Windows 10 PC with under 32GB storage? No 1903 update for you, says Microsoft
Microsoft has raised the minimum storage requirement for Windows 10 version 1903 to 32GB for both 32-bit and 64-bit Windows.
Windows 10
The minimum is up from the entirely unrealistic previous minimum storage capacities of 16GB for 32-bit Windows 10 and 20GB for 64-bit.
While many people do opt for devices with larger storage than this, the previous minimum requirement did allow hardware makers to produce low-end laptops with 32GB eMMC storage, which leaves users with insufficient space to install new Windows 10 feature updates.
The new storage minimum appears in Microsoft's recently updated minimum hardware requirements page and comes as the company continues a final phase of Preview testing for Windows 10 1903 with Windows Insiders. Windows 1903 should be released in May and is called the Windows 10 May 2019 Update.
SEE: 20 pro tips to make Windows 10 work the way you want (free PDF)
The company also recently updated its minimum processor requirements for Windows 1903. However, these remain unchanged from Windows 1809.
It's not known why Microsoft has now raised its minimum storage requirements, but coming with Windows 10 1903 is Microsoft's 'reserved storage', which Microsoft expects will keep about 7GB of disk space so that updates can be installed smoothly.
Reserved storage will be assisted by Microsoft's Storage Sense utility, which will manage the removal of temporary files. Users will have the option to manage how much reserved storage is available.
Ahead of the Windows 10 1809 release, Microsoft warned users that Windows Update doesn't check whether there is sufficient space before it initializes and advised users to delete or move files to external storage before attempting to update.
More on Microsoft Windows 10 updates
- Microsoft: Windows 10 to grab 7GB of your storage so big updates don't fail
- Windows 10 October 2018 Update: Dump your files to avoid crashes, warns Microsoft
- Windows 10 Paint saved: It'll still be part of 1903, says Microsoft
- Windows 10: Microsoft lists the processors you'll need for the May 2019 Update
- Windows 10: Buggy patch stalls testing of 20H1 preview
- Windows patch warning: Windows 10 boot problems, as Windows 7 AV clash widens
- How to turn features on and off in Microsoft Windows 10 from the Control Panel TechRepublic
- How to reinstall updates that Windows 10 automatically uninstalled CNET