 40 % and the obtain dimension for the extra present gadgets. It additionally enhanced replace orchestration by means of UUP and grew assist for servicing language packs.

“IT professionals need small updates,” Steve DiAcetis, principal program supervisor lead for Home windows Fundamentals at Microsoft, wrote in a September 2022 note whereas saying updates enhancements to model 22H2. “‘Each byte counts’ has been echoed in digital and in-person discussions.”

A month later, Martin unveiled the general public preview of UUP on-premises and has since confirmed the primary such updates are coming in March.

The on-prem UUP integrates cumulative updates with function code, enabling organizations to get each in a single reboot. There may even be lowered consumer downloads for function updates. For instance, inbox app downloads are conditional. The working system will robotically be healed through the replace.

The on-prem UUP interoperates with Home windows Service Replace Companies (WSUS) and Microsoft Configuration Supervisor, which can handle the updates on-prem.

“These capabilities weren’t obtainable in WSUS prior to now,” Martin wrote. “Beforehand, you had to make use of separate options to handle airgapped environments, retention, acquisition, and restore. Now you’ll be able to obtain all of this with UUP on premises.”

The on-prem UUP might be built-in with any supported WSUS model or Configuration Supervisor 2023 or later. It is meant for updates to Home windows 11 22H2 and have updates for OSes between Home windows 10 20H1 to Home windows 11 22H2.

All updates might be robotically delivered with UUP servicing, however enterprises can select to make use of UUP on premises for function updates or proceed to make use of media, Martin wrote. ®