So I went looking for the checked version of Windows 10, and it was nowhere to be found on the MSDN subscription download site. I have a Visual Studio Enterprise with MSDN account, which I believe is the very top level now (thanks MSFT for converting us MSDN Premium customers at a reasonable price, although you know the cost of toolsets from Apple is $99 , and the cost of toolsets for Linux and Android are $0).
I do see on the MSDN subscriber download site what it says are the symbols for checked Win 10, but no actual checked Win 10 OS?
I hope MSFT has not decided to discontinue the checked build, I’ve made good use of it many times over the years.
Jan
Nice pickup.
We noticed this as well, and we were going to look into it, but have been too busy.
MOST noticeable is that the checked kernel and HAL images are no longer part of the WDK 
I *do* know the checked build is still being produced… but why it’s not available to us I have no clue.
Peter
OSR
@OSRDrivers
Is there an update you’ve been able to get on this? With the removal of the public Windows 7 kernel/ntdll symbols, and the lack of a checked build for Windows 10, sure looks like kernel developers are being given the finger again.
I haven’t done anything to follow-up on this. Too busy paying the bills, I’m afraid.
What’s REALLY funny is… the checked build of Windows 10 didn’t seem to make it to MSDN where the big boys play, but it DID make it to the DreamSpark download site somehow. Or so I’ve been told, because one of my colleagues who happens to qualify for a DreamSpark membership (a funny story in itself) dropped a copy on an OSR share recently. “OH! You wanted a copy of Checked Win10? It’s on DreamSpark.” And there it was.
Peter
OSR
@OSRDrivers
I just rechecked the MSDN download site, yes WIN 10 checked symbols in both x86 and x64 form, but no checked OS to download.
Since I’m one of those people who makes good use of the checked build, I contacted Microsoft about it. I tried the online MSDN chat, and after some little back and forth they reported “I don’t see any checked Win 10 download, only the symbols”, and then they went into a canned messages about calling the 800 MSDN support number, so I did.
I spoke to someone at MSDN support, who spoke to their manager, who says the checked Win 10 OS has not been released yet, and it was not yet ready to be released. They also were sending a report to an appropriate team to get the status and give feedback that the driver community did want a checked Win 10 build. When I said that I heard the checked Win 10 build was available to DreamSpark customers, I was assured that anything DreamSpark customer could download, paying MSDN customers would also get. I told her that didn’t seem to be the case right at the moment, and I heard it from a VERY credible source.
Let’s see if anything happens.
Jan
On 9/29/15, 6:30 AM, “xxxxx@lists.osr.com on behalf of xxxxx@osr.com” wrote:
>I haven’t done anything to follow-up on this. Too busy paying the bills, I’m afraid.
>
>What’s REALLY funny is… the checked build of Windows 10 didn’t seem to make it to MSDN where the big boys play, but it DID make it to the DreamSpark download site somehow. Or so I’ve been told, because one of my colleagues who happens to qualify for a DreamSpark membership (a funny story in itself) dropped a copy on an OSR share recently. “OH! You wanted a copy of Checked Win10? It’s on DreamSpark.” And there it was.
>
>Peter
>OSR
>@OSRDrivers
>
>
>—
>NTDEV is sponsored by OSR
>
>Visit the list at: http://www.osronline.com/showlists.cfm?list=ntdev
>
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Well as a BizSpark member, I just checked and there is in fact a “Windows
10 Symbols Debug/Checked” for both x64 and x86 but the sizes (850MB/750MB
respectively) are significantly lower than the actual Win 10 download.
Also, unlike other OS’s this does not say “Build” in the title so I seems
to be only the symbols.
On Tue, Sep 29, 2015 at 7:58 PM, Jan Bottorff
wrote:
> I just rechecked the MSDN download site, yes WIN 10 checked symbols in
> both x86 and x64 form, but no checked OS to download.
>
> Since I’m one of those people who makes good use of the checked build, I
> contacted Microsoft about it. I tried the online MSDN chat, and after some
> little back and forth they reported “I don’t see any checked Win 10
> download, only the symbols”, and then they went into a canned messages
> about calling the 800 MSDN support number, so I did.
>
> I spoke to someone at MSDN support, who spoke to their manager, who says
> the checked Win 10 OS has not been released yet, and it was not yet ready
> to be released. They also were sending a report to an appropriate team to
> get the status and give feedback that the driver community did want a
> checked Win 10 build. When I said that I heard the checked Win 10 build was
> available to DreamSpark customers, I was assured that anything DreamSpark
> customer could download, paying MSDN customers would also get. I told her
> that didn’t seem to be the case right at the moment, and I heard it from a
> VERY credible source.
>
> Let’s see if anything happens.
>
> Jan
>
>
>
>
> On 9/29/15, 6:30 AM, “xxxxx@lists.osr.com on behalf of
> xxxxx@osr.com” > xxxxx@osr.com> wrote:
>
> >I haven’t done anything to follow-up on this. Too busy paying the bills,
> I’m afraid.
> >
> >What’s REALLY funny is… the checked build of Windows 10 didn’t seem to
> make it to MSDN where the big boys play, but it DID make it to the
> DreamSpark download site somehow. Or so I’ve been told, because one of my
> colleagues who happens to qualify for a DreamSpark membership (a funny
> story in itself) dropped a copy on an OSR share recently. “OH! You wanted
> a copy of Checked Win10? It’s on DreamSpark.” And there it was.
> >
> >Peter
> >OSR
> >@OSRDrivers
> >
> >
> >—
> >NTDEV is sponsored by OSR
> >
> >Visit the list at: http://www.osronline.com/showlists.cfm?list=ntdev
> >
> >OSR is HIRING!! See http://www.osr.com/careers
> >
> >For our schedule of WDF, WDM, debugging and other seminars visit:
> >http://www.osr.com/seminars
> >
> >To unsubscribe, visit the List Server section of OSR Online at
> http://www.osronline.com/page.cfm?name=ListServer
>
> —
> NTDEV is sponsored by OSR
>
> Visit the list at: http://www.osronline.com/showlists.cfm?list=ntdev
>
> OSR is HIRING!! See http://www.osr.com/careers
>
> For our schedule of WDF, WDM, debugging and other seminars visit:
> http://www.osr.com/seminars
>
> To unsubscribe, visit the List Server section of OSR Online at
> http://www.osronline.com/page.cfm?name=ListServer
Hmmmm… The checked build not being ready for release yet is laughable, right? It either was built the same day the RTM free build was built, or it wasn’t.
Now, it is entirely possible that the process they used for this release did not lend itself to releasing a checked build. In the past, there would have been a long string of builds (free and checked) until ONE build was called RTM. That was not the process this time. There was a build, and a series of updates. Perhaps the thinking is that the base build (what people called RTM this time) is not really suitable for testing, given the number of changes between that build and the current state of the OS. You’d be effectively testing on a build the free build of which was never publicly released.
I bet that’s at least part of the story.
IF THATS THE CASE, how do we explain the DreamSpark download? Hmmmm… I haven’t personally put my hands on this checked build from DreamSpark. It’s purportedly on our server. I’ll look at it tomorrow and report back.
Peter
OSR
@OSRDrivers
So, to follow up as promised: While I didn’t actually INSTALL either of the ISOs, there are indeed ISOs on our file server that are labelled Windows 10 debug_checked" for both x64 and x86 – The email I have from my colleague says they “were on Microsoft’s DreamSpark site” (wherever that is) and downloaded from there (legitimately). At the time he noted to the effect that he was aware they weren’t on MSDN, saw them on DreamSpark, and therefore grabbed them.
I looked at the CONTENTS of these ISOs and they DO indeed appear to be install disks (IOW, they’re not symbol distributions that have been mislabeled).
Lest anyone think I’m making this up:
https:
I’m going to ask the test team to do an install with one of these (when they get the chance) and see what it says it is.
This IS an interesting mystery.
Peter
OSR
@OSRDrivers</https:>
FYI, DreamSpark is a student program, which provides MS software to
students of certain universities.
YOU, as in a company or non-academic individual, cannot legitimately
download from there as a result 
Kind regards, Dejan.
On Wed, Sep 30, 2015 at 5:45 PM, wrote:
> So, to follow up as promised: While I didn’t actually INSTALL either of the ISOs, there are indeed ISOs on our file server that are labelled Windows 10 debug_checked" for both x64 and x86 – The email I have from my colleague says they “were on Microsoft’s DreamSpark site” (wherever that is) and downloaded from there (legitimately). At the time he noted to the effect that he was aware they weren’t on MSDN, saw them on DreamSpark, and therefore grabbed them.
>
> I looked at the CONTENTS of these ISOs and they DO indeed appear to be install disks (IOW, they’re not symbol distributions that have been mislabeled).
>
> Lest anyone think I’m making this up:
> https:
>
> I’m going to ask the test team to do an install with one of these (when they get the chance) and see what it says it is.
>
> This IS an interesting mystery.
>
> Peter
> OSR
> @OSRDrivers
>
>
> —
> NTDEV is sponsored by OSR
>
> Visit the list at: http://www.osronline.com/showlists.cfm?list=ntdev
>
> OSR is HIRING!! See http://www.osr.com/careers
>
> For our schedule of WDF, WDM, debugging and other seminars visit:
> http://www.osr.com/seminars
>
> To unsubscribe, visit the List Server section of OSR Online at http://www.osronline.com/page.cfm?name=ListServer</https:>
Dejan Maksimovic wrote:
FYI, DreamSpark is a student program, which provides MS software to
students of certain universities.YOU, as in a company or non-academic individual, cannot legitimately
download from there as a result
I think we’re all clear on that point. Peter is simply proposing an
experiment to attempt to disprove the Microsoft theory that a checked
build of Windows 10 does not exist.
–
Tim Roberts, xxxxx@probo.com
Providenza & Boekelheide, Inc.
Read the whole thread and don’t be so quick to be critical. My colleague who downloaded these ISOs legitimately *qualifies for* DreamSpark access.
As Mr. Roberts clearly pointed out, I think we all understand that stuff downloaded from DreamSpark isn’t for commercial use. USING these ISOs isn’t the point. The POINT is that the checked distribution of Windows 10 was apparently made available to one, odd, “out of the mainstream” distribution channel, and yet not to the mainstream distribution channels, like MSDN or BizSpark. So, clearly, either the checked build for Win 10 *does* exist or the ISOs are mislabeled.
All I’m doing is trying to inform the overall conversation here. If you have something useful to add beyond the DreamSpark license terms, please do feel free to speak up.
Peter
OSR
@OSRDrivers
I wasn’t making a “how dare you” speech, but just a joke…
Sheesh…
Kind regards, Dejan.
On Wed, Sep 30, 2015 at 9:10 PM, wrote:
>
>
> Read the whole thread and don’t be so quick to be critical. My colleague who downloaded these ISOs legitimately qualifies for DreamSpark access.
>
> As Mr. Roberts clearly pointed out, I think we all understand that stuff downloaded from DreamSpark isn’t for commercial use. USING these ISOs isn’t the point. The POINT is that the checked distribution of Windows 10 was apparently made available to one, odd, “out of the mainstream” distribution channel, and yet not to the mainstream distribution channels, like MSDN or BizSpark. So, clearly, either the checked build for Win 10 does exist or the ISOs are mislabeled.
>
> All I’m doing is trying to inform the overall conversation here. If you have something useful to add beyond the DreamSpark license terms, please do feel free to speak up.
>
> Peter
> OSR
> @OSRDrivers
>
>
> —
> NTDEV is sponsored by OSR
>
> Visit the list at: http://www.osronline.com/showlists.cfm?list=ntdev
>
> OSR is HIRING!! See http://www.osr.com/careers
>
> For our schedule of WDF, WDM, debugging and other seminars visit:
> http://www.osr.com/seminars
>
> To unsubscribe, visit the List Server section of OSR Online at http://www.osronline.com/page.cfm?name=ListServer
Peter,
Were you able to confirm this is indeed a debug build? The ISO size definitely suggests it is.
Or maybe they’ll release it just in time for TH2… making the TH1 build outdated.
https://e5.onthehub.com/WebStore/OfferingDetails.aspx?o=2ed7ef49-2e35-e511-940e-b8ca3a5db7a1&ws=c8eb7cd0-649b-e011-969d-0030487d8897&vsro=8 would confirm that this is indeed being provided by Microsoft… to students. Not developers, because screw developers.
I don’t have a lot of time to put into this issue, to be honest.
I can’t find anyone who wants to “own up to” the problem of not having the Checked Build on MSDN.
I *was* able to confirm through a good friend that the checked kernel and hal bits were left out of the WDK unintentionally AND that they’ll rectify this in the next release of the WDK.
Oh, don’t be that way. These things tend to be mistakes made by big organizations, plain and simple. “Never ascribe to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity” (one of my favorite life sayings, in fact… it’s written on the top of the white board in my lab).
Peter
OSR
@OSRDrivers