Policy
Manage preview builds
Microsoft Windows
Policy overview
Key metadata and intent for this policy.
Supported OS tags: Windows10, Windows10RT, Windows11, WindowsServer2016
Enable this policy to manage which updates you receive prior to the update being released to the world. Dev Channel Ideal for highly technical users. Insiders in the Dev Channel will receive builds from our active development branch that is earliest in a development cycle. These builds are not matched to a specific Windows 10 release. Beta Channel Ideal for feature explorers who want to see upcoming Windows 10 features. Your feedback will be especially important here as it will help our engineers ensure key issues are fixed before a major release. Release Preview Channel (default) Insiders in the Release Preview Channel will have access to the upcoming release of Windows 10 prior to it being released to the world. These builds are supported by Microsoft. The Release Preview Channel is where we recommend companies preview and validate upcoming Windows 10 releases before broad deployment within their organization. Release Preview Channel, Quality Updates Only Ideal for those who want to validate the features and fixes coming soon to their current version. Note, released feature updates will continue to be offered in accordance with configured policies when this option is selected. Note: Preview Build enrollment requires a telemetry level setting of 2 or higher and your domain registered on insider.windows.com. For additional information on Preview Builds, see: https://aka.ms/wipforbiz If you disable or do not configure this policy, Windows Update will not offer you any pre-release updates and you will receive such content once released to the world. Disabling this policy will cause any devices currently on a pre-release build to opt out and stay on the latest Feature Update once released.
Registry values
How enabled and disabled states update the registry.
| Scope | Registry location | Type | Enabled value | Disabled value | Copy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer | Path Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate Value name ManagePreviewBuildsPolicyValue | REG_DWORD | HKLM 2 | HKLM 1 |
Policy elements
Inputs and configuration options exposed by this policy.
| Scope | Element | Type | Registry mapping | Constraints & behavior | Copy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer | Select the Windows readiness level for the updates you want to receive: ID BranchReadinessLevelId | enum | Path Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate Value name BranchReadinessLevel Type REG_DWORD | Options: Dev Channel (2), Beta Channel (4), Release Preview Channel (8), Release Preview of Quality Updates Only (64) |