It"s been over two weeks since we saw Windows 10 Mobile build 15245, leading some to believe that that might be the RTM. But that"s not the case, as 15250 is now available through the Fast ring.
It"s a preview of whatever Microsoft ends up calling the fall update for phones, which comes from the feature2 development branch, an offshoot of Redstone 2. There have been very few new features included in this development cycle - three to be specific - so you might be surprised to find out that there are three more in 15250:
Two factor Authentication: We are excited to announce that we’ve introduced a two factor authentication unlock mechanism for Windows 10 Mobile. With two factor unlock, an enterprise can enforce an additional security layer to their sensitive data via an MDM policy. Once two factor unlock is enabled, a phone user will have to enter a numeric pin followed by an enterprise-defined factor to unlock the phone. An example of an enterprise-defined factor is a companion device such as an NFC tag which can be used to unlock a phone using our Companion Device Framework sample app and documentation.
AppLocker Improvements: A number of customers have provided feedback on the warning prompts for apps that are blocked by enterprise policies. We’ve improved the UX and updated the MDM SyncML scripts associated with the policies. Application restrictions can be configured by either the ApplicationManagement CSP or AppLocker CSP.
VPN Improvements: In the modern corporate workplace, mobility is mainstream and secure access to corporate data via VPN has become the norm. We are bringing a range of improvements and features that enhance the reliability of VPN on Windows 10 Mobile. The key updates to our VPN capability are:
Lots of reliability improvements for VPN connectivity in Windows 10 Mobile.
IKEv2 Sleep and Power Enhancements.
VPN completes all pending actions before sleep and disconnects.
Automatic reconnection on resume.
Force tunneled improvements for UWP platform.
Proxy improvements for UWP VPN profile.
Enabling MMS usage when VPN is connected.
And as always, there"s a list of general changes, improvements, and fixes:
We fixed a regression that was introduced in build 15245 where the fingerprint reader on the HP Elite X3 did not turn on the screen. You needed to turn on the screen before you could use Windows Hello.
We fixed some issues where the Maps app navigation would start navigating a route and after performing a reroute, would present a list of possible routes instead of adjusting to the current route.
We also improved map-matching particularly for routes using ferries.
We fixed an issue where an app using the routing engine (e.g. Maps) would timeout on providing the route if suspended for more than 30 seconds.
We fixed an issue where tiles on the Start screen would occasionally be blank.
We fixed an issue where a VPN profile that was created via the VPN Management API would always be a dial-up profile.
We fixed an issue with the MDM policy used to control Build Flighting by Mobile Enterprise.
We fixed a couple of navigation issues when changing from highway to highway (occasionally, signposts were copied from the original highway to the destination highway) and highway to non-highway (erroneous instruction to “enter highway”).
We fixed a rare issue where the user’s call history was shown as corrupt after an upgrade.
Alongside the Mobile build was PC build 16288, and Microsoft was quick to confirm that that"s not the RTM. This confirmation wasn"t made for Mobile, and since they"re on different development paths, it"s entirely possible that this is the final build for the fall Windows 10 Mobile update. Obviously, we"ll find out more within the next couple of weeks.
To grab today"s build, head over to Settings -> Update & security -> Windows Update -> Check for updates, or if you"re not on the Fast ring yet, go to the Windows Insider Program tab and tap "Get started".