Need Help W/ Fresh W10 Install (and Other Things)

So I recently got a shiny SSD, my first one (whoo hoo hoo), and like any other sensible person, wanted to install Windows fresh and clean with said SSD. Have a bundle of questions though.

- First off, I've been hearing a lot about this "Creators Update" version, with a lot of sites offering 3rd party downloads of it (this site being no exception). Is this version standalone or an addon to the "base" Windows 10? Can I just download/install the Creators Update and bam, instant windows, or do I need to install normally and then install creators over it - similar to the thing I had to do with Windows 8 to 8.1?

- Secondly, is it wiser to install the OS on the SSD or on my secondary hard drive? I've read that the OS will boot and search faster on an SSD but neither of those things are particularly deal-breaking to me, especially when I consider that my SSD is only 256Gb. Considering the limited space, I was leaning towards installing the OS on my secondary drive and putting my games, i.e. Steam, on the SSD.
Also, I read that you should always keep a little space in reserve on an SSD for system reasons. How much would that equate to on a 256Gb drive?

- Thirdly, a lot of sites have recommended disabling things such as Windows Defender and automatic updates, many of them referencing a tool called "O&O ShutUp10." Is such a thing wise? If so, how exactly do you tell what updates to take and what to discard? Previously, I'd just install everything under "recommended" and ignore the rest. Is there a repository somewhere that vets these updates?

- Fourthly, I had a lot of trouble with unnecessary apps when I first installed Windows10. I ended up using the Powershell delete option I found online. Is there any way I could not have to do this again? Or is it just something to suffer through in silence?

- Lastly, is there any way to remove "features" such as Cortana, Windows Edge, Windows Store, or OneNote entirely? I could only succeed in disabling or blocking them in my last install. They'd still boot at startup though, Cortana especially, with that little icon in the Task Manager continually mocking me. "Haha, you can't get rid of me," it seemed to say. "I'm immortal, just like that 'GetWindows10' popup that annoyed you for a solid year."

Anyways, thanks in advance if you're able/willing to answer the above. And sorry about the wall of text and the (most likely) noobish questions. I'm a microbiologist first and foremost. My computer expertise unfortunately ends at knowing what I like and what I want.

 

Welcome to MajorGeeks

If you already have Win 10 on your existing system you can install it afresh on the new SSD.
If you want to make a note of your current Windows OS Product Key, then run an app such as Produkey, Belarc Advisor or Magic Jelly Bean Key Finder - all free and available on MG home page.

There is no 'third party' distribution of any Windows OS download. You get it via the Media Creation Tool at the Microsoft Download Centre.

The best way to stop various features of Windows 10 is via one of the program like O & O Shut Up 10 or Win10 Privacy (all available here on MG) and you can uninstall any Windows App of any kind with a good uninstaller such as Geek Uninstaller or IoBit Uninstaller - both available here on MajorGeeks home page.

Your OS will run much faster on the SSD than a conventional hard drive. Save the conventional HD for data and anything non-system. Best to keep ANY drive, including the SSD, with at least 25% free space. Never use more.

 

Perhaps I'm just thick, but I'm not exactly following you on this. My intention was to perform a clean install, wiping my (formerly primary) HDD and installing Windows 10. Since you've advocated installing on the SSD, we'll go with that, leaving me with a clean HDD and one SSD with windows 10 to be installed on it.

My question was whether the Creators Update release is a standalone version of Windows 10 or simply just an update, one that I would download and apply after already installing Windows 10. To reference my initial statement regarding 3rd party downloads, here's an example I found on this website - http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/windows_10_bloatware_free_edition.html.
It sounds great to me, fantastic even, but my question remains - is this, this Creators Update version, standalone? Could I download said file (or others like it) onto a USB stick, boot from it, install, and have Windows 10? Or would I need the "base" install first?
In a similar vein, let's say I grabbed the Creators Update from Microsoft itself and not from the above link or its counterparts. Similar question applies - is the update a standalone version of Windows or does it require me to already have Windows 10 installed?

Ultimately, I'm just confused as to what exactly the Creators Update is and what, if any, requirements it has. For example, when I was installing Windows 8.1, I could not do so without first installing Windows 8. It just didn't work like that - at least not in my experience, entirely possible that my experience was faulty.
Does this Creators Update work in a similar manner or is it a separate entity?

Thanks for answering my other questions though, much appreciated. Checking out the two uninstallers you mentioned right now

 

Many people do a CLEAN install of Win 10 fresh.
I'm not advocating anything. If you bought an SSD whatever else would you use it for??
But if you want to install Win10 on your existing conventional HD then go ahead.

The download of Win 10 that you save to a USB drive (blank with minimum 6gb space) will be the LATEST Win 10 at the moment you download it.
The creators update was introduced in March and is being fed to existing Win 10 users via Windows Update over three months, but any manual download will be the latest.

I have no knowledge of that MG 'bloatware' free download. It will certainly be safe from malware as it is tested before it is hosted because Major Geeks is great for that. Looking at it though, it's for fairly experienced geeks not a general user.
But I wouldn't use it as I prefer to choose what I remove and what I keep.

 

Fair enough, point taken on the SSD. But ultimately, if I'm understanding you correctly, the Creators Update is just another "type" of Windows 10, akin to the Home and Pro versions being the same OS just with different baubles. So regardless of what I choose to install, the Creators Update is standalone windows with some ancillary features that somehow make it different from existing Home and Pro versions. And if I choose to download/install manually from the Microsoft site, it doesn't matter anyway.

That leaves me with just one question that you presumably overlooked - if I use O&O ShutUp10 to disable the whole automatic update business, how do I tell which updates are "good" and which ones to skip?

 

'Creators Update' of Windows 10 was the latest full-scale update to Windows 10, not just a cumulative update. Existing Win 10 users can choose not to install it. It is not a Windows 10 'edition' - that's what Home, Pro, Enterprise are.
Any manual download of Windows 10 now will incorporate the March 'creators' update.
As far as using any software program to stop the privacy issues, and not to use certain features, it's
not me suggesting blocking automatic updates. I wouldn't do that unless I had a very specific technical reason to do that and I would only do that temporarily.

Removing the Windows apps such as one note etc etc etc, is easily done with the uninstallers I suggested.

 

Got it.
Thank you sir for the help, certainly given me a lot to consider while this downloads

 

OK hope it all goes well!

 

Wolfgang,

You might want to consider this.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/windows_10_bloatware_free_edition.html

 

@Eldon
If you read post #3 the OP already knows about that.

 

Is that the "whole" Win10 though, and not just the update part of the equation? I looked at that file earlier and it does look enticing but I can't find any statement as to whether that file can actually substitute for a "full" Win10 that I would otherwise download from the Microsoft site.

If you can confirm that it's indeed a viable substitute, then great, I'll start downloading it.
And by viable substitute I mean that I can wonk the .iso on a USB stick, install, and have Win10 on a COMPLETELY CLEAN (i.e. there's nothing on the hard drives, period) system.

 

Aye, what he said. I mentioned it earlier but at the moment we can't really confirm its viability. And because I'm still at the intermediate stage with this sort of thing, I'd rather not install something, have it turn out to be incomplete, and go through the whole process again.
It's already making me anxious enough, cracking the case once.

 

If you read that option for the 'bloatware free' program very carefully. you will need your OS Product Key (if you don't know it then in post #2 I advised you how to find it as that download wont work without it) and be very careful to choose the exact same Win 10 edition as the one you currently have.
My own view is that unless you are reasonably experienced with this kind of install it is a risk. The standard reinstall and then post-install changes to Win 10 is generally risk free. But you have to make a judgement on what you want to do.

 

Sorry, I missed that.

 

Alright so then the above file will give me a full and complete installation of Win10 on a completely clean system, provided that I know the key for the exact version of Windows I have and install that exact same version (such as "Pro x64"). That said, if I'm unsure on the second part, the risk for a borked install is significantly greater than if I just install "normal" Windows through Microsoft.
In addition, the second, "Microsoft-sanctioned" install is an overall more newcomer-friendly process and has the added benefit that if it comes with something I don't like I can just remove it with the tools you mentioned earlier.

...Did I understand that fully?

 

Yes I think you have.
In the event this third-party download goes wrong, you can revert to the official download/reinstall.

 

Right, okay then. I think I'll just go with the "sanctioned" install and keep the potential vectors to a minimum.
Christ, this is on par with my first day as a resident. "Oh, don't worry, if you fuck up, it's not a guaranteed stiff. Just a higher chance of it." Not helping sir!

 

I run Win 10 Pro which is currently at version 1607 build 14393.1198 — not the creator's edition.

I also run the creator's edition which is currently at version 1703 build 16193.1001. I obtained it through the Windows 10 Insider Program. I run it inside VMWare Player and even though it's activated through a Key associated with my Microsoft account, I have a water mark in the lower right of the desktop stating that it's an evaluation copy.

I've read that the full creator's edition will be released to the general public this fall.

 

Firstly the Creators Update is not an 'edition' based update, and it is not an 'edition' of Windows 10 either. That's a fundamentally wrong assumption. It will apply to all Windows editions no matter what they are.
The roll out of Creators Update began in April and MS have publicly stated it will feed to existing Win 10 users via Windows Update "first phase will target newer devices … we will then expand the Creators Update release to additional devices based on the feedback.”
Anyone can obtain it manually without being part of the insider program. It's actually nothing to do with that program as such.