17 best Windows 10 features
There has already been some consternation about the updating process in Windows 10, because in one of the consumer versions you can’t say no to updates.
Now comes word of another issue in Windows Update, this time in a feature designed to speed up the process of receiving patches and fixes. Computerworld’s Gregg Keizer writes that Windows 10 uses a built-in peer-to-peer network to share copies of updates between users over local networks and the Internet.
The idea is to accelerate how fast patches can be delivered. However, it also means that your upstream bandwidth is being used to transmit this code, and the feature is turned on by default in the consumer versions of Windows 10. Microsoft calls it “Windows Update Delivery Optimization”, or WUDO, and Keizer writes that it works like this:
If WUDO is enabled, Microsoft can point others to locally-cached copies of updates and apps on users’ Windows 10 devices that are connected to the Internet. When that happens, a user’s Windows 10 PC acts as a substitute server for others, and any customer whose device is tapped for WUDO delivery has given Microsoft access to their upload bandwidth.
This won’t slow your download bandwidth. But most consumer Internet connections have slower upload than download speeds – my 100-Mbps Comcast account only uploads at 10 Mbps – and performance there could be impacted. It’s not clear if WUDO only sends code if the computer is otherwise inactive.
WUDO is turned set by default to share patches over the Internet in Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro. On Windows 10 Education and Windows 10 Enterprise, updates are only shared over the local network. (Keizer notes that this was not a big secret – Microsoft first discussed WUDO when it talked about new features aimed at businesses.)
Not everyone wants their PC to be part of a peer-to-peer network over the Internet, regardless of how altruistic it may be. WUDO is switched on out of the box, but you can turn it off by going to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Advanced options > Choose how updates are delivered.
If you don’t want to participate at all, click the On slider so it says Off. However, if you have more than one Windows 10 PC on your home network, you may want to leave it on and check the “PCs on my local network” radio button. If you’ve already updated one Windows 10 PC, this may speed up how fast others get the patches.
WUDO is also going to be of obvious concern to those who are on Internet connections with data caps. According to this FAQ about WUDO, Windows 10 tries to detect if you’re on a metered connection and will not activate the feature. However, you can also manually tell Windows your connection is metered by going to Settings > Network & Internet > Wi‑Fi > Advanced options, then check the “Set as metered connection” box.
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