Rufus developers blame Microsoft for blocking access to the latest Windows 11 ISOs — Windows Insiders met with an IP ban after attempting to download latest builds
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A recent change to Microsoft's Windows 11 downloads is reportedly stopping some users and third-party sources from downloading Windows 11 ISOs from its servers. Originally reported by Neowin, multiple Windows Insider users report they are unable to download Microsoft's latest Insider ISOs. The team behind Rufus also chimed in, saying it is having the same issue and Rufus is unable to install the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview ISOs.
These download issues don't appear to be bugs or glitches. All of the Windows Insiders who have complained about this issue say they can't download the latest Insider ISOs because Microsoft is blocking their IP addresses. It's also happening with users on multiple ISPs and through VPNs, confirming that this isn't an ISP problem.
One of Rufus' developers backed up these users' reports, claiming that Microsoft is intentionally breaking the application's Fideo scripts, preventing Rufus from downloading the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview builds through the app directly. Apparently, there is no direct evidence that Microsoft is the culprit, but the developer, Pete Batard, noted that breaking the script requires active involvement. If you are unaware, Fido scripts are part of PowerShell and are used to automate Windows ISO downloads.
There's still no confirmation from Microsoft that it has implemented some type of blocker to prevent users and third-party applications from downloading its latest Insider previews. It is also reportedly affecting at least some Windows Server Insider preview builds as well.
If this isn't a bug, but a purposeful block, Microsoft might be attempting to steer users clear of third-party applications such as Rufus. Neowin theorizes that Microsoft might be trying to steer users towards using its Media Creation Tool, a tool that Microsoft is now updating on a monthly basis to provide users with the latest Windows 11 builds. This theory makes sense in light of what Rufus is dealing with, but it doesn't really explain why Windows Insiders are having this problem, who are downloading the latest Insider Preview ISOs through Microsoft directly and not through a third party.
There's also nothing ruling out the chance that Microsoft could be blocking the entire Insider Preview platform for legitimate reasons. There could be a major bug affecting its servers or the builds themselves. Either way, thankfully, for now this issue is only seemingly affecting the Windows Insider program, and not the official versions of Windows 11. You can still download those ISOs without any problems.
