- The Microsoft Store now automatically updates apps on Windows 11
- This move was made without any announcement from Microsoft
- It may have been rolling out for some time, and it's designed to keep Windows 11 PCs more secure
Windows 11 users will now find that updates for software from the Microsoft Store are now compulsory, and that they can only delay them for a short period of time before they're applied automatically.
Windows Central noticed that Microsoft has taken away the choice of whether to have apps from its store update automatically – they will do so, regardless of your preference, going forward.
This was done without any announcement, although the Microsoft Store does offer an option to delay updates – you can pause them for five weeks maximum.
This makes Microsoft Store app updates the same as Windows 11 updates themselves, at least for Windows 11 Home users, who can only delay a cumulative (monthly) update for a while before it's forcibly applied. (Windows 11 Pro users have more choice in this regard).
Analysis: a safe mantra for Microsoft
This move may have begun rolling out a month or two ago (there are mentions of this happening on Reddit), and I'm guessing it's only just being more widely deployed now.
The reason for patches being piped through without the owner of the Windows 11 PC having any choice is to ensure security. Obviously, patching single pieces of software isn't as important as making sure Windows 11 itself has all known vulnerabilities sealed against possible attacks (or indeed Windows 10, a more pressing matter currently) – but it's still a concern.
Because a lot of people out there tend to simply forget about software updates, Microsoft has doubtless decided that the safest course of action is to have them automatically actioned. And there's merit to this idea in terms of keeping the Windows 11 user base as safe as possible.
That said, I'm not overly sold on not having any choice at all if I don't want to update. You may not want updates being run if you're out and about with your Windows 11 laptop, on a mobile connection, for example. Or there might be a specific reason you want to stay on an older version of an app – perhaps a deprecated feature that isn't in the latest release – and in those scenarios, if you really want to stick where you are, it'd be nice to have that option.
We could still have automatic updates, but with some kind of override feature for those who need it in specific cases – complete with warnings about how you may be comprising your security. However, the reality is that having one outdated app on your PC is likely to be a minimal security risk (though that kind of statement could be filed in the 'famous last words' drawer, of course).
'Safety first' isn't a bad mantra for Microsoft to apply to its Windows ecosystem. And you can still avoid the main danger of being an early adopter of software patches – the risk of being hit by a showstopping bug – by pausing updates for a month (giving the developer time to fix said problem).
Also remember that it's only apps from the Microsoft Store which get these automatic updates. Anything you've installed from elsewhere will continue to require manually updating (or receiving updates piped through from the developer within the software itself).
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