Serious Discussion Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview builds [Mega-Thread]

A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2200 (KB5044376) to the Dev Channel. Changes in Dev Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, improvements, and fixes rolling out to everyone in the Dev Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Windows Studio Effects]

  • Windows Studio Effects delivers AI-based camera and audio enhancements on devices equipped with a Neural Processing Unit (NPU). Today, you can access Studio Effects in Quick Settings from the system tray of the taskbar. To further streamline your experience, an icon will now appear in the system tray when using any application with a Studio Effects-enabled camera. Simply click on this icon to launch the Studio Effects page in Quick Settings. Additionally, hovering over the icon will display a tooltip indicating which application is utilizing the camera.
[caption id="attachment_177180" align="alignnone" width="438"] New Studio Effects icon shown in system tray when using any application with a Studio Effects-enabled camera. New Studio Effects icon shown in system tray when using any application with a Studio Effects-enabled camera.[/caption]

[Dynamic Lighting]

  • When no compatible devices are attached, the Dynamic Lighting settings page will now show a placeholder message and Brightness and Effects controls are disabled.
  • On the Dynamic Lighting settings page, we have added Forward, Backward, Outward and Inward direction options to the Wave effect, and added the Forward direction option to the Gradient effect.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Start menu]

  • Fixed an issue where if you clicked or tapped on a letter on Start menu's All apps list, the All apps list may break.

[Taskbar]

  • Fixed an issue where explorer.exe was crashing for some Insiders when hovering over certain open apps in the taskbar.

[Settings]

  • Fixed an issue where there was a blank entry in Privacy & Security and clicking it would crash Settings.

[Input]

  • Updated the mouse option “Show location of pointer when I press the CTRL key”, so that the circles displayed are now DPI-aware, and aren’t really small on high DPI monitors.

Fixes for everyone in the Dev Channel

[Other]

  • [Windows Kernel Vulnerable Driver Blocklist file (DriverSiPolicy.p7b)] Fixed: This update adds to the list of drivers that are at risk for Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver (BYOVD) attacks.
  • [HTML Applications (HTA)] Fixed: HTA optional components (OC) are now in ARM64 Windows PE.
  • [Live kernel debug files (dumps)] Fixed: sys creates live kernel debug files when it should not.
  • [User interface (UI)] Fixed: You cannot view some parts of the UI when you run certain apps.
  • [Winlogon] Fixed: A stop error occurs during shutdown.
  • [sfc /scannow command] Fixed: You get errors every time you run the command.
  • [Windows Disk Cleanup app] Fixed: This update addresses some of the causes for the wrong free space estimates and improves its accuracy.

Known issues

[Start menu]

  • [NEW] You may see there is an unexpected amount of spacing between items in the Start menu apps list.

[Dev Drive]

  • [NEW] We’re working on the fix for an underlying issue leading to Dev Drives potentially not being accessible within WSL.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel

  • Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel receive updates based on Windows 11, version 24H2 via an enablement package (Build 26120.xxxx).
  • Updates delivered to the Dev Channe are in a format that offers a preview of enhancements to servicing technology on Windows 11, version 24H2. To learn more, see Introducing Windows 11 checkpoint cumulative updates.
  • Many features in the Dev Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • For Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2200 (Dev Channel)
 

Marko :)

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Have you disabled all sounds in control panel?
I tried disabling few entries there, but sound was still present. I think that volume control is also broken in 24H2.
@AmandaLangowski - These basic fixes are supposed to be done before you roll out the Release version 24H2. Not after you've broken countless machines.
I don't think Amanda or anyone else at Microsoft really cares. Releasing of Windows 10 was a fiasco that naive me thought Microsoft learned from their mistakes. But I guess it didn't.
 

Sorrento

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Although 24H2 is working OK for me its really not on the issues that users have had in fact its a joke - There were less issues on the original beta several June 01 ago when I first used Windows 11, instead of adding new features FIX the ones that are here now.
 
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vonvon

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Finally, I persisted, by disabling the Windows search process (wsearch), the installation of Windows 11 24h2 which had failed last Sunday was successful. Everything works correctly. It's still weird, it should have been tested. (I'm on a Dell Inspiron all in one).
 
Last edited:
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4440 (KB5045889) to the Beta Channel. Changes in Beta Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, improvements, and fixes rolling out to everyone in the Beta Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

New features gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on*

Modernized Windows Hello

At Microsoft, we are committed to security and enhancing user experiences. As part of this commitment, we launched enhanced passkey features in September 2023 and are now revamping the Windows Hello user experience. This represents a significant update to Windows Hello, aligning it with contemporary Windows visual design standards. The primary focus is on making authentication intuitive and seamless. [caption id="attachment_177394" align="alignnone" width="591"] Image showing new Windows Hello iconography. Image showing new Windows Hello iconography.[/caption] Modernized Windows Hello Visual Communication: The updated Windows Hello visuals are designed to facilitate fast and clear communication and appear on the Windows Sign-in screen as well as other authentication flows such as passkey, Microsoft Store and many more. [caption id="attachment_177396" align="alignnone" width="721"] Image of the Windows 11 login screen depicting new Windows Hello iconography. Image of the Windows 11 login screen depicting new Windows Hello iconography.[/caption] Revamped Windows Hello credential user experience for passkeys and the new administrator protection experience: We redesigned Windows security credential user experiences for passkey creating a cleaner experience that supports secured and quick authentication. Users will now be able to switch between authentication options and select passkey/devices more intuitively. [caption id="attachment_177397" align="alignnone" width="744"] Image of new passkey sign-in flow screens. Image of new passkey sign-in flow screens.[/caption] This experience will also apply for the new administrator protection feature coming to Windows 11, version 24H2 and higher and currently in preview with Windows Insiders in the Canary Channel. FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Security and Privacy > Passwordless experience.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on*

[General]

  • This update includes a small set of general improvements and fixes that improve the overall experience for Insiders running this build on their PCs.

[Input]

  • We have temporarily disabled the new Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 that began rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel with Build 22635.4145 to address some issues. This feature will be roll out again in a future flight.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on*

[Input]

  • Fixed an underlying issue causing touch keyboard crashes and the IME candidate window to not appear for some Insiders in the previous flight.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel

  • Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel will receive updates based on Windows 11, version 23H2 via an enablement package (Build 22635.xxxx).
  • Many features in the Beta Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • For Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4440 (Beta Channel)
 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2213 (KB5045885) to the Dev Channel. Changes in Dev Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, improvements, and fixes rolling out to everyone in the Dev Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Input]

  • We are beginning to roll out a change where we now hide the IME toolbar when apps are in full screen mode for those who have the IME toolbar enabled and type in Chinese or Japanese.
  • We have temporarily disabled the new Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 that began rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel with Build 26120.2130 to address some issues. This feature will roll out again in a future flight.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Start menu]

  • Fixed an issue impacting Start menu reliability.
  • Fixed an issue causing some Insiders to see an unexpected amount of spacing between items in the Start menu apps list.
  • Fixed an issue where ability to pin / unpin apps to and from Start menu was unexpectedly unavailable for some people.

[File Explorer]

  • Fixed an issue which was causing the items in the navigation pane to become very spread out (with unexpected padding between each item) for some people.
  • Fixed an underlying issue which was causing RAW images taken in portrait mode to unexpectedly display in landscape mode thumbnails.

[Taskbar]

  • Made a change so you will now see a search box if the taskbar auto-hides when the setting for search on the taskbar is set to “Search box” (rather than an icon).
  • Made a fix for WIN + <# associated with position on taskbar> not working in some cases in the latest flights.
  • Fixed an issue where the X button to close an app window from the taskbar wasn’t working for some Insiders.
  • Fixed an issue on secondary monitors for left aligned taskbar users, where the widgets text in the taskbar might overlap the date and time.

[Dev Drive]

  • Fixed an underlying issue leading to Dev Drives potentially not being accessible within WSL after the latest flights.

[Other]

  • Fixed an underlying issue which could potentially lead to not being able to join a domain.
  • Fixed an underlying issue which could lead to DISM /StartComponentCleanup not working properly, getting stuck at 71% and showing error 6842.
  • Fixed an underlying issue which was causing the Get-WindowsCapability command to get into a state sometimes where it would fail unexpectedly until rebooting your PC.
  • Fixed an issue where rotation info about JPGs couldn't be queried via APIs (for example, via PowerShell).

Fixes for everyone in the Dev Channel

[General]

  • Fixed an underlying issue leading to some games not launching in the previous flight.

[Task Manager]

  • Fixed an issue causing Task Manager to show a 0 count for apps and processes.

[Network]

  • Fixed an underlying issue impacting DHCP where unexpected duplicate options would fail lease acquisition, which could cause DHCP to not get an IP address, leading to Wi-Fi not working.
  • Fixed an issue where DirectAccess wasn’t working and might stay stuck in a connecting state.

Known issues

[Desktop]

  • [NEW] We’re working on the fix for an issue where your desktop background may not show correctly sometimes with multiple monitors (showing big black areas).

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel

  • Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel receive updates based on Windows 11, version 24H2 via an enablement package (Build 26120.xxxx).
  • Updates delivered to the Dev Channel are in a format that offers a preview of enhancements to servicing technology on Windows 11, version 24H2. To learn more, see https://aka.ms/CheckpointCumulativeUpdates.
  • Many features in the Dev Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • For Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2213 (Dev Channel)
 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27744 to the Canary Channel. We are also not planning to release SDKs for 27xxx series builds for the time being.

What’s new with Build 27744

New Processor Feature Support in Prism

In today’s Canary Channel Insider Preview build, we're previewing a major feature update to Prism, our emulator for Windows on Arm, that will make it possible for more 64-bit x86 (x64) applications to run under emulation by adding support for more CPU features under emulation. This new support in Prism is already in limited use today in the retail version of Windows 11, version 24H2, where it enables the ability to run Adobe Premiere Pro 25 on Arm. Starting with Build 27744, the support is being opened to any x64 application under emulation. You may find some games or creative apps that were blocked due to CPU requirements before will be able to run using Prism on this build of Windows. At a technical level, the virtual CPU used by x64 emulated applications through Prism will now have support for additional extensions to the x86 instruction set architecture. These extensions include AVX and AVX2, as well as BMI, FMA, F16C, and others, that are not required to run Windows but have become sufficiently commonplace that some apps expect them to be present. You can see some of the new features in the output of a tool like Coreinfo64.exe. [caption id="attachment_177409" align="alignnone" width="784"] You can see some of the new features in the output of a tool like Coreinfo64.exe with newly exposed CPU features are highlighted above in green. You can see some of the new features in the output of a tool like Coreinfo64.exe with newly exposed CPU features are highlighted above in green.[/caption] Note that in today’s preview, only x64 applications can use these new CPU features. If you have a 32-bit app or a 64-bit app that uses a 32-bit helper to detect CPU feature support, that app won't detect the new features in Prism. We welcome any feedback from Insiders who are interested in trying out apps and games using this early preview of Prism. Please submit any feedback on compatibility issues or performance regressions through the Feedback Hub (Win + F) under Apps and the specific app you’re seeing issues with (if you don’t see the app listed, use "All other apps") to help us to ensure that this updated Prism provides a great experience. Thanks for helping us improve emulation on Windows. We're excited to see customers able to run more apps and games that they care about on Windows on Arm!

Changes and Improvements

[Start menu]

  • “All apps” is now just “All” on the Start menu.

[Input]

  • We’re beginning to roll out a new Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 that supports the ability to use your Xbox controller to navigate and type. This includes button accelerators (example: X button for backspace, Y button for spacebar) additionally the keyboard keys have been vertically aligned for better controller navigation patterns.
[caption id="attachment_177283" align="alignnone" width="861"] New Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 that supports the ability to use your Xbox controller to navigate and type. New Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 that supports the ability to use your Xbox controller to navigate and type.[/caption]

[Task Manager]

  • We’ve updated the design of the Disconnect and Logoff dialogs in Task Manager to now support dark mode and text scaling.
  • In the Performance section we now label listed disks with their type.

[Settings]

  • The detach virtual hard disk (VHD/VHDx) button we added under Settings > System > Storage > Disks & Volumes introduced with Build 27686 is now back with this build after being temporarily disabled starting with Build 27718.

Fixes

[General]

  • We fixed the issue causing some Insiders with PCs that have older NVIDIA GPUs (like the GTX 970, Quadro K620, etc.) to experience issues where their displays appear stuck at a black screen and unresponsive or seeing their GPUs showing errors in Device Manager and not working correctly.

[Input]

  • Fixed an underlying issue causing the Emoji Panel and Clipboard History to not open in certain surfaces anymore, including in Registry Editor.
  • Fixed an underlying issue which could lead to clipboard history not displaying items you’d copied.

[Windows Sandbox]

  • Fixed an issue impacting performance of Windows Sandbox for some Insiders after the latest updates.

[Graphics]

  • Fixed an which could lead dynamic refresh rate to get stuck at 60Hz on first boot.

[Other]

  • Fixed an issue causing some Insiders to see a bugcheck with error PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA starting in Build 27723.
  • Fixed an issue causing remote desktop connection (mstsc.exe) to crash in the previous flight.
  • Fixed a msmpeg2vdec.dll related issue in the last couple flights which was leading to some apps crashing.
  • Fixed an issue where rotation info about JPGs couldn’t be queried via APIs (for example, via PowerShell).
  • Fixed an underlying issue which was causing the Get-WindowsCapability command to get into a state sometimes where it would fail unexpectedly until rebooting your PC.
  • Fixed an issue causing mica to not work correctly when using a slideshow for your desktop background.
  • Fixed an issue which could lead to certain apps not detecting a scanner, although one was connected.

Known issues

[General]

  • [IMPORTANT NOTE FOR COPILOT+ PCs] If you are joining the Canary Channel on a new Copilot+ PC from the Dev Channel, Release Preview Channel or retail, you will lose Windows Hello pin and biometrics to sign into your PC with error 0xd0000225 and error message “Something went wrong, and your PIN isn’t available”. You should be able to re-create your PIN by clicking “Set up my PIN”.
  • We’re investigating reports that some Insiders are still experiencing rollbacks (with error code 0xc190010) when attempting to install the latest Canary builds.

[Desktop]

  • [NEW] We’re working on the fix for an issue where your desktop background may not show correctly sometimes with multiple monitors (showing big black areas).

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Canary Channel

  • The builds we release to the Canary Channel represent the latest platform changes early in the development cycle and should not be seen as matched to any specific release of Windowsand features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Many features in the Canary Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • Some features may show up in the Dev and Beta Channels first before showing up in the Canary Channel.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • To get off the Canary Channel, a clean install of Windows 11 will be required. As a reminder - Insiders can’t switch to a channel that is receiving builds with lower build numbers without doing a clean installation of Windows 11 due to technical setup requirements.
  • The desktop watermark shown at the lower right corner of the desktop is normal for these pre-release builds.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27744 (Canary Channel)
 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2222 (KB5046746) to the Dev Channel. Changes in Dev Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, improvements, and fixes rolling out to everyone in the Dev Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[General]

  • If you hold Shift and CTRL when clicking on a jump list item in Start menu or taskbar, this will now launch that item as admin, just like if you were to do Shift + CTRL and click the app icon itself. For example, if you right-click on Windows Terminal, and hold Shift and CTRL when you click PowerShell, it would open a PowerShell window as admin.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[File Explorer]

  • Fixed an issue causing the See More (“…”) menu to open in the wrong direction (and potentially display offscreen as a result).

[Input]

  • Fixed an underlying issue which could cause the mouse to unlock from a game window on a system with multiple monitors after opening and closing Game Bar, so you couldn’t use it within the game.

[Windowing]

  • Fixed a recent issue causing windows to potentially unexpectedly move around after waking from sleep if you had multiple monitors.

[Other]

  • Fixed an underlying issue which could lead to Registry Editor going unresponsive if you pressed Alt after clicking on the license information in the About section.

Known issues

[Narrator]

  • [NEW] [IMPORTANT] There is an issue in this build which will cause Narrator to crash on launch if you use one of the natural voices (like Jenny). If you are a Narrator user, we recommend pausing updates from Settings under Windows Update > “Pause Updates”. If you do install this update and encounter this issue, switching to another voice, like Microsoft David, in Settings under Accessibility > Narrator will stop the crashes. As Narrator is crashing, you will need to use a secondary screen reader, or have someone assist in order to do this.

[Desktop]

  • We’re working on the fix for an issue where your desktop background may not show correctly sometimes with multiple monitors (showing big black areas).

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel

  • Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel receive updates based on Windows 11, version 24H2 via an enablement package (Build 26120.xxxx).
  • Updates delivered to the Dev Channel are in a format that offers a preview of enhancements to servicing technology on Windows 11, version 24H2. To learn more, see Introducing Windows 11 checkpoint cumulative updates | Windows IT Pro Blog.
  • Many features in the Dev Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • For Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2222 (Dev Channel)
 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4445 (KB5046745) to the Beta Channel. Changes in Beta Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, improvements, and fixes rolling out to everyone in the Beta Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on*

[File Explorer]

  • We’ve added a New Folder option in the context menu when right-clicking locations in the navigation pane.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on*

[Taskbar]

  • Fixed a few issues impacting explorer.exe reliability in the latest flights related to the taskbar, including an issue impacting some Insiders which could cause explorer.exe to crash sometimes when right clicking apps in the taskbar.
  • Fixed an issue on secondary monitors for left aligned taskbar users, where the widgets text in the taskbar might overlap the date and time.

[File Explorer]

  • We fixed an issue where the date/time properties of files were unexpectedly updated in some cases after copying them.
  • We fixed an issue where the Details Pane icons weren’t responding correctly to theme changes, making it hard to see if you switched from dark to light or vice versa.
  • We fixed a black flash in File Explorer that appeared when duplicating a tab.
  • We made a change to help improve performance of context menu launch and File Explorer navigation.
  • We fixed an issue where when you did a search it may unexpectedly trigger the search happening repeatedly.

[Other]

  • Fixed an underlying issue which could result in Snipping Tool screenshots being distorted on certain displays.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel

  • Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel will receive updates based on Windows 11, version 23H2 via an enablement package (Build 22635.xxxx).
  • Many features in the Beta Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • For Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4445 (Beta Channel)
 

silversurfer

Super Moderator
Verified
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Malware Hunter
Aug 17, 2014
11,174

Snipping Tool's OCR text actions to get a keyboard shortcut​

The Snipping Tool received a major update in the past few months such as the ability to screen record, optical image recognition (OCR), the ability to copy data tables, etc. Insider @phantomofearth on social media platform X has highlighted a hidden feature in one of the insider builds that adds keyboard shortcuts for the Snipping Tool's OCR feature. As per the tip, the feature can activated by using the shortcut "Win+Shift+T."


 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27749 to the Canary Channel. We are releasing ISOs for this build – they can be downloaded here. We are also not planning to release SDKs for 27xxx series builds for the time being.

Changes and Improvements

[Narrator]

  • We have added a new shortcut “Narrator key + control + X” to copy what Narrator last spoke to clipboard. It follows the pattern of using “Narrator key + X” which repeats the last spoken phrase out loud and is a good way to memorize similar shortcuts. You can use these shortcuts to review and copy what Narrator spoke, useful in cases you want to quickly copy some content or descriptions or codes/numbers for use.
  • Narrator will now auto-read contents of a mail in the new Outlook app similar to behavior in Outlook classic.

Fixes

[File Explorer]

  • Fixed an issue which was causing the items in the navigation pane to become very spread out (with unexpected padding between each item) for some people.
  • Fixed an underlying issue which was causing RAW images taken in portrait mode to unexpectedly display in landscape mode thumbnails.

[Taskbar & System Tray]

  • Made a change so you will now see a search box if the taskbar auto-hides when the setting for search on the taskbar is set to “Search box” (rather than an icon).

[Input]

  • Updated the mouse option “Show location of pointer when I press the CTRL key”, so that the circles displayed are now DPI-aware, and aren’t really small on high DPI monitors.

[Narrator]

  • We have addressed a performance issue where Narrator would slow down after 15 minutes of continuous use with a single application. If you continue to experience any performance delays, do report using Feedback Hub.
  • Fixed an issue where Narrator would add an additional announcement “contains style” whenever its focus is on text that has styling attributes such as bullets, numbers across applications such as Microsoft Edge, Teams, Outlook, etc.
  • Fixed an issue where few dialogs in Narrator were not adopting the 200% text scaling setting in Windows.

[Task Manager]

  • Fixed an issue causing Task Manager to show a 0 count for apps and processes.

[Audio]

  • Fixed an underlying issue that could lead to the audio on certain audio devices unexpectedly going to 100% on boot or after sleep.
  • Fixed a blank entry in Settings > Privacy, which was crashing Settings if you clicked it.

[Other]

  • Mitigated an issue resulting in Git not working for Insiders with Arm PCs in the previous flight.
  • Fixed an issue causing some insiders to see a bugcheck with KERNEL_MODE_HEAP_CORRUPTION in the previous flight.
  • Fixed an underlying issue which could potentially lead to not being able to join a domain.
  • Fixed an issue where DirectAccess wasn’t working and might stay stuck in a connecting state.

Known issues

[General]

  • [IMPORTANT NOTE FOR COPILOT+ PCs] If you are joining the Canary Channel on a new Copilot+ PC from the Dev Channel, Release Preview Channel or retail, you will lose Windows Hello pin and biometrics to sign into your PC with error 0xd0000225 and error message “Something went wrong, and your PIN isn’t available”. You should be able to re-create your PIN by clicking “Set up my PIN”.
  • We’re investigating reports that some Insiders are still experiencing rollbacks (with error code 0xc190010) when attempting to install the latest Canary builds.
  • [NEW] We’re working on the fix for an underlying issue causing some apps used for remoting into other PCs to crash in the latest Canary builds.
  • [NEW] This build has an issue with applying policy for the Digital Markets Act in EEA regions.

[Desktop]

  • We’re working on the fix for an issue where your desktop background may not show correctly sometimes with multiple monitors (showing big black areas).

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Canary Channel

  • The builds we release to the Canary Channel represent the latest platform changes early in the development cycle and should not be seen as matched to any specific release of Windows and features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Many features in the Canary Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • Some features may show up in the Dev and Beta Channels first before showing up in the Canary Channel.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • To get off the Canary Channel, a clean install of Windows 11 will be required. As a reminder - Insiders can’t switch to a channel that is receiving builds with lower build numbers without doing a clean installation of Windows 11 due to technical setup requirements.
  • The desktop watermark shown at the lower right corner of the desktop is normal for these pre-release builds.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27749 (Canary Channel)
 
B

Brandon LeBlanc

Hello Windows Insiders, today we’re releasing Windows 11 Build 22631.4534 (KB5046732) to Insiders in the Release Preview Channel on Windows 11, version 23H2 (Build 22631). Below is a summary of the new features and improvements included as part of this update separated into two sections: gradual rollout and normal rollout. The bold text within the brackets indicates the item or area of the change we are documenting.

Gradual rollout

The following features and improvements might not be available to all users because they will roll out gradually. Text bolded in brackets indicate the area of the change being documented.
  • [Start menu] New! When you right-click apps that you have pinned to the Start menu, jump lists will appear for apps that have jump lists.
  • [Taskbar] New! The system tray shows a shortened date and time. Also, the notification bell icon might not show if you have set the toggle for “Do not disturb” to on. If the bell icon does not show, click the date and time to view your messages in the notification center. To go back to the long form of the date and time, go to Settings > Date and Time. Then turn on the toggle for “Show time and day in the system tray.” To show the bell icon, go to Settings > System > Notifications. Turn on the toggle for “Notifications.” You can also get to these settings using the context menu. Just right click the system tray clock or bell icon.
  • [Touchscreen] New! This update adds a new section for touchscreen edge gestures. Go to Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Touch. There, you can choose if you would like to turn off the left or right screen edge touch gesture.
  • [Mouse] New! This update adds the option to turn off enhanced mouse pointer precision to Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Mouse. There is also a new option to change the direction in which the mouse scrolls.
  • [Task Manager]
    • New! The Disconnect and Logoff dialogs now support dark mode and text scaling.
    • New! The Performance section now shows the type for each disk.
  • [Input Method Editor (IME)] New! After you install this update, the IME toolbar will hide when apps are in full screen mode. This only occurs when the IME toolbar is active, and you type Chinese or Japanese characters.
  • [File Explorer] New! You can share content to an Android device from the context menu in File Explorer and on the desktop. To use this feature, you must install and configure Phone Link on your PC.
  • [IFilters] New! Windows Search runs IFilters in Less Privileged App Containers (LPAC). LPACs are like app containers, but they deny more permissions by default. A process that runs in an LPAC only has access to the resources it needs. The process does not have access to sensitive system components and data. This reduces the potential damage that a compromised process can cause.
  • [Dynamic Lighting Settings page]
    • New! Its page will show a placeholder message when there is no compatible device attached to your computer. Also, the Brightness and Effects controls will be off.
    • New! This update adds the Forward, Backward, Outward, and Inward direction options to the Wave effect. The Gradient effect now has the Forward direction option.
  • [Narrator] New! We have added new functionalities to Narrator scan mode. Skip past links (N’) allows you to navigate to the text after a link. This is most helpful when navigating through long emails, news articles, and wiki pages. Jump to lists (L’) allows you to quickly access a list on a web page or a document. To try these new features, you need to turn on Narrator first (Win key + Ctrl + Enter), then turn scan mode ON by pressing Caps Lock + Spacebar and finally use the new shortcuts – ‘N’ and ‘L’. Please note that scan mode is ‘ON’ by default on most web pages (like news articles, wiki page, etc.).
  • [Speech in Windows] New! We have improved our speech-to-text and text-to-speech experience on Windows. Users of Narrator, voice access, live captions, live translations, and voice typing might see a message asking them to update their language files manually. The language files will be released separately through Microsoft Store.
  • [Settings] New! Tailored Experiences is now Personalized offers in the out of box experience (OOBE). You can find it on the Recommendations and offers page. Go to Settings > Privacy & security. Here, you can turn off the setting that sends data about your device to enhance Windows.
  • [Taskbar] Fixed: When you choose "Automatically hide the taskbar," the search box shows as an icon, not as a search box.
  • [File Explorer]
    • Fixed: There might be more space than you expect between the items listed in the left pane.
    • Fixed: The search box is cut off when the File Explorer window is small.
  • [Jump lists] New! If you hold Shift and CTRL and click a jump list item, this opens the item as an admin.

Normal rollout

This update includes the following features and improvements that are rolling out as part of this update. Text bolded in brackets indicates the area of the change being documented.
  • [Motherboard replacement] Fixed: Windows does not activate after you replace a motherboard.
  • [Country and Operator Settings Asset (COSA)] Fixed: This update brings profiles up to date for certain mobile operators.
  • [Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) printer] Fixed: Windows stops responding when you use an IPP USB printer.
  • [Bluetooth LE Audio] Fixed: Some devices, like hearing aids, do not stream Bluetooth audio.
  • [ADDED] [Mouse and game bar] Fixed: Your mouse might unlock from the game window. This occurs when you have multiple monitors and open and close the game bar.
Thanks, Windows Insider Program Team

Source: Releasing Windows 11 Build 22631.4534 to the Release Preview Channel
 
B

Brandon LeBlanc

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 10 22H2 Build 19045.5194 (KB5046714) to BOTH the Beta Channel and Release Preview Channel for Insiders who are on Windows 10, version 22H2. The Beta Channel and Release Preview Channel will receive the same Windows 10 build today just like we’ve been doing since June. However, this will be the last time we release a Windows 10 build to the Beta Channel as we will be shutting down the Beta Channel for Windows 10. Insiders on Windows 10 in the Beta Channel will be moved over to the Release Preview Channel, and we will continue to release builds for Windows 10 in the Release Preview Channel only going forward. Insiders on Windows 10 today in the Beta Channel can also move to the Release Preview Channel on their own via Settings > Update & Security > Windows Insider Program and choosing the Release Preview Channel. We recommend customers prepare for Windows 10 end of support by moving to Windows 11 today.

For Windows Insiders on Windows 10 in the Beta Channel, we’re beginning to roll out the following improvements

  • [Start menu] New! The Recommended section of the Start menu will show some Microsoft Store apps. These apps come from a small set of curated developers. This will help you to discover some of the great apps that are available. If you want to turn this off, go to Settings > Personalization > Start. Turn off the toggle for Show suggestions occasionally in Start.
Insiders in the Beta Channel on Windows 10 who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Updated & Security > Windows Update. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.

This update includes the following features and improvements for Windows Insiders in BOTH the Beta and Release Preview Channels

Items bolded in brackets indicate the area of the change being documented:
  • [App list backup] Fixed: Win32 shortcuts might not back up to the cloud.
  • [Copy cloud files] Fixed: When you drag and drop files from a cloud files provider folder, it might result in a move instead of a copy.
  • [Motherboard replacement] Fixed: Windows does not activate after you replace a motherboard.
  • [Country and Operator Settings Asset (COSA)] Fixed: This update brings profiles up to date for certain mobile operators.
  • [Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) printer] Fixed: Windows stops responding when you use an IPP USB printer.
Thanks, The Windows Insider Program Team

Source: Releasing Windows 10 Build 19045.5194 to Beta and Release Preview Channels
 
B

Brandon LeBlanc

Hello Windows Insiders, today we’re releasing Windows 11 Build 26100.2448 (KB5046740) to Insiders in the Release Preview Channel on Windows 11, version 24H2 (Build 26100). Below is a summary of the new features and improvements included as part of this update separated into two sections: gradual rollout and normal rollout. The bold text within the brackets indicates the item or area of the change we are documenting.

Gradual rollout

The following features and improvements might not be available to all users because they will roll out gradually. Text bolded in brackets indicate the area of the change being documented.
  • [Start menu] New! When you right-click apps that you have pinned to the Start menu, jump lists will appear for apps that have jump lists.
  • [Taskbar] New! The system tray shows a shortened date and time. Also, the notification bell icon might not show if you have set the toggle for “Do not disturb” to on. If the bell icon does not show, click the date and time to view your messages in the notification center. To go back to the long form of the date and time, go to Settings > Date and Time. Then turn on the toggle for “Show time and day in the system tray.” To show the bell icon, go to Settings > System > Notifications. Turn on the toggle for “Notifications.” You can also get to these settings using the context menu. Just right click the system tray clock or bell icon.
  • [Touchscreen] New! This update adds a new section for touchscreen edge gestures. Go to Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Touch. There, you can choose if you would like to turn off the left or right screen edge touch gesture.
  • [Task Manager]
    • New! The Disconnect and Logoff dialogs now support dark mode and text scaling.
    • New! The Performance section now shows the type for each disk.
  • [Input Method Editor (IME)] New! After you install this update, the IME toolbar will hide when apps are in full screen mode. This only occurs when the IME toolbar is active, and you type Chinese or Japanese characters.
  • [File Explorer] New! You can share content to an Android device from the context menu in File Explorer and on the desktop. To use this feature, you must install and configure Phone Link on your PC.
  • [IFilters] New! Windows Search runs IFilters in Less Privileged App Containers (LPAC). LPACs are like app containers, but they deny more permissions by default. A process that runs in an LPAC only has access to the resources it needs. The process does not have access to sensitive system components and data. This reduces the potential damage that a compromised process can cause.
  • [Dynamic Lighting Settings page]
    • New! Its page will show a placeholder message when there is no compatible device attached to your computer. Also, the Brightness and Effects controls will be off.
    • New! This update adds the Forward, Backward, Outward, and Inward direction options to the Wave effect. The Gradient effect now has the Forward direction option.
  • [Narrator] New! We have added new functionalities to Narrator scan mode. Skip past links (N’) allows you to navigate to the text after a link. This is most helpful when navigating through long emails, news articles, and wiki pages. Jump to lists (L’) allows you to quickly access a list on a web page or a document. To try these new features, you need to turn on Narrator first (Win key + Ctrl + Enter), then turn scan mode ON by pressing Caps Lock + Spacebar and finally use the new shortcuts – ‘N’ and ‘L’. Please note that scan mode is ‘ON’ by default on most web pages (like news articles, wiki page, etc.).
  • [Speech in Windows] New! We have improved our speech-to-text and text-to-speech experience on Windows. Users of Narrator, voice access, live captions, live translations, and voice typing might see a message asking them to update their language files manually. The language files will be released separately through Microsoft Store.
  • [Settings] New! Tailored Experiences is now Personalized offers in the out of box experience (OOBE). You can find it on the Recommendations and offers page. Go to Settings > Privacy & security. Here, you can turn off the setting that sends data about your device to enhance Windows.
  • [Jump lists] New! If you hold Shift and CTRL and click a jump list item, this opens the item as an admin.
  • [DISM] Fixed: The StartComponentCleanup task does not work properly. It stops at 71% and shows error 6842.
  • [PowerShell] Fixed: The Get-WindowsCapability command sometimes fails. Then you have to restart your PC.
  • [Windows Update] Fixed: When you install an update, you might get error 0x800f0905.
  • [JPG files] Fixed: You cannot use an API to find rotation information.
  • [Display]
    • Fixed: App windows might collect in the corner of a monitor after your device goes to sleep. This occurs when you use multiple monitors.
    • Fixed: Mica material might not display correctly. This occurs when you use a slideshow background.
  • [Mouse] Fixed: When you use the "Show location of pointer when I press the CTRL key," the circles might be tiny on some displays.
  • [Clipboard] Fixed: Clipboard history (Windows logo key plus sign (+) V) might show no content. This issue occurs even though it is on, and you have copied text and images.
  • [Taskbar] Fixed: When you choose "Automatically hide the taskbar," the search box shows as an icon, not as a search box.
  • [File Explorer]
    • Fixed: There might be more space than you expect between the items listed in the left pane.
    • Fixed: The search box is cut off when the File Explorer window is small.

Normal rollout

This update includes the following features and improvements that are rolling out as part of this update. Text bolded in brackets indicates the area of the change being documented.
  • [File Explorer] Fixed: When you select the See more button, the menu expands upward instead of dropping down. Because of this, the menu might go off the screen, depending on the position of File Explorer.
  • [HTML Applications (HTA)] Fixed: HTA optional components (OC) are now in ARM64 Windows PE.
  • [Task Manager] Fixed: The Users page might cause Task Manager to stop responding when you use the keyboard.
  • [Graphics Device Interface Plus (GDI+)]
  • Fixed: You cannot get the properties of image files using GDI+).
  • Fixed: Scaling is wrong when you re-encode images in GDI+.
  • [RAW format images] Fixed: They show in the wrong orientation.
  • [Exporting chart objects] Fixed: An app stops responding when it exports chart objects in PDF and XLSX formats.
  • [Mouse and Xbox game bar] Fixed: Your mouse might unlock from the game window. This occurs when you have multiple monitors and open and close the Xbox game bar.
  • [ADDED] [Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)] Fixed: It stops working and will not start up.
Thanks, Windows Insider Program Team

Source: Releasing Windows 11 Build 26100.2448 to the Release Preview Channel
 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4510 (KB5046716) to the Beta Channel. Changes in Beta Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, improvements, and fixes rolling out to everyone in the Beta Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on*

[Taskbar & System Tray]

  • We are rolling out the ability to share files directly from the jump lists on the taskbar, which appears when you right-click on an app with a jump list like Notepad the taskbar.
[caption id="attachment_177429" align="alignnone" width="318"] Share icon appearing on a txt file on the jump list for Notepad. Share icon appearing on a txt file on the jump list for Notepad.[/caption]

[Input]

  • We are beginning to roll out the new Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 again that began rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel with Build 22635.4145.
[caption id="attachment_177283" align="alignnone" width="692"] New Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 that supports the ability to use your Xbox controller to navigate and type. New Gamepad keyboard layout for the on-screen keyboard in Windows 11 that supports the ability to use your Xbox controller to navigate and type.[/caption]

[Narrator]

  • We have added new functionalities to Narrator scan mode. Skip past links (N’) allows you to navigate to the text after a link. This is most helpful when navigating through long emails, news articles, and wiki pages. Jump to lists (L’) allows you to quickly access a list on a web page or a document. To try these new features, you need to turn on Narrator first (Win key + Ctrl + Enter), then turn scan mode ON by pressing Caps Lock + Spacebar and finally use the new shortcuts – ‘N’ and ‘L’. Please note that scan mode is ‘ON’ by default on most web pages (like news articles, wiki page, etc.).

[Speech in Windows]

  • We have improved our speech-to-text and text-to-speech experience on Windows. Users of Narrator, voice access, live captions, live translations, and voice typing might see a message asking them to update their language files manually. The language files will be released separately through Microsoft Store.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on*

[Lock screen]

  • Fixed an issue where you might unexpectedly see a message saying “You’re offline. Widgets are unavailable”.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel

  • Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel will receive updates based on Windows 11, version 23H2 via an enablement package (Build 22635.xxxx).
  • Many features in the Beta Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • For Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your PC over time once they are ready.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4510 (Beta Channel)
 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27754 to the Canary Channel. We are also not planning to release SDKs for 27xxx series builds for the time being.

What’s new with Build 27754

Modernized Windows Hello

At Microsoft, we are committed to security and enhancing user experiences. As part of this commitment, we launched enhanced passkey features in September 2023 and are now revamping the Windows Hello user experience. This represents a significant update to Windows Hello, aligning it with contemporary Windows visual design standards. The primary focus is on making authentication intuitive and seamless. [caption id="attachment_177394" align="alignnone" width="453"] Image showing new Windows Hello iconography. Image showing new Windows Hello iconography.[/caption] Modernized Windows Hello Visual Communication: The updated Windows Hello visuals are designed to facilitate fast and clear communication and appear on the Windows Sign-in screen as well as other authentication flows such as passkey, Microsoft Store and many more. [caption id="attachment_177396" align="alignnone" width="583"] Image of the Windows 11 login screen depicting new Windows Hello iconography. Image of the Windows 11 login screen depicting new Windows Hello iconography.[/caption] Revamped Windows Hello credential user experience for passkeys and the new administrator protection experience: We redesigned Windows security credential user experiences for passkey creating a cleaner experience that supports secured and quick authentication. Users will now be able to switch between authentication options and select passkey/devices more intuitively. [caption id="attachment_177397" align="alignnone" width="585"] Image of new passkey sign-in flow screens. Image of new passkey sign-in flow screens.[/caption] This experience will also apply for the new administrator protection feature coming to Windows 11, version 24H2 and higher and currently in preview with Windows Insiders in the most recent Canary Channel builds. For more information on administrator protection – you can check out this blog post that highlights our investments in adminlesss experiences in Windows from Microsoft Ignite. FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Security and Privacy > Passwordless experience.

Changes and Improvements

[General]

  • If you hold Shift and CTRL when clicking on a jump list item in Start menu or taskbar, this will now launch that item as admin, just like if you were to do Shift + CTRL and click the app icon itself. For example, if you right-click on Windows Terminal, and hold Shift and CTRL when you click PowerShell, it would open a PowerShell window as admin.

[Taskbar & System Tray]

  • We’ve updated the previews that show when you mouse-over/hover over apps on the taskbar. We have also improved the animations for when these previews show on the taskbar based on Insider feedback.
[caption id="attachment_177179" align="alignnone" width="555"] Updated taskbar previews shown for two open File Explorer windows. Updated taskbar previews shown for two open File Explorer windows.[/caption]
  • We are trying out a more simplified system tray to highlight the date/time in a shortened form and to show the notifications bell icon based on DND status. Without the notification bell icon, you can get to your notifications by clicking the date and time to Notification Center. You can revert to the long form of the date/time and bell icon visuals by toggling the values in the Settings via Settings > Date and Time under “Show time and day in the system tray” and Settings > System > Notifications under “Notifications”. These settings are also accessible through the context menu shown by right clicking the system tray clock/bell icon button.
[caption id="attachment_177177" align="alignnone" width="348"] Simplified system tray shown with shortened form data and time and no notification bell icon. Simplified system tray shown with shortened form data and time and no notification bell icon.[/caption]

Fixes

[General]

  • Fixed the issue with applying policy for the Digital Markets Act in EEA regions in Build 27749.
  • Fixed an issue where an update failing and rolling back could potentially result in a duplicate Windows entry in the boot menu.

[File Explorer]

  • Fixed an underlying issue which was causing RAW images taken in portrait mode to unexpectedly display in landscape mode thumbnails.
  • Did some work so the search box in File Explorer shouldn’t draw off the end of the window anymore.

[Taskbar & System Tray]

  • Fixed an issue on secondary monitors for left aligned taskbar users, where the widgets text in the taskbar might overlap the date and time.

[Input]

  • Fixed an underlying issue which could cause the mouse to unlock from a game window on a system with multiple monitors after opening and closing Game Bar, so you couldn’t use it within the game.

[Other]

  • Fixed an underlying issue causing some apps used for remoting into other PCs to crash in the latest Canary builds.
  • Fixed an issue causing some Insiders to see bugchecks with SYSTEM THREAD EXCEPTION NOT HANDLED in the latest Canary builds.
  • Fixed an issue where sfc /scannow was unexpectedly showing errors every time it was run.
  • Fixed an underlying issue which could lead to Registry Editor going unresponsive if you pressed Alt after clicking on the license information in the About section.

Known issues

[General]

  • [IMPORTANT NOTE FOR COPILOT+ PCs] If you are joining the Canary Channel on a new Copilot+ PC from the Dev Channel, Release Preview Channel or retail, you will lose Windows Hello pin and biometrics to sign into your PC with error 0xd0000225 and error message “Something went wrong, and your PIN isn’t available”. You should be able to re-create your PIN by clicking “Set up my PIN”.
  • We’re investigating reports that some Insiders are still experiencing rollbacks (with error code 0xc190010) when attempting to install the latest Canary builds.
  • [NEW] We’re investigating reports that accent colored window borders are not displaying when enabled, and shadows aren’t displaying when enabled.
  • [NEW] We’re investigating reports that people are seeing window launching (and other) animations even though the setting to show animations is turned off.

[Desktop]

  • We’re working on the fix for an issue where your desktop background may not show correctly sometimes with multiple monitors (showing big black areas).

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Canary Channel

  • The builds we release to the Canary Channel represent the latest platform changes early in the development cycle and should not be seen as matched to any specific release of Windowsand features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Many features in the Canary Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • Some features may show up in the Dev and Beta Channels first before showing up in the Canary Channel.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • To get off the Canary Channel, a clean install of Windows 11 will be required. As a reminder - Insiders can’t switch to a channel that is receiving builds with lower build numbers without doing a clean installation of Windows 11 due to technical setup requirements.
  • The desktop watermark shown at the lower right corner of the desktop is normal for these pre-release builds.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27754 (Canary Channel)
 
A

Amanda Langowski

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2415 (KB5046723) to the Dev Channel. With this update, we welcome Windows Insiders with Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs to join the Dev Channel to try out Recall (Preview) with Click to Do (Preview).

Join the Dev Channel on your Copilot+ PC

Here is how you can join the Dev Channel on your Copilot+ PC today (we have a video too!):
  1. Register for the Windows Insider Program here via our website with your Microsoft account or Microsoft Entra ID. This should be the same account you use to sign into your Copilot+ PC with.
  2. After you have registered, go to Settings > Windows Update > Windows Insider Program on your PC and select the Get Started button.
  3. When asked to link an account, choose the account you’re signed into Windows with and be sure that it is the same account you registered for the program with.
  4. Choose the Dev Channel and reboot.
  5. After rebooting and signing into your Copilot+ PC, go to Settings > Windows Update and check for updates and Build 26120.2415 should be offered.
  6. Your PC will download the update and reboot to finish the update process.

New Copilot+ PC experiences

Retrace your steps with Recall (Preview)

We’re excited to release the first preview of Recall to our Windows Insider community. Recall is an entirely new way to search for things you’ve seen or done on your PC securely. With the AI capabilities of Copilot+ PCs, it’s now possible to quickly find and get back to any app, website, image, or document just by describing its content. We invite you to try out Recall and share feedback, issues, or suggestions for improvement through in-experience links or the Feedback Hub. We also want to recognize the contributions of researchers and the security community in shaping Recall. If you’re an Insider also in this group, we additionally invite feedback on Recall’s updated security and privacy architecture through participation in our Windows Insider Preview Bug Bounty Program. As is typical when first previewing new features with Windows Insiders, you may encounter some known issues listed at the bottom of this blog post we highly recommend you read. Setup: After installing this build, the models for Recall and Click to Do will start to download in the background. You can check the download status via Settings > Windows Update. To open Recall you can find it in the Start menu under the All apps list. [caption id="attachment_177437" align="alignnone" width="1024"] The first page of the first-run experience for Recall. The first page of the first-run experience for Recall.[/caption] When you open Recall, you can complete the first-run experience, which will ask you to opt-in to saving snapshots. It will also require you to enroll in Windows Hello to confirm your presence. This requires you to enable BitLocker and Secure Boot if you haven’t already. If you don’t enable saving snapshots, Recall will not save any snapshots of your activity. [caption id="attachment_177438" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Recall with timeline control to go back in time to find something you did in the past on your PC. Recall with timeline control to go back in time to find something you did in the past on your PC.[/caption] Find It: Use your PC as you normally would. When you need to find or get back to something you’ve done previously, open Recall and authenticate with Windows Hello. As we use our PCs throughout the day working on documents or presentations, taking video calls, and context switching across activities, Recall helps you find things faster and easier and reduces the strain when you can’t remember something. Search using the clues you remember. You can not only search for the text you need to get back to, but now simply describe what you're looking for (“pie chart”). You can also browse the timeline to see snapshots from a specific time you remember and get right back to that document or website quickly. Recall’s search results leverage AI to provide both text and visual matches for your query. AI can make mistakes, if the results aren’t accurate or don’t look right, please provide us with feedback using the feedback link. When you’ve found what you were looking for, you can get back to the application, website, or document, or use Click to Do to act on any image or text in the snapshot you found. You can learn more about using Recall here. [caption id="attachment_177439" align="alignnone" width="1024"] The Recall icon in the system tray indicating when Recall is in use and running and the flyout lets you pause saving snapshots and open Recall. The Recall icon in the system tray indicating when Recall is in use and running and the flyout lets you pause saving snapshots and open Recall.[/caption] Control: With Recall, you’re in control of what snapshots are saved and when Recalls saves them. A new icon in the system tray displays status and provides quick access to Recall actions. When Recall is enabled, you’ll see the Recall icon visible. It provides visual cues to remind you when snapshots are being analyzed and saved. Click the icon and you will be able to pause saving snapshots or view more status information. When paused, you see a slash through the icon. [caption id="attachment_177440" align="alignnone" width="1024"] You can delete a snapshot in Recall from the bottom actions when you no longer want it saved. You can delete a snapshot in Recall from the bottom actions when you no longer want it saved.[/caption] You can delete any snapshot in Recall that you don’t want and tell Recall to ignore that app or website in that snapshot going forward, either when viewing an individual snapshot or by searching for what you want deleted and removing those results. [caption id="attachment_177441" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Windows Hello authentication is required to unlock the Recall experience. Windows Hello authentication is required to unlock the Recall experience.[/caption] Your data: Insiders and Recall users, we want you to know your snapshots are truly yours. We do not send your snapshots off your PC to Microsoft or third parties, and don’t use them for training purposes. Microsoft can’t access the keys to view your encrypted data, so we can’t restore your snapshots if you remove Windows Hello or restore your snapshots if you need to reset your PC or move to a new PC. We will in future updates provide ways for you to store a backup of your keys for these cases. For now, your Copilot + PC only releases the keys to use Recall if you show your face, fingerprint, or PIN. Please note that while in preview, we may make updates that require a reset of your saved snapshots and will let you know here. Technical Insiders can learn more about the security and privacy architecture of Recall here. Privacy: We’ve updated Recall to detect sensitive information like credit card details, passwords, and personal identification numbers. When detected, Recall won’t save or store those snapshots. We’ll continue to improve this functionality, and if you find sensitive information that should be filtered out, for your context, language, or geography, please let us know through Feedback Hub. We’ve also provided an option in Settings that we encourage you to enable that will anonymously share the apps and sites you prefer to be excluded from Recall to help us improve the product. And you can also choose to exclude specific apps and websites through the Recall settings page which we talk about below. [caption id="attachment_177442" align="alignnone" width="1024"] The Recall settings page where you can disable saving snapshots, change your storage settings, delete snapshots and filter webs and apps from being saved. The Recall settings page where you can disable saving snapshots, change your storage settings, delete snapshots and filter webs and apps from being saved.[/caption] Settings: Try out the additional settings available to configure Recall. Changing Recall settings requires you to authenticate with Windows Hello. You can disable saving snapshots, pause temporarily, filter applications and websites in supported browsers, control disk usage, and delete your snapshots at any time via Settings > Privacy and security > Recall and snapshots. Please provide us with feedback if additional settings would improve your experience. You can also remove Recall entirely by typing “Turn Windows features on or off” in the search box on your taskbar. Uncheck Recall from the dialog and restart your PC. Enterprises: As announced at Ignite, for our enterprise customers, Recall is removed by default on PCs managed by an IT administrator for work or school, as well as Enterprise versions of Windows 11. IT administrators fully control the availability of Recall within their organization. Employees must choose to opt-in to saving snapshots and enroll their face or fingerprint with Windows Hello for snapshots to be saved. Only the signed-in user can access and decrypt Recall data, so although enterprises cannot access employee Recall data, they can prevent Recall from being used altogether and prevent any saving of specific apps or sites. IT administrators can click here to learn more about managing Recall on Copilot+ PCs in their organizations. Recall (Preview) will begin to rollout on Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs, with support for AMD and Intel-powered Copilot+ PCs coming soon. As we gradually roll out Recall in preview, Recall is supported on select languages including Chinese (simplified), English, French, German, Japanese, and Spanish. Content-based and storage limitations apply. See here for more details. Recall is not yet available in all regions, with expanded availability coming over time. FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Desktop Environment > Recall or through in-experience links.

Click to Do (Preview) with Recall

With Click to Do in Recall, you can get more done with snapshots and improve your productivity and creativity. Click to Do recognizes text and images in snapshots and offers AI powered actions you can take on these, saving you time by helping complete tasks inline, and/or quickly getting you to the app that can best complete the job for you. [caption id="attachment_177443" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Click to Do in Recall showing image actions on a highlighted image. Click to Do in Recall showing image actions on a highlighted image.[/caption] For text, Click to Do offers the following actions:
  • Copy: Easily copy text to your clipboard.
  • Open with: Open the selected text with your preferred application.
  • Search the web: Quickly search the web for the selected text.
  • Open website: Open any URL you recognize on screen in your preferred browser
  • Send email: Send email to the email address recognized on screen in your preferred email app
For image, Click to Do provides a variety of options:
  • Copy: Copy the image to your clipboard.
  • Save as: Save the image to your desired location.
  • Share: Share the image with others.
  • Open with: Open the image with your preferred application.
  • Visual search with Bing: Perform a visual search and surface relevant contents using Bing.
  • Blur background with Photos: Blur the background of the image using Photos app.
  • Erase objects with Photos: Erase unwanted objects from the image using Photos app.
  • Remove background with Paint: Remove the background of the image using Paint app.
In this update Click to Do only works within the Recall experience. In a future update, you'll be able to effortlessly engage with Click to Do by simply pressing Windows logo key + mouse click, Windows logo key + Q, through the snipping tool menu and Print Screen, or searching “Click to Do” through Windows Search Box. These methods will make it easier than ever to take immediate action on whatever catches your eye on-screen. We're also working on introducing more intelligent text actions to enhance your experience even further. Just like with Recall noted above, Click to Do (Preview) is available only on Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs. Support for Intel and AMD-powered Copilot+ PCs is coming soon. FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Desktop Environment > Click to Do.

Other changes included in this Dev Channel update

This update (Build 26120.2415) includes additional changes and improvements available to Windows Insiders across every Windows 11 PCs. These changes include:
  • New features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*).
  • New features, improvements, and fixes rolling out to everyone in the Dev Channel.
For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Windows Hello]

  • The revamped and modernized Windows Hello user experience that is rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Beta and Canary Channels will start rolling out to Insiders in the Dev Channel soon.

[Narrator]

  • We have added new functionalities to Narrator scan mode. Skip past links (N’) allows you to navigate to the text after a link. This is most helpful when navigating through long emails, news articles, and wiki pages. Jump to lists (L’) allows you to quickly access a list on a web page or a document. To try these new features, you need to turn on Narrator first (Win key + Ctrl + Enter), then turn scan mode ON by pressing Caps Lock + Spacebar and finally use the new shortcuts – ‘N’ and ‘L’. Please note that scan mode is ‘ON’ by default on most web pages (like news articles, wiki page, etc.).

[Speech in Windows]

  • We have improved our speech-to-text and text-to-speech experience on Windows. Users of Narrator, voice access, live captions, live translations, and voice typing might see a message asking them to update their language files manually. The language files will be released separately through Microsoft Store.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Taskbar & System Tray]

  • Fixed an issue causing explorer.exe to crash sometimes when interacting with app icons in the taskbar in the latest flights.

[Desktop]

  • Fixed the issue where your desktop background may not show correctly sometimes with multiple monitors (showing big black areas).

[File Explorer]

  • Did some work so the search box in File Explorer shouldn’t draw off the end of the window anymore.

[Input]

  • Fixed an underlying issue in the last few flights that could cause Windows wheel devices to not scroll.

[Narrator]

  • Fixed an issue in the previous flight which caused Narrator to crash on launch if you used one of the natural voices (like Jenny).

Known issues

[Recall with Click to Do]

The following known issues will be fixed in future updates to Windows Insiders:
  • You must have Secure Boot enabled for Recall to save snapshots. Ensure Secure Boot is enabled before trying out Recall. This support article will help you enable Secure Boot.
  • Clicking links within Recall to submit feedback may experience a delay in loading the Feedback Hub application. Be patient and it will display.
  • Recall can be enabled or disabled from “Turn Windows features on or off”. We are caching the Recall binaries on disk while we test add/remove. In a future update we will completely remove the binaries.
  • Some users experience a delay before snapshots first appear in the timeline while using their device. If snapshots do not appear after 5 minutes, reboot your device. If saving snapshots is enabled, but you see snapshots are no longer being saved, reboot your device.
  • Some users may see a message to “Make sure Recall is saving snapshots”, while the Settings page for Recall shows saving snapshots is enabled. Reboot your device to resolve this issue.
  • Websites added as filters may be saved if the content is in split screen or side bar pane in Edge. This will be addressed in an update.
  • Make sure you update Microsoft 365 apps to the latest version so you can jump back into specific documents.
  • Recall may not currently work with some accessibility applications.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel

  • Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel receive updates based on Windows 11, version 24H2 via an enablement package (Build 26120.xxxx).
  • Updates delivered to the Dev Channel are in a format that offers a preview of enhancements to servicing technology on Windows 11, version 24H2. To learn more, see Introducing Windows 11 checkpoint cumulative updates | Windows IT Pro Blog.
  • Many features in the Dev Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • For Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your PC over time once they are ready.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.
Thanks, Amanda & Brandon

Source: Previewing Recall with Click to Do on Copilot+ PCs with Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel
 

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