Windows 10 update changes bring new features and new frustrations Watch Now As ZDNet reported yesterday, the Windows 10 October 2018 version 1809 upgrade hasn't gone well for a bunch of users who lost documents and photos after updating. What's worse, it appears that Microsoft may have let this bug slip through testing with Windows Insiders during the preview of Windows 10 version 1809. As noted by MSPoweruser, Windows insiders hit the exact same snag during Microsoft's preview phase of the Windows 10 version 1809 when updating from version 1803. For some unknown reason, moving up to Windows 10 version 1809 may delete all the files in user folders. The folders remain, but the files within them are gone, leaving users in potentially a worse pickle than ransomware victims experience. However, there is a chance that early Windows 10 upgraders who encountered this problem might be able to recover lost files by using the free version of Avast-owned Recuva recovery software. As spotted by Woody Leonhard, a Spiceworks user found that the files had been deleted rather than moved or overwritten, and thus was able to recover deleted files. SEE: 20 pro tips to make Windows 10 work the way you want (free PDF) Leonhard's advice: "DON'T DO ANYTHING until you download and run Recuva. Anything you do to your machine may disrupt the deleted files, and make parts of some of them unrecoverable." The catch is that it won't necessarily work. Several Reddit users who've reported Windows 10 data loss claim to have tried using Recuva without luck. One Reddit user notes that Recuva does not work on Windows 10's Storage Spaces data-protection feature; it simply crashes when attempting to access them. Additionally, Recuva might not work with TRIM-enabled SSDs since they will erase data, meaning recovered files will be empty. However, Reddit user JohnGypsy reported partial success in recovering deleted files. According to him, in Recuva users can go to the Options tab and select Actions and then run a Deep Scan. But the recovered files will probably take a while to sort through. "The first thing I did was run Recuva and, yes, I found many of them, of course. But a good portion of them had been overwritten already," wrote JohnGypsy. "Which makes me think that this happens fairly EARLY in the upgrade process -- and then the rest of the upgrade uses the disk, of course, and therefore has a good chance of overwriting the lost data." Microsoft hasn't commented on user problems with deleted files when upgrading to Windows 10 version 1809. The only known issue it's documented on its Windows 10 October 2019 Update support page is the compatibility issue with Intel Audio display drivers. ZDNet has asked Microsoft for a comment about the file-deletion problems and will update the story if it receives one. Previous and related coverage Windows 10 October update problems: Wiped docs, plus Intel driver warning Back up files before upgrading to Windows 10 1809, and if you get a warning about Intel drivers, do not proceed. Microsoft begins rolling out Windows 10 October 2018 Update Microsoft is starting to roll out the Windows 10 October 2018 Update today, starting with Insiders and those ready to proactively grab the new bits. Windows 10 1809: Microsoft reveals features it's dropping in October 2018 Update Microsoft sets out its list of features that are being removed or deprecated in the next Windows 10 release. Windows 10 October 2018 Update: The new features that matter most Windows 10 version 1809, officially the October 2018 Update,started rolling out October 2. Here are some of the new capabilities you can expect in this surprisingly feature-packed release. Windows 10 October 2018 Update: How to get it, how to avoid it Microsoft will soon begin delivering the official release of Windows 10 version 1809, the October 2018 Update. If you do nothing, it will arrive via Windows Update some time in the next few months. Here's how to take more control over the process. Windows 10 October 2018 Update: 5 new features business users will love TechRepublic Windows 10 is getting a big update in its next release. Here are some of the enterprise-centered features to expect in the Windows 10 October 2018 Update. Surface Pro 6, Surface Laptop 2, Surface Studio 2 and Surface Headphones: Everything Microsoft just announced CNET Plus: Windows 10 October 2018 Update is now available.<doc-sep>Microsoft officially rolled out its Windows 10 October 2018 update (technically, version 1809) on Tuesday in conjunction with its updated Surface devices. But initial upgraders have begun to report the disappearance of files in their Documents and Pictures folders. You might want to hit pause on that update -- here's how. Users in r/Windows10 on Reddit and elsewhere have posted claims that after allowing the update to go through, many files attached to personal profiles, such as those in Documents and Pictures, have been deleted from their drives. Many of those missing files appear to be unretrievable, even with recovery software. It's not happening to all users, but no one yet seems to have isolated the cause of the issue. "Microsoft is aware of these reports and actively investigating," a company spokesperson said in a statement. We're in the lab upgrading systems to see what happens, as well. Now playing: Watch this: We break down Microsoft's new Surface laptop, headphones... Originally published 8:37 a.m. PT. Updated 10:25 a.m. PT: Added Microsoft comment and note about our researching the problem.<doc-sep>Microsoft released its latest Windows 10 October 2018 Update earlier this week, but some users are reporting serious issues. Threads on Reddit, Microsoft’s own support site, and other forums show that some Windows 10 users are upgrading to the October 2018 Update and having their documents, photos, or even entire user profiles wiped out. While some have discovered a temporary fix for the issue, it’s not clear why exactly this is happening. Microsoft has not started automatically pushing this latest update out to Windows Update, so only people that visit Windows Update manually and check for updates will get it installed right now. Still, the fact a number of people are reporting these issues is alarming. Microsoft is currently investigating the reports, but given these early issues we’d recommend not installing the Windows 10 October 2018 Update right now. If you do want to take the risk, make sure you’ve got all your documents and data backed up just in case you’re affected by this particular bug. The Verge has reached out to Microsoft to comment on the issues, and we’ll update you accordingly.<doc-sep>
Update: Microsoft is no longer pushing out its October update for Windows 10 as it looks into complaints of missing files after upgrading. "We have paused the rollout of the Windows 10 October Update (version 1809) for all users we investigate isolated reports of users missing some files after updating," Microsoft states on a support page. It's not clear what exactly is causing the problem or how widespread it is, and there is no indication of how long the update will be unavailable. In the meantime, Microsoft is asking affected users to contact the company directly if they believe files went missing after applying the update. "If you have manually downloaded the Windows 10 October 2018 Update installation media, please don’t install it and wait until new media is available," Microsoft added. Original story: Microsoft is rolling out its second annual Windows 10 update, known as the October 2018 Update (or Redstone 5), and some users report having trouble with it. The most egregious so far are reports of the October update deleting files. "I have just updated my windows using the October update (10, version 1809) it deleted all my files of 23 years in amount of 220gb. This is unbelievable, I have been using Microsoft products since 1995 and nothing like that ever happened to me," a user wrote on Microsoft's support forum. His is not an isolated incident. Other users chimed in with similar complaints, both in the forum thread and on social media, as spotted by MSPowerUser. There's also a growing Reddit thread on the topic. As far as I can tell, my computer downloaded the latest Windows 10 update around 3pm today and during that process it unlinked my Documents directory then unpacked its own setup files that overwrote my own files.I am so angry at Microsoft right now - if this is the case.October 4, 2018 See more One of the suggestions raised in Microsoft's support forum is to try rolling back the update, though that doesn't appear to restore the deleted files. The exact cause is not known. However, it appears to be an issue that also plagued preview builds in the Windows Insider program. If so, this is another bug that managed to slip through to the final release. We reported on a far less severe annoyance yesterday, that being a Task Manager bug that causes it to miscalculate CPU usage. As always, it's recommend that you back up your files before attempting a major update. At the very least, be sure to save any mission critical documents to a non-connected drive, like a USB flash drive or external HDD. We'll let you know if this alleged bug is confirmed, and if it is, when it's fixed.