Microsoft is providing IT administrators who use Update Compliance with information on why certain devices are being blocked from getting the latest Windows 10 feature update. This means IT admins can see not just which devices are unable to update, but more easily get details on why the blockers are in place.
Users have been asking Microsoft for more granular information on why certain devices are blocked via a "safeguard hold." Microsoft uses these holds to prevent devices with known issues from being able to get a feature update. Microsoft removes the holds once a fix is found and verified. The goal of this approach, officials have said, is to prevent users from hitting compatibility and other issues caused by a new Windows 10 feature update.
Up until this point, admins could use Update Compliance only to see which devices were being blocked. My sources hinted last month that Microsoft had plans to make information on the blockers clearer and more customized[1]. Today, officials announced a step in that direction.
In an October 26 blog post, Microsoft officials said they "have made improvements to Update Compliance to address this customer pain point."[2] Here's how this works, according to Microsoft's blog post:
"Update Compliance reporting surfaces the safeguard hold IDs for known issues impacting a device in the 'DeploymentErrorCode' column. Every safeguard hold has a unique ID associated with it. Safeguard hold IDs for documented issues will be included in the Windows release health dashboard[3]. To determine which safeguard hold is preventing your device's update, go to the "Known issues and notifications" page for the specific version to which you are attempting to update (e.g. Known issues and notifications for Windows 10 and Windows