Microsoft finally has a Windows 10 19H1 build in the Slow ring

After months of waiting, Microsoft has finally released a new Windows 10 Insider Preview for the Slow ring. The build number is 18342.8.

19H1 is the codename for the next feature update to Windows 10, and the version number will be 1903. As that version number indicates, we should see an RTM build in March, so the first 19H1 Slow ring build comes as we're just weeks away from it being finalized.

Windows 10 19H1 has been in testing since last July, when it was in the Skip Ahead ring, and it was promoted to the Fast ring in October. One of the reasons that there hasn't been a Slow ring release in all of that time was because some games were causing a GSOD, and Microsoft was waiting on a third-party developer for the fix. The fix still hasn't arrived, as those playing the games - which Microsoft hasn't mentioned the names of - will be blocked from upgrading this build. Also, PCs with the ZH-CN language won't get it for a similar reason.

The good news is that it's available for everyone else. When build 18342 was originally released to the Fast ring, there was an issue causing it to be blocked from certain Intel chipsets. The build has been serviced, so that issue no longer applies.

Being that this is the first 19H1 build in the Slow ring and we're nearing the end of the development cycle, Slow ring Insiders are about to get a boatload of features, such as the new light theme that offers a white taskbar. You can also run Win32 apps in Windows Mixed Reality, and you'll find that search and Cortana have been split up. Obviously, there's plenty more. You can find all of the features in the notes from the builds you've missed:

As always, there are also some known issues to be aware of:

[ADDED] Users may experience intermittent crashes when attempting to use the Windows Sandbox functionality in this build. A fix is available and will be released in a future update.

Launching games that use anti-cheat software may trigger a bugcheck (GSOD).

Creative X-Fi sound cards are not functioning properly. We are partnering with Creative to resolve this issue.

While we’ve done some work to improve night light reliability in this build, we’re continuing to investigate issues in this space.

When performing Reset this PC and selecting Keep my files on a device that has Reserved Storage enabled the user will need to initiate an extra reboot to ensure Reserved Storage is working again properly.

Some Realtek SD card readers are not functioning properly. We are investigating the issue.

In Windows Sandbox, if you try to navigate to the Narrator settings, Settings app crashes.

Mouse pointer color might be incorrectly switched to white after signing out and signing back in.

We’re investigating reports of the Chinese version of multiple games not working.

To enroll your PC in the Slow ring, go to Settings -> Update & security -> Windows Insider Program. If you're already enrolled, just go to the Windows Update tab and click 'Check for updates'.