Alongside the release of Windows 10 21H1 (May 2021 Update), Microsoft is listing the features that may no longer be useful, obsolete, or will be replaced with a new experience.
In this release, Windows 10 is not removing or deprecating a lot of features, only deprecates the roaming capability for personalization settings and the Windows Management Instrumentation Command-line (WMIC) tool, and removes the legacy version of Microsoft Edge and the XDDM-based remote display driver.
Features removed on version 21H1
Windows 10 21H1 is removing these features:
- XDDM-based remote display driver: Support for Windows 2000 Display Driver Model (XDDM) based remote display drivers have been removed. Independent Software Vendors that use an XDDM-based remote display driver should plan a migration to the WDDM driver model.
- Microsoft Edge: The legacy version of the Edge browser is no longer supported after March 9, 2021.
Features deprecated on version 21H1
Windows 10 21H1 is deprecating these features:
- Personalization roaming: Windows 10 no longer syncs wallpaper, slideshow, accent colors, and lock screen images across devices, and the feature may be removed in the future.
- Windows Management Instrumentation Command-line (WMIC) tool: The tool is deprecated for Windows Server. The tool is superseded by Windows PowerShell for WMI. One thing to note is that this deprecation only applies to the command-line management tool. WMI itself is not affected.
The deprecated features will continue to be available on Windows 10 for the foreseeable future, but they are no longer in development, and they will eventually be entirely removed.
You can always check this Microsoft support site for more details about the features no longer available or planned to be replaced with this version of Windows 10.
See also removed and deprecated features from previous versions:
Mauro Huculak is a Windows expert and the Editor-in-Chief who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He is also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 12 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows, software, and related technologies, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 20 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me.