Windows 11 Insider Beta Channel

[Corrine]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.5240 (Beta Channel)

This update is for version 23H2.  Note that Windows 11 version 24H2 is available as an optional upgrade for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel.

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.

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

[File Explorer]

• Fixed an issue where the Organize and New Folder options might not be visible in the Save Dialog when using dark mode.

[Settings]

• Fixed an issue where the total storage size shown in System > About may not be displayed correctly.

[Voice Access]

• Fixed an issue which could voice access to freeze with error "working on it" when dictating.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel

• Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel on Windows 11, version 23H2 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 Controlled 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.
  

[Corrine]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.3872 (Beta Channel)

This release is for Windows Insiders on Windows 11, version 24H2.

New Copilot+ PC experiences

New text actions in Click to Do
We are beginning to roll out two new text actions in Click to Do!

Practice in Reading Coach: Improve your reading fluency and pronunciation with the "Practice in Reading Coach" Click to Do action. Simply select the text recognized by Click to Do on your screen, choose the Practice in Reading Coach action, and read the text out loud. The Reading Coach provides feedback and guides you on where to make improvements. To use this feature, install the free Microsoft Reading Coach application from the Microsoft Store.

Read with Immersive Reader: Enhance your reading experience with the "Read with Immersive Reader" Click to Do action. This feature displays recognized text in a distraction-free environment, allowing you to focus on reading. Originally designed to meet the needs of readers with dyslexia and dysgraphia, Immersive Reader helps readers of all ages and abilities improve their reading and writing skills using proven techniques. Customize the text by changing its size, spacing, font, or background theme. You can also have the text read out loud, use syllable break to split words, and highlight nouns, verbs, and adjectives to aid grammar learning. The picture dictionary option provides visual representations of unfamiliar words for instant understanding. Install the free Microsoft Reading Coach application from the Microsoft Store to access this feature

Text actions in Click to Do are rolling out to Windows Insiders on Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs, with support for AMD and Intel-powered Copilot+ PCs coming soon. You can learn more about using Click to Do here.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Desktop Environment > Click to Do.

Finding photos saved in the cloud via the Windows search box, now available for Windows Insiders in the EEA
Windows Insiders in the European Economic Area can now find photos saved in the cloud with improved Windows Search to the Windows search box on the taskbar. Just use your own words to find photos stored and saved in the cloud by describing what they are about like "European castles" or "summer picnics" in the search box on your taskbar. In addition to photos stored locally on your Copilot+ PC, photos from the cloud will now show up in the search results together. In addition to searching for photos, exact matches for your keywords within the text of your cloud files will show in the search results.

Improved Windows Search experiences in the Windows search box on the taskbar continue to gradually roll out to Windows Insiders on Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs, including finding photos saved in the cloud, so you may not see these experiences right away. Support for AMD and Intel-powered Copilot+ PCs is coming soon. See here for more details.

You can learn more about semantic search on Copilot + PCs here.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Desktop Environment > Search.

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

Improvements for voice access
We're beginning to roll out several improvements for voice access in this build.

Add custom words to the dictionary: We are introducing the ability for you to add your own words to the dictionary in voice access. Adding your own words, including difficult to pronounce words, to the dictionary in voice access will help improve dictation accuracy. It increases the probability of recognizing these words more accurately by creating a bias that helps voice access become more context aware and proactively understanding your specific vocabulary. The feature will be available in all the currently supported voice access languages i.e. English, French, German, Spanish and Chinese.

You can add your own words to the dictionary in voice access in a few ways:

• After spelling a word using "Spell that" command or making a correction using "Correct that"
  
• Anywhere when you want to manually add a word by using "Add to Vocabulary" command.
  
• Directly through the settings menu in voice access.

Discoverability voice access features: Voice access will now support an immersive in-product experience to announce new features and improvements. It will help you quickly discover and learn more about new features in voice access to try out. You can launch or dismiss this new experience from the settings menu.

And we are also including voice access under the Accessibility flyout via quick settings in the system tray of the taskbar.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Accessibility > Voice access.

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

[Improved Windows Search
Improved Windows Search is currently available in preview for Windows Insiders on Windows 11, version 24H2 in the Dev and Beta Channels on Copilot+ PCs.

• You can now turn off searching for content saved in the cloud on your Copilot+ PC via Settings > Privacy and Security > Search permissions to access this setting. Please note this currently works only for the Windows search box on the taskbar. However, in a future update this setting will also apply to search in File Explorer.
  

[File Explorer]

• We're starting to roll out the change so that when you launch File Explorer folders from outside of File Explorer (for example, from an app or from the desktop), by default they will now open in a new tab if you have an existing File Explorer window. If you'd prefer that they continue opening in a new window, you can change this in File Explorer folder options, under General > Browse Folders.

[Widgets]

• We are trying out improvements to the notification settings page in widgets on Windows 11 by introducing the ability to control the notifications per feed or dashboard. This change is currently rolling out to Windows Insiders in the European Economic Area (EEA).

[Windows Security]

• We are beginning to roll out a change in the Windows Security app where will show more details such as manufacturer and manufacturer version for Pluton TPM chips if your PC has one under Device security > Security processor details.

[Settings]

• We've updated the dialog when renaming your printer under Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners to match the Windows 11 visuals.
  

[Other]

• When running the pnputil /enum-drivers command, we're adding a new field that enumerates driver package catalog attributes, indicating the driver type and if the driver is attestation-signed.
  

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

[Start menu]

• Fixed an issue which was causing Start menu to crash when creating folders recently for some Insiders.
• Mitigated an issue after the last flight, where if you press the Windows key to open Start and start typing to search, focus was not transferred to search and so your search wouldn't work.

[Windowing]

• Fixed an issue where the colors used for the snap layouts at the top of the screen weren't displayed correctly for some Insiders, making some text unreadable.

[Search on the Taskbar]

• Mitigated an issue causing search to load very slowly, sitting at a blank screen for 15 – 20 seconds, for some people recently.

[Input]

• Fixed an issue where voice typing wouldn't start from the touch keyboard when using the Chinese (Simplified) narrow layout.

[Task Manager]

• Fixed an issue causing search and other options such as filtering in Task Manager to not work in the previous flight.

[Voice Access]

• Fixed an issue which could voice access to freeze with error "working on it" when dictating.

[Other]

• Mitigated an underlying issue which was leading to third party screen readers not working in certain scenarios (such as navigating browsers) for some Insiders after the last flight.
• We did some work to improve the performance of loading early boot UI including the BitLocker PIN, BitLocker Recovery key, and boot menu screens.

Fixes for everyone in the Beta Channel

[General]

• We have mitigated the issue causing some apps like Spotify to not install from the Microsoft Store with an 0x80070032 error.

[Corrine]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.5305 (Beta Channel)

IMPORTANT NOTE: This will be the last update released to the Beta Channel based on Windows 11, version 23H2. All Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel will be getting upgraded to Windows 11, version 24H2 soon. Going forward – updates released to the Beta Channel will now be based on Windows 11, version 24H2.  Windows 11, version 24H2 is currently available as an optional upgrade for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel today.

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

New profanity filter setting for voice typing
We're excited to address the top customer feedback for voice typing by starting to roll out a new setting that lets you control the profanity filter. With this setting on, voice typing will continue to filter out profanity, masking it with asterisks, like it already did. With the setting off, it will type out your profanity like any other words.

To adjust this setting, open voice typing (Win + H), select the settings icon, and use the Filter profanity toggle in the settings menu.

ALT-TEXT: New filter profanity option in voice typing settings highlighted in a red box.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Input and Language > Voice Typing (Windows key plus H).

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

[Taskbar & System Tray]

• Admins can now allow users to unpin specific pinned apps, ensuring they are not pinned again during the next policy refresh cycle. To enable this feature, use the new PinGeneration option. Learn more about configuring pinned apps on the taskbar.
  

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

[File Explorer]

• Fixed an issue where if you tapped the View button in File Explorer with touch, File Explorer would crash.

[Windows Spotlight]

• Fixed an issue where the Windows Spotlight flyout for "learn more about this picture" (when using it as your desktop background) might get stuck above other app windows.

[Input]

• Fixed an issue where when using the Symbols section of the touch keyboard, pressing the key to change pages may unexpectedly insert a character into password fields.

[Settings]

• Fixed an issue where hovering over the cards at the top of System > About wasn't showing the correct corner radius.

[Corrine]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.3941 (Beta Channel)

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

New profanity filter setting for voice typing
We're excited to address the top customer feedback for voice typing by starting to roll out a new setting that lets you control the profanity filter. With this setting on, voice typing will continue to filter out profanity, masking it with asterisks, like it already did. With the setting off, it will type out your profanity like any other words.

To adjust this setting, open voice typing (Win + H), select the settings icon, and use the Filter profanity toggle in the settings menu.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Input and Language > Voice Typing (Windows key plus H).

B]Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on[/B]

[Click to Do (Preview)]

Click to Do is currently available in preview for Windows Insiders on Windows 11, version 24H2 in the Dev and Beta Channels on Copilot+ PCs.

• If your PC supports pen and inking, you can configure the shortcut button (usually at the tail of your pen) to open Click to Do with a single-click, with a double-click, or by press and hold. You can configure this via Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Pen & Windows Ink
• Click to Do can also be added as 1 of the 4 apps you can launch via the pen menu when using a pen with your PC. If all 4 of the slots for the pen menu are configured with apps, you may need to swap out one of those apps with Click to Do via the pen menu settings.

[Improved Windows Search

Improved Windows Search is currently available in preview for Windows Insiders on Windows 11, version 24H2 in the Dev and Beta Channels on Copilot+ PCs.

• If you are signed into OneDrive with a work or school account (Entra ID), you will only see matches for keywords you are searching for within the text of your cloud files in the results shown in the Windows search box on the taskbar – not photos.

[Taskbar & System Tray]

• We are improving Accessibility flyout in quick settings by grouping the assistive technologies by vision, hearing, motor and mobility for easy identification to help you find the right accessibility feature based on your needs.
  

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

[General]

• Fixed an underlying issue causing apps to appear blank after installing the latest flights.

[Click to Do (Preview)]
The following fixes are rolling out for Click to Do on Copilot+ PCs:

• Fixed the issue causing images that are used with Click to Do image actions to be stuck in your temp folder on your PC.

[Login and Lock]

• Fixed an issue causing Windows Hello facial recognition to not work for login for some Insiders after the last two flights.

[Input]

• Fixed an issue where when using the Symbols section of the touch keyboard, pressing the key to change pages may unexpectedly insert a character into password fields.
• Fixed an issue where toggling back and forth to the Japanese touch keyboard could block input on it.

[Settings]

• Fixed an issue where hovering over the cards at the top of System > About wasn't showing the correct corner radius.

[Other]

• Fixed an issue which was causing Quick Assist to not work for non-administrator users (showing error 1002).
• Fixed an underlying issue which was causing certain apps to fail to open with an error saying, "The application was unable to load a required virtual machine component".
• Fixed an underlying issue which could lead to certain USB devices becoming disconnected after sleep, until you rebooted your PC.

Fixes for everyone in the Beta Channel

[General]

• We fixed the issue that caused Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) to not work and the option "Fix problems using Windows Update" option under Settings > Recovery to also not work. If you experience any issues with these experiences, please file feedback in Feedback Hub.

[Corrine]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.3950 (Beta Channel)

REMINDER: Build 22635.5305 was the last update released to the Beta Channel based on Windows 11, version 23H2. All Insiders in the Beta Channel will be getting upgraded to Windows 11, version 24H2 soon. Until that happens, Insiders on Windows 11, version 23H2 in the Beta Channel can choose to upgrade to Windows 11, version 24H2 and this build today if they want.

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

Energy saver now available in Microsoft Intune
We are bringing the ability to manage energy saver in Windows 11 to Microsoft Intune to allow IT administrators to control the energy saver settings on Windows 11 PCs through group policies and Mobile Device Management (MDM) configurations.

This feature, when enabled, intelligently balances your battery use, so it can last longer between charges. It extends battery life by managing power usage efficiently. It limits background activity and reduces screen brightness, ensuring that devices consume less power while maintaining optimal performance. By automatically managing system processes and power usage, the energy saver group policy helps reduce overall energy consumption. This not only saves costs but also contributes to environmental sustainability.

IT administrators can activate the policy by using either method below:

• Local Group Policy Editor in Windows 11
• Microsoft Intune Admin Center

The path for the new policy configuration can be found at in Local Group Policy Editor by navigating to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Power Management > Energy Saver Settings and "Enable Energy Saver to Always Be On".

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

[Recall (Preview)]

• We're trying out different treatments of the UI in Recall including trying out different locations for snapshot actions and the timeline.

-[Taskbar & System Tray]

• We have adjusted the needy state pill under apps on the taskbar that need attention to be wider and more visible.

• Admins can now allow users to unpin specific pinned apps, ensuring they are not pinned again during the next policy refresh cycle. To enable this feature, use the new PinGeneration option. Learn more about configuring pinned apps on the taskbar.
  

[Graphics]
We're introducing some improvements for managing HDR capabilities of your PC via under Settings > System > Display > HDR:

• We have changed the wording for "Use HDR" inside display capabilities to improve clarity on supported media types.

• On PCs with HDR displays, we have added the option to allow HDR video streaming even when HDR is off in settings.
• On PCs with Dolby Vision displays, we have added the option to toggle Dolby Vision mode independently from HDR. You can now enjoy HDR with Dolby Vision either on or off based on your preference.

Learn more about HDR settings in Windows.

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

[Taskbar]

• Fixed an underlying issue which was causing keyboard focus to get set to widgets in the taskbar on login, which could make widgets unexpectedly invoke.
• Fixed an issue where WIN + CTRL + <number> wasn't working to cycle between windows of open apps for that position on the taskbar.

[Audio]

• Fixed an issue which could cause the startup sound not to play, though it was enabled.

[Graphics]

• Fixed an issue which could cause unexpected scaling and window position changes after sleep/resume for some devices.

[Windows Update]

• Fixed an issue where after resetting your PC, taking subsequent cumulative updates may fail with error 0x800f081f.

[Corrine]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.3964 (Beta Channel)

New Copilot+ PC experiences

Introducing the new agent in Settings
Last week, we announced a change to Settings designed to help solve one of the most common frustrations we heard: finding and changing settings on your PC. With this update to Settings, you will be able to simply describe what you need help with like, "how to control my PC by voice" or "my mouse pointer is too small" and the agent will recommend the right steps you can take to address the issue. An agent uses AI on your PC to understand your intent and with your permission, automate and execute tasks on your behalf. This experience is rolling out to Windows Insiders on Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs with support for AMD- and Intel™-powered PCs coming soon. Please note that this experience works if your primary display language is set to English.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Settings > All other settings.

Intelligent text actions in Click to Do for AMD and Intel™-powered Copilot+ PCs
We're introducing more intelligent text actions to enhance your Click to Do experience even further on AMD and Intel™-powered Copilot+ PCs. Use WIN key + mouse-click or WIN + Q to select a text block and then drag to select the text that you want. You'll see options to Summarize, Create a bulleted list, or to help you Rewrite your text, so it sounds more causal, more formal, or more polished.

Click to Do leverages the capabilities of Phi Silica, the on-device Small Language Model (SLM) that is built right into Windows. Results from our local model will show directly inline and if you're happy with the rewrites you can copy them directly to your clipboard for use anywhere.

The intelligent text actions are available when your default language is set to English, at least 10 words are selected, and you're signed in with either a Microsoft account or Microsoft Entra account. You can learn more about using Click to Do here.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Desktop Environment > Click to Do.

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

[Click to Do (Preview)]

• ⁠For Windows Insiders using French or Spanish as their primary language on their PC, Click to Do will temporarily only provide Summarize, Create a bulleted list, Refine as intelligent text actions. Rewrite and its options, including Refine, will return in a future update.

[Dynamic Lighting]

• Dynamic Lighting compatible devices can now be safely removed using the "Safely Remove Hardware and Eject Media" taskbar icon.

[Settings]

• We're making it easy to find answers to common questions about your PC and Windows 11 with a dedicated FAQs section on the Settings > System > About page, providing quick and helpful insights for using your PC all in one place. Whether you're curious about system configuration, performance, or compatibility, this experience ensures you get the information you need for the frequently asked questions for those topics. We hope these FAQs will help you make informed decisions about your PC with ease.
  

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

[Start menu]

• Fixed a few crashes impacting Start menu reliability for Insiders in recent flights.

[File Explorer]

• Fixed a deadlock which could occur when loading File Explorer Home, causing it to hang.
• Fixed an issue where Shared by and Activity information was missing in the tooltip when hovering over recent documents in File Explorer Home.
• Fixed an issue which could cause explorer.exe to crash when closing File Explorer.

[Voice Access]

• Fixed an issue which was causing voice access crashes when using Spanish.

[Taskbar]

• Fixed an issue where when using Tab and Shift + Tab to move keyboard focus around the taskbar, if you went backwards at least once you could get keyboard focus stuck on the taskbar frame, which would potentially lead screen readers to just say "pane".
• Fixed an issue which could cause the media controls in the preview windows for apps in the taskbar (that support it) to flicker.

[Windows Spotlight]

• Fixed an issue where the Windows Spotlight flyout for "learn more about this picture" (when using it as your desktop background) might get stuck above other app windows.

[Live captions]

• Fixed an issue causing live captions to crash in the previous build.

[Other]

• Improved the colors used in MMC when items are selected, both generally, and when contrast modes are enabled.
• Fixed an underlying issue which could make some apps like Word hang when trying to print.

[Corrine]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.4151 (Beta Channel)

IMPORTANT NOTE: Build 22635.5305 was the last update released to the Beta Channel based on Windows 11, version 23H2. All Insiders in the Beta Channel will now be upgraded automatically to Windows 11, version 24H2 with today's flight of Build 26120.4151.

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

B]Introducing AI actions in File Explorer[/B]
With AI actions in File Explorer, you can interact more deeply with your files by right-clicking to quickly take actions like editing images or summarizing documents. Like with Click to Do, AI actions in File Explorer allow you to stay in your flow while leveraging the power of AI to take advantage of editing tools in apps or Copilot functionality without having to open your file. AI actions in File Explorer are easily accessible – to try out AI actions in File Explorer, just right-click on a file and you will see a new AI actions entry on the content menu that allows you to choose from available options for your file.
Today, you can try one of four image actions for seamless editing or web searches with images:

• Bing Visual Search: Allows you to search the web using an image instead of text. Find similar images and products, get details about sites using the image, and identify landmarks, plants, and famous faces. From searching what you see on your screen, to shopping your preferred style, getting help with that homework problem, or translating text, getting answers is more intuitive than ever.
  
• Blur Background: Opens the Photos app which automatically finds the background in the photo, and with a single click, instantly highlights your subject and blurs out the background. You can also customize the effect by adjusting the Blur Intensity or use the Brush Tool to modify the areas being blurred.
  
• Erase Objects: With Photos by selecting or highlighting an unwanted element in your photo and Generative Erase makes it disappear.  It allows you to fix and remove distractions from your photos.
  
• Remove Background: With Paint allows you to alter any image automatically in just one click leaving a smooth cutout of the subject. Background removal can detect the subject from the entire canvas or using the selection tool.
  

These four image actions currently support these file types: .jpg, .jpeg, and .png.

Over the course of the coming weeks, we will begin to roll out new AI actions for Microsoft 365 files:

• Summarize: With Copilot you can generate summaries of various document types stored on OneDrive and SharePoint without the need to open them individually. Find the information you need quickly! Supported file types: .docx, .doc, .pptx, .ppt, .xlsx, .xls, .pdf, .rtf, .txt, .loop.
  
• Create an FAQ: Copilot can help you turn your OneDrive files into a neatly formatted, AI-generated Q&A list. Whether you're building internal knowledge bases, prepping for meetings, or crafting quick-start guides, "Create an FAQ" distills complex information into clear, shareable FAQs in seconds. Supported file types: xlsx, .ppt, .pptx, .doc, .docx, .pdf, .txt, .rtf, .aspx, .htm, and .html.
  

To see AI actions for Microsoft 365 files, you must be:

• For Summarize, you need to be Microsoft 365 subscriber with a Copilot subscription (Microsoft account and Microsoft Entra ID supported).
  
• For Create an FAQ, you need to be a commercial Microsoft 365 subscriber with a Copilot subscription (Microsoft Entra ID supported). Consumer support with a Microsoft account is coming later.
  
• Enrolled in the Microsoft 365 Insider Program. Your PC will need to be part of the Beta Channel update channel. Use these instructions to get setup today: Become a Microsoft 365 Insider on Windows.
  

Let us know what you think of these new AI actions in File Explorer!

Introducing Advanced Settings
Advanced settings are now available via Settings > System > Advanced with some new features. The Advanced page is a redesign of the For Developers page, intending to make its settings easier to find for a broader audience. With the redesign of this page, we've added additional settings: Enable long paths, Virtual workspaces, and File Explorer + version control.

Enable long paths allows you to remove MAX_PATH limitations from common Win32 file and directory functions. Virtual workspaces allow you to enable/disable virtual environments such as Hyper-V, Windows Sandbox, and more. File Explorer + version control provides the ability to display Git information directly inside File Explorer. Simply select your repository folder and File Explorer will display information such as your branch, diff count, last commit message, and more.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback on GitHub at microsoft/WindowsAdvancedSettings.

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

[Taskbar & System Tray]

• In addition to the new grouping of the Accessibility flyout in quick settings, we are adding text descriptions for the assistive technologies like Narrator, Voice access, etc. for easy identification and learning by the users.
  

[Search on the Taskbar]
We are beginning to roll out some improvements for the Windows search box on your taskbar:

• When showing search results, we will provide a notice that your search results may be incomplete if Windows is still indexing your PC with a link to check your indexing status. You can dismiss this notice.
• We are also providing a status for files and folders on your PC so you can easily see if a file or folder is available when online (cloud) or available on your device.
[/list

[Voice access]

• We have temporarily disabled Chinese support in voice access to address some issues. We plan to begin rolling this change out again in a future flight soon.

[Widgets]
We're trying out a new visual experience for the widgets board, with a more organized, personalized, and engaging feed. In addition, we are introducing Copilot-curated stories into the feed. These make it easy to get a multifaceted view on a single topic, connecting summaries, videos, and images from trusted MSN premium publishers. Some features, such as pinning and hiding, are still under development. Explore this experience and please share your feedback as we'll continue to evolve the experience.

You can choose to return to the previous widgets board experience, by changing the 'Copilot Discover (Preview)' toggle in the Personalize MSN settings dialog.

[Power & Battery]

• We're introducing User Interaction-Aware CPU Power Management, an OS-level enhancement that helps reduce power consumption and extend your battery life. After a period of inactivity on your PC, Windows now conserve power by automatically applying efficient power management policies. This happens seamlessly to save energy while you're inactive, with full performance instantly restored the moment you get back to it. It's another way we're working to make your Windows experience both responsive and energy-efficient!
  
  • Please note: Actual savings depend on device segment, power mode and whether you're plugged in or running on battery, according to manufacturer-defined Processor Power Management (PPM) settings.
    

[Windows Share]

• In the Windows share window, as part of the ability to quickly edit and enhance images while sharing, we have adjusted the UI so that now you can now select their compression scale from High, Medium, or Low Quality, instead of choosing from an entire scale ranging from 0-100.

[Windows Backup]

• We're trying out different variations of the landing page when you launch the Windows Backup app.

[Snipping Tool]

• [ADDED] Last month, we announced Snipping Tool's new text extractor feature — designed to minimize the number of steps it takes to copy text to your clipboard without having to take a screenshot of your screen. With this Windows update, we're making it easier to jump directly into text extractor via Win + Shift + T. You can learn more about using text extractor here. You should be on Snipping Tool version 11.2503.29.0 or higher as well.
  

[Settings]
We are rolling out some small changes in the EEA region for default browsers via Settings > Apps > Default apps:
[list=1]

• Additional file and link types will be set for the new default browser, if it registers for them.
• There is now a separate one-click button for browsers to make it easy to also change your .pdf default, if the browser registers for the .pdf file type.

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

[General]

• Fixed an issue where core Windows surfaces were not able to load in safe mode (File Explorer, Start menu, and others) after latest flights.

[File Explorer]

• Fixed an issue where if File Explorer was maximized and you clicked the new tab button it would unmaximize the window.

[Settings]

• Fixed an issue related to loading Bluetooth information which could lead to Settings and Quick Settings crashes.
• Fixed an issue where you couldn't switch active hours from manually to automatic in Settings > Windows Update.
• Fixed an issue which was causing Settings > Personalization > Lock screen to crash for some Insiders.