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Current Beta the RELEASE Candidate

Bronze Contributor

It looks like the current Beta (Version 79.0.309.11 (Official build) beta (64-bit) is going to be** the Release candidate for the January 15 Edge Chromium launch.   

 

That seems to be what Microsoft is suggesting to Enterprise customers, anyway.

 

Beta Current Release Candidate.jpg

 

I note that the consumer-facing Microsoft Edge Insider website doesn't indicate that the current Beta version is a Release candidate at this time (November 4).  The Insider download page has a little teaser, though ("Our preview channels will have a new look starting November 5.") so maybe that will change.

 

Beta Current New Look.jpg

 

I think that will change tomorrow, November 5, and we will see the Beta labeled as the "Release Candidate".

 

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**  In the spirit of full disclosure, I have not installed the MicrosoftEdgeBetaEnterpriseX64 file downloaded from the Enterprise site on any computer, so I am not entirely sure of the version for that Edge Chromium version.

 

15 Replies
Oh so they removed Dev channel from Enterprise section. hmm
about the new look I guess tomorrow all channels will receive a small update that changes their Icons to the new one
best response confirmed by tomscharbach (Bronze Contributor)
Solution

UPDATE:  In a blog post posted this morning (November 4), Karl Pflug and John Jansen note: 

 

"This morning, we released Microsoft Edge Beta version 79, which is the final Beta before the new Microsoft Edge is generally available, also known as the “Release Candidate.” On January 15th, we expect to release the “Stable” channel, at which point Microsoft Edge will be generally available to download on Windows and macOS." 

 

This strongly suggests that version 79 will be the released version on January 15.

@HotCakeX "Oh so they removed Dev channel from Enterprise section. hmm
about the new look I guess tomorrow all channels will receive a small update that changes their Icons to the new one."    

 

The icons (released in a blog post) will look like this:

 

New Logo.jpg

The more interesting question, though, to my mind, is whether the Beta channel will be labeled as "Release Candidate", as the Enterprise Beta was labeled today.  My bet is on "Yes".  We'll see.

Hmm was there even a question that this is its best response?
Spoiler

@tomscharbach wrote:

@HotCakeX "Oh so they removed Dev channel from Enterprise section. hmm
about the new look I guess tomorrow all channels will receive a small update that changes their Icons to the new one."    

 

The icons (released in a blog post) will look like this:

 

New Logo.jpg

The more interesting question, though, to my mind, is whether the Beta channel will be labeled as "Release Candidate", as the Enterprise Beta was labeled today.  My bet is on "Yes".  We'll see.


I've seen them

@HotCakeX "Hmm was there even a question that this is its best response?"

 

None whatsoever.  The response quotes a Microsoft blog, written November 4 by relatively high-level employees, that ends speculation about the fact that the current Beta is the release candidate, and that Edge Chromium will be released to the public on January 15..

 

We know from the leaked Stable builds that Microsoft is testing the mechanism by which Edge Chromium will be delivered as a standalone download on January 15.  Assuming that there is no course change in that respect, we know what that delivery mechanism will do and how it will work. 

 

All we need now is information about when and how Edge Chromium is going to be embedded into Windows 10 builds. 

 

If the Windows Central article you posted the other day on a Windows 10 list is accurate, then 20H1 will go to RTM in December.  If Edge Chromium is going to be embedded in 20H1, accordingly, time is running out.

 

As I recall, you are an active participant in the Windows Insider program.  Let us know if Microsoft embeds Edge Chromium in 20H1.   That will give us an idea about the timing of push deployment.

I will, you can keep an eye on their blog too
https://blogs.windows.com/blog/tag/windows-insider-program/

@tomscharbach Reports from Ignite stated that if you installed the "release preview" it would replace the old Edge browser. Has anyone tried installing "the final Beta before general availability"? Does it really replace the old Edge? 

Yesterday I saw one of the users reported that "uninstall" option is greyed out after installing the new Beta or RC version.
Hmm. Maybe it will indeed replace? Thanks
Yes..but I don't think it should happen, right?
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/first-microsoft-edge-stable-release-candidate-now-av...

Unlike the Beta, Dev, and Canary builds of Microsoft Edge, installing the Stable version will completely replace the original Microsoft Edge. Therefore, only install it if you are ready to try Microsoft's new browser.

@Watney  - negative, this is not the case.

 

I just installed the latest Beta (Version 79.0.309.12 (Official build) beta (64-bit)) and it does NOT replace the Edge that is on my Windows 10 1903, which is "Microsoft Edge 44.18362.449.0". Two completely different versions.

 

Unsure where some of the people above get their information, but it's incorrect.

That's right Beta never does that, only stable will..

@Watney  "Reports from Ignite stated that if you installed the "release preview" it would replace the old Edge browser. Has anyone tried installing "the final Beta before general availability"? Does it really replace the old Edge?"

 

I think that it is important to remember that the Beta version for Windows 10 Enterprise (available from the Enterprise Edge insiders site**) might be different from the Beta version for Windows 10 Home/Pro (available from the Microsoft Edge Insiders site), so it is possible that the Enterprise Beta might behave differently from the W10 Home/Pro Beta, which most of us on this Forum are using.

 

Like you, I've heard that the Enterprise Beta, when installed on a Windows 10 Enterprise build, does overwrite both IE and Edge (Classic).  That does not, obviously, happen with the Beta for Windows 10 Home/Pro***.

 

I don't have a Windows 10 Enterprise build on which I can test the Enterprise Beta, so I can't personally say one way or the other.  I have a friend (a man I mentored in the early stages of his IT career) who is now in senior IT management at the enterprise level, and I will ask him what he knows about Enterprise Beta's installation and post-installation behaviors.  I imagine someone in his organization is testing that Beta, and I might find something out that I can pass along.  If I do find out anything that might be relevant, I'll pass it on.

 

================

 

** The Enterprise Beta is distributed as an MSI (MicrosoftEdgeBetaEnterpriseX64.msi), designed for deployment/use in a Windows 10 Enterprise environment.  The Beta for Windows 10 Home/Pro (MicrosoftEdgeSetupBeta.exe) is an executable.

 

*** Just to make sure, I uninstalled the Beta on a Windows 10 Pro computer and on a Windows 10 Home computer, then installed the Beta on both computers from the Microsoft Windows Insiders site.  The Beta snapped right in (with the new logo) and uninstall is active on both computers.  So if there is an uninstall issue, it is probably limited to the Enterprise Beta.   As a side note, the Beta build that updated yesterday was 79.0.309.11 and the build I just installed is 79.0.309.12.  I would imagine that the only change is the logo.

 

 

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best response confirmed by tomscharbach (Bronze Contributor)
Solution

UPDATE:  In a blog post posted this morning (November 4), Karl Pflug and John Jansen note: 

 

"This morning, we released Microsoft Edge Beta version 79, which is the final Beta before the new Microsoft Edge is generally available, also known as the “Release Candidate.” On January 15th, we expect to release the “Stable” channel, at which point Microsoft Edge will be generally available to download on Windows and macOS." 

 

This strongly suggests that version 79 will be the released version on January 15.

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