Windows 10 October 2018 Update: Release – Halt – Bug Identified – Fix!

Windows 10 October 2018 Update came out as a patch bundle supposedly for facilitating users. However, right after the patch rolled-out, users faced more troubles than convenience as they lost their documents. While the update brought many interesting features, this single problem of deleting documents and files created chaos. Microsoft had to halt the rollover. However, we now hear that Microsoft has fixed this flaw. Let’s dig in!

Windows 10 October 2018 Update – A BuggyBug Fix!

Windows 10 October 2018 Update quickly made it to the news due to a critical bug troubling users. Right after the roll-out, users lost their data as documents were deleted from the ‘My Documents’ folder. Out of frustration, users began posting their complaints on social media forums.

Dan J. Wolstenholme@Danjay23

Big shoutout to @Microsoft and their @Windows team for the recent #windows10octoberupdate which has deleted folders in My Documents.

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4:27 PM - Oct 8, 2018

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1809 File Deletion from Windows10

As the complaints increased, Microsoft eventually noticed the issue and halted the update. As stated in their blog,

“Last week we paused the rollout of the Windows 10 October 2018 Update (version 1809) for all users as we investigated isolated reports of users missing files after updating.”

In fact, Microsoft pulled-out “all 1809 media across all channels” as precaution. Nonetheless, they confirm that the bug only affected users who manually updated their systems. This makes a mere fraction of affectees out of the total Windows 10 users.

“While the reports of actual data loss are few (one one-hundredth of one percent of version 1809 installs), any data loss is serious.”

Microsoft worked on the complaints and discovered the problem. They explain,

“We’ve fully investigated all reports of data loss, identified and fixed all known issues in the update, and conducted internal validation… This occurred if Known Folder Redirection (KFR) had been previously enabled, but files remain in the original “old” folder location vs being moved to the new, redirected location… In previous feedback from the Windows 10 April 2018 Update, users with KFR reported an extra, empty copy of Known Folders on their device.  Based on feedback from users, we introduced code in the October 2018 Update to remove these empty, duplicate known folders.  That change, combined with another change to the update construction sequence, resulted in the deletion of the original “old” folder locations and their content, leaving only the new “active” folder intact.”

Auto-Deletion Bug Discovered – Patched – Released To Insiders Only

Fortunately, Microsoft has now fixed the windows 10 file deletion bug. They are all set to re-release the update for users. But, this will be limited to Windows insiders only.

“We take the next step towards the re-release of the Windows 10 October 2018 Update by providing the updated version to our Windows Insider community.”

This limited release will allow the insiders to test the updates and report any problems they experience with the updates to Microsoft. This will help the tech giant protect Windows 10 users at large from any further troubles. After everything goes well, they will re-release the updates for all users.

For now, for those who have experienced data loss, Microsoft recommends contacting their customer support. They will assist you

Have you experienced this auto-deletion problem with Windows 10 update on your PC? Do share with us your thoughts in the comments section belo