New Windows 10 Insider ring will let you check out release builds before the public

Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile users who are signed up for the Windows Insider testing program can now select to receive builds from the new Release Preview ring. It joins the previous Fast and Slow ring options.

Windows Insider head Gabriel Aul described the new Release Preview ring in a blog post, along with which ring would work best for Windows Insiders, depending on how often they want new builds, along with the stability of those builds.

Fast – Best for Insiders who enjoy being the first to get access to builds and feature updates, with some risk to their devices in order to identify issues, and provide suggestions and ideas to make Windows software and devices great.
Slow – Best for Insiders who enjoy getting early access to builds and feature updates, with less risk to their devices, and still want to provide feedback to make Windows software and devices great.
Release Preview – Best for Insiders who enjoy getting early access to updates for the Current Branch, Microsoft applications, and drivers, with minimal risk to their devices, and still want to provide feedback to make Windows devices great.

Will you be switching over to the new Release Preview ring and why or why not? Let us know in the comments.

Source: Microsoft

John Callaham

160 Comments

Cooooooolllllll....
why do we need another Insider ring?
Because Microsoft would like a way for Insiders to choose between cumulative updates and new builds in the future when Redstone rolls out for Mobile.
Because they obviously want to speed up the adoption of their mobile OS....
......
There are some users who ar still hesitant to use the slow ring.. This new "safer" ring might encourage even those pu$$es to make the plunge.... More users, better feedback, higher market share.... Too many benefits.
Lol. I'm one of those pu$$ies.
Don't see why.... People (all 20) are buying new devices with W10M installed on it.. No use in waiting anymore.
I have two phones on fast and two still on win 8.1
I lost a fifth phone, a 1020, to an summer win 10 build - it was completely bricked, so there IS a risk, or was.
Also I still think win 8.1 is faster than win 10 in many ways. THough I have no doubt we will get there with win 10, it's pretty close. Typing is the worst aspect, I'd say it's 20 - 30% less accurate than win 8.1
Finally it's unbelievable we have lost features like quiet hours that automatically trigger with appointments, I'm still really hoping we will get that on win 10 for mobile.
so this is Preview for Developers: Windows 10 Edition. :)
My thoughts exactly the same.
In my feedback I told them Insider Fast was not fast enough to some of us so they came up with this!
LoL....nice influence!
No this is slower than fast and slow ring. Fast ring still gets the fastest updates with the most risk. This gets you the release before the public.
yea it is a slower ring. but if you think about the bigger picture, this new ring also allows them to ship builds faster. so the fast ring could really be fast, slow ring would be almost as the fast ring now, but not quite. and the release build between slow ring and the old developer preview.
What??? that fast is the new slow and the slow is now the fast that was faster before and we are all gonna have a blast ?
no, this won't have an impact on fast or slow ring.
Obviously he's just talking about the rings in relation to each other, not that their functionalities are changing
No ma'am I'm to scared to even try that
Can't understood from the article, exactly what is the difference?
A new ring that is slower and more stable than the slow ring, but still a little faster than the general releases. Posted via my HTC One M7
sort of like preview for developers was in 8.1
Release Preview is likely to be essentially Preview for Developers. It's finished RTM software released as soon as it's ready without waiting for carrier/OEM/regional input in any way.
Sounds ideal for daily driver use.
Yeah I'm unsure too. Release preview is faster than fast? Or slower than slow?
Slower than slow. It says "Current Branch" which I suppose to mean the general public builds or simply Non-Insider builds. So, the Release preview builds will have the second lowest frequency of being released, ahead of general builds.
******* read
Hey *******. I did read. Twice. **** off.
lol my bad bro. Earlier I was just a little inebriated and the first thought to come to mind as I read your comment, was what I typed. You still suck at reading comprehension though
And you still suck at typing while inebriated lol where's the typos?!
Slower than slow. Which means...w 10 for 2019 lol
It's developer preview renamed.
Good
I'll see what the next major build brings and takes away.
So basically what he's saying is that, going forward, the fast ring will be RS builds whereas the release preview will be prerelease cumulative updates for 10586?
That is likely to be true.
So with the new ring you get more then just builds ?
No.. You're more likely guaranteed to get a build that is just about consumer release ready... That's all
So, difference between Slow Ring and this new Release Preview?
The way I read it is this; Fast: Redstone branch. The absolute latest code check-ins. Will likely be buggy and should not be used on your go-to device.
Slow: Also Redstone branch, but features are more stable than fast ring.
Preview: Current branch (I.e. 10586.xxx) which is basically cumulative updates that will go out to the Production "ring" soon.
You got it right.
BTW, Fast and Slow rings do get the Same build. Fast ones need to take the risk before MS can release it for the Slow ones. So build for Slow ring is not stable. It's just a little safer.
As MS has written for Slow Ring, "...more solutions are available." Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
That's not strictly true as not all fast ring builds go forward to the slow ring. Hence it's less buggy - i.e. if they find a huge build in a fast ring release they'll patch it, bring out another fast ring release and possibly release that to slow a little later.
Even this new ring voids warranty??
I think yes, it "voids" Your warranty
I sent in a phone I used the preview on. All I did was revert it to WP8.1 and they never knew.
That's cool. But if you're unable to do that because say the USB port is broken, or you have a computer where something like the SATA connection failed then that's not really an option, is it?
Yes, it will send you to the void
Hell yea I am getting all the new updates as fast as possible. Love the new ring.
Uhm.. For that you need fast ring. This new one is slower than Slow
Read?
probably 90% of Slow Ring insiders will hop on
Why? The fast ring will have the latest stuff, albeit more buggy. The preview ring will have stable stuff, just slightly earlier than it goes out in the wild.
I would guess almost noone from fast would switch to that. It's slower than slow ring.
it's faster than slow, slow is slower than fast. slow will get builds that are deemed worthy after they have been on fast (mostly 14xxx builds). while release preview is for 10586 updates, before it's GA (generally available)
Interesting. Anyone who has a 950 from AT&T, how are preview builds going for you without the firmware update? I haven't made the jump yet and debating on doing so. My wife's 1520 seems to be running better than my stock 950. Edit: Screw it, I did it. .107 is showing as the build for Release Preview. I must say, little surprised by that...
Can people on AT&T get the firmware update on this new release cycle? Has anyone tried it since this article was published?
My understanding (and I hope it is correct) is that we can change back to production on the insider app and get the firmware when it does release. I sure hope so....
I think that is true; however, when you upgraded, did you see the firware update for the device?
No, firmware did not come with this update.
I wonder which ring the firmware is in at this stage... If that's how it works. Please, someone explain.
They said that firmware will be added to insider at some point soon. Right now we are waiting on AT&T.
Which is the fastest release build?
Fast > Slow > Release Preview > No insider
Fast ring
I dont think we can rate the new release ring with the other two. It still goes Fast > Slow but they will be on the Red Stone branch. This is for getting faster updates on the Threshold 2 branch (TH2) whcih means cumilative updates and drivers and WM apps sooner than people on W10M TH2. You may get more updates on this new branch than the slow one but it wont be new features or updates from RS1 like the slow will get.
If new ring is slower than slow ring then how are people getting the update on the new ring and not on slow ring?
New ring is cumulative updates to the production build. Same as we are getting now, 10586.107. Fast/slow will be getting totally different branch numbers, like 14260 that Gabe said he is using.
It's still the same process, just the new ring is for updates before it goes to the public.
I will likely put my Dell Venue 11 Pro tablet in the Release Preview ring, it was in Fast for a while but that didn't always work out well for me. This way I get stability and features ahead of the big push. My Lumia 950 will continue to live in the Fast ring, the updates can't come soon enough IMO.
Interesting, I've been using fast ring on my older Asus PC since before the official release without any issues beyond occasional Edge browser instability or some taskbar icons not updating.
should be called carrier avoidance mode, this is essentially dev prev 2016
Basically, yeah lol
That's how I read it too. The question is if it will include stuff like the driver for T-Mobile's WiFi calling, which doesn't work on updated (that is, Windows 10 Mobile) Lumia 640. (But it is apparently there for the new Alcatel handset, so there is a compatible version available...) I mean, the new Ring supposedly comes with firm ware. (I'm not sure what's the proper categorization of the T-Mobile WiFi calling driver...) Does anybody know? Or am I and others at the mercy of T-Mobile's secrecy policy and slow testing?
So this is preview for developers? That's actually a good idea.
So this means the next cumulative update like today's will be released in Release Preview and not Fast?
The new ring was inevitable. With the new Windows-as-a-Service model, Microsoft needs to make sure that each and every update doesn’t break anything, or they’ll anger millions of users. The last time this happened was last week, when the 10586.79 update was made available, and then pulled.
Have you read above comment?
Didn't understood what's the difference between this ring and fast ring
It's self explanatory. It's slower than slow ring essentially it's the developer preview for WM10.
This is their way of by-passing the carriers for legacy devices. In my opinion.
Exactly!
Oh, the title just changed.
Outsourcing to an even cheaper labor virtual country. :P I kid you, MS, I kid you enthusiasts. This is of course (?) nice. But I'll let someone else take advantage of it, the other two insider rings are more than enough for me, bugs, no bugs, and all.
This is the safest of all the rings as it is only updates to the current release branch. The other rings are non rleased branches. This new ring is Threshold, the other ring is Redstone where they are messing around with the plumbing in a more invasive way.
Fast, Slow, Slower.
I didn't get the difference that we'll so I'm with slow ring.. Also that it's placed later in the order.. This explains frequency
This is exactly what abandoned phones like the HTC 8X and Lumia 810 needed.
I can download it with my HTC 8x, but I can't install
Same here on my Blu WIN HD Lte..
Same here on my Lumia 635
I´m confused. No - I understand the difference from the text haha I want to switch from SLOW to this new ring - but now my L930 starts to download 107 release (actually 71)... ahmmmm 1007 should only be on fast ring at the moment? edit: okay.. the download was fast and no more "install yes,no" request.. installation has started :( ...crossing fingers it will run stable
I am very surprised by that too. I expected a much older build. But, maybe this one passed all internal rings and this may be a GR candidate... ? :) Edit: Exact same situation. I may not have gone through with it if I had known .107 was the build. Yep, fingers crossed.
Please let us know how it is. I've avoided the preview program so far since I only have my Icon to rely on but I might give this a try if it is more stable.
It does sound as if this is their way of giving us the ready to go product without waiting for green light from service providers which might take a while.
This is just a slower ring
So this new ring is a step between the slow ring and general release? If that's the case, then I would join. The wording and placement before the fast ring doesn't clarify it too well.
So previeuw has the same update as fast ring only lesse bugs ??? So its saver to go on preview ? Can someone explain it to me so i know wat to do Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
It's pretty simple: You get public releases a short time before they go out. If this ring existed last week, then people on it would have gotten 10586.104 then, while everyone else got it earlier today.
Ty
Finally!
Fast > Slow > Release? OR Fast > Release > Slow? What's the primary?
Fast > Slow > release Release is like PfD in wp8 times, you get the public release updates but without OEMs or carriers making sure there are no problems with specific devices.
Fast > Slow
Release > Standard W10M
I still can't update from .6X update on my 950XL :/
Oh my God, how utterly frustrating can one of the biggest companies in the World be at times? It's demonstrably obvious from the comments above that the descriptions are shockingly badly worded and to confuse people even more they are listed in an utterly non-intuitive order!! It completely beggars belief. There is utterly no care, thought or detail in Microsoft these days. The fact that when you open the insider app on a W10M phone you are presented with and have to click on 'get preview builds' even if you are already getting them and want to stop is bad enough.. Detail and care and a desire to make things correct and appropriate does not cost anything, no resources, just care and commitment. The people running the insider programme should be the ones who care most of all...
How are they listed in an unintuitive order? It's basically Fast, Slow, Slower, General Release.
Errr in the insider app and in the image in the article they are listed:
Slow
Fast
Slower
General release
It's pretty obvious. It clearly states that it's simply early access to Current Branch builds, even the words "with minimal risk" set it clearly apart from the Insider rings which explain that some risk exists. This is not a true Insider ring, it's more like a preflight testing ring for imminent public updates.
I understand it (although I don't understand that it is delivering .107 when the previous article stated that .107 was being flighted to the fast ring..?).
The fact that a large amount of the messages in these comments show confusion and are seeking confirmation demonstrates that the schema is unclearly written and explained.
In fact can anyone from WC (or otherwise) provide a list of the now seven different current build number strings across W10? As far as I am aware: W10 Production 1511 10.0.10586.104 W10 Insider Slow W10 Insider Fast RS1 10.0.14257 W10M Production W10M Insider release Preview 1511 10.0.10586.107 W10M Insider Slow W10M Insider Fast ...and I've even spent a little time scraping round trying to accurately discern the others..
W10 Production 1511 10.0.10586.104 W10 Insider Slow W10 Insider Fast RS1 10.0.14257 W10M Production W10M Insider release Preview 1511 10.0.10586.107 W10M Insider Slow 1511 10.0.10586.71 W10M Insider Fast @Daniel_Rubino? Anyone??
I think it's a bit harsh on Microsoft, it's not like anyone is doing what they are doing and doing it better. Apple has a much easier job because they only support a handful of machines, hardware and software. Google is worse than MS IMHO. That said in this case it definitely COULD have been better worded! I think reading between the lines this new ring is essentially release to market without getting the green light from all the carriers.
Just started using Release Preview Ring.. I am getting two update
1. 10586.107 build
2. Microsoft Canonical Core Updates
on my Lumia 720.. Currently I am on 8.1
I have to give Microsoft credit. They have managed to employ the work of millions of unpaid debuggers/testers to create a more solid product for the rest of us. Thank you!
While I appreciate the option of the new ring, would it have been so difficult to order the options from bleeding edge to most tested? This alone would spare a lot of questions and confusion.
Just downloading "Fast .107" now to my L 640.
Thinking it cant't get worse than before . . .
Apps important to me , MS Health-stepcounting, and Groove Music, just would not work at all after the last updates to those apps running on W10M .71 Groove Music - problem:
Half of my 5500 songs would not be recognized/synced after library rebuild. "Nokia Mix Radio", an app no longer downloadable, could find all of them though . . .
I have tried everything, pulling the battery, pulling the SD card (128 GB).
The last thing I did was delete all the music from the SD card. Which wasn't a piece of cake !
I realised there is no easy way to delete music . . .
Using "Filer" I had to manually check 491 boxes . . . 'cause "check all" just would delete four files at a time.
Using "Windows Phone for Mac" I synced the music over night. I oversaw the beginning of the sync seeing songs being synced then went to bed.
Only to end up with the cover art on my phone in the morning . . . MS Health: no stepcounting at all ! to paraphrase a song
"What made Redstone famous made a sad(frustrated) man out of me"
Very good.......
I feel like this is what slow ring has been recently--very infrequent and close to release. Hopefully this means slow ring will get somewhat more frequent updates.
The Slow Ring will just Follow the Fast Ring into the Redstone-series of builds.
Tried to install the release preview on my Samsung Ativ S Neo. Downloaded fine but won't install. Running into error 801822c2. States the update was downloaded but couldn't be opened.
I'd get in this one but if it doesn't come with new firmwares, I won't be bothered.
Anyone find out if it does yet?
Yes man, hope is back for my Ativ S
Another ring, they are falling off my finger while I am waiting for the genuine upgrade!
I'll opt into the insider program on my surface book with this branch if the first release to hit this branch doesn't break the internets.
Now there's three? What's the difference now, I thought the first 2 weren't open to the general public either, because you had to sign up? I mean, this doesn't make sense....There was already a slow ring.....
Had the same question but u wound get alot of help heere none will anser
It is open for public, just go to the Windows Insiders site and click you want to join. Then download the app and you can choose which ring you want to receive updates from. Not so sure about the new ring. I joined thinking it was the slowest one, but I did receive .107 which was said to be Fast ring only in the official blog post.
Ty
We need ludicrous ring!
I must be mad, I'm staying in the fast ring so have done the latest build, even though my phone has only just got 'mail' fixed which has bugged me for a couple of weeks !!!
I prefer Insider Fast Ring. I also like to live dangerously.
I've an error (801882c2) when trying to update to Release Preview Ring. Anybody else has this problem?
Me too getting same error
I get it, fast and slow ring will switched to Redstone. Release Preview, still on threshold.
I will, probably, go there, for a while, when they start releasing Redstone.
.107 is on Insider Release Preview. A nice clean install, no reloading all the apps. Apparently, it's a dry run of the production build. Nice.
So does the new ring have even less risk than the slow ring?? I mean is it reliable enough and NOT TOO buggy??
Anyone enrolls in release preview n get any build now?
Upper this comments section, people were getting the latest build .107 in the release preview config.
i dont know. i would like to go back to a time when my phone just worked again.
Maybe finally the fast ring will reach ludicrous speed
If this is slower than slow, why is it getting the 10586.107 faster than slow ring??? -_-
"With minimal risk to their devices..."? Lololol.
When I will release officially
Only YOU have the answer to that.
When it will release official for older lumiasn
I have updated my lumia 730 to slow ring insider to OS 10.0.10586.71 bt now my battery is draining of quickly without using it and it is charging very slowly.Moreover get heated without being used.
Is this problem is on all mbls having this OS update or its only in 730.
Please tell me solution....
Hey Beer.. I've Lumia 730 & updated to .71 update in slow ring.. I'm not getting any battery drain issue but charging is slow.. Let's see if .107 update will clear it
I've used Android .. But I've been using Windows Phone since it's inception.. I used Nexus 5 in 2014.. I get the all fuss abt the app gap..even though in android they're many useless apps which lack stability .. Also to add the android version after kitkat lack stability.. I quickly turned to Windows Phone for stability in less than 6 months.. I don't understand it apart from apps .. Android doesn't offer much more.. I feel Windows has been innovative all thru it's inception.. Expecting .107 update to hit slow ring..
Also this new ring will be helpful for those who never came on fast and slow ring.. They've to increase the share of the OS
Is it like the pfd program??
What kind of Build is this(Release Preview)..? Will I get out slower than Fast build or faster than Slow build.....? Is it safe to download windows update from this build..? I have my Lumia 1520 and still I have not got any update to windows10 mobile....!!!
I'm also using L1520 an on slow ring , working good but some bugs are their I.e charging , camera ..
So is this new ring something that would benefit att users because you get the drivers. Or does it make a difference? Whether you're on Fast, Slow or slower?
Has anyone updated L535 and does it work ok
L535 works oky with .107 build
Is the previeuw update 107 to and is it save to instal ?
Hey this isn't showing up in my insider app, and the app is up to date, anyone else have this issue or know how to fix it?
I had access to the new release preview in the insider app the other day, it immediately allowed me to download the .107 update and now I don't see the release preview option anymore. Anyone else noticed that?
I can't get their sense of humer
This bricked my 920 and I can't fix it no matter what I do :-(
This post is confusing/does not clear the matter. Read this for better understanding. http://www.windowscentral.com/all-you-need-know-about-windows-insider-rings

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