With initial adoption of its new operating system starting to level off, Microsoft announced its first major update to Windows 10 this morning, including a series of features designed to get businesses to make the upgrade.
The company is introducing two new services: Windows Update for Business, giving IT departments new control over the deployment of Windows updates; and the Windows Store for Business, which includes the ability for companies distribute their own internal apps to employees.
Other new features include mobile device management capabilities, new security protections, and the ability to use Active Directory to give employees one login that takes their settings and data across Windows 10 devices.
The company has a long way to go with business users in terms of Windows 10 adoption. In his post announcing the new features, Microsoft executive Terry Myerson says the more than 110 million devices running Windows 10 include about 12 million business PCs.
Beyond the new business features, the company says it has boosted Windows 10’s performance, with 30 percent faster boot time than Windows 7. The Cortana virtual assistant now supports pen input on Windows 10, and the ability to book and track an Uber car using Cortana in the U.S. In addition, the Microsoft Edge browser comes with security and performance improvements and a new feature for previewing tabs, plus the ability to sync Favorites and the Reading List across devices.
Microsoft says the November update will be rolled out automatically to users based on their Windows Update settings. Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users can still upgrade for free and get the new features.
The announcement coincides with the rollout of a new Xbox One experience that also brings Windows 10 to Microsoft’s game console.
