The Windows 10 October 2018 Update rollout has become a fiasco, as Microsoft recently decided to withdraw it completely due to major bugs discovered by users.
In addition to other smaller issues, there is a critical problem, which leads to the complete removal of users' files stored in libraries.
The bug was first reported shortly after Microsoft launched the release on Tuesday, and was finally acknowledged by the company itself on Friday.
While there doesn't seem to be a solution at this point, Microsoft has decided to suspend the release indefinitely until it completes an investigation and figures out what's going on. And more importantly, why it's happening, as right now no one can say for sure who's affected and if there's a pattern that triggers the removal of users' files.
One of the most common questions right now is “am I affected or not?” Unfortunately, there is no way to tell if your computer might be affected by this data removal issue before installing the October 2018 Update.
All users whose devices experienced this issue reported it after the update had already been applied, so removing the Windows 10 October 2018 Update is definitely the best way to go. However, it's worth noting that there are many users out there who created installation media or just downloaded the ISO for later installation, so the number of affected devices may increase anyway.
Some of the people who upgraded to the October 2018 update are having trouble determining whether the bug is present on their computers or not.
Microsoft, however, says the easiest way to check is to look in your “Documents” folder. Technically, if all your saved files have been deleted, the bug has affected your system, it’s as simple as that.
In case your system is compromised and your data is lost, Microsoft says it's critical to contact the company's support line. Dona Sarkar, head of the Windows Insider program, says Microsoft has the tools to help users recover their files.
Data recovery software can be handy, and you can run your own scan before reaching out to Microsoft. Recuva can help you search for deleted files and recover them, although as a reminder it's worth knowing that there is absolutely no guarantee that everything will be recovered.
However, the best thing you can do is leave your local drives untouched, which basically means you shouldn't copy, delete, move, or download any files. The less activity on your drives, the better your chances of recovering data.
At the moment, it seems that this is not a widespread enough bug, but it goes without saying that its severity is what caused this unexpected reaction from Microsoft. Data loss after an update is critical for users and without backups, recovering files may be impossible.
At this time, Microsoft is still in the process of conducting its own investigation into the issue, and it's not known exactly when the rollout will begin. But if you've already downloaded the Windows 10 October 2018 Update and are planning to install it using installation media, it's best not to do so until Microsoft gives you the green light. That could happen next week, as fixes are expected on Patch Tuesday.
