Windows 10 Creators Update – Tips and FAQ

Microsoft has begun on April 11, 2017 with its global Windows 10 Creators Update (Version 1703) rollout. Within a FAQ I tried to compile some hints and tips, what to know about that feature upgrade.

Whats Windows 10 Version 1703?

Windows 10 Creators Update (Version 1703) is the third feature upgrade (after version 1511 and version 1607), with many new features and a focus on 3D and Virtual Reality In Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise it's possible to delay update installs for several days (and feature updates for a year).

Shall I update immediately to Windows 10 Creators Update?

Good question, need answered by you. Although Microsoft startet a world wide rollout from April 11, 2017, it will be distributed in waves. This means, some machines won't see Creators Update within weeks or even months. Microsoft intends to ship this feature update to a machine, after telemetry data show, that an upgrade to version 1703 won't cause major trouble.

Where to avoid Windows 10 Creators Update!

If you are using a system with Intel's Clover Trail CPU, don't manually upgrade to version 1703, because this SoCs are not supported yet (see Windows 10 Creators Update, no support for Clover Trail yet).

If you are using notebooks or special hardware, I would wait, until Windows 10 Creators Update is offered via Windows Update. Currently I've seen many users in Microsoft Answers forum complaining about missing driver support in Windows 10 V1703. Also users of Toshiba devices should avoid an update, because Toshiba display service won't support Windows 10 Creators Update.

How to prepare for this update?

Installing a feature upgrade is nothing else than a complete exchange of your operating system – only user data, some settings and installed programs will survive this upgrade. Therefore I recommend:

• Create a system image backup (you can use Windows 7 backup shipped with Windows 10).
• Create a System repair disk or a recovery drive on USB. This will be helpful, if you are in need to repair a broken system or read a image backup back.

If you are using a third party backup program, take care you know how to read back a system image.

What to do else before upgrading?

Before installing the update to Windows 10 Version 1703 I recommend the following additional steps.

• Backup important data, license keys, downloads and install packages (driver, office etc.). 
• Uninstall third party antivirus software. Although some users are successful updating with third party AVs installed, I 've seen too many upgrade issues caused by AV tools. Check also, if the AV vendor provides a clean tool to remove install files. 
• Uninstall system tools like TuneUp, Acronis True Image or other backup software, virtual DVD drives, buring software like Nero, Video authoring tools etc. If TuneUp is installed, roll back all system optimizations made from this tool.
• Uninstall encryption software like CloudFogger or VeraCrypt and unencrypt your partitions. Also Linux partitions seems critical for a feature upgrade. Exchange Grub with Windows boot manager.
• Take care that enough free space is on your Windows system drive (up to 20 GByte). Move user folders back to the Windows partition, in case they are moved. 

Try to check your system for healty, like it is shown in article Check and repair Windows system files and component store. Windows To Go and VHD installs (and volume license installs) doesn't support an upgrade. Also remove all hardware not necessary during upgrade.

Shall I upgrade manually?

If feature upgrade to version 1703 aren't offered within the next days via Windows Update, you can upgrade manually. See my article Installing Windows 10 Creators Update via Upgrade Wizard.

You may also use Media Creation Tool to download Windows 10 Creators Update and create an install media or upgrade the machine running the tool. See also my blog post Windows 10 Creators Update: Here are the downloads.

Not enough free space to install

Take care that 20 GB are free on your system drive. In case of less free space, the upgrade wizard offers an option, to store files temporarily on a SD card or USB stick. It's also possible to use Media Creation Tool to create an install media, boot Windows 10 and execute setup.exe from install media.

Where to obtain further information?

I've begun here to publish a series of articles about Windows 10 Creators Update. Use the Win10 Wiki to access the related articles or search for upgrade errors.

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