Announcing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 10166 Insider

The blog post announcing Build 10166 has been updated significantly.

Update 7/13: We’re only a couple of weeks away now from our public release of Windows 10, and we’re preparing for the world to begin the upgrade process. Windows Insiders have been the first to see our work on Windows 10 at every stage. Now you will also be the first to get a build flighted to you using the channels that we’ll use for targeting and deploying to PCs for our staged rollout.

We’re suspending the availability of Windows 10 builds briefly while we prepare for that, and the next build that we flight to you will be delivered using the production channels. Starting tomorrow, we will also not be delivering any additional ISOs at this point as we really need Insiders to be using, stressing, and validating our distribution and upgrade processes. We’ll make ISOs available again in the future, but for now we ask you to upgrade your current build via Windows Update once the next build is released.

Specifically, this means that in the next 24hrs:

Builds 10162 and 10166 will no longer be offered over Windows Update, and whatever build you’re on will show as “up to date” if you check for new builds.
ISOs for build 10162 will be taken down from the Home page - Windows Insider Program site and prerelease keys will no longer activate builds.

Once we have a new build available we’ll let you know through here with a blog post, Insider Hub, and on Twitter.

We’re very close to our public release and we’re working very hard to get everything just right. Please continue to send us problem reports using the Windows Feedback app for any problems that you encounter.

Thanks,
g
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{Rest of post as before, I think}

Source:Announcing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 10166 [Updated]

Thanks for that, David. Interesting but perfectly reasonable.

groze said:

@DavidY

I would get the 10166 iso build before they disable the download. You can upgrade using the iso as well. If I understand that info 10162 will no longer activate, they didn't say anything about 10166 not being able to activate.

Thanks for that thought - that's a good point.

Although I suspect it's that they're switching off activation servers (or whatever) for all insiders, and they assume that you'd only activate after installing from an ISO, which would mean 10162 (as ESD to ISO etc. are not official supported methods). So my guess is you won't be able to activate 10166 either for a while once they switch off.

As for getting 10166, I'm going to leave it for now - I'm on a metered data connection which is already tight for usage this month and I know there will be more builds to get!

DavidY said:

Thanks for that thought - that's a good point.

Although I suspect it's that they're switching off activation servers (or whatever) for all insiders, and they assume that you'd only activate after installing from an ISO, which would mean 10162 (as ESD to ISO etc. are not official supported methods). So my guess is you won't be able to activate 10166 either for a while once they switch off.

As for getting 10166, I'm going to leave it for now - I'm on a metered data connection which is already tight for usage this month and I know there will be more builds to get!

Well, phooey! I've tried twice to do a clean install of 10166 on my laptop, but had no idea this was going on! This morning, it got so far and hung up. I shut down and rebooted, but wound up with 100074 installed!

I recreated the ISO file and redid my USB installation flash drive! Now I'm at the same spot once more, "Just a moment..." and nothing is happening. I don't think we had 24 hours notice on this one, even if they said we did! Outlook would pick the wrong day to act up and not give me all my email! Sheesh!

Wynona said:

Well, phooey! I've tried twice to do a clean install of 10166 on my laptop, but had no idea this was going on! This morning, it got so far and hung up. I shut down and rebooted, but wound up with 100074 installed!

I recreated the ISO file and redid my USB installation flash drive! Now I'm at the same spot once more, "Just a moment..." and nothing is happening. I don't think we had 24 hours notice on this one, even if they said we did! Outlook would pick the wrong day to act up and not give me all my email! Sheesh!

I don't know if they've switched stuff yet - it just says 'in the next 24 hours', and it only went up a couple of hours ago.

The 'Just a Moment...' screen is where all the bad stuff is - I was trying to install a build using Sysprep and suchlike, and it would get to Just a Moment, then reboot, then ask me to enter all my preferences again, then show Just a Moment, then reboot... etc.

DavidY said:

I don't know if they've switched stuff yet - it just says 'in the next 24 hours', and it only went up a couple of hours ago.

Specifically, this means that in the next 24hrs:

• Builds 10162 and 10166 will no longer be offered over Windows Update, and whatever build you’re on will show as “up to date” if you check for new builds.
• ISOs for build 10162 will be taken down from the Home page - Windows Insider Program site and prerelease keys will no longer activate builds.

I would have expected something a bit more grammatically correct like "within the next 24 hours" or "for the next 24 hours". Still, what this says to me that we will not see anything new for at least the next 24 hours. If Gabe Aul wanted to confuse us, he did a fine job of it. :) If he meant to say "within the next 24 hours", that could mean anywhere from five minutes to 24 hours. Whenever they can get all the buttons pushed and levers pulled.

Also, it's my understanding that there is not an ISO for Build 10166; only for Build 10162.

DavidY said:

The 'Just a Moment...' screen is where all the bad stuff is - I was trying to install a build using Sysprep and suchlike, and it would get to Just a Moment, then reboot, then ask me to enter all my preferences again, then show Just a Moment, then reboot... etc.

This is my first experience with a clean install failing; I'm sure I did everything right, but for now, I think I'll just clean install Build 10162 on the laptop just as a placeholder . . . it shore ain't agonna git a Windows Update to Build v.next with that failed mess sitting there.

simrick said:

@Wynona - sorry you're having such problems. You don't have an image to restore?

I see the ISOs are still up:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/w...eview-download

But I think something is definitely going on......here's something in Windows Update I have never seen before:

I got this one today as well but for x64