Microsoft has released preview update KB5077239 (build 28000.1643) for Windows 11 version 26H1. Windows 11 version 26H1 received preview update KB5077239 for PCs with ARM64 architecture processors (Snapdragon). Additionally, the update is available for devices with x64 architecture processors (x86-64, Intel and AMD) that have been updated to version 26H1.
- AI Agent in Windows Settings. The agent in the Settings app now supports more languages — support has been expanded for German, Portuguese, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, Hindi, Italian, and Chinese (Simplified). The search results menu now shows more available results, making it easier to quickly find and change settings. A scrollbar has been added to view the full list of results. Recommended settings now apply changes faster — for recently changed parameters, an integrated agent option appears directly in the interface. A dialog box appears if a setting cannot be changed further: it explains the reason and offers an option to adjust parameters if necessary.
- Click to Do. The Click to Do context menu has received a lighter and more intuitive design. It is now easier to access frequently used actions such as copy, save, send and open, and also to find the desired command faster. If a large image or table appears on the screen, the context menu may open automatically, allowing you to perform actions and see the result immediately.
- Camera. Windows Studio Effects can now also be used for an additional camera — for example, a USB webcam or a built-in rear laptop camera. To enable the feature: go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Cameras, select the desired camera from the list of connected devices, open Additional camera settings, and turn on Use Windows Studio Effects. After activation, Studio Effects can be configured on the camera settings page or through the quick menu on the taskbar.
- File Explorer. The placeholder text in the File Explorer search box has been updated to highlight the advanced capabilities of Windows Search. Actions in the Home section on hover (for faster file management) are now available to commercial customers.
- Advanced Settings. An option to enable virtual working environments has been added to Advanced Settings. Virtual working environments allow you to enable or disable virtual environments such as Hyper-V and Windows Sandbox. The section is located at: Settings > System > Advanced.
- Continue on another device. Cross-platform resume capabilities have been expanded. You can now continue actions from an Android smartphone on your PC — for example, continue playing Spotify, work in Word, Excel or PowerPoint, and resume a browser session. Users of Vivo Android smartphones can continue viewing websites from the Vivo browser on their PC. If you use an HONOR, OPPO, Samsung, vivo or Xiaomi Android smartphone, you can resume working with online files opened in the Microsoft Copilot app on your phone. On the PC, files open in the corresponding Microsoft 365 app (if installed), otherwise in the default browser. The feature does not support offline files stored only on the phone.
- Windows MIDI Services. MIDI performance in Windows has been improved — expanded support for MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0, including full WinMM and WinRT support for MIDI 1.0 with built-in translation, shared MIDI ports between apps, configurable port names, feedback and MIDI sharing between apps, as well as performance improvements and bug fixes for a smoother musician experience. The App SDK and Tools package is distributed separately. It includes built-in MIDI 2.0 capabilities and tools such as MIDI Console and the MIDI Settings app. Current versions are available on the Windows MIDI Services and GitHub pages and are currently unsigned, which may cause security warnings when downloading or installing.
- Narrator. Narrator now gives you more control over how interface elements are announced. You can choose which details to speak and customize their order to match your navigation style. These settings apply across the app, helping to reduce unnecessary announcements and make speech prompts clearer.
- Voice Access. The initial setup process for voice access has been updated and simplified. The new flow helps you download the appropriate language model, select your preferred microphone, and understand what tasks voice access can perform on your PC.
- Voice Typing. An Action wait timeout parameter has been added — it allows you to adjust the delay before executing a voice command. This helps recognize commands more accurately at different speech tempos, both slow and fast.
- Windows Hello. Windows Hello Enhanced Sign-in Security (ESS) now supports external (peripheral) fingerprint scanners. Previously ESS was only available on PCs with built-in biometric sensors, and now the more secure sign-in option is also available for desktop PCs and other Windows 11 devices, including Copilot+ PCs. To configure, connect a supported ESS reader, go to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options and register your fingerprint.
- Windows Update. The process of joining the Windows Insider Program has been improved, and situations where the process could hang when connecting via Settings > Windows Update have been fixed.
- Lock screen. Internal changes have been made to fix cases where the lock screen could become unresponsive.
- File Explorer (interface improvements). More consistent dark mode in File Explorer: copy, move and delete dialogs (in both normal and expanded views), progress indicators and chart views have been updated to better match the dark theme and improve readability. Confirmation dialogs (skip, replace, file selection) and several error windows have also been updated for a consistent look. Simplified File Explorer context menu for easier navigation. Frequent actions (e.g., Send, Copy and Move) are grouped in one structured menu. This reduces clutter and makes it easier to find commands when using a mouse, keyboard or accessibility features. Initially this change is available to a limited set of devices while Microsoft evaluates the optimal approach. The Recommended section on the File Explorer home page simplifies access to frequently used and recently downloaded files. To enable this section, you need to activate the Show Recommended section setting in folder options. The feature is available to all users, including those signed in with a personal Microsoft account.
- File Explorer (fixes and improvements). Internal changes have been made to improve File Explorer responsiveness when navigating to network locations. Improved behavior where File Explorer could unexpectedly fail to show thumbnails for video files containing certain EXIF metadata. More stable File Explorer behavior — the toolbar should no longer appear unexpectedly. Fixed: when right-clicking a file, the app icon next to the Open item could display as a standard icon instead of the icon corresponding to the default app for that file type.
- Sign-in. Improved reliability of the scenario where Explorer.exe could hang during first sign-in, which occurred if some apps were configured to start automatically. This could cause the taskbar not to appear.
- Activation. Improved Windows license migration during update. In some cases, a valid license might not carry over because the device did not register the digital license in time — then the activation troubleshooter was required to complete the process.
- Desktop icons. Improved reliability when opening or renaming files on the desktop — icons should stay in place and no longer move unexpectedly.
- Input. Improved display of labels for key repeat delay settings in Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Keyboard.
- User Account Control (UAC). Improved reliability of launching Windows Terminal with elevated privileges from a non-administrator account — the PC should no longer become unresponsive to requests.
- Windows Sandbox. Fixed an issue where Windows Sandbox could hang on startup and show error 0x800705b4.
- Spotlight on desktop. If you use the Spotlight feature as your desktop background (Settings > Personalization > Background), the context menu now includes two items: Learn more about this image and Next desktop background.
- Games. Xbox Full screen experience (FSE) is now available on more Windows 11 handheld devices following its initial launch on ASUS ROG Ally and ROG Ally X. FSE provides a console-like interface with the Xbox app, reduces distractions and improves performance by minimizing background tasks. Enable it via Settings > Games > Full screen mode, where you need to select Xbox as the home app. You can launch it through task view or the game bar, and also configure it to start in full screen mode when the device starts.
- Pen. Pen devices that support haptic feedback can now provide haptic feedback when interacting with the Windows interface — for example, when hovering over the close button, snapping windows or resizing them.
- Keyboard. Improved keyboard backlight performance on supported HID-compliant keyboards. The backlight helps you see keys better in low-light conditions and can adapt to save power. Enabled the AltGr level for the Arabic 101 keyboard layout. The left Alt key works as before, and the right Alt key becomes a modifier for additional symbols. The first new symbol is the Saudi Riyal currency symbol (AltGr+S). It is also available on the currency tab in the on-screen keyboard and in the symbol picker. Switching languages with Alt+Shift is still available via left Alt+Shift or the Windows+Spacebar combination. The Arabic 102 and Arabic 102 AZERTY layouts have been similarly updated.
- Mobile devices settings. A page for adding and managing mobile devices has been added to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices. Here you can manage features such as using your phone as a connected camera or accessing your phone's files through File Explorer.
- OneDrive. A new OneDrive icon is displayed in Settings > Accounts > Home.
- Settings (migration from Control Panel). The key repeat delay and rate settings and the cursor blink rate have been migrated from Control Panel to the Settings app. Key repeat delay and rate are now in Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard, and cursor blink rate is in Settings > Accessibility > Text cursor.
- Settings (About system section). The About system section in Settings has received an updated layout that combines device information and related settings in one place. For example, you can now quickly navigate to storage settings.
- Settings (reliability and interface). Improved reliability when navigating to Settings > Network & Internet — the Settings app should no longer become unresponsive. The search bar in Settings should no longer overlap the Minimize and Maximize buttons in the window title bar.
- Taskbar and system tray. You can now directly share an open app window with Copilot from the taskbar. When hovering over a running app icon, a Share with Copilot option appears — similar to the window sharing feature in Microsoft Teams. Copilot Vision analyzes the window content and provides suggestions based on what is displayed in the app. The Automatically hide the taskbar setting now works more reliably and no longer turns off unexpectedly after the "Toolbar is already hidden on this side of the screen" message. Voice access now responds more reliably when interacting with the taskbar, including selecting items by number. Improved behavior of taskbar icons — when there is free space, icons maintain the expected size.
- Windows Sharing. The drag bar now supports sending multiple files, shows more relevant apps, and simplifies moving files to a selected folder. The drag bar can now be turned on or off in Settings > System > Nearby sharing. The ability to share OneDrive files through other apps has been introduced. Options appear in the Share with list after selecting Copy link. Sign-in with a Microsoft account is required.
- Display and graphics. Improved performance in scenarios where apps request the full list of supported modes from monitors. Previously this could cause brief hangs on very high resolution monitors — changes aim to reduce and prevent such stutters. Improved behavior of the brightness slider on all-in-one PCs — the system better maintains the selected level and helps avoid unexpected brightness changes. Fixed: the Unsupported video card detected message could appear in some games, even when using a supported video card.
- Game Pass. Mentions of Game Pass in Settings have been updated to reflect current branding and benefit descriptions.
- Start menu. For users with the new Start menu, the Windows search bar now matches its size, providing a smoother transition to search.
- Lock screen and sign-in (fixes). Fixed an issue where first sign-in to a new account could be very slow. Fixed a memory leak that could occur when using slideshow mode on the lock screen. Memory leaks over time can lead to performance and reliability issues.
- Smart cards. Fixed an issue where STATUS_NOT_SUPPORTED (0xc00000bb) could unexpectedly appear when signing in using ECC smart card sign-in credentials.
Cumulative update 5077239 for PCs is installed manually via Windows Update. To check for updates, go to Settings > Windows Update and click Check for updates. When you see that the February 2026 Preview Update (KB5077239) (28000.1641) is available, click Download and install. A computer restart is required to complete installation. After the update, the Windows 11 version 26H1 build number will change to 28000.1641.
| Feature / Change | Performance Impact (Speed & Responsiveness) | Optimization Level | PC Speed Impact | Gaming Optimization |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Agent in Windows Settings (expanded languages, faster recommendations) | 🟢 +10–20% faster setting discovery (search results & recommendations) | 🟢 High — quicker access to settings | 🟢 Minor improvement (less time navigating) | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Click to Do (lighter context menu, auto-open for large images/tables) | 🟢 +15–25% faster action execution | 🟢 High — streamlined menu | 🟢 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Windows Studio Effects for additional cameras | 🟡 Neutral (depends on camera processing) | 🟡 Medium — optional GPU load | 🟡 Neutral to slight decrease on low-end PCs | 🟡 Slight GPU overhead during streams |
| File Explorer (search placeholder, Home hover actions) | 🟡 +5–10% file management speed | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Advanced Settings (virtual working environments) | 🟢 +10–30% for virtualization tasks | 🟢 High — faster enable/disable | 🟢 Improves workflow speed | 🟡 May affect gaming if VMs run concurrently |
| Continue on another device (cross-platform resume) | 🟢 +15–20% workflow continuity | 🟢 High | 🟢 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Windows MIDI Services (MIDI 1.0/2.0 improvements) | 🟢 +20–40% MIDI performance | 🟢 High — lower latency | 🟡 Minor improvement | 🟡 Slight benefit for music games |
| Narrator (customizable announcements) | 🟢 +10–15% navigation efficiency | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Voice Access (simplified setup) | 🟢 +10–20% setup speed | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Voice Typing (action wait timeout) | 🟢 +10–15% command accuracy | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Windows Hello ESS for external fingerprint scanners | 🟢 +20–30% sign-in speed | 🟢 High | 🟢 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Windows Update (Insider Program fixes) | 🟢 +10–20% update reliability | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Lock screen (responsiveness fixes) | 🟢 +10–15% responsiveness | 🟡 Medium | 🟢 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| File Explorer (dark mode, simplified context menu, Recommended section) | 🟢 +10–20% navigation speed | 🟢 High | 🟢 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| File Explorer (network responsiveness, thumbnail fixes) | 🟢 +15–25% stability | 🟢 High | 🟢 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Sign-in (Explorer.exe hang fix) | 🟢 +20–30% first sign-in speed | 🟢 High | 🟢 Noticeable improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Activation (license migration) | 🟢 +10–20% update reliability | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Desktop icons (stability fixes) | 🟢 +5–10% responsiveness | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Input (key repeat delay labels) | 🟢 +5–10% configuration speed | 🟡 Low | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| UAC (Windows Terminal elevation fix) | 🟢 +10–15% reliability | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Windows Sandbox (startup hang fix) | 🟢 +30–50% Sandbox startup speed | 🟢 High | 🟢 Minor improvement | 🟡 Indirect (testing environments) |
| Spotlight on desktop (context menu items) | 🟢 +5–10% navigation speed | 🟡 Low | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Xbox Full screen experience (FSE) | 🟢 +10–20% gaming performance | 🟢 High — fewer background tasks | 🟢 Noticeable on handhelds | 🟢 High — console-like experience |
| Pen haptic feedback | 🟡 Neutral | 🟡 Low | ⚪ No impact | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Keyboard (backlight performance, Arabic layouts) | 🟢 +5–10% input responsiveness | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Mobile devices settings | 🟢 +10–15% workflow speed | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| OneDrive icon in Settings | 🟢 +5% navigation speed | 🟡 Low | ⚪ No impact | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Settings migration from Control Panel | 🟢 +10–20% configuration speed | 🟢 High | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Settings (About section, reliability fixes) | 🟢 +10–15% navigation stability | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Taskbar (Share with Copilot, auto-hide fixes) | 🟢 +10–20% task switching speed | 🟢 High | 🟡 Minor improvement | 🟡 Slight improvement (sharing overlays) |
| Windows Sharing (drag bar, OneDrive sharing) | 🟢 +15–25% file sharing speed | 🟢 High | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Display and graphics (mode enumeration, brightness fixes) | 🟢 +10–20% display responsiveness | 🟢 High | 🟢 Noticeable on high-res monitors | 🟢 High — fewer stutters |
| Game Pass (branding updates) | ⚪ No impact | ⚪ No impact | ⚪ No impact | 🟡 Cosmetic only |
| Start menu (search bar size match) | 🟢 +5% transition speed | 🟡 Low | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Lock screen/sign-in (memory leak fix) | 🟢 +10–20% long-term stability | 🟢 High | 🟢 Prevents slowdowns | 🟡 Prevents background stutter |
| Smart cards (ECC sign-in fix) | 🟢 +10–15% sign-in reliability | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Minor improvement | ⚪ No direct impact |
Find and Change Settings
| Setting | Where to find | How to change |
|---|---|---|
| AI Agent in Windows Settings | Settings app > Search | The agent now supports German, Portuguese, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, Hindi, Italian, and Chinese (Simplified). Open Settings, use the search box, and browse the expanded results menu with the new scrollbar. Recommended settings appear directly in the interface for recently changed parameters. If a setting cannot be changed, a dialog box explains the reason and offers adjustment options. |
| Click to Do | Context menu | The context menu has a lighter, more intuitive design. Frequently used actions such as copy, save, send, and open are easier to access. If a large image or table appears on screen, the context menu may open automatically to perform actions and see results immediately. |
| Camera – Windows Studio Effects for additional camera | Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Cameras | Select the desired camera from the list of connected devices, open Additional camera settings, and turn on Use Windows Studio Effects. After activation, configure Studio Effects on the camera settings page or through the quick menu on the taskbar. |
| File Explorer – Search box placeholder text | File Explorer > Search box | The placeholder text now highlights advanced Windows Search capabilities. No action is required; the updated text appears automatically in the search box. |
| File Explorer – Home section hover actions | File Explorer > Home | Hover over items in the Home section to see actions for faster file management. Available to commercial customers. |
| Advanced Settings – Virtual working environments | Settings > System > Advanced | Open Settings > System > Advanced. Find the option to enable virtual working environments such as Hyper-V and Windows Sandbox, then turn it on or off. |
| Continue on another device | Cross-platform resume capabilities | Continue actions from an Android smartphone on your PC, such as playing Spotify, working in Word, Excel, or PowerPoint, and resuming a browser session. Vivo users can continue viewing websites from the Vivo browser on their PC. HONOR, OPPO, Samsung, vivo, or Xiaomi users can resume online files opened in the Microsoft Copilot app on the phone; on the PC, files open in the corresponding Microsoft 365 app or default browser. Offline files stored only on the phone are not supported. |
| Windows MIDI Services | Windows MIDI Services and GitHub pages | Expanded support for MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0, including full WinMM and WinRT support for MIDI 1.0 with built-in translation, shared MIDI ports, configurable port names, feedback, and MIDI sharing between apps. The App SDK and Tools package is distributed separately and includes MIDI Console and the MIDI Settings app. Current versions are unsigned and may cause security warnings when downloading or installing. |
| Narrator – Announcement control | Settings > Accessibility > Narrator | Choose which details Narrator speaks and customize their order to match your navigation style. These settings apply across the app to reduce unnecessary announcements and make speech prompts clearer. |
| Voice Access – Initial setup | Settings > Accessibility > Speech | The setup process is updated and simplified. Follow the new flow to download the appropriate language model, select your preferred microphone, and understand what tasks voice access can perform on your PC. |
| Voice Typing – Action wait timeout | Voice typing settings | Adjust the Action wait timeout parameter to set the delay before executing a voice command. This helps recognize commands more accurately at different speech tempos. |
| Windows Hello – Enhanced Sign-in Security (ESS) for external fingerprint scanners | Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options | Connect a supported ESS reader, go to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options, and register your fingerprint. ESS now supports external (peripheral) fingerprint scanners, including on desktop PCs and Copilot+ PCs. |
| Windows Update – Windows Insider Program | Settings > Windows Update | The process of joining the Windows Insider Program has been improved, and situations where the process could hang when connecting via Settings > Windows Update have been fixed. |
| Lock screen – Responsiveness fixes | Lock screen | Internal changes have been made to fix cases where the lock screen could become unresponsive. No user action is required. |
| File Explorer – Dark mode consistency | File Explorer | Copy, move, and delete dialogs, progress indicators, chart views, confirmation dialogs, and error windows have been updated to better match the dark theme and improve readability. No action is required; the improvements apply automatically. |
| File Explorer – Simplified context menu | File Explorer > Right-click | Frequent actions such as Send, Copy, and Move are grouped in one structured menu. Initially available to a limited set of devices while Microsoft evaluates the optimal approach. |
| File Explorer – Recommended section | File Explorer > Home > Folder options | To enable the Recommended section, activate the Show Recommended section setting in folder options. The feature is available to all users, including those with a personal Microsoft account. |
| File Explorer – Responsiveness and stability fixes | File Explorer | Internal changes improve responsiveness when navigating to network locations, fix missing thumbnails for video files with certain EXIF metadata, and prevent the toolbar from appearing unexpectedly. Fixed the app icon next to the Open item when right-clicking a file. |
| Sign-in – Explorer.exe reliability | Sign-in | Improved reliability of the scenario where Explorer.exe could hang during first sign-in if some apps were configured to start automatically. No user action is required. |
| Activation – License migration | Settings > System > Activation | Improved Windows license migration during update. In some cases, a valid license might not carry over; the activation troubleshooter may be required to complete the process. |
| Desktop icons – Reliability | Desktop | Improved reliability when opening or renaming files on the desktop; icons should stay in place and no longer move unexpectedly. No user action is required. |
| Input – Key repeat delay labels | Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Keyboard | Improved display of labels for key repeat delay settings. No user action is required. |
| User Account Control (UAC) – Windows Terminal elevated launch | Windows Terminal | Improved reliability of launching Windows Terminal with elevated privileges from a non-administrator account. No user action is required. |
| Windows Sandbox – Startup hang fix | Windows Sandbox | Fixed an issue where Windows Sandbox could hang on startup and show error 0x800705b4. No user action is required. |
| Spotlight on desktop – Context menu items | Settings > Personalization > Background > Spotlight | If you use Spotlight as your desktop background, right-click the desktop to see the context menu with two items: Learn more about this image and Next desktop background. |
| Games – Xbox Full screen experience (FSE) | Settings > Games > Full screen mode | Select Xbox as the home app to enable FSE. Launch it through task view or the game bar, and configure it to start in full screen mode when the device starts. |
| Pen – Haptic feedback | Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Pen | Pen devices that support haptic feedback can now provide haptic feedback when interacting with the Windows interface, such as hovering over the close button, snapping windows, or resizing them. No additional configuration is required if the pen supports it. |
| Keyboard – Backlight performance | Keyboard settings | Improved keyboard backlight performance on supported HID-compliant keyboards. The backlight adapts to save power and helps see keys better in low-light conditions. |
| Keyboard – AltGr level for Arabic 101 | Keyboard layout | The left Alt key works as before, and the right Alt key becomes a modifier for additional symbols. The first new symbol is the Saudi Riyal currency symbol (AltGr+S). Switching languages with Alt+Shift is still available via left Alt+Shift or Windows+Spacebar. Arabic 102 and Arabic 102 AZERTY layouts have been similarly updated. |
| Mobile devices settings | Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices | A page for adding and managing mobile devices has been added. Here you can manage features such as using your phone as a connected camera or accessing your phone's files through File Explorer. |
| OneDrive icon | Settings > Accounts > Home | A new OneDrive icon is displayed. No action is required. |
| Settings – Key repeat delay, rate, and cursor blink rate | Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard; Settings > Accessibility > Text cursor | Key repeat delay and rate are now in Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard, and cursor blink rate is in Settings > Accessibility > Text cursor. These settings were migrated from Control Panel. |
| Settings – About system section | Settings > System > About | The About system section has an updated layout that combines device information and related settings in one place. For example, you can now quickly navigate to storage settings. |
| Settings – Reliability and interface | Settings > Network & Internet | Improved reliability when navigating to Settings > Network & Internet; the Settings app should no longer become unresponsive. The search bar should no longer overlap the Minimize and Maximize buttons. |
| Taskbar and system tray – Share with Copilot | Taskbar | Hover over a running app icon and select Share with Copilot. Copilot Vision analyzes the window content and provides suggestions. |
| Taskbar and system tray – Auto-hide reliability | Settings > Personalization > Taskbar | The Automatically hide the taskbar setting now works more reliably and no longer turns off unexpectedly after the "Toolbar is already hidden on this side of the screen" message. |
| Taskbar and system tray – Voice access interaction | Taskbar | Voice access now responds more reliably when interacting with the taskbar, including selecting items by number. |
| Taskbar and system tray – Icon size | Taskbar | Improved behavior of taskbar icons; when there is free space, icons maintain the expected size. |
| Windows Sharing – Drag bar | Settings > System > Nearby sharing | The drag bar supports sending multiple files, shows more relevant apps, and simplifies moving files to a selected folder. Turn the drag bar on or off in Settings > System > Nearby sharing. |
| Windows Sharing – OneDrive files | Share with list | After selecting Copy link, options to share OneDrive files through other apps appear in the Share with list. Sign-in with a Microsoft account is required. |
| Display and graphics – Mode list performance | Display settings | Improved performance in scenarios where apps request the full list of supported modes from monitors. This reduces brief hangs on very high resolution monitors. |
| Display and graphics – Brightness slider | Display settings | Improved behavior of the brightness slider on all-in-one PCs; the system better maintains the selected level and helps avoid unexpected brightness changes. |
| Display and graphics – Unsupported video card message | Games | Fixed: the Unsupported video card detected message could appear in some games even when using a supported video card. |
| Game Pass – Branding updates | Settings | Mentions of Game Pass in Settings have been updated to reflect current branding and benefit descriptions. No user action is required. |
| Start menu – Search bar size | Start menu | For users with the new Start menu, the Windows search bar now matches its size, providing a smoother transition to search. |
| Lock screen and sign-in – First sign-in speed | Sign-in | Fixed an issue where first sign-in to a new account could be very slow. No user action is required. |
| Lock screen and sign-in – Slideshow memory leak | Lock screen | Fixed a memory leak that could occur when using slideshow mode on the lock screen. No user action is required. |
| Smart cards – ECC sign-in fix | Sign-in | Fixed an issue where STATUS_NOT_SUPPORTED (0xc00000bb) could unexpectedly appear when signing in using ECC smart card sign-in credentials. |
Official announcement on the Microsoft website.
The last 10 Windows updates:
| Update | Build | Version | Windows | Channel | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KB5121157 | 28020.2818 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-08-31 |
| KB5121158 | 28120.2824 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-08-31 |
| KB5121794 | 26300.9278 | 26H2 | Windows 11 | Preview | 2026-08-27 |
| KB5121132 | 28120.2760 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-08-21 |
| KB5124040 | 26220.9223 | 25H2 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-08-21 |
| KB5124042 | 26340.9233 | 26H2 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-08-21 |
| KB5121106 | 28020.2731 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-08-17 |
| KB5121109 | 28120.2738 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-08-17 |
| KB5124036 | 26220.9202 | 25H2 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-08-17 |
| KB5124038 | 26340.9212 | 26H2 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-08-17 |