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Microsoft releases first Windows 10 Redstone 4 PC test build

Microsoft is starting to test the next version of Windows 10, codenamed Redstone 4. It's still too early for any new features to go live, however.
Written by Mary Jo Foley, Senior Contributing Editor

Microsoft has released the first Windows 10 build in the Redstone 4 branch to a subset of Fast Ring Insiders.

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Credit: Microsoft

Windows 10 Build 16353, which Microsoft is rolling out on Aug. 31, is the first test build in the RS-PRERELEASE branch, which is the Redstone 4 (RS4) development branch. RS4 is the version of Windows 10 that will follow the Fall Creators Update and is targeted to be available around March 2018.

Fast Ring Insider testers who are not in the Skip Ahead ring already will not get today's test build. They will continue to get Redstone 3/Windows 10 Fall Creators Update test builds until Microsoft deems that version of Windows as ready to roll out to mainstream users. After that point, Microsoft will transition all Windows 10 Fast Ring Insiders to RS4 test builds. (Those in the Skip Ahead ring also are getting inbox app updates from the Windows Store, while those in the regular Fast Ring are not.)

As usual in the early stages of testing of a new build of Windows 10, there are no new noticeable features at this point in the process. Instead, today's 16353 PC test build includes a handful of fixes and updates for Action Center, DPI monitor settings, Edge and Hello. Microsoft has stopped providing a list of known issues for Windows 10 test builds, with officials saying they will only notify testers of potentially major problems.

Microsoft officials have not yet shared the planned name for the next version of Windows 10 client. They also have not yet detailed which features the March 2018 version of Windows 10 will include, though it's likely that it could include some of the features Microsoft postponed from arriving in the Creators Update, such as cloud clipboard, Timeline and more support for Pick Up Where You Left Off.

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