A month ago, Microsoft announced that they were adding a Skip Ahead ring to their Xbox Insider Program so they could shift some users to testing the next major update to the console.
That ring is now full according to Microsoft as of the end of June.
Since then, the initial Skip Ahead builds being released were the same as those being made available to Alpha Ring testers as Microsoft finalized the July Update which has now been released.
The true purpose of the Skip Ahead build, to test the next major update to the Xbox One – known right now as the 1810 update and expected in October, is now moving forward with its cadre of testers.
Three builds have been released to Skip Ahead testers and today the latest build was made available to Skip Ahead but it also had a consequence.
If you are an Xbox Insider there is always the potential that a build could go sideways and result in needing to reset/refresh your console. I have been in the Xbox Insider program for nearly four years and have never been forced to take those steps on my console.
Well for the first time – that had to happen today for this latest Skip Ahead build.
Apparently, as Microsoft shifted Skip Ahead testers from the 1806 update to testing new code for the 1810 release later this year, some of the core code was corrupted. That resulted in various apps and games not being able to launch. In order to address the issue, today’s build would require a factory refresh as part of the installation process.
Apparently, the consoles settings were backed up prior to the update and as I restored the system those settings were applied. I did have to provide my Microsoft Account, password and two factor authentication to get up and running but the console restored with all my games, apps and home page layout right where I had them in the last update.
Microsoft expects to begin shipping new features for Skip Ahead testers in the near future.
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