Microsoft launches Windows 10 technical preview PC build 10041

By Dan Thorp-Lancaster
last updated

Microsoft has just announced that a new PC build is finally rolling out to Windows 10 technical preview users on the fast ring today.

Clocking in at build number 10041, the new release brings a number of new features and changes that we've seen in leaks leading up to this release, as well as fixes for some issues experienced in build 9926.

While this new build doesn't include the new Spartan browser, it does include a slightly new look for the start menu, adding some transparency and improving the touch experience by enabling users to drag and drop apps to pin them to the most used apps list. In addition, virtual destops also got some love, with the added ability to drag windows to specific desktops, as well as organizational tweaks to how apps are shown and manipulated on each virtual desktop.

Also in this build, Cortana is expanding to some new markets. Previously only available to preview members in the U.S., Cortana will now work from the desktop in China, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, and Spain.

Finally, this build brings a number of other tweaks to the way connecting to new networks is handled, as well as an enhanced Photos app, improved handwriting input, and some lock screen tweaks that will show off some tips and tricks when a new build is released.

If you're in the fast ring, you should be able to snag this update now. Microsoft notes that it plans to continue releasing ISOs for updated builds, but only as they roll out to slow ring users. Therefore, build 10041 will be direct download only until it hits slow ring users.

Thanks to everyone who sent in tips!

Source: Microsoft

Dan Thorp-Lancaster
Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl. 

131 Comments
  • Yes!
  • Great. Long over due. Now wish the phone division would get hot. They're typically always slow
  • we're working to get a new phone build out asap :)
  • Thanks Devin! And thank you guys for bringing Cortana (China, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain) to this build.
  • Thanks for replying Giffdev! Hope its soon :)
  • Hope it will include Lumia 1520.
  • Thank you!!
  • Please tell me it will hit the flagships this time?  My 925 is itching for some Windows 10 lovin'!
  • Go read the article completely...
  • he is responding to Giifdev, who works at microsoft and just wrote "we're working to get a new phone build out asap :)"
  • What article?
  • Will the new phone build finally include the flagship phones!?!
  • Thanks!
  • "Long over due" ? Based onnnnnnnnn?
  • Based on the indefinite continued progress of existence and events.
  • 2 months of no fresh builds after monthly builds were promised.
  • Still waiting for my free upgrade..
  • Now this what we were waiting for. Too bad no Spartan.
  • You can enable the engine using about:flags, however to actually see the UX and use it would have been nicer.
  • Yeah I already know that. Just wanted the UX.
  • Ah okay, your not the only one that's waiting to give the UX a spin :).
  • I just want some kind of touch browser. IE desktop it not great for touch.
  • I bet it will become available through the store soon.
  • YES!!!!!  
  • Yeeeeessssssss
  • Anyone insiders tried on windows phone. I am hoping that update comes out soon also.
  • Lol fat chance
  • Me too. Lumia 1520 please!
  • Gabe Aul already said there won't be phone updates today , just PC
  • I will try it again.
  • So Spartan probably comes with slow ring then
  • No, they said that its now coming in the next build.
  • I don't think so. From fast to slow it is mostly bug fixes. But if it comes, I will not complain about that ;)
  • Or it might be downloadable through store later
  • Another broken promise, no Spartan in this build. Bummer!
  • Don't participate in betas if you can't accept change in directions. This happens all the time. Besides, if you want to talk about broken promises, take a look at HL2 Episode 3. That is a broken promise.
  • Well, I would still participate in betas, I am just sick of waiting. We have been reading about Windows 9 / Threshold since 2 years ago, and the waiting game gets tiring.
  • oh you poor thing
  • I dont think people understand that most of the time the complaints about broken promises and taking forever is because we actually WANT to see the new stuff and are excited for it =).    Now, I also get that sometimes that means not always considering the outcomes like we all should but, whatevers =). 
  • Didn't they just say it will come in a future build. I don't think they said the NEXT build or a specific build number?
  • They did actually say next build, but I would rather have any update at all then wait longer so they can get Spartan in.
  • I am with you on this one, but they shouldn't keep lying to their fans. If they never brought Spartan up it being in the next update it wouldn't be that big disappointment. It's ironic that Microsoft creates Cortana predictions for other things, and they are good at it, but they can never predict when they will finish their job. Deadlines are no Microsoft thing. Wish that changes.
  • Fans?? Microsoft is a business not some teen pop band.
  • I thought they said Spartan would not be in this next build. Must have better a different source than you are referencing.
  • Does this build run league of legends?
  • <s>Sorry but no. But it includes Half Life 3...</s>
  • It should. I would think... 
  • Ah... was hoping to do a clean install... looks like no choice but to do an in-place update.
  • You could wait for the slow ring ;) But if you're like me I don't think you'll be able to wait :-D
  • Lol, already downloading.
  • We should expect W10 TP for phone tomorrow... Crossing fingers
  • "Cortana now also works on the desktop in China, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, and Spain." Yes!!!!!!!
  • But not English and French Canada. But works on Canada phones????
  • And next step: Roll out w10 for phones for other devices like the lumia 1320 ._.
  • I wilud really appreciate the update for 1320. I'm waiting. I'm not satisfied with my 630 on WP10. It feels gr8 in bigger screen
  • Was hoping to see the outlook app
  • Did they launch any of the new apps? Outlook, Xbox Music, etc..?
  • At first I thought yes new phone support. But this is good also (Microsoft is launching windows 1.....)
  • I'm looking forward to seeing what they have been working on.
  • I am not getting it in the fast ring on my Dell Venue 8 Pro (x86 version of the build). Is this a delayed rollout or is something up with the x86 release? 
  • For some reason, I'm not getting it on my HP Envy Laptop, so not sure what's up.
  • I got it on my virtual machine instantly. But my DV8P is still 10041-less. But I am checking like crazy =).   
  • I made another virtual machine with x86 instead and its pulling the update right now so not sure why my DV8P doesnt have it yet.
  • Downloading now on my DV8P! =D
  • Acer Aspire here, not getting it either
  • No luck on my Lenovo p500t
    I have 9926, but can't find 10041.
  • I think I should install it on my daily driver now
  • I did
  • What does the fbl meän?
  • Fabulous.
  • Facebook lover
  • FBL stands for "Feature Branch Level".
  • How can i install the newest build on my sp3 with win 8.1
  • You'll need an ISO, which isn't available yet. You can probably install the previous build (9926) with that ISO, then just update to the new build.
  • i installed the build 9926 and change to fast ring but there is no update to the new build
  • No phone build? Come on wtf?
  • Is this just professional or did they release enterprise also?
  • Anyone know if there're plans for wider releases of cortana? Like smaller countries like Denmark... am a bit jaloux of Siri coming to DK :P
  • Where's the damn phone build >:(
  • It's right here.
  • I appreciate your sense of humor
  • What's the size of update?
  • Waiting for phones build! I'm gonna download the 2nd preview even if my 820 is not supported in it Can't wait anymore !
  • I have L520 only for testing the new build.. Too bad they didn't support it. Hope it comes in the next build
  • Same here man, I've got a spare 520 that I use for testing that I'm gonna use for Win 10. Hope it's here soon...
  • Hey guys I need help. My laptop won't install some updates giving me the error code 0x8024a10c. Also it's not finding the new build. Stupid computer lol
  • same here
  • I am from Bulgaria and Cortana works with 9926 :)
  • Damn. I wanted to install from ISO.
  • I'm sure they'll release the next build of TP10 for phones on L930/L1520. They said it was just a problem of the partition and I don't think that they still haven't figured it out :)
  • Phone ?
  • My computer hasn't noticed any new build. I have it set to fast updates.
  • even when i manually check for updates, my computer wont find this update any tips?
  • Same issue here
  • What's the size of the update? Anyone please tell me
  • 9926 with latest updates installed it will not find the new build on fast. doesn't matter if I check slow, reboot, fast etc. No updates are showing. Your device is up to date. Come on...
  • Same issue with me! I finally got to install the Tech Preview last week.
  • see below
  • you can try this:   Open regedit.exe Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsSelfHost\Applicability Ensure the following values exist:         {value name}, {value type}, {value data} BranchName, REG_SZ, fbl_impressive ThresholdOptedin, REG_DWORD, 1 ThresholdRiskLevel, REG_SZ, low Delete all other values Open Settings > Update & recovery > Windows Update Tap or click Check for updates (Source: TechNet Forum) 
  • The only thing different for me is i have a default value above branchname and it wont let me delete it. still cant update.
  • I am on Fast ring. Why am I not seeing the update? Any tips?
  • Same here. Fast ring and no update. Guess I just have to wait my turn
  • Still on 9926 here, with no update available.
  • I woke up with an update downloading in progress.. impressive! i'm on philippines.. :D
  • yeah, the same here, fast ring build 9926, still up to date
  • here's the solution:   Open regedit.exe Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsSelfHost\Applicability Ensure the following values exist:         {value name}, {value type}, {value data} BranchName, REG_SZ, fbl_impressive ThresholdOptedin, REG_DWORD, 1 ThresholdRiskLevel, REG_SZ, low Delete all other values Open Settings > Update & recovery > Windows Update Tap or click Check for updates (Source: TechNet Forum) 
  • You can get the ESD files from MDL and then convert them to ISO. Instructions can be found on MDL http://forums.mydigitallife.info/threads/59082-Windows-10-(Technical-Preview)-ESDs-Repository/page9?p=1007443&viewfull=1#post1007443 works fine here. Now updating from ISO
  • The notifications and windows button doesn't work !!! Why? That will can fix it whit the actualization?
  • i hope i have this problem too, its vexatious!
  • What's the solution when the 10041 build installation fails with the 0x80070241 error? Thanks if anyone knows. No published articles about this error have worked. I have build 9926.
  • I had the same issue - hung on a Intel HD Graphics Driver update with same error.   Had to reinstall 9926..    While it got Windows Update working again - still not seeing 10041 yet...  
  • so exeptional compared to the old w10 build 9926. This has vastly features and in addition has added cortana in the uk! ;)  
  • Ooooo!!! Oooooooooo! OOOOOOOOOOO!
  • I know what I'm doing when I get home.
  • Why not Canada for Cortana? I have her on my phone?????
  • We never had Cortana officially. Switch your locale to Canada, and you get Bing. Whoopdiedoo.  She can't understand Canadian English, apparently.
  • we have a crappy broken Cortana in Canada :(
  • they should definitely disable updates for specific hardware drivers, they can make your life a nightmare since w10 forces you to install ALL updates every and each time
  • I didn't get the latest build even am in fast ring
  • on fast ring but cannot see the update
  • ​Hey!.. :-( During installation of 10041 my PC froze and when I restart it, it wrote that New Update can't be installed. And from that Windows update writes There is no new update available for you PC.   Can someone help, pls?..  
  • reinstall 9926 from scratch and try again...
  • Update Size ......Anyone ????????
  • Realtek high definition audio not working with this preview
  • Hey folks - Running 9926 on Dell Venue 8 Pro.   In Fast circle - but not seeing 11041 build yet.   In SoCal.   Anyone else experiencing this ? thx  
  • Same here pal..Been checking for the last 6 hours.Things are really slow in the 'Fast' ring.
  • Dear Microsoft: Attention please if you are reading these comments - the AMD display drivers being installed via Windows Update are extremely buggy and cause freezes, hangs, crashes and blue screens in multiple games on numerous systems, desktops and laptops both. R9 290X, R9 270X, Radeon 7660D, Radeon 8660D, R7 250, and more. The last stable ones were in the 14.xxxx line, anything in 15.xxx has been very bad. Numerous reports of this in the Feedback app by various people and still MS continues to not list it as a known issue and no fix has been promised.  Please address this asap Microsoft! Thank you guys and gals!!
  • I'm not sure if it's just me, but I really don't like the start menu. I dont like the fact I have to scroll vertically on this menu to see live tiles...Sure I can "Expand" it, but honestly, I really like the 8.1 interface. Wish they would have kept it along with some tweaks such as resizing metro windows, unified settings, ect... 
  • my lumia 730 is not working proply after installing window 10. cotana ,candy crush,window insider is also not woking .  and after few  hour  in my display nothign seen .. what to do . please let me know....
  • I installed Windows version Build 10041, and found that after installation is completed, a lot of apps I installed previously failed. Every time I open the Store to reinstall, then an error message appears, I can not reinstall the app previously. What's wrong with me?
  • Excellent! Thanks so much!