Do you know how Microsoft's Windows update system works? If so, you may be part of a small minority of people who actually get what the Redmond giant's up to when it decides to update Windows, which is why I was, at first, a little concerned when Microsoft announced a new way of updating Windows. Fortunately, I was happy to see that Microsoft's new update plan is to help reduce the negative impact that each update has on your system, rather than enhancing it even further.

Here's Microsoft's plan: when it wants to make a huge change to the operating system, it will do so under what's called a "checkpoint update." From here, the company can then install little updates that build upon the larger checkpoint update. When it's time for more sweeping changes, Microsoft will then add a new checkpoint update. The checkpoints will take a while to download and install, but the little 'add-on' updates should have a reduced size due to this new format.

To be honest, I thought that was how Windows Update worked in the first place. However, it's good to see that Microsoft is adding this service in regardless, and here's why.

Windows updates may actually achieve its goal of becoming a streamlined service

No more chugging through a download

Windows Update hasn't had the most celebrated history. It's always been the butt of jokes about introducing new issues, taking up resources, and forcing the computer to restart at inopportune moments. In the past, people had a nasty tendency to turn off Windows Update, to the point where Microsoft made updating Windows mandatory within a certain time frame.

Hopefully, if Microsoft implements this new checkpoint system correctly, those days could be over. Now, instead of waiting for Windows to chug through a huge download and install, the updates should come in as far more manageable, bite-sized chunks. Who knows - perhaps these updates will be so small that Windows can automatically download them in the background without causing the user any issues.

Windows updates may deploy a lot quicker in response to issues

Getting issues patched quicker than ever

Given that the updates are now smaller and quicker to install, it should theoretically aid in getting issues fixed ASAP. If we assume an ideal scenario where these new updates don't require user intervention and don't need a restart to apply, Microsoft could quickly deploy fixes for issues and get them onto people's PCs before they wreak too much havoc on people's computers.

It'll be interesting to see if these newer updates will have an effect on Microsoft's current rollout method. Right now, when Microsoft releases an update, they do so in waves to double-check that the update isn't messing with people's computers before continuing. However, if the update is small enough, Microsoft may be more lenient on how many people get the update on day one, so we may see more people getting more updates faster than before.

...but at the end of the day, it still needs proper implementation

There's no guarantee this will work👁 A Windows 11 laptop showing a Blue Screen of Death

You may have noticed that throughout this piece, I used a lot of uncertain words like "may," "might," and "could." That's because, no matter how good this new update system looks, Microsoft still needs to implement them in a way that doesn't cause more issues than it fixes. Just as much as there's a chance that these new checkpoint updates make updating Windows far more painless, it may also introduce new headaches or even impound upon old ones.

If Microsoft can actually pull this off, then more power to it. I, too, wish for more digestible Windows updates that take up less bandwidth, storage, and time restarting my PC. As such, I really hope that these new updates work. Fortunately, while they may go awry at the start, I have a feeling that Microsoft will 'tough it out' and work on the system until it actually does what the company wants it to do.

Checkpointed updates sound great, but I'll believe them when I see them

On paper, I love the concept of Windows updates being broken down into smaller chunks to make them far easier to download. In practice, however, Microsoft will need to nail a new updating system that will supply millions of PCs worldwide with critical updates. There's a lot of chance that this can go horribly wrong, and if I were to guess what might happen, I expect the first few months of this new checkpointed system to be riddled with errors. However, if Microsoft sticks with it (and I believe they will), then annoying Windows updates may become a thing of the past.