Keeping devices protected and productive
Feature updates add new features and functionality to Windows. Windows 10 and Windows 11 feature updates are released annually in the second half of the calendar year. We also release monthly quality updates, which include feature improvements, protections from the latest security threats, and important issue resolutions. To receive monthly updates, you must be on a supported version of Windows.
To help keep devices on a supported version of Windows, Windows Update automatically initiates a feature update for devices before—or as they are approaching—end of servicing. Automatic updates allow your devices to continue to receive the monthly updates that are critical to security and ecosystem health.
This approach has been successfully applied for many years with Windows 10 and will be applied to Windows 11. Automatic feature updates are offered only to consumer devices and non-managed business devices running Windows 10 and Windows 11. Updates will install automatically, but you can choose a convenient time for your device to restart and complete the update.
If you don’t want to wait for automatic updates to use the latest version of Windows, open Windows Update settings and select Check for updates. If your device is eligible and ready to run the newest version of Windows, select Download and install.
