Today, Microsoft released another Xbox One Insider Preview to members of the Skip Ahead subset of the Preview Alpha ring, which is build 17712.2000, or 1810.180706-1920. Unfortunately, it comes with some bad news, which is that installing it will perform a factory refresh on your Xbox One console.
You might have noticed that since Microsoft started flighting Redstone 5 builds for the Xbox One, some of your apps might have been missing or unable to launch. It turns out that the core OS was corrupted, and that requires a factory refresh.
Note that a refresh and a reset are different things. Your apps and games will remain installed, so you won't have to spend time reinstalling everything. You'll lose some data though, as you'll need to go through the out-of-box experience again.
This is absolutely the cost of being in the Skip Ahead ring, and it's probably a good thing that this happened so early in build flighting for Redstone 5. The truth is that Xbox Insiders have always had it pretty easy when it comes to stability, even when it was the Xbox One Preview Program. When Microsoft introduced the Skip Ahead ring, this is the first time Insiders have had the chance to take a real risk in favor of new features.
Now, you're getting a good look at what that risk entails. This can be a learning experience for you and you can switch to a lower ring while doing a factory reset on your console, or you can soldier on. Remember, something like this could happen again, and you should be prepared for it.
Sadly, there was no way around this. While Microsoft said from the beginning that there weren't going to be new features right away, you didn't have the chance to hold off until there were. Skip Ahead signups were for a limited time, so you were either in or out from day one. Unless you disconnected your console from the internet the moment you signed on, there was no way around installing these corrupted builds.
Alongside of that important fix, there are a few other fixes of note in the changelog:
Media Remote
- Fixed the issues users were having with various functions not working on the media remote.
My Games and Apps – Launching Titles
- We have fixed the issue in which certain apps and games are not launching correctly.
My Games and Apps – FastStart
- Improvements to titles that leverage the FastStart technology.
Notifications
- Design change to Club notifications and LFG notifications that whey will now toast-only and not show up in the System Tab
Virtual Keyboard
- We have numerous fixes in this build that address the Virtual keyboard. Users should no longer see the VK unreadable when using the light theme.
And just as you should have guessed, there are some known issues to be aware of:
Headsets
- We are tracking an issue with various headsets and mics not working in the build such as Turtle Beach wireless headsets.
- Issue: Connecting multiple headsets along with more than one input device on the system (physical controllers, game streaming controllers, wireless headsets), will cause headsets to no longer work.
- Mitigation: Disconnect all input and audio devices, including controllers, wired and wireless headsets, and game streaming controllers. Once they have been disconnected, connect only one controller and one headset.
Game Pass Tab
- Preview Alpha – Skip Ahead users will notice that the Entertainment tab has been replaced on the dashboard with Game Pass content. This new tab allows for easy access to the Game Pass catalog and is only available in the US region at this time, so Preview Alpha Skip Ahead Insiders in regions outside of the US will continue to see the Entertainment tab.
Groups
- You may see issues with Groups if you frequently switch between your non-Preview console and your Preview console. Workaround: Reset your Groups locally on the Preview console through “My games & apps” > Groups, then using the “Delete all groups” button at the bottom of the page to resync from the service.
Microsoft Edge
- The cursor may disappear when exiting and re-entering the app
- Workaround: Press Y when re-entering the app to make the cursor re-appear
Profile Color
- Sometimes users may encounter an incorrect Profile color when powering on the console.
Networking
- When the console wakes from Instant on/connected standby with a wired connection, the console may not recognize that the Ethernet cable is plugged in. Workaround: Please reboot the console via Guide -> reboot.
Historically, Xbox Insider Previews have been pretty stable, even in the hyper-fast Alpha ring. Right now though, the Alpha ring isn't even testing anything, meaning that Skip Ahead isn't skipping ahead of anything that's currently in testing. If you want a hint about what's to come in terms of stability, keep in mind that it seems that at this time, Microsoft deemed Redstone 5 even too unstable for the Alpha ring.
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