Windows 11 Insider Release Preview Channel

[Corrine]

Releasing Windows 11 Build 26100.3321 to the Release Preview Channel

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.

• [Battery] New! Improved icons show your battery status with just a quick glance. When your battery icon is green, your PC is charging and in a good state. Yellow means that your PC battery is in energy saving mode. Windows makes this change for you when your battery power is less than or equal to 20%. Red means battery power is low, and you must plug in your PC as soon as possible. We're also introducing the ability to show your battery percentage next to the battery icon in the system tray which can be enabled via Settings > Power & battery and toggling on the "Battery Percentage" setting.
  
• [Taskbar]
  
  • New! You can now share files directly from a jump list on the taskbar. Jump lists appear when you right-click an app that has a jump list.
    
  • Fixed: It might identify an HDD as an SSD.
• [Windows Spotlight]
  
  • New! There's a quick and easy way to find out more information about a background image. Simply hover over the image or click the "Learn about this picture" icon.
    
  • New! This update makes Windows Spotlight easier to find. You'll notice changes to the icon color and background. Also, the icon will show at the lower right area on your desktop.
    
• [Lock screen] New! This update makes it easier to learn more about the image on your lock screen when you click the "Like" icon.
  
• [Narrator] New! There are new functions for Narrator scan mode. Skip past links (n) allows you to go to the text after a link. Use the comma (,) to jump to the start of an item (large table, long list, or another item.) Use the period (.) to jump to the end of an item. This is most helpful when you read long emails, news articles, and wiki pages. Jump to lists (l) allows you to quickly access a list on a web page or in a document. To use these new functions, turn on Narrator first (Windows logo key + Ctrl + Enter). Then turn scan mode on by pressing Caps lock + Spacebar. Note that scan mode is on by default on most web pages (like news articles, wiki page, and so on).
  
• [Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers] New! Some of you might see a new referral card for a PC Game Pass subscription on the Settings home page. With it, you can invite friends and family to try a PC Game Pass for free. If you qualify, the card only appears when you sign in to your PC using your Microsoft account.
  
• [File Explorer]
  
  • New! You can now snooze or turn off the "Start backup" reminder in the File Explorer address bar. This only applies if you are not already backing up your files and folder. To view this new option, right-click Start backup.
    
  • Fixed: Improves performance when it loads folders that have a large number of media files.
  • Fixed: When you enter a URL in the address bar, it might not go to the location.
  • Fixed: The address bar overlaps files when you use the F11 full-screen mode.
  • Fixed: The context menu opens slowly when you right-click cloud files.
  • Thumbnails for cloud files display more consistently in search results.
• [HTML Help Viewer] New! This update adds text scaling support.
  
• [Start menu] Fixed: The colors are wrong when you open the account manager flyout menu. This occurs when you use a mixed dark and light custom mode in Settings > Personalization > Colors.
  
• [Scanners] Fixed: Apps might not recognize a scanner is available when it is connected.
  
• [Audio]
  
  • Fixed: The volume might increase to 100% when you wake your PC from sleep.
  • Fixed: You might hear a mute and unmute sound several times.
  • Fixed: A USB audio device might stop working after your PC is idle for a short time.
• [GDI+] Fixed: After you use GDI+ to shrink an image, the colors of the image might be wrong.
  
• [Mouse] Fixed: In Settings > Accessibility > Mouse pointer and touch, you can choose a color for the mouse that is not the default. When you choose a color, it reverts to white after the User Account Control (UAC) dialog appears.
  

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.

• [Daylight saving time (DST)] This update supports (DST) changes in Paraguay.
  
• [Open Secure Shell (OpenSSH) (known issue)] Fixed: The service fails to start, which stops SSH connections. There is no detailed logging, and you must run the sshd.exe process manually.
  
• [Get Help app] Fixed: It fails to open on Windows Server 2025.
  
• [Remote Desktop]
  
  • Fixed: There are display rendering issues when you connect to certain PCs.
  • Fixed: It stops responding.
• [Live captions] Fixed: If you disconnect an external monitor, the live captions window might not show.
  

[Corrine]

Releasing Windows 11 Build 22631.5116 to the Release Preview Channel

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.

• [File Explorer]
  
  • New! As part of our ongoing commitment to improving File Explorer accessibility, this release includes increased support for the text scaling (Settings > Accessibility > Text size) across File Explorer, File Open/Save dialogs, and the copy dialogs.
    
  • New! Context menu labels.
    
• [Settings]
  
  • New! Enable Settings Home Page on Commercial Devices with "Your Accounts" Card.
    
  • New! "Top cards" (such as storage, graphics, RAM, etc.) at the top of the About settings page.
    
  • Fixed: For Japanese users, the name displaying at the top of Settings > Accounts shows "First Name" "Last Name" instead of "Last Name" "First Name".
    
• [Input]
  
  • New! We have enabled the Gamepad keyboard layout for the touch keyboard in Windows 11. This change introduces 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.
    
  • New! New experience to improve the discoverability of the emoji and more panel in Windows 11 with the introduction of a new system tray icon on the taskbar.
    
  • Fixed: ctfmon.exe may restart when copying data from certain applications.
• [Task Manager] New! We are changing the way Task Manager calculates CPU utilization for the Processes, Performance, and Users pages. Task Manager will now use the standard metrics to display CPU workload consistently across all pages and aligning with industry standards and third-party tools. For backward compatibility, a new optional column called CPU Utility is available (hidden by default) on the Details tab showing the previous CPU value used on the Processes page.
  

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 Systems (Filters)] This update adds support for a new function in Filter Manager that enhances the system's ability to notify applications of directory changes while minimizing I/O operations.
  
• [Noto Fonts] This update enhances text quality and customer experience in web browsing for Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages by introducing the Noto font family. This provides modern, comprehensive font support for these languages.
  
• [Remote Desktop] Fixed: Certain Get-Help troubleshooters might not run in a Remote Desktop session.
  
• [COSA] Updated: This update addresses an issue affecting mobile connectivity configurations for Connected PCs. It resolves incorrect Internet of Things (IOT) Access Point Name (APN) settings that were previously applied.
  
• [Printers] Fixed: Printers using Independent Hardware Vendor (IHV) drivers might unexpectedly output incorrect or unwanted text.
  
• [File System Fixed: This update resolves an issue for users with profiles redirected to a network Virtual Hard Disk (VHD or VHDX), where a specific failure could lead to a system crash.
  
• [File System Filter] Fixed: Addresses an issue where a stop error may occur during normal usage with a user profile redirected to a network VHD(X).
  
• [Deprecation] Suggested actions that appear when you copy a phone number or future date in Windows 11 are now deprecated and being removed.