Microsoft Working on Cloud OS Restore Feature for Windows 10

In an attempt to refresh the way users reset their PCs, Microsoft is testing a way to facilitate Cloud-based dowloading of the Windows 10 operating system (OS).

While the "Cloud download" feature has not been made available for public testing as yet, it would appear on devices when testers boot a Windows machine in failed state.

"Insiders may notice some references to "Cloud download" relating to PC reset or refresh. This feature isn't available and working quite yet. We'll let you know once it is, so you can try it out," the company wrote in a blog post on Wednesday.

The test comes as part of Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 18950.

Other features of this test preview include the single window mode - to let users open new snips on the current app window, improved zoom features for screenshots of smaller images and bug fixes.

Currently, Apple handles macOS reinstalls with the option to reinstall by downloading a copy from the Cloud.

Microsoft has actually been using a similar feature for its Surface lineup recently, allowing the devices to "recover from the cloud" by downloading a copy of Windows 10 and reinstalling it, The Verge said.

Currently, Microsoft is creating a simplified and Chrome-OS like version of Windows 10, and being able to restore that to devices without plugging in a USB device could be key for some of the hardware that would run Windows Lite.

The software giant has actually been using a similar feature for its Surface lineup, allowing the devices to "recover from the cloud" by downloading a copy of Windows 10 and reinstalling it.