Microsoft recently confirmed that they will be switching Fast Ring to the active development branch (called “RS_PRERELEASE”). This means that Windows Insiders on Fast Ring will receive new features which are not necessarily tied to a specific Windows 10 update bi-yearly update.

Now, Walking Cat has uncovered a change in the latest Fast Ring build that indicates a shift in the way new features are delivered to the users. Microsoft recently published a new app on the Microsoft Store called the “Windows Feature Experience Pack”. The app looks like a dummy at the moment but it does coincide with a small change made to the About section of the Settings app. The About section now shows Windows Feature Experience Pack under Windows Specifications. The version number is entirely different from the OS Build number which currently is 19536.1000.

the "Windows Feature Experience Pack" dummy app in the store recently changed its icon to a download icon, so its basically the "downloadable" part of Windows https://t.co/QYcXn66NGc — WalkingCat (@h0x0d) December 21, 2019

According to Walking Cat, this indicates a shift in the way shell features are delivered to the users. It looks like Microsoft might deliver shell experiences separately in the future.

this 'undocked' thing could also mean the separation of works by the two groups of original Windows team, the CoreOS team may follow the pace of Azure org, while the shell experiences part can evolve independently and much faster ? — WalkingCat (@h0x0d) December 21, 2019

This should allow the company to add or remove new features and changes from the OS easily and without pushing out a major OS update.

At this point, we don’t know how this feature might work and when we will see it in action. If true, this could allow Microsoft to separate Windows CoreOS and Shell Experience. This, in turn, will deliver new features faster and will not require major OS updates. This could also mean that Windows 10 might get a stripped-down version with extra add-on features. That being said, we do have to note that it’s all speculation at the moment based on the information available. We do hope Microsoft considers this approach as this could allow users to get new features independent of the overall OS update.

What do our readers think of the concept? Will you prefer Windows Shell updates independent of the Windows CoreOS update? Let us know in the comments section below.