Update to Windows Subsystem for Android™ on Windows 11 (September 2023)

This update for Windows Subsystem for Android™ on Windows 11 is released to all Windows Insider channels.

This update (2308.40000.3.0) includes improvements to system and graphics reliability.

What's New

• Platform reliability improvements
• Localhost loopback support for "Local network access" experimental feature
• Clipboard reliability and performance improvements
• Kernel update to improve compatibility with running ARM applications on x64 processors

Giving feedback
If you are having issues with Windows Subsystem for Android™ – please file feedback via Feedback Hub under Apps > Windows Subsystem for Android™. For more information about troubleshooting and submitting feedback: Troubleshooting and FAQ for mobile apps on Windows.

Releasing Windows 10 Build 19045.3513 to Release Preview Channel

This update includes the following improvements Windows 10, version 22H2:

• New! This update completes the work to comply with the GB18030-2022 requirements. It removes and remaps characters for Microsoft Wubi input and Microsoft Pinyin U-mode input. You can no longer enter character codepoints that are not supported. All the required codepoints are up to date.
  
• New! This update brings back an improved search box experience on the taskbar. If you have a top, bottom, regular, or small icons taskbar, you will see the search box appear. You can use it to easily access apps, files, settings, and more from Windows and the web. You will also have access to the latest search updates, such as search highlights. If you want to restore your previous search experience, you can do that easily. Use the taskbar shortcut menu or respond to a dialog that appears when you use search.
  
• New! This update adds animations to a few icons on the news and interests taskbar button. These animations occur when:
  
• A new announcement appears on the news and interests taskbar button.
• You hover over or click the icon while the announcement is on the taskbar.
• This update supports daylight saving time (DST) changes in Greenland.
• This update changes the spelling of Ukraine's capital from Kiev to Kyiv.
• This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Excel. It stops responding when you try to share a file as a PDF in Microsoft Outlook.
• This update addresses an issue that is related to changes in the forwarding of events.
• This update addresses an issue that affects an Application Virtualization (App-V) environment. Copy operations within it stop working. This occurs after you install the April 2023 update.
• This update addresses an issue that affects the Simple Certificate Enrollment Protocol (SCEP) certificate. The system reports some SCEP certificate installations as failed. Instead, the system should report them as pending.
• This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Print to PDF. It uses the metadata for the name you sign in with as the author of a printed PDF. It should use the display name instead.
• This update addresses an issue that affects some USB printers. Microsoft Defender stops them from printing.
• This update addresses an issue that affects device health. Some devices cannot attest to their security health.
• This update addresses an issue that affects Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC). AppID Tagging policies might greatly increase how long it takes your device to start up.
• This update addresses an issue that affects the touch keyboard. Sometimes it does not open.
• This update addresses an issue that affects IMEPad. It stops working. This occurs when you enter end-user-defined characters (EUDC).
• This update addresses an issue that affects application compatibility. It is related to Microsoft Defender for Endpoint.
• This update addresses an issue that affects Remote Apps. The display of some elements is not aligned correctly.
• This update addresses an issue that affects toast notifications. They might not appear when you use UI Automation tools to read them.
• This update addresses an issue that affects the Microsoft Distributed Transaction Coordinator (DTC). It has a handle leak. Because of this, the system runs out of memory.
• This update addresses an issue that might cause a user-mode memory leak. It might occur when you call CopyFile() or MoveFile().
  
• This update addresses an issue that might make Windows stop responding. This might occur if you use Microsoft OneDrive files that are compressed by NTFS.
• This update addresses an issue that affects external binding. It fails. This occurs after you install Windows updates dated May 2023 or later. Because of this, there are issues that affect LDAP queries and authentication.

In further news from The Verge, Panos Panay is expected to be taking over from Dave Limp, Amazon's outgoing hardware boss and will run Amazon's division for its Alexa and Echo speakers.

Paint app update adding support for layers and transparency begins rolling out to Windows Insiders

Update for the Paint app to Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels (version 11.2308.18.0 or higher). This update introduces support for layers and transparency.

You can now add, remove, and manage layers on the canvas to create richer and more complex digital art. With layers, you can stack shapes, text, and other image elements on top of each other. To get started, click on the new Layers button in the toolbar, which will open a panel on the side of the canvas. This is where you can add new layers to the canvas. Try changing the order of layers in this panel to see how the order of stacked image elements on the canvas changes. You can also show or hide and duplicate individual layers or merge layers together.

We are adding support for transparency as well, including the ability to open and save transparent PNGs! When working with a single layer, you will notice a checkerboard pattern on the canvas indicating the portions of the image that are transparent. Erasing any content from the canvas now truly erases the content instead of painting the area white. When working with multiple layers, if you erase content on one layer, you will reveal the content in layers underneath.

When you combine layers, transparency, and other tools in Paint, you can create exciting new images and artwork! For example, when combined with the new background removal feature, you can quickly create interesting layered compositions.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Apps > Paint.

Windows leader Panos Panay is leaving Microsoft

QuotePanos Panay, the chief product officer at Microsoft, leading Windows development and the company's Surface line, is leaving Microsoft. In an email on Monday, Rajesh Jha, Microsoft's vice president of experience and devices, told employees: "After nearly 20 years at the company, Panos Panay has decided to leave Microsoft."

More at the referenced article.

This vulnerability was considered severe enough that Microsoft has released an update for Edge on Windows 7 and 8 (despite having stopped "routine" support for Edge on these older operating systems in January 2023).

https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-releases-update-for-edge-on-windows-7-and-8/

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25951 (Canary Channel)

Cumulative Update Build 25951.1010 (KB5031089) is starting to roll out. This update does not include anything new and is designed to test the servicing pipeline for builds in the Canary Channel.

ISOs for this build can be downloaded here.

Releasing Windows 11 Build 22000.2479 to the Release Preview Channel

This update includes the following improvements:

• New! This update completes the work to comply with the GB18030-2022 requirements. It removes and remaps characters for Microsoft Wubi input and Microsoft Pinyin U-mode input. You can no longer enter character codepoints that are not supported. All the required codepoints are up to date.
  
• This update supports daylight saving time (DST) changes in Greenland.
• This update changes the spelling of Ukraine's capital from Kiev to Kyiv.
• This update addresses an issue that affects account lockout event 4625. The format of the event is wrong in the ForwardedEvents log. This occurs when an account name is in the user principal name (UPN) format.
• This update affects the Key Distribution Center (KDC) and user security identifiers (SID). KDC now reads the user SID from the Subject Alternative Name (SAN) of a certificate. Because of this, mobile device management (MDM) providers can use offline templates to fill in the user SID. To learn more, see KB5014754.
  
• This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Excel. It stops responding when you try to share a file as a PDF in Microsoft Outlook.
• This update addresses an issue that is related to changes in the forwarding of events.
• This update addresses an issue that affects XPath queries on FileHash and other binary fields. It stops them from matching values in event records.
• This update addresses an issue that affects an Application Virtualization (App-V) environment. Copy operations within it stop working. This occurs after you install the April 2023 update.
• This update addresses an issue that affects the Simple Certificate Enrollment Protocol (SCEP) certificate. The system reports some SCEP certificate installations as failed. Instead, the system should report them as pending.
• This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Print to PDF. It uses the metadata for the name you sign in with as the author of a printed PDF. It should use the display name instead.
• This update addresses an issue that affects some USB printers. Microsoft Defender stops them from printing.
• This update addresses an issue that affects Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC). AppID Tagging policies might greatly increase how long it takes your device to start up.
• This update addresses an issue that affects IMEPad. It stops working. This occurs when you enter end-user-defined characters (EUDC).
• This update addresses an issue that affects application compatibility. It is related to Microsoft Defender for Endpoint.
• This update addresses an issue that affects Remote Apps. The display of some elements is not aligned correctly.
• This update addresses an issue that affects the Microsoft Distributed Transaction Coordinator (DTC). It has a handle leak. Because of this, the system runs out of memory.
• This update addresses an issue that might make Windows stop responding. This might occur if you use Microsoft OneDrive files that are compressed by NTFS.
• This update addresses an issue that might cause a user-mode memory leak. It might occur when you call CopyFile() or MoveFile().
  
• This update addresses an issue that affects external binding. It fails. This occurs after you install Windows updates dated May 2023 or later. Because of this, there are issues that affect LDAP queries and authentication.

From PC World:

QuoteA severe vulnerability has been found in libwebp, a code library used to render webp images, reports Stack Diary. Webp is a popular image format used by many sites on the Internet – but also by apps and some other software that use web views – and the vulnerability can be used, among other things, to run malicious code on affected devices. Worse yet, it is reportedly being actively exploited by malicious attackers.

The vulnerability has been labelled CVE-2023-4863 and is considered extremely serious. Major browsers such as Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Opera, Vivaldi, and Brave have already released security fixes. To make sure you have the latest version of a browser, go to Help > About (browser name) in its options menu. If a new update is available, it should then download automatically.

If you haven't updated your browser, check for updates now!

New updates for Snipping Tool and Phone Link begin rolling out to Windows Insiders

Roll out of updates to Snipping Tool to Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels to improve the overall capture experience on Windows 11 beginning today. Also, beginning to roll out is an update to Phone Link to all Window Insiders that introduces notification prompting to open capture in Snipping Tool for markup.

Text Actions with Snipping Tool
With this update to Snipping Tool (version 11.2308.33.0), we are introducing Text Actions, which detects text in your captured screenshots, making it easy to copy text from any image to share with others or paste in another app. To get started, click the Text Actions button in the toolbar to show selectable text before selecting and copying text with your mouse. You can also click the Copy all text button in the toolbar or use Ctrl + A and Ctrl + C to select and copy all text using your keyboard.

With Text Actions, you can also redact sensitive information in screenshots before sharing. Select Quick Redact from the toolbar to automatically hide emails and phone numbers or select any text and select Redact Text from the right-click menu to hide the text.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Apps > Snipping Tool.

Remote capture with Phone Link
We are also beginning to gradually roll out a new feature for Phone Link (version 1.23082.123.0 or greater on PC) that introduces the ability to effortlessly access and edit your most recent photos from your Android mobile device in Snipping Tool on your PC. Say goodbye to missed opportunities as you'll receive instant notifications on your PC whenever a new photo is captured on your Android device, provided both devices are connected via Phone Link.