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Makers of the Files app, the feature-packed third-party file manager for Windows, recently released the preview version of the app in the Microsoft Store. Like the Windows Insider Program allows users to test new features before their public rollout, Files Preview serves as a testing ground for new features ahead of their release. With the latest update, version 3.8.13, Files Preview received a new layout, thumbnail improvements, and more. Files Preview now has a new Cards View layout, which replaces Tiles View. Cards View shows more details about files and folders, like file name, type, size, modification date, dimensions (for images), duration (media files), tags, sync status, and more. You can switch to the new Cards View by clicking the "Layout" button on the toolbar and selecting "Cards." Files Preview 3.8.13 also adds some upgrades for file thumbnails. They are now properly in sync with the layout size and have proper DPI awareness. The rest of the changelog includes the following: The new Cards Layout and other improvements are expected in the next Files update, version 3.9. Meanwhile, you can check out the latest update (version 3.8) in our dedicated article. Files Preview is available for $6.29 in the Microsoft Store. You can also get the app for free from the official website. The preview version works alongside the stable release, so you can keep it side-by-side with the regular version. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Microsoft has released a new Windows Server 2025 build for Windows Insiders (Microsoft posted the changelog with a big delay). Build 26334 is the final release this year, so look out for the next update in January 2024. Meanwhile, here is what is new in Windows Server 2025 build 26334: Known issues in this update include the following: Windows Server build 26334 is valid until September 15, 2025. You can install it using the following keys: Server Standard: MFY9F-XBN2F-TYFMP-CCV49-RMYVH Datacenter: 2KNJJ-33Y9H-2GXGX-KMQWH-G6H67 Azure Edition does not accept a key You can find full release notes for Windows Server 2025 build 26334 here. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of November): 5,298 news posts RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Windows Server Insiders can download a new preview build under number 26296. Today's release brings the ability to install Windows Admin Center from the desktop, access the new Feedback Hub app for Windows Server, and more. Here is the changelog for build 26296: Known bugs in this build include the following: You can find download links and activation keys in the announcement post on the official Tech Community forums. Source RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every single day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of August): 3,792 news posts

Microsoft has once again quietly revised the release notes for the latest Windows 11 24H2 preview builds. Build 26100.1876's changelog now mentions two new features: the ability to turn on or off mouse acceleration and change the scrolling direction. Also, the "Power & Battery" section now lets you set a preferred power mode when your computer is plugged in or working from the battery. Here is how Microsoft describes the changes that are gradually rolling out to Windows Insiders: However, there are some less exciting changes. Microsoft acknowledged a problem affecting customers relying on assistive technologies, namely screen readers. The NonVisual Desktop Access app cannot narrate apps running with elevated privileges: Windows 11 version 24H2 for non-Copilot+ PCs is rumored to launch in October. Therefore, you can expect to see a couple of extra updates to polish things out before the public launch. If waiting is not an option, check out our guide describing how to install Windows 11 version 24H2 right now. Just keep in mind that the update is still a preview, and, as you can see from this article, there are still known issues that need fixing. The updated changelog for Windows 11 version 24H2 build 26100.1876 is available on the official Windows Blog via this link. Source RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every single day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of August): 3,792 news posts

Microsoft has released the latest Windows Server preview build for members of the Windows Server Insider Program. The new build number is 26052 which is the same as the new Canary Channel preview build for Windows 11. The previous Windows Server preview build release for 26040 was also the first to support the recently added Server Flighting feature for faster updates. It also got branded with the new Windows Server 2025 name. The new 26052 has nearly the same change log as the 26040 release notes, with the exception of one additional known issue. Here is the changelog: You can still download the new Windows Server preview from Microsoft's site. You can check out the full blog post here. Source

Windows 11's built-in archive support is getting new features to give users more flexibility and customization when working with ZIP, 7zip, and TAR archives without relying on third-party apps. The latest Windows 11 preview build from the Canary Channel introduces a new compression wizard where you can select format, compression level, compression algorithms, and a few extra features. Microsoft introduced 7zip, TAR, RAR, 7Z, and other archive formats last year. However, the ability to compress files into archives remained unchanged, leaving users with only one option. Windows 11 build 26040 changes that. Customers with the latest Canary Channel build can right-click a file or a few and select Compress To > Additional Options. That will open the new wizard, where users can choose the following options: Archive format: 7zip, TAR, and ZIP (RAR is not available). Compression method: Store, Deflate, BZip2, LZMA1, LZMA2, PPMd. Available options depend on the selected archive format. Compression level: from 0 to 9. Additional options to retain symbolic links and hard links. Unlike some other changes in build 26040, new compression features are available to all Canary users, and they do not require enabling any hidden features or IDs. Sadly, you still cannot protect compressed files with passwords or open protected archives. It will be interesting to see how the upgraded archive options compare to third-party apps. When Microsoft introduced the initial RAR and other format support, we discovered that performance was notably slower than that of popular alternatives, such as WinRAR or 7Zip. Other changes in Windows 11 build 26040 include a new Task Manager icon, 80Gbps USB support, improved screen casting, taskbar enhancements, bug fixes, and a new setup experience. We have already published our closer look, so you can check out what installing Windows 11 build 26040 looks like without downloading it to your machine. Source

Microsoft has released the latest Windows Server preview build for members of the Windows Server Insider Program. The new build number is 26063, which is the same as the new Canary Channel preview build for Windows 11. Keep in mind that this and future Windows Server Insider builds now have the Windows Server 2025 branding. This latest build release has a few new features, including a Feedback Hub and a new wallpaper, both for desktop users. There are also some new known issues with this release. Here is the changelog: You can still download the new Windows Server preview from Microsoft's site. You can check out the full blog post here. Source

Microsoft has updated the release notes for the recently shipped build 26052 to mention quite a severe bug that can wipe a lot of data on your computer without any warning. As it turned out, rolling back to previous Dev or Canary builds results in the operating system damaging Dev Drives and causing data loss. Therefore, if you plan to go back, back up the contents of your Dev Drives before proceeding. Data on other drives and partitions should remain intact. Microsoft acknowledged the problem and published a heads-up in the official Windows Insider account on X: Sadly, some users learned about the bug the hard way before Microsoft posted an update, which is yet another proof of why running Windows preview builds on a primary device is not a very good idea. Hard-hitting bugs and critical errors are expected in pre-release software, and they sometimes slip under the radar. In addition to problems with Dev Drives, Microsoft added another known issue in build 26052. It is not as severe as the one wiping your partitions, but still, beware since it will crash the Settings app: Other bugs in Windows 11 build 26052 include green screens of death when playing popular games, issues with playing streaming content in the Microsoft Store apps, and frequent black screens (you can resolve it by restarting the graphics with the Win + Ctrl + Shift + B shortcut). It's pretty buggy stuff, so it is better to check out build 26052 on a spare computer or inside a VM. Source

Microsoft has released the latest preview version of its Skype messaging service for members of the Skype Insider Program. The new 8.109.76.101 version adds a new feature that will cut down long text messages into smaller ones using "smart" tech. It also adds some new camera features to the iOS version of Skype. Here is the changelog: You can download the latest Skype Insider build from the official website. The program is open to everyone using Windows 10, 11, macOS, Linux, or Android. Skype Insider is also available on iOS, but you need an invitation to join. Source

On November 8, 2023, Microsoft released two new Windows 11 builds to try in the Dev and Canary channels. Although they do not contain anything groundbreaking, there are some neat changes, such as the ability to compress files into TAR and 7z archives, not only the good-old ZIP. In addition, enthusiasts discovered a hidden feature that lets you move the Copilot icon to the notification area. Microsoft launched Copilot in Windows 11 version 23H2. It sits next to the Start menu button by default, providing you a one-click access to the company's latest AI assistant. However, it seems that Microsoft is open to experimenting with other places for Copilot. @PhantomOfEarth noticed that enabling a specific feature ID in builds 25992 and 23585 moves Copilot to the bottom-right corner of the screen. Release notes for the latest Windows 11 preview builds do not mention the new home for Copilot. Also, the Settings app, including the new Copilot section, does not contain any toggles or switches for repositioning the icon. You may assume this is just an experiment that might never reach a stable release. Still, you can try it while it is available in Windows 11 build 25992 and 23585 using the ViVeTool app. Important: Back up your data before modifying Windows 11 using ViVeTool or similar apps. Download ViveTool from GitHub and unpack it in a convenient and easy-to-find folder. Launch Command Prompt as Administrator. You can use Windows Terminal in Command Prompt mode. Navigate to the folder containing the ViveTool files using the CD command. For example, if you have placed ViveTool in C:\Vive, type CD C:\Vive. Type vivetool /enable /id:46874360 and press Enter. Restart your computer. Type vivetool /disable /id:46874360 to revert the changes. Interestingly, enthusiasts recently discovered code bits hinting at a possible return of the user tile in the notification area from the early dates of Windows 8 development. What do you think about the Copilot icon in the notification area? Source

Microsoft has released the non-security release preview version of Windows 11 version 21H2. The build number is 22000.2360 (KB5029332). It contains a couple of minor new features along with a list of bug fixes. Here is the changelog: Highlights New! This update improves how Windows detects your location. This helps to give you better weather, news, and traffic information. This update supports daylight saving time (DST) changes in Israel. Improvements This non-security update includes quality improvements. When you install this KB: This update addresses an issue that affects the Group Policy Service. It will not wait for 30 seconds, which is the default wait time, for the network to be available. Because of this, policies are not correctly processed. This update adds a new API for D3D12 Independent Devices. You can use it to create multiple D3D12 devices on the same adapter. To learn more, see D3D12 Independent Devices. This update addresses an issue that affects a WS_EX_LAYERED window. The window might render with the wrong dimensions or at the wrong position. This occurs when you scale the display screen. This update addresses an issue that affects print jobs that are sent to a virtual print queue. They fail without an error. This update addresses an issue that causes high CPU use. This occurs when you enable the “fBlockNonDomain policy.” This update addresses an issue that affects disk partitions. The system might stop working. This occurs after you delete a disk partition and add the space from the deleted partition to an existing BitLocker partition. This update addresses an issue that affects the Resultant Set of Policy (RSOP). The Windows LAPS "BackupDirectory" policy setting was not being reported. This occurs when the setting is set to 1, which is “Back up to AAD.” The update addresses an issue that affects those who use Windows Update for Business. After you are asked to change your password at sign in, the change operation fails. Then you cannot sign in. The error code is 0xc000006d. If you installed earlier updates, only the new updates contained in this package will be downloaded and installed on your device. Windows 11 servicing stack update - 22000.2355 This update makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. Servicing stack updates (SSU) ensure that you have a robust and reliable servicing stack so that your devices can receive and install Microsoft updates. There are no known issues with this build release. You can check out the full support page for this update here. Source

Earlier this week, Microsoft released an update for Skype Preview, bringing auto-download support and other improvements for testing before the public release. Now, another update is available—developers pushed version 8.103.76.101 with drag and drop enhancements, performance uplifts for the GIF picker, and general stability improvements. What is new in Skype Preview version 8.103.76.101? Here is the changelog Microsoft posted on the official forum: Drag & Drop Enhancements in Skype! Have you ever wished you could just drag and drop texts or links directly into Skype's message panel? Well, now you can, because Skype has leveled up! Now, effortlessly drag and drop texts or links directly into the message panel for quick edits and sending on Skype for Web on the Edge browser. Alternatively, drop them onto a conversation list, and they're saved as a handy draft. Modeled after our Android's direct share function, these items will neatly append at the end of your current draft, optimizing your chat experience. Enjoy! Performance Improvements for GIF Picker in Skype! We've heard you, and we're on it! We've focused on enhancing the performance and loading speeds of the GIF picker on Skype for iOS & Android. Our Engineering team has dived deep, employing cutting-edge optimization techniques to ensure a smoother experience for you and even better performance insights in the future. Users previously experienced some hiccups, especially when searching, but with these updates, those days are in the rearview. Dive in and experience the speed! Stability improvements & Bug fixes: Skype was using excessive CPU while in an idle state, on Mac Endless loading when adding a new card for Skype Number purchases on Web The "back arrow" delay during call setup to avoid accidental profile menu access on Android Skype Preview is available on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. You can sign up for the program on the official website. Source

Microsoft has released the latest preview version of its Dev Home app which first launched in May as part of Build 2023. As a reminder, the app allows developers access to a number of features, including the recently launched Dev Drive, WinGet configuration, and GitHub codespaces together in one place. The new 0.4 preview version that launched today in the Microsoft Store has a number of changes made to improve the accessibility features of the Dev Home app, along with some other general improvements and a few bug fixes as well. Here is the changelog for Microsoft Dev Home preview 0.4: Accessibility improvements You can now navigate widgets with the keyboard using Tab and the left and right arrow keys. Narrator will now appropriately read the names of available widgets in the Add Widgets dialog. The navigation experiences between scan and non-scan modes are now aligned. The banner is now scrollable on 200% zoom. Miscellaneous improvements Dev Home now indicates if it’s run as administrator. Widget charts now use SVG to render. The Restore apps description now includes the last modified date. Close buttons are now consistently styled throughout the UI. Bug fixes The banner text will be aligned appropriately in RTL languages. Dev Home should now remain responsive after the file picker dialog is closed. Dev Home is brought to the foreground when a second instance is opened with redirection. Microsoft also announced today that it is working on a number of new features for future preview versions of the Dev Home app. Those features include "integrating Azure DevOps and creating Azure DevOps widgets for Dev Home." Developers can get more info on the Dev Home app on Microsoft's documents site. They can also provide ideas for new features for the app, or report any bugs, to Microsoft's GitHub repository. Source

Update March 10: 1PM PT Microsoft has rolled out a Cumulative Update for Windows 11 build 25314 which bumps the build up to 25314.1010. It does not add anything new and is designed to test Microsoft's servicing pipeline capabilities. In addition, there is no blog post announcement for this build update, as specified could happen when the Canary Channel was announced. The original post follows below: Microsoft has just launched the first Windows 11 Insider Preview build for the newly established Canary Channel. The build number is 25314, and it actually contains some of the same new features that are in the Dev Channel release. What’s new in Build 25314 Access Keys in File Explorer We are adding access key shortcuts into the XAML context menu in File Explorer. An access key is a one keystroke shortcut that allows a keyboard user to quickly execute a command in context menu. Each access key will correspond with a letter in the display name. It’s part of our effort to make File Explorer more accessible. To try this out, you can click on a file in File Explorer and press the menu key on your keyboard. NOTE: If you see the “pizza” icon on the command bar in File Explorer that denotes you are previewing the Windows App SDK version of File Explorer, you will not see this feature yet. [We are beginning to roll this out, so the experience isn’t available to all Insiders in the Canary Channel just yet as we plan to monitor feedback and see how it lands before pushing it out to everyone.] FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Files, Folders, and Online Storage > File Explorer. File Recommendations in File Explorer File Recommendations are coming to File Explorer Home to bring users the most relevant file content right to their fingertips. This feature (as pictured below) will be available to users signed into Windows with an Azure Active Directory (AAD) account. Files that are recommended will be cloud files associated with that account, either owned by the user, or shared with the user. [We are beginning to roll this out, so the experience isn’t available to all Insiders in the Canary Channel just yet as we plan to monitor feedback and see how it lands before pushing it out to everyone.] FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Files, Folders, and Online Storage > File Explorer. Introducing LSA Protection Enablement on Upgrade Local Security Authority (LSA) protection helps protect against theft of secrets and credentials used for logon by preventing unauthorized code from running in the LSA process and by preventing dumping of process memory. Starting with on upgrade, we will audit for a period of time to check for incompatibilities with LSA protection. If we do not detect any incompatibilities, we will automatically turn on LSA Protection. You can check and change the enablement state of LSA protection in the Windows Security application under the Device Security > Core Isolation page. LSA protection records whether programs are blocked from loading into LSA in the event log. If you would like to check if something has been blocked, information on the logs recorded is available here. Feedback: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN+F) under Security and Privacy > Logging Into Your PC. Narrator Outlook Support Narrator will now retrieve updates to its Outlook support when Narrator is started. You can learn more about the work we did for Outlook in Chapter 5 of the Narrator User Guide. We have not added any additional functionality to our Outlook support, but this work will allow updates to the Outlook experience to be made through the Microsoft Store. You will receive a notification after the download is completed to inform you that the update has been retrieved. With this change, Narrator’s Outlook support is limited to U.S. English only. Other languages will be supported in a future flight. FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Accessibility > Narrator. Changes and Improvements [General] To increase security in Windows 11, starting with this build and later we are disabling the Remote Mailslot Protocol by default. The legacy Remote Mailslot Protocol is a simple, unreliable, insecure, and unidirectional inter-process communications protocol between a client and server and was introduced in Windows NT 3.1 and will be deprecated in a future Windows release. If an application attempts to open a Remote Mailslot session over the SMB protocol, you may see one or more of the following errors: 3025 ERROR_REMOTE_MAILSLOTS_DEPRECATED “The requested operation failed. Remote mailslots have been deprecated.” If your application still uses Remote Mailslot, contact your vendor about updating their software. The legacy Remote Mailslot is not secure and should not be used under any circumstances. If you need to temporarily enable Remote Mailslot, run the following command in an elevated PowerShell console: PS C:\> Set-SmbClientConfiguration -EnableMailslots $true Microsoft warns people who want to check out the Canary Channel Windows 11 builds that they "could include major issues that could result in not being able to use your PC correctly or even in some rare cases require you to reinstall Windows." Microsoft may release more Canary Channel builds but it will not post new blogs announcing them unless they contain new features. Windows 11 Insider Preview build 25314.1010 released to test servicing pipeline

Microsoft has released a new build of the Windows Server Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) Preview. Today's build 25314 is now available to download as an ISO from the Windows Server Insider website along with a VHDX. It contains both the (Windows 11) Desktop Experience as well as a Server Core installation option for Datacenter and the Standard edition. As per usual, there's no full changelog between builds to speak of, so it's unclear what's new in the bits that relate to Server, for a full changelog of the build 25314 client, go here. As you may have noticed, the Windows Server Preview now aligns with the new Canary channel, which might indicate we won't see a new Server version until next year when Windows 12 is expected to be released. Branding has not yet been updated and remains as Windows Server 2022 in the preview. In addition, Microsoft is encouraging Insiders to give feedback in the Windows Server category and then the appropriate subcategory. The company asks to indicate the build number you are providing feedback on along with the title as shown in the example below: [Server #####] Title of my feedback What's New RESOLVED: While using Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) or in doing a clean install, users may encounter rendering issues which create difficulty in using these processes. Build-to-build upgrade is unaffected. RESOLVED: Installing the Languages and Optional Features preview will put the Server in a state where SCONFIG does not reliable start up after login, and Remote Desktop functionality into the Server fails inconsistently. If you depend on either Remote Desktop or SCONFIG, you may wish to avoid installing the Languages and Optional Features preview. Known Issues This build has an issue where archiving eventlogs with "wevetutil al" command causes the Windows Event Log service to crash, and the archive operation to fail. The service must be restarted by executing "Start-Service EventLog" from an administrative command line prompt. If you are have Secure Launch/DRTM code path enabled, we do not recommend that you install this build. Available Downloads: Windows Server Long-Term Servicing Channel Preview in ISO format in 18 languages, and in VHDX format in English only. Windows Server Datacenter Azure Edition Preview in ISO and VHDX format, English only.* Microsoft Server Languages and Optional Features Preview Note: Downloads to certain countries may not be available. See Microsoft suspends new sales in Russia - Microsoft On the Issues Keys are valid for preview builds only: Server Standard: MFY9F-XBN2F-TYFMP-CCV49-RMYVH Datacenter: 2KNJJ-33Y9H-2GXGX-KMQWH-G6H67 Azure Edition does not accept a key To download, registered Insiders can head over to the Windows Server Insider Preview download page here. You can also check out the Getting Started with Server page here on the Windows Insider for Business portal to register for the Windows Insider Program in case you aren't already registered. Microsoft also notes that this Preview will expire on September 15, 2023. You can download the build here, and find the official announcement here. Windows Server build 25314 includes fix for SCONFIG on startup and WinRE rendering

Microsoft has just launched the first Windows 11 Insider Preview build for the newly established Canary Channel. The build number is 25314, and it actually contains some of the same new features that are in the Dev Channel release. What’s new in Build 25314 Access Keys in File Explorer We are adding access key shortcuts into the XAML context menu in File Explorer. An access key is a one keystroke shortcut that allows a keyboard user to quickly execute a command in context menu. Each access key will correspond with a letter in the display name. It’s part of our effort to make File Explorer more accessible. To try this out, you can click on a file in File Explorer and press the menu key on your keyboard. NOTE: If you see the “pizza” icon on the command bar in File Explorer that denotes you are previewing the Windows App SDK version of File Explorer, you will not see this feature yet. [We are beginning to roll this out, so the experience isn’t available to all Insiders in the Canary Channel just yet as we plan to monitor feedback and see how it lands before pushing it out to everyone.] FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Files, Folders, and Online Storage > File Explorer. File Recommendations in File Explorer File Recommendations are coming to File Explorer Home to bring users the most relevant file content right to their fingertips. This feature (as pictured below) will be available to users signed into Windows with an Azure Active Directory (AAD) account. Files that are recommended will be cloud files associated with that account, either owned by the user, or shared with the user. [We are beginning to roll this out, so the experience isn’t available to all Insiders in the Canary Channel just yet as we plan to monitor feedback and see how it lands before pushing it out to everyone.] FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Files, Folders, and Online Storage > File Explorer. Introducing LSA Protection Enablement on Upgrade Local Security Authority (LSA) protection helps protect against theft of secrets and credentials used for logon by preventing unauthorized code from running in the LSA process and by preventing dumping of process memory. Starting with on upgrade, we will audit for a period of time to check for incompatibilities with LSA protection. If we do not detect any incompatibilities, we will automatically turn on LSA Protection. You can check and change the enablement state of LSA protection in the Windows Security application under the Device Security > Core Isolation page. LSA protection records whether programs are blocked from loading into LSA in the event log. If you would like to check if something has been blocked, information on the logs recorded is available here. Feedback: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN+F) under Security and Privacy > Logging Into Your PC. Narrator Outlook Support Narrator will now retrieve updates to its Outlook support when Narrator is started. You can learn more about the work we did for Outlook in Chapter 5 of the Narrator User Guide. We have not added any additional functionality to our Outlook support, but this work will allow updates to the Outlook experience to be made through the Microsoft Store. You will receive a notification after the download is completed to inform you that the update has been retrieved. With this change, Narrator’s Outlook support is limited to U.S. English only. Other languages will be supported in a future flight. FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Accessibility > Narrator. Changes and Improvements [General] To increase security in Windows 11, starting with this build and later we are disabling the Remote Mailslot Protocol by default. The legacy Remote Mailslot Protocol is a simple, unreliable, insecure, and unidirectional inter-process communications protocol between a client and server and was introduced in Windows NT 3.1 and will be deprecated in a future Windows release. If an application attempts to open a Remote Mailslot session over the SMB protocol, you may see one or more of the following errors: 3025 ERROR_REMOTE_MAILSLOTS_DEPRECATED “The requested operation failed. Remote mailslots have been deprecated.” If your application still uses Remote Mailslot, contact your vendor about updating their software. The legacy Remote Mailslot is not secure and should not be used under any circumstances. If you need to temporarily enable Remote Mailslot, run the following command in an elevated PowerShell console: PS C:\> Set-SmbClientConfiguration -EnableMailslots $true Microsoft warns people who want to check out the Canary Channel Windows 11 builds that they "could include major issues that could result in not being able to use your PC correctly or even in some rare cases require you to reinstall Windows." Microsoft may release more Canary Channel builds but it will not post new blogs announcing them unless they contain new features. Windows 11 Insider Build 25314 released as the first for the new Canary Channel

While Microsoft has released a new Windows 11 Insider Preview build for the Beta channel today, people who are on the Canary and Dev channels won't be getting new releases this week. That's according to a post on the official Windows Insiders Twitter page today as part of the Beta build reveal: The last Windows 11 Insider build for the Dev channel was released on March 8. Microsoft released the first build for Canary channel users on March 8 as well, and then released another build on March 10 that did not include any new features. It's likely that the Dev and Canary channels will both receive builds sometime next week. Microsoft also released its big Patch Tuesday update earlier this week for Windows 11 and Windows 10. Both contain a number of security updates including some that fixed holes that allowed ransomware to be distributed. No Windows 11 Insider Dev or Canary Channel updates this week

Microsoft has released the April 2023 non-security preview update for Windows 10 version 22H2. The build number for this preview update is 19045.2913 (KB5025297). It contains a number of improvements and some bug fixes. Here is the changelog: Highlights New! This update adds the ability to sync language and region settings when you change your Microsoft account display language or regional format. Windows will save those settings to your account if you have turned on Language preferences sync in your Windows backup settings. This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Edge IE mode. Pop-up windows open in the background instead of in the foreground. This update addresses an issue that affects Edge IE mode. The Tab Window Manager stops responding. This update changes the app icons for certain mobile providers. This update addresses an issue that affects the Chinese input method. You cannot see all of the first suggested item. This update affects Xbox Elite users who have the Xbox Adaptive Controller. This update applies your controller remapping preferences on the desktop. This update addresses an issue that might affect news and interests. It might flicker on the taskbar and File Explorer might stop responding. Improvements New! This update changes firewall settings. You can now configure application group rules. This update affects the Islamic Republic of Iran. The update supports the government’s daylight saving time change order from 2022. The update addresses an issue that sends unexpected password expiration notices to users. This occurs when you set up an account to use “Smart Card is Required for Interactive Logon” and set "Enable rolling of expiring NTLM secrets". This update addresses an issue that affects the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS) process. It might stop responding. Because of this, the machine restarts. The error is 0xc0000005 (STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION). This update addresses an issue that affects protected content. When you minimize a window that has protected content, the content displays when it should not. This occurs when you are using Taskbar Thumbnail Live Preview. This update addresses an issue that affects provisioning packages. They fail to apply in certain circumstances when elevation is required. This update addresses an issue that affects mobile device management (MDM) customers. The issue stops you from printing. This occurs because of an exception. This update addresses an issue that affects the Windows Defender Application Control. The policy that blocks software using a hash rule might not stop the software from running. This update addresses an issue that occurs when you use a PIN to sign in to Windows Hello for Business. Signing in to Remote Desktop Services might fail. The error message is, "The request is not supported". This update addresses an issue that might affect the keyboard layout when you sign in to a console session. The layout might be reset to the system default. This occurs when you lock your machine or have more than one keyboard layout in Settings. This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Edge WebView2. This issue might cause an infinite loop when you try to restart its process. This update addresses an issue that affects Administrator Account Lockout policies. GPResult and Resultant Set of Policy did not report them. This update addresses an issue that affects Active Directory Users & Computers. It stops responding. This occurs when you use TaskPad view to enable or disable many objects at the same time. This update addresses an issue that affects the Unified Write Filter (UWF). When you turn it off by using a call to Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), your device might stop responding. This update addresses an issue that affects the Resilient File System (ReFS). A stop error prevents the OS from starting up correctly. This update addresses an issue that affects MySQL commands. The commands fail on Windows Xenon containers. This update addresses an issue that affects SMB Direct. Endpoints might not be available on systems that use multi-byte character sets. This update addresses an issue that affects apps that use DirectX on older Intel graphics drivers. You might receive an error from apphelp.dll. If you installed earlier updates, only the new updates contained in this package will be downloaded and installed on your device. Windows 10 servicing stack update - 19045.2905 This update makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. Servicing stack updates (SSU) ensure that you have a robust and reliable servicing stack so that your devices can receive and install Microsoft updates. Symptoms Workaround Devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge. This issue is only encountered when custom offline media or ISO images are created by slipstreaming this update into the image without having first installed the standalone servicing stack update (SSU) released March 29, 2021 or later. Note Devices that connect directly to Windows Update to receive updates are not affected. This includes devices using Windows Update for Business. Any device connecting to Windows Update should always receive the latest versions of the SSU and latest cumulative update (LCU) without any extra steps. To avoid this issue, be sure to first slipstream the SSU released March 29, 2021 or later into the custom offline media or ISO image before slipstreaming the LCU. To do this with the combined SSU and LCU packages now used for Windows 10, version 20H2 and Windows 10, version 2004, you will need to extract the SSU from the combined package. Use the following steps to extract the SSU: Extract the cab from the msu via this command line (using the package for KB5000842 as an example): expand Windows10.0-KB5000842-x64.msu /f:Windows10.0-KB5000842-x64.cab Extract the SSU from the previously extracted cab via this command line: expand Windows10.0-KB5000842-x64.cab /f:* You will then have the SSU cab, in this example named SSU-19041.903-x64.cab. Slipstream this file into your offline image first, then the LCU. If you have already encountered this issue by installing the OS using affected custom media, you can mitigate it by directly installing the new Microsoft Edge. If you need to broadly deploy the new Microsoft Edge for business, see Download and deploy Microsoft Edge for business. You can view the changelog here. Keep in mind that older versions of Windows 10 are no longer receiving feature and improvement updates and they will only get security patches from now on. Windows 10 April 2023 non-security preview build 19045.2913 released

Microsoft has released the April 2023 non-security preview version of the Windows 11 22H2 update, with the build number 22621.1635 (KB5025305). This preview version of the update has a number of new features, along with many improvements. Here is the changelog: Highlights New! This update adds animations to a few icons on the Widgets taskbar button. These animations turn on when: A new announcement appears on the Widgets taskbar button. You hover over or click the Widgets taskbar button. New! This update adds a new toggle control on the Settings > Windows Update page. When you turn it on, we will prioritize your device to get the latest non-security updates and enhancements when they are available for your device. For managed devices, the toggle is disabled by default. For more information, see Get Windows updates as soon as they're available for your device. This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Edge IE mode. Pop-up windows open in the background instead of in the foreground. This update addresses an issue that affects the Chinese input method. You cannot see all of the first suggested item. Improvements This non-security update includes quality improvements. When you install this KB: New! This update changes firewall settings. You can now configure application group rules. This update affects the Islamic Republic of Iran. The update supports the government’s daylight saving time change order from 2022. This update addresses an issue that affects the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS) process. It might stop responding. Because of this, the machine restarts. The error is 0xc0000005 (STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION). This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Edge IE mode. The Tab Window Manager stops responding. This update addresses an issue that affects protected content. When you minimize a window that has protected content, the content displays when it should not. This occurs when you are using Taskbar Thumbnail Live Preview. This update addresses an issue that affects mobile device management (MDM) customers. The issue stops you from printing. This occurs because of an exception. This update changes the app icons for certain mobile providers. This update addresses an issue that affects signed Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC) policies. They are not applied to the Secure Kernel. This occurs when you enable Secure Boot. This update addresses an issue that displays Task View in the wrong area. This occurs when you close a full screen game by pressing Win+Tab. This update addresses an issue that occurs when you use a PIN to sign in to Windows Hello for Business. Signing in to Remote Desktop Services might fail. The error message is, "The request is not supported". This update addresses an issue that affects Administrator Account Lockout policies. GPResult and Resultant Set of Policy did not report them. This update addresses an issue that affects the Unified Write Filter (UWF). When you turn it off by using a call to Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), your device might stop responding. This update addresses an issue that affects the Resilient File System (ReFS). A stop error occurs that stops the OS from starting up correctly. This update addresses an issue that affects MySQL commands. The commands fail on Windows Xenon containers. This update addresses an issue that affects SMB Direct. Endpoints might not be available on systems that use multi-byte character sets. This update addresses an issue that affects apps that use DirectX on older Intel graphics drivers. You might receive an error from apphelp.dll. If you installed earlier updates, only the new updates contained in this package will be downloaded and installed on your device. Windows 11 servicing stack update - 22621.1626 This update makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. Servicing stack updates (SSU) ensure that you have a robust and reliable servicing stack so that your devices can receive and install Microsoft updates. Symptom Using provisioning packages on Windows 11, version 22H2 (also called Windows 11 2022 Update) might not work as expected. Windows might only be partially configured, and the Out Of Box Experience might not finish or might restart unexpectedly. Provisioning packages are .PPKG files which are used to help configure new devices for use on business or school networks. Provisioning packages which are applied during initial setup are most likely to be impacted by this issue. For more information on provisioning packages, please see Provisioning packages for Windows. Note Provisioning Windows devices using Windows Autopilot is not affected by this issue. Windows devices used by consumers in their home or small offices are not likely to be affected by this issue. Workaround If you can provision the Windows device before upgrading to Windows 11, version 22H2, this will prevent the issue. We are presently investigating and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Symptom Copying large multiple gigabyte (GB) files might take longer than expected to finish on Windows 11, version 22H2. You are more likely to experience this issue copying files to Windows 11, version 22H2 from a network share via Server Message Block (SMB) but local file copy might also be affected.Windows devices used by consumers in their home or small offices are not likely to be affected by this issue. Workaround To mitigate this issue, you can use file copy tools that do not use cache manager (buffered I/O). This can be done by using the built-in command-line tools listed below: robocopy \\someserver\someshare c:\somefolder somefile.img /J or xcopy \\someserver\someshare c:\somefolder /J We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. You can check out the full changelog here. Windows 11 April 2023 non-security preview build 22621.1635 released

Microsoft has released a new preview version for Windows 10 (KB5022906) with builds 19042.2673, 19044.2673, and 19045.2673. The new preview opens the informational links faster on Windows Spotlight on the Windows 10 lock screen. It also fixes some bugs, including one that stops hyperlinks from working in Microsoft Excel, and another that stops video playback on an unnamed streaming app after it runs an ad. As we have mentioned in the past, Microsoft will no longer release optional non-security updates for Windows 10, versions 20H2 and 21H2 after March 2023, with only cumulative monthly security updates being released for those versions. Windows 10, version 22H2 will still get security and optional updates after March. Here are the release highlights of the new KB5022906 update: New! This update improves your experience when you use Windows Spotlight on your lock screen. The informational links open faster. This update addresses an issue that affects IE mode. The text on the status bar is not always visible. This update addresses accessibility issues. They affect Narrator on the Settings home page. This update addresses an issue that stops hyperlinks from working in Microsoft Excel. This update addresses an issue that affects a certain streaming app. The issue stops video playback after an advertisement plays in the app. You can also check out the full change log for the preview build This update addresses an issue that affects the Appx State Repository. When you remove a user profile, the cleanup is incomplete. Because of this, its database grows as time passes. This growth might cause delays when users sign in to multi-user environments like FSLogix. This update affects the United Mexican States. This update supports the government’s daylight saving time change order for 2023. This update addresses a resource conflict issue between two or more threads (known as a deadlock). This deadlock affects COM+ applications. This update addresses an issue that affects cbs.log. This issue logs messages that are not error messages in cbs.log. This update improves how the Remove-Item cmdlet works for Microsoft OneDrive folders. This update addresses an issue that affects AppV. It stops file names from having the correct letter case (uppercase or lowercase). This update addresses an issue that affects Microsoft Edge. The issue removes conflicting policies for Microsoft Edge. This occurs when you set the MDMWinsOverGPFlag in a Microsoft Intune tenant and Intune detects a policy conflict. This update addresses an issue that affects Azure Active Directory (Azure AD). Using a provisioning package for bulk provisioning fails. This update addresses an issue that affects MSInfo.exe. It does not correctly report the enforcement status of the Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC) user mode policy. This update addresses an issue that affects the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS). LSASS might stop responding. This occurs after you run Sysprep on a domain-joined machine. This update addresses an issue that affects virtual machines (VM). They stop responding when you add a new disk to a storage pool in thin provisioning scenarios. There is one known issue with this build: Symptoms Workaround Devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge. This issue is only encountered when custom offline media or ISO images are created by slipstreaming this update into the image without having first installed the standalone servicing stack update (SSU) released March 29, 2021 or later. Note: Devices that connect directly to Windows Update to receive updates are not affected. This includes devices using Windows Update for Business. Any device connecting to Windows Update should always receive the latest versions of the SSU and latest cumulative update (LCU) without any extra steps. To avoid this issue, be sure to first slipstream the SSU released March 29, 2021 or later into the custom offline media or ISO image before slipstreaming the LCU. To do this with the combined SSU and LCU packages now used for Windows 10, version 20H2 and Windows 10, version 2004, you will need to extract the SSU from the combined package. Use the following steps to extract the SSU: Extract the cab from the msu via this command line (using the package for KB5000842 as an example): expand Windows10.0-KB5000842-x64.msu /f:Windows10.0-KB5000842-x64.cab Extract the SSU from the previously extracted cab via this command line: expand Windows10.0-KB5000842-x64.cab /f:* You will then have the SSU cab, in this example named SSU-19041.903-x64.cab. Slipstream this file into your offline image first, then the LCU. If you have already encountered this issue by installing the OS using affected custom media, you can mitigate it by directly installing the new Microsoft Edge. If you need to broadly deploy the new Microsoft Edge for business, see Download and deploy Microsoft Edge for business. The update is available for these Windows 10 versions Windows 10 Enterprise Multi-Session, version 20H2 Windows 10 Enterprise and Education, version 20H2 Windows 10 IoT Enterprise, version 20H2 Windows 10 on Surface Hub Windows 10 version 21H2, all editions Windows 10, version 22H2, all editions How to get the update You can search for this update in Windows Update by going to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update. In the Optional updates available area, you’ll find the link to download and install the update, or download the update manually from Microsoft Update Catalog here. To know more about this update, head over to the support article on Microsoft's official website here. Windows 10 Preview (KB5022906) is out with Windows Spotlight improvements and more

Today, Microsoft has announced that the first preview of its next long-term support (LTS) release of the .NET platform, .NET 8, is available to download for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Preview and release candidate builds for the new version will be delivered monthly and the final release will arrive in November at .NET Conf 2023. There will be a large swathe of features and upgrades that will come as a part of this new version, but the announcement post goes into general detail of a few of the upcoming changes and additions, and Preview 1 includes some of these to try today, such as: Native Ahead-of-Time (AOT) - The first of these features were shipped with .NET 7 last year, however there will be more refinements to this platform, with it coming to macOS for the first time, as part of .NET 8. The main focus of the .NET team is to refine some fundamentals such as size, an example being a "Hello, World" app that has been published with Native AOT being half the size when using .NET 8 Preview 1 in comparison to .NET 7. .NET Container images - Preview 1 includes improvements to how container images can be used for .NET applications, including updating the default Linux distro to Debian 12 (Bookworm). It also includes a tagging change (using 8.0-preview and not 8.0 which will start with Release Candidates), and the ability for container images to be non-root user capable. Jeremy Likness, the Principal Program Manager for .NET, wraps up the post saying that ".NET 8 Preview 1 is a testament to the power of collaboration between a diverse team of engineers at Microsoft and a highly engaged open source community." You can download the first preview of .NET 8.0 here, and find more details on the release notes as they happen on GitHub. Microsoft announces .NET 8 Preview 1, available to download today

A few days ago, Microsoft released an Office Preview Build for Insiders in the Current Channel, adding several new features and changes. Microsoft has also released a new Office Preview Build for Beta Channel Insiders, though with no new features and changes. The latest Office Preview Build 15407.20000 includes only bug fixes for issues found in Excel, Outlook, and Office Suite. You can check out the complete official changelog to learn more about them. Changelog Microsoft’s recently-released Office Insider Build 15330.20114 for Current Channel Insiders on Windows added new features for Outlook, Office Suite, and Excel. It allows you to add SketchUp files to your Office creations. The latest build also introduces From Dataflows connector, allowing users to connect and import data from dataflows directly into Excel. Microsoft releases a new Office update monthly for Beta Channel subscribers on Windows, adding new features and changes. Microsoft is also expected to release a new Office Insider Build for the Beta Channel Insiders next month. We’ll keep you updated if we find anything interesting in the update. To update the Microsoft Office Insider Preview Build to the latest version, open any Office program and go to File> Account> Update Options> Update Now. Microsoft releases Office Insider Preview Build 15407.20000 for Windows users

Microsoft has released a new Office Insider Preview Build for Windows users. The new Office Insider Build 15227.20000 is rolling out to those subscribed to the Beta channel. It comes with several new features for OneNote, Excel, Access, and Office Suite. However, the official changelog includes no performance improvements. The latest Microsoft Office Insider Build adds support for the voice dictation feature in OneNote, making it possible for the users to dictate their notes with the help of their voices. The Dictate microphone icon appears on the home tab. Microsoft Excel is now more optimized for devices with “constrained resources.” Excel will run better on devices that have two cores or less and eight gigabytes of RAM or less because it now runs calculations on a single thread. You can also change the setting in the Advanced tab. Another useful change in this update is that Microsoft has sped up the time required for entering a formula in a cell by reducing memory usage, making more efficient memory allocation calls, and optimizing the redrawing of the visible range around the cell being edited. The faster AutoFilter function is also an important feature of this update. Moreover, Microsoft has introduced a new sign-in option in Office Suite to allow guest users to access documents that have been shared with them on their desktop Office applications. The feature was previously available for Office on the Web and is now available for desktop applications. You can read the complete official changelog below to learn more about these new features. Changelog Microsoft releases a new Office update every week for Beta Channel subscribers on Windows, adding new features and changes. Microsoft is also expected to release a new Office Insider Build next week. We’ll keep you updated if we find anything interesting in the update. To update the Microsoft Office Insider Preview Build to the latest version, open any Office program and go to File> Account> Update Options> Update Now. Microsoft Office Insiders gets several new features with the latest update

Windows 11 preview build installs failing due to system requirements The first Windows 11 preview build has been released, and users are reporting being unable to install it for not meeting minimum system requirements. Last week, Microsoft announced that Windows 11 is their next version of Windows and that Windows Insiders would get their first chance of testing the preview builds this week. As part of this announcement, Microsoft also released the Windows 11 hardware requirements, which state that a TPM 2.0 security processor is required to upgrade or install Windows 11. This requirement caused quite an uproar as it would cause many computers which run Windows 10 perfectly to no longer be compatible with Windows 11. However, Microsoft stated that Windows Insiders who are already running in the 'Dev' channel could still install the Windows 11 preview builds even if they don't meet minimum system requirements. "While we recommend that all PCs meet the full hardware requirements for Windows 11, we are allowing some limited exceptions as we apply these new restrictions." "All Windows Insiders who have already been installing builds from the Dev Channel on their PCs up through June 24, 2021 will be allowed to continue installing Windows 11 Insider Preview builds even if their PC does not meet the minimum hardware requirements." Today, Microsoft released the Windows 11 Preview build 22000.51 to Windows Insiders in the 'Dev' channel. Windows 11 preview available in Windows Update For devices that do not meet the minimum system requirements, the Windows Insider Program settings warns: "Your PC does meet the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 11. Your device may continue to receive Insider Preview builds until Windows 11 is generally available, at which time it is recommended to clean install to Windows 10." Windows Insider program settings However, when existing users in the 'Dev' channel try to install the preview build, a setup program is launched called 'WindowsUpdateBox.exe' that states that the device does not meet hardware requirements. This error is shown even for users on the 'Dev' channel who were told they could still install the Windows 11 preview builds. Windows 11 does not meet hardware requirements Even more frustrating is that users receive messages about missing system requirements even if they use modern hardware such as an RTX 3060 and a 10th generation Intel CPU. BleepingComputer has reached out to Microsoft about these issues but has not heard back at this time. Windows 11 preview build installs failing due to system requirements

Windows 11 preview build 22000.51 released - here's how to download Microsoft has released the first preview build of Windows 11 today, build 22000.51, to Insiders in the Dev channel of the Windows Insider program. For those unfamiliar, Windows Insider Program allows interested fans, enthusiasts, professionals, developers and even Enterprise users to test the upcoming Windows 10 and Windows 11 versions before they are released. By joining Windows Insider program, you can download early preview builds of Windows 11 and send feedback about bugs, UI issues, problems with new features, and compatibility issues. How the Windows Insider Program works To get started with the Windows 10 Insider Program, you need to signup for the program here and follow these steps: Open Settings. Navigate to Update & security and then select the Windows Insider program settings. Click the Get started button to begin joining the Windows 10 Insider Program Register your Microsoft account with the Windows Insider Program. After your account is linked, you will be prompted to select a Ring. To download Windows 11, select the Dev channel. Restart Windows when prompted. Once you have restarted Windows, you can perform a check for new Windows updates and if any new Insider builds or updates are available you will now be prompted to install them. To stop getting new Windows 11 Insider preview builds, you can follow these steps. Open Settings. Navigate to Update & security and then select the Windows Insider program settings. At this screen, you should now enable "Stop getting preview builds". Select “Stop Insider Preview Builds” Restart Windows when prompted. Known issues in Windows 11 Build 22000.51 Microsoft is currently aware of the following known issues: When upgrading to Windows 11 from Windows 10 or when installing an update to Windows 11, some features may be deprecated or removed. See details here. Taskbar: Taskbar will not be shown across multiple monitors but will return in an upcoming build. The preview window may not display the entire window when hovering over Task View on the taskbar. Settings: When upgrading a device with multiple user accounts to Windows 11, Settings will fail to launch. A small set of Settings legacy pages as well as fit and finish bugs will be addressed in future releases. The ‘Power mode’ setting does not show up on the Power & battery page. When launching the Settings app, a brief green flash may appear. When using Quick Settings to modify Accessibility settings, the settings UI may not save the selected state. Start: In some cases, you might be unable to enter text when using Search from Start or the taskbar. If you experience the issue, press Win + R on the keyboard to launch the Run dialog box, then close it. We’re working on fixing an issue that’s preventing unpinning apps from Start, making the command bar in File Explorer disappear, or hiding snap. To work around these, restart your PC. Search: App icons in the Search panel may do not load, and instead appear as gray squares. When hovering your mouse over the Search icon on the taskbar, the third recent search does not load and remains blank. After clicking the Search icon taskbar, the Search panel may not open. If this occurs, restart the “Windows Explorer” process, and open the search panel again. When you hover your mouse over the Search icon on the taskbar, recent searches may not be displayed. To work around the issue, restart your device. Search panel might appear as black and not display any content below the search box. Widgets: System text scaling will scale all widgets proportionally and may result in cropped widgets. Launching links from the widgets board may not invoke apps to the foreground. When using screen reader/Narrator in widgets may not properly announce content Widgets board may appear empty. To work around the issue, you can sign out and then sign back in again. When using the Outlook client with a Microsoft account, Calendar, and To Do changes may not sync to the widgets in real time. Widgets may be displayed in the wrong size on external monitors. If you encounter this, you can launch the widgets via touch or WIN + W shortcut on your actual device monitor first and then launch on your secondary monitors. After adding multiple widgets quickly from the widgets settings, some of the widgets may not be visible on the board. Store: The install button might not be functional yet in some limited scenarios. Rating and reviews are not available for some apps. Windows 11 preview build 22000.51 released - here's how to download