Earlier this year, Microsoft documented a list of features that were no longer under active development and would henceforth be viewed as legacy features. The re-evaluation continues with the upcoming Fall Creators Update, expected sometime in September. Users accustomed to certain features in Windows 10 might want to carefully review this document before they consider upgrading to the new version. A number of apps and system components have been affected. Of particular note is the System Image Backup utility.
Features No Longer Available or Under Active Development in Windows 10 1709
With each feature update, Microsoft is reviewing features it thinks are no longer needed or have been superseded by modern alternatives. In version 1703, features removed or deprecated were mostly under the hood and were more likely to affect enterprise customers than end users. The trend continues with version 1709, but there are more user facing features and technologies that are on the chopping block.
The following features and functionalities in the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update are either removed from the product in the current release (“Removed”) or are not in active development and might be removed in future releases (“Deprecated”).
This list is intended to help customers consider these removals and deprecations for their own planning. The list is subject to change and may not include every deprecated feature or functionality.
For more information about a listed feature or functionality and its replacement, see the documentation for that feature. You can also follow the provided links in this table to see additional resources. Source
Removed Features in the Windows 10 1709 Update
3D Builder app
Apndatabase.xml
Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit (EMET)
Outlook Express
Reader app
Reading List
Screen saver functionality in Themes
Syskey.exe
TCP Offload Engine
Tile Data Layer
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) Owner Password Management
Deprecated Features in the Windows 10 1709 Update
IIS 6 Management Compatibility
IIS Digest Authentication
Microsoft Paint
RSA/AES Encryption for IIS
Sync Your Settings
System Image Backup (SIB) Solution
Screen saver functionality in Themes
TLS RC4 Ciphers
Trusted Platform Module (TPM): TPM.msc and TPM Remote Management
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) Remote Management
Windows Hello for Business deployment that uses System Center Configuration Manager
Windows PowerShell 2.0
The most significant impact for me is System Image, a feature that started out as Complete PC Backup in Windows Vista Business, Ultimate, and Enterprise. Microsoft is recommending users look to third party alternatives, but a feature like this I believe should remain built into the operating system. Users looking for similar solutions can check out Macrium Reflect and Easeus ToDo Backup as excellent alternatives.
I do hope Microsoft reconsiders this decision though since I prefer the straightforward, easy to use interface and restoration process in System Image. Themes and personalization got a major update in version 1703, but one component, screensavers, remains part of the legacy interface. There are no plans to modernize this feature, so, it will remain as is going forward.
Some features that were originally planned for removal in version 1703 will finally meet their end in 1709. The Reading List is one such app—its capabilities are now built into the Microsoft Edge web browser. Another app, Reader, which handled PDF files has also been consumed into Edge. These types of consolidations are welcome. I must admit, the PDF features have never been as robust as third party alternative like Adobe Reader, but Edge is getting a major boost, with support for secure government forms.
Microsoft launched Paint 3D earlier this year, a new app that focuses on 3D creation in addition to standard 2D editing capabilities. It’s quite a departure from the classic Paint app we have known for years. It’s not known if our Paint restore workaround will work in the Fall Creators Update, but we will update our article with details when the final release becomes available. The other features and components are mostly enterprise/under the hood technologies. I got a chuckle out of the existence of Outlook Express code though. The article contains more details about each component, so make sure to review it for deeper understanding.
Let us know in the comments what features you depend or will miss in Fall Creators Update.
14 Comments
Leave a Reply
Leave a Reply
Brian Burgess
July 24, 2017 at 8:36 pm
Microsoft just announced that MS Paint isn’t going anywhere due to an outpouring of support. It will be offered in the Windows Store for free:
https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2017/07/24/ms-paint-stay/#ZzQ5iqxk3II6zAGb.97
Ziggy
July 24, 2017 at 10:26 pm
I have paintings that were done with this program when my kids were pre-teens and love them to bits. Glad to see it offered as free in the next iteration of Windows 10! Thanks for the link, too, Brian…
Roger D Kunkel
July 25, 2017 at 8:28 am
This is about MIcrosoft Edge…. I have lost use of Edge it won’t load.up! Could you please help me????
I have tried everything I could find…l. Please HELP Thank You
SNambiath
July 25, 2017 at 10:12 pm
Are you a Windows Insider Roger? If Yes, the easiest thing would be to wait for the next Build – usually Edge gets improvements in each Build.
If you aren’t – and don’t wish to sign up too, I would still say – wait for the next Public Update, to get back Edge.
Although I do use Edge quite frequently, I use Firefox as well – Edge does not offer me anything that Firefox does not. So you could easily tide over with Firefox (or Chrome or Opera, whatever) for all your Browsing needs, until Edge gets its next update – either in a Pre-release Build to Insiders, or in a Public Update!
If this does not meet your needs, the only remaining option I know of is to download the latest Windows 10 ISO from Microsoft website and re-install Windows! This is of course messy, as you may have to re-install all your Programs as well!!
Roger D Kunkel
July 26, 2017 at 6:07 am
Thank you so much for your suggestion and response…
Have a beautiful day….
SNambiath
July 26, 2017 at 1:34 pm
My pleasure, glad to be of assistance! A Wonderful day to you too!
Dr Abdul Rasheed
July 25, 2017 at 9:34 am
I wish to get a link to download the ISO of Creators update version 1703
SNambiath
July 25, 2017 at 10:13 pm
I don’t think this is available as an ISO yet… Whatever you do, I strongly recommend that you download the Windows 10 ISO from Microsoft Website alone!!
Jack Oster (in Australia)
July 25, 2017 at 4:55 pm
Where does Acronis rate, in your list of possible backup solutions? I use Acronis but find I a bit difficult.
Jack in Australia
Dave
July 27, 2017 at 3:20 am
I used Acronis for a while, but I found it rather awkward to use and it failed once when I needed to recover a backup.
I now use Macrium Reflect, which has been much better – when I had a Windows system corruption, I was able to restore from a whole sequence of backups until I found one free of the problem, and every restore was fine. You can also mount a system backup as a virtual drive and browse it for files you may have deleted subsequently.
There’s a simpler backup that I use on another PC, called EaseUS Todo Backup. I’ve heard it recommended elsewhere, but haven’t used it long enough to be fully confident of it yet.
Jack Oster (in Australia)
July 27, 2017 at 3:29 pm
Thanks for the information, Dave
Jack in Australia
Harvey from southern California
September 10, 2017 at 7:10 am
1. I have had good outcomes using Acronis True Image. It has enabled me to restore several laptops successfully from backups. I have also used the Acronis recovery ISO (comes with True Image) to clone disk drives, enabling me to convert some PCs and servers from magnetic disk drives to solid state drives to obtain better performance. I agree with you that Acronis is not the easiest-to-use backup software out there, but to me it has proven repeatedly to a completely dependable solution and I have recommended it to work colleagues and friends. (By the way, I do NOT work for Acronis.)
2. I am disappointed that MS Paint is deprecated. I use it all the time to downsize the number of pixels in images, crop images, juxtapose several images into one image file, and change image files from one format to another (e.g. jpeg to png). Without MS Paint, will I have to pay for an equivalent program or use something much more limited or much more complex?
3. The graphics image in this article suggests to me that perhaps Notepad is also on the chopping block. Please, Microsoft, don’t get rid of this ancient but functional application unless you plan to replace it with something similar or better.
Dave
September 11, 2017 at 5:57 am
The Windows 10 loss I felt most acutely was the change in Sticky Notes, which I use a lot – the new version lost all the formatting features including text sizing and alignment.
I eventually found instructions for reinstalling the old version, which still works well.
Surendran N
December 19, 2017 at 8:47 pm
Sticky Notes is available under Windows Ink Workspace! With your Pen, just tap the Windows Pen Icon and you get to access Sticky Notes, Sketch Pad and Screen Sketch, along with suggestions on buying/ downloading Pen-compatible Apps from the Windows Store!