The Windows 10 Creators Update Arrives
by Brett Howse on April 25, 2017 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Software
- Operating Systems
- Windows
- Microsoft
- Windows 10
Gaming
According to the Steam Hardware & Software Survey, Windows 10 is now on over 50% of computers running Steam, so it looks like gamers are making the switch. Features like DirectX 12 certainly help with the appeal, but Microsoft has been slowly adding more gaming features to Windows 10 over time.
Gaming settings now have their own home in the Settings panel. This is a nice bonus, since some of these settings were tucked away before and not as easy to get to. With the new Game settings panel, you can configure the Game Bar, Game DVR, Game Mode, and Broadcasting, all from one location. You can set shortcuts to tasks like taking an in-game screenshot, turning a microphone off and on, and starting a game clip recording. They all have their own default shortcuts, but maybe you want to set them to just a certain key while gaming.
There are two new features here though, in Game Mode and Broadcasting. Game Mode was first announced in January as an upcoming feature for the Creators Update, and it basically changes the CPU and GPU priorities when gaming to ensure that the game gets the maximum resources it can. This is enabled for all games by default, but can be turned off per-game if needed. Although it will be unlikely to impact maximum frame rates, it should help with minimum frame rates especially when the computer is busy doing other things. Hopefully we’ll have a chance to dig into this a bit more in the future.
The second big addition is broadcasting support. In August 2016, Microsoft acquired the game broadcasting company Beam. That purchase has quickly found its way into their core products, with Windows 10 and Xbox both adding support for Beam with the Creators Update. Rather than having to install software and configure an account, you can just broadcast right from the game bar, using your Xbox Live account information. Game broadcasting has become a huge industry, so it’s great to see a solution built-in to Windows that is so easy to use. And it is very simple to use. In a game, you just open the Game Bar (Default Windows + G) and click on the broadcast icon. In seconds, your broadcast will be set up. There is no doubt that there is stiff competition in this space, but Beam seems to be a solid offering, and having it included by default is a nice benefit.
Security Center
After working hard to move all of the settings into the settings pane in Windows 10, to the point where you rarely need to access the legacy control panel, it’s perhaps a bit odd that they broke some of them out of settings and put them in their own grouping, but it is nice to see a one-stop shop for Security.
The new Windows Defender Security Center app combines virus protection of Windows Defender, with firewall settings, device health information, app control, and family options. None of these features are new, but combining them into one app should make them a bit more accessible.
In fact, the one that seems to be missing is file backup, since that would fit into this theme of keeping your computer and data safe, and it would be nice to have File History added here, or perhaps a more comprehensive backup solution.
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MattMe - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
Are you by any chance running an install of 10 that was upgraded from an earlier version? Several test machines at work, and alll my home machines struggled after an upgrade, I hated it the first few weeks. The I did a fresh install on them and it fixed 99% of all issues I had on every device. Just a thought :)fm13 - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
I tried upgrading from 8.1 Pro but gave up and just installed Win 10 on a formatted drive. So this is a "clean" install I'm talking about.Instyle - Wednesday, April 26, 2017 - link
An issue I've ran into is that the update files that got downloaded were in some corrupted state. So instead of checking for updates, Windows Update would try to use them and fail. The solution I've found is to delete C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution. This is where update files get downloaded to (including new updates like the Creators Update, culmulative updates and security updates) before being applied. Normally you can't just rename/delete it as there is typically some update process running in it. You have to kill any process running in it by opening Task Manager > Performance > Open Resource Monitor > CPU > Associated Handles and enter the folder path into the Search box. It'll pull up a list of processes open in that folder, end each of them. Next go to the folder and either rename (if you're wary) or delete it. Then check for updates. Hope this helps!lord_anselhelm - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
Don't know if this will help, but you might want to try the Windows Update Troubleshooter. I had a problem on my laptop where a couple of files had been corrupted and I was unable to update Windows. The troubleshooter fixed it. Also, consider using Windows Update MiniTool: it's so much nicer than the default updater.faizoff - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
This update was surprisingly the smoothest update process for me. Too much stuff configured currently for me to do a clean install, the update itself went about without any consequence. No programs have been affected that I could see. The upgrade process has been getting better and better. Though there is still some issue with my wifi adapter when using the latest drivers provided by the mfg. wifi only works well with a particular version of the driver.I like the Edge enhancements, don't use game mode so don't care about it. paint 3D is fun and I'd never thought I'd actually prefer the previous iteration of the start menu with all apps tagged along with the pinned tiles. Really warming up to it now.
One issue still prevails that's been there from the start, explorer.exe crashes randomly and restarts, still cannot for the life of me figure that one out.
blahsaysblah - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
The security center needs an update. I guess maybe in minority but my PC is on a UPS and i have its status connected via USB port. So i have two yellow warnings about LCD being set to max brightness and sleep being turned off, both impacting battery life.The problem is there is no way to turn off/confirm those alerts, so i always see a yellow triangle. So i just ignore it now as i have no way to know if there is a new and valid issue.
DanNeely - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
The workaround for the LCD brightness notice is apparently to set the screen at 99%. (Seen elsewhere, not tested.)benedict - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
The Creators Update broke the DateTime Picker on all legacy applications. Microsoft are aware of this problem since early March and still haven't done anything to fix this. I've told all my customers who were unfortunate enough to update to revert back to the old version and wait for Microsoft to fix their bugs.JimmiG - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
Is game mode really activated by default? I've always had to open the game bar and check the "User game mode with this game" checkbox.mr_tawan - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
I think it's enabled by default only in select title and UWP games.