This is why we don't know when the next Windows 10 build is coming

As head of the Insider program, Gabriel Aul has spent a significant amount of time both on and off Twitter, answering users’ questions. And more often than not, Aul finds himself repeating the same answers to the same questions: “When is the next build coming?", "Why can’t you give us a firm launch date?”.

Both of them are legitimate question,s and both hit the same point: Microsoft’s new cadence for releasing builds and its internal testing process. We’ve touched on both of these subjects before, but Aul went into detail highlighting how the fact that the company doesn’t actually announce firm release dates will eventually lead to faster releases.

While that may sound counterintuitive, the company’s thinking process, detailed in the blog post, goes something like this; if the company decides to stick to a fixed schedule, it means that they’ll usually have to hold on to a stable build, which might be weeks old and lacking in the newest features and fixes, and release that on the desired date. And of course, there’s a chance that last minute bugs may force the team to blow past their deadline and disappoint all the insiders.

But instead, the company is taking a different approach: don’t commit to a firm date, instead keep constantly building and testing until they hit upon a great build that has all the newest features, and release that one to the wider public. In this way users have some of the most recent code, and the feedback they provide is timely and helps move the OS forward.

That being said, Aul admitted that perhaps the company has been a bit too conservative when it comes to pushing builds to the Fast Ring of the Insider program. He also went on to mention that creating a new “Ludicrous speed” ring was a real possibility, recently discussed by the team for users that just can’t wait.

And how will all of this eventually lead to faster builds? First up, the company is refining its own internal process of testing, and it’s constantly adapting to a way of doing business that’s never been present at Microsoft until recently.

Secondly, as we move closer and closer to the launch window for Windows 10, and as the feature list gets finalized, more and more builds will be stable and complete enough to get pushed out to insiders. Aul mentioned that the team’s goal was to eventually push out multiple builds every month.

As for that burning question: when will the next build come? Obviously, there’s no exact date given, but the team is committed to pushing out a build by the end of the month.

Source: Windows Blog