Four Years of Windows 10: Our Favorite 15 Improvements

Windows 10's original dark and updated light desktop background

Four years after its release, we’re all still using Windows 10. But that’s not really true: The version of Windows 10 we’re using today has seen four years of improvements. It’s packed with shiny new features and clever under-the-hood optimizations.

More Control Over Windows Update

Working on updates message on Windows 10

With every major update to Windows 10, Microsoft has given everyone more and more control of updates. This is a major pain point in Windows 10, and Microsoft has made it better.

For example, Windows 10’s Anniversary Update added “active hours.” Set your “active hours” and Windows won’t reboot for updates during the hours of the day when you usually use your PC. Up to 18 hours a day can be active hours. The April 2018 Update brought faster update installation, too.

The biggest change was in the May 2019 Update, which finally offers more choice over these big, once-every-six-month updates. Every release of Windows 10 will get support for 18 months. You don’t have to install these big updates immediately when they’re released—you can even choose to skip some of them.

RELATED: Everything New in Windows 10’s May 2019 Update, Available Now

Files on Demand for Cloud Storage

OneDrive downloading a file in File Explorer

Files on Demand are a highly underrated feature. Added back in the Fall Creators Update, this feature shows “placeholder” copies of files stored in the cloud on your PC. They appear as normal files on your PC. When you open them, Windows automatically downloads them. In other words, they’re loaded on demand—but they all appear in File Explorer.

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