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Microsoft: We are working on KB5034441/KB5034440 "0x80070643 - ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE" fix by Sayan Sen Microsoft released the first Windows 10 and 11 Patch Tuesday updates of 2024, last week, with the January updates KB5034122 and KB5034123 respectively. The updates are meant to address security issues within Windows. The one for 11 also fixes the recent Wi-Fi troubles that led to networks not connecting or the Wi-Fi icon not showing. In a separate article, the company has also detailed a fix for a WinRE (Windows Recovery Environment) security vulnerability that can lead to BitLocker encryption bypass. The issue is being tracked under ID "CVE-2024-20666". Microsoft said that the security flaw could allow attackers to bypass BitLocker encryption if they are able to get physical access to an unpatched PC. However, this is not one of those WinRE updates that is seamlessly installing on PCs. Users report that the update is failing to install with the error message "0x80070643 - ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE" which indicates insufficient WinRE partition size. The solution is to resize the partition manually. You can do so by following this dedicated guide here. Neowin forum supervisor / mod and ESET's Distinguished Researcher Aryeh Goretsky (X account) also experienced the issue which they were able to fix by increasing the recovery partition. Goretsky writes: Hello, I can confirm that the KB5034441 hotfix failed on a Windows 10 VM with a Windows Recovery partition that was 511MB in size. I decided to increase it to 1024MB in size, just in case more space was needed in the future. The hotfix installed normally afterwards. Regards, Aryeh Goretsky Microsoft of course has been aware of this problem almost from the start which is why it has been recommending the manual resize workaround as soon as it published the WinRE updates. Yesterday, on its Windows health dashboard, the company has added the issue and notes that a fix is coming via a future update. Microsoft says: Devices attempting to install the January 2024 Windows Recovery Environment update ( KB5034441/KB5034440) might display an error related to the size of the Recovery Environment's partition. Resulting from this error, the following message might be displayed. "0x80070643 - ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE" Workaround: It might be necessary to increase the size of the WinRE partition in order to avoid this issue and complete the installation. Note that 250 megabytes of free space is required in the recovery partition. Guidance to change the WinRE partition size can be found in KB5028997: Instructions to manually resize your partition to install the WinRE update. Next steps: We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release. Aside from this BitLocker encryption vulnerability, Microsoft has recently updated its Microsoft Printer Metadata Troubleshooter Tool to patch against a Remote Code Execution (RCE) security flaw.

Microsoft issues KB5034440, KB5034441 Windows updates for BitLocker Secure Boot flaw by Sayan Sen Update: Microsoft has confirmed a true fix is coming so users don't have to manually work around the problem. Microsoft released the first Windows 10 and 11 Patch Tuesday updates of 2024 earlier yesterday with the January updates KB5034122 and KB5034123 respectively. The updates are meant to address security issues within Windows. The one for 11 also fixes the recent Wi-Fi troubles that led to networks not connecting or the Wi-Fi icon not showing. In a separate article, the company has also detailed another security fix for a BitLocker Secure Boot bypass vulnerability that is being tracked under ID "CVE-2024-20666". Microsoft says that the security flaw could allow attackers to bypass BitLocker encryption if they are able to get physical access to an unpatched PC. The issue has been addressed by KB5034441 (on Windows 10) and KB5034440 (on Windows 11) which is a WinRE (Windows Recovery Environment) update. Microsoft in its bulletins explains: KB5034440: Windows Recovery Environment update for Windows 11, version 21H2: January 9, 2024 Summary This update addresses a security vulnerability that could allow attackers to bypass BitLocker encryption by using Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE). ... KB5034441: Windows Recovery Environment update for Windows 10, version 21H2 and 22H2: January 9, 2024 Summary This update addresses a security vulnerability that could allow attackers to bypass BitLocker encryption by using Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE). You cannot manually download this update from the Microsoft Update Catalog website as it will automatically be downloaded whilst you are connected to the internet alongside the Patch Tuesday update. The patch is being rolled out to both Windows 10 versions, 22H2 and 21H2. Alongside this, Microsoft has also cautioned about inadequate space on the recovery partition which can lead to a "0x80070643 - ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE" error message. It writes: Some computers might not have a recovery partition that is large enough to complete this update. Because of this, the update for WinRE might fail. In this case, you will receive the following error message: Windows Recovery Environment servicing failed. (CBS_E_INSUFFICIENT_DISK_SPACE) Known issue Because of an issue in the error code handling routine, you might receive the following error message instead of the expected error message when there is insufficient disk space: 0x80070643 - ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE You can fix this issue by allocating an additional 250 MB of storage space to the recovery partition. Details on how to do that can be found in this dedicated article. Aside from this, the company has also addressed an RCE vulnerability for the recently released Printer metadata fixer tool.

KB5033288: Following 23H2 and 22H2, Windows 11 21H2 gets improved WinRE as well by Sayan Sen This past week Microsoft released the Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 10 and also for Windows 11 for the month of November. Speaking of Windows 11, besides Patch Tuesday, the tech giant also released a new dynamic update to improve the Setup files of Windows 11 23H2. The update also applies to version 22H2 as well. This makes sense as the new feature update is mostly the same at the core system files level. Aside from that, a new dynamic update for WinRE (Windows Recovery) has also been released. This time, the improved WinRE comes to Windows 11 version 21H2. Although Windows 11 21H2 no longer receives Patch Tuesdays as it has received the axe in terms of support, the version will continue to receive these dynamic updates as they help in the recovery of the OS in case there is a feature update failure. KB5033288: Compatibility update for installing and recovering Windows 11, version 21H2: November 14, 2023 Summary This update makes improvements to the Windows recovery features for Windows 11, version 21H2. In a Tech community blog post about Windows 10 Dynamic Updates, Microsoft explained Dynamic Updates in more detail regarding its various components and uses. These packages include fixes to Setup.exe binaries, SafeOS updates for Windows Recovery Environment, and more: As soon as a Windows 10 feature update initiates, whether from media or a Windows Update service-connected environment, Dynamic Update is one of the first steps invoked. Windows 10 Setup reaches out to an Internet-facing URL hosted by Microsoft to fetch Dynamic Update content, then applies those updates to your OS installation media. Content acquired includes: Setup Updates: Fixes to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates. Safe OS Updates: Fixes for the "safe OS" that are used to update Windows recovery environment (WinRE). Servicing Stack Updates: Fixes that are necessary to address the Windows 10 servicing stack issue and thus required to complete the feature update. Latest Cumulative Update: Installs the latest cumulative quality update. Driver Updates: Latest version of applicable drivers that have already been published by manufacturers into Windows Update and specifically targeted for Dynamic Update. In addition to these updates, Dynamic Update will preserve Language Pack (LP) and Features on Demand (FODs) content during the upgrade process. These are not updates to LPs and FODs, but reacquisition to ensure the user has these elements present with the update completes. The update is available from the Microsoft Update Catalog website at the following link: KB5033288, but you may not need to worry as it should be installed automatically. In case you missed it, towards the end of the month updated the the WinRE for Windows 11 23H2 and 22H2 too, which you can find details about in this article.

KB5031894: Microsoft released first WinRE update for Windows 11 23H2; 22H2 gets it too by Sayan Sen Microsoft released Windows 11 version 23H2 this week. And while the ISOs have been available since the announcement, the official Microsoft Media Creation Tool is still not able to download the update. When inquired about the matter, the company confirmed that it still needed "optimization" and would be ready next week. Regardless, the company released dynamic updates that improve the compatibility of the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) for Windows 11 23H2. The updates also apply to 22H2 as well. This makes sense as the new feature update is mostly the same at the core system files level. Microsoft writes in its support article: KB5031894: Compatibility update for installing and recovering Windows 11, version 22H2: October 26, 2023 Summary This update makes improvements to the Windows recovery features for Windows 11, version 22H2. KB5031476: Compatibility update for installing and recovering Windows 11, version 22H2: October 10, 2023 Summary This update makes improvements to the Windows recovery features for Windows 11, version 22H2. In a Tech community blog post about Windows 10 Dynamic Updates, Microsoft explained Dynamic Updates in more detail regarding its various components and uses. These packages include fixes to Setup.exe binaries, SafeOS updates for Windows Recovery Environment, and more: As soon as a Windows 10 feature update initiates, whether from media or a Windows Update service-connected environment, Dynamic Update is one of the first steps invoked. Windows 10 Setup reaches out to an Internet-facing URL hosted by Microsoft to fetch Dynamic Update content, then applies those updates to your OS installation media. Content acquired includes: Setup Updates: Fixes to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates. Safe OS Updates: Fixes for the "safe OS" that are used to update Windows recovery environment (WinRE). Servicing Stack Updates: Fixes that are necessary to address the Windows 10 servicing stack issue and thus required to complete the feature update. Latest Cumulative Update: Installs the latest cumulative quality update. Driver Updates: Latest version of applicable drivers that have already been published by manufacturers into Windows Update and specifically targeted for Dynamic Update. In addition to these updates, Dynamic Update will preserve Language Pack (LP) and Features on Demand (FODs) content during the upgrade process. These are not updates to LPs and FODs, but reacquisition to ensure the user has these elements present with the update completes. The updates are available from the Microsoft Update Catalog website at the following links: KB5031894 / KB5031476.

KB5031476, KB5031475: Microsoft improves Windows 11 22H2, 21H2 WinRE with "critical" updates by Sayan Sen A few days ago, this week, Microsoft released its Patch Tuesday update for the month of October 2023. The Patch Tuesday or B-release is the monthly security update and this month's release brought the Moment 4 to Windows 11. Microsoft, alongside that, also released dynamic compatibility updates for Windows 11 versions 21H2 and 22H2, which improve the Windows recovery with the help of SafeOS updates labeled "critical". The support articles state: KB5031476: Compatibility update for installing and recovering Windows 11, version 22H2: October 10, 2023 Summary This update makes improvements to the Windows recovery features for Windows 11, version 22H2. KB5031475: Compatibility update for installing and recovering Windows 11, version 21H2: October 10, 2023 Summary This update makes improvements to the Windows recovery features for Windows 11, version 21H2. In a Tech community blog post about Windows 10 Dynamic Updates, Microsoft explained Dynamic Updates in more detail regarding its various components and uses. These packages include fixes to Setup.exe binaries, SafeOS updates for Windows Recovery Environment, and more: As soon as a Windows 10 feature update initiates, whether from media or a Windows Update service-connected environment, Dynamic Update is one of the first steps invoked. Windows 10 Setup reaches out to an Internet-facing URL hosted by Microsoft to fetch Dynamic Update content, then applies those updates to your OS installation media. Content acquired includes: Setup Updates: Fixes to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates. Safe OS Updates: Fixes for the "safe OS" that are used to update Windows recovery environment (WinRE). Servicing Stack Updates: Fixes that are necessary to address the Windows 10 servicing stack issue and thus required to complete the feature update. Latest Cumulative Update: Installs the latest cumulative quality update. Driver Updates: Latest version of applicable drivers that have already been published by manufacturers into Windows Update and specifically targeted for Dynamic Update. In addition to these updates, Dynamic Update will preserve Language Pack (LP) and Features on Demand (FODs) content during the upgrade process. These are not updates to LPs and FODs, but reacquisition to ensure the user has these elements present with the update completes. The Dynamic update is available only via the Microsoft Update Catalog. You can download it by visiting these links: (KB5031476 / KB5031475).

Microsoft details why your recent Windows 11 WinRE updates may have been failing by Sayan Sen If you have noticed WinRE (Windows Recovery Environment) updates failing recently on your Windows 11 PC, there may be a reason. Microsoft published a guidance article recently explaining why it is happening and has also detailed how to deal with the issue. The company says it has changed the way it delivers WinRE updates as they are being deployed via monthly cumulative updates through the Windows Update (WU) and the Windows Server Update Services (WSUS). As such sufficiently large Recovery Partition is required for this and in the case the partition does not have enough room, the update will fail and display the following error message "Windows Recovery Environment servicing failed." The tech giant writes: Summary Microsoft has changed how it updates PCs that run the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE). WinRE will be updated using the monthly cumulative update. This change only applies to PCs that get updates from Windows Update (WU) and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS). This change starts on June 27, 2023, for the Windows 11, version 22H2 cumulative update. Some PCs might not have a recovery partition that is large enough to complete this update. Because of this, the update for WinRE might fail. You will receive the error message, "Windows Recovery Environment servicing failed.” As mentioned above, a step-by-step guide has also been provided by Microsoft though it may not be the easiest one to follow for an average user. You can view the amount of recovery partition in your PC by running the Disk Management console (run "diskmgmt"): The guide below will help boost the recovery partition capacity by 250 MB: Manually resize your partition by 250 MB Open a Command Prompt window (cmd) as admin. To check the WinRE status, run reagentc /info. If the WinRE is installed, there should be a “Windows RE location” with a path to the WinRE directory. An example is, “Windows RE location: [file://%3f/GLOBALROOT/device/harddisk0/partition4/Recovery/WindowsRE]\\?\GLOBALROOT\device\harddisk0\partition4\Recovery\WindowsRE.” Here, the number after “harddisk” and “partition” is the index of the disk and partition WinRE is on. To disable the WinRE, run reagentc /disable. Shrink the OS partition and create a new recovery partition. To shrink the OS, run diskpart. Run list disk. To select the OS disk, run sel disk. This should be the same disk index as WinRE. To check the partition under the OS disk to find the OS partition, run list part. To select the OS partition, run sel part. Run shrink. Desired=250 Minimum=250. To select the WinRE partition, run sel part. To delete the WinRE partition, run delete partition override. To create a new partition, run create partition primary. To format the primary partition, run format quick fs=ntfs label=”Windows RE tools” Set the partition to be a Recovery partition. To check if your disk is MBR or GPT, run detail part. If you get a GUID like, "Type: ebd0a0a2-b9e5-4433-87c0-68b6b72699c7" below Partition 3, your disk is GPT. Otherwise, it is MBR. For MBR disk, the command should be set id=27 For GPT disk, the command should be set id=de94bba4-06d1-4d40-a16a-bfd50179d6ac gpt attributes=0x8000000000000001 To confirm that the WinRE partition is created, run list vol. To exit from diskpart, run exit. To re-enable WInRE, run reagentc /enable. To confirm where WinRE is installed, run reagentc /info. Note If creation failed or you did not want to extend the WinRE partition, run reagentc /enable to re-enable WinRE. You can find the support article here on Microsoft's official website.

KB5028311: Microsoft released critical Windows 10 Dynamic SafeOS update for Secure Boot by Sayan Sen Yesterday, Microsoft released its Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 10 (KB5028166) and Windows 11(KB5028185). The company, on its health dashboard website, made an accompanying announcement to explain that it has deployed its second phase hardening against the BlackLotus UEFI bootkit security flaw. A guidance post was also published by Microsoft to help users. This hardening was delivered via its newest SafeOS Dynamic Update packages for WinRE (Windows Recovery Environment) and brings easier automated deployment of Secure Boot DBX revocation files. The Secure Boot Forbidden Signature Database or Secure Boot DBX from Microsoft is basically a block list for blacklisted UEFI executables that were found to be dangerous. (Microsoft also revoked several WHQL-signed drivers that were actually malware with the latest Patch Tuesday). The support articles for the new KB5028311 update says: KB5028311: Setup Dynamic Update for Windows 10, version 20H2, 21H2, and 22H2: July 11, 2023 Summary This update makes improvements to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates in Windows 10, version 20H2, 21H2, and 22H2. In a Techcommunity blog post about Windows 10 Dynamic Updates, Microsoft explained Dynamic Updates in more detail regarding its various components and uses. These packages include fixes to Setup.exe binaries, SafeOS updates for Windows Recovery Environment, and more: As soon as a Windows 10 feature update initiates, whether from media or a Windows Update service-connected environment, Dynamic Update is one of the first steps invoked. Windows 10 Setup reaches out to an Internet-facing URL hosted by Microsoft to fetch Dynamic Update content, then applies those updates to your OS installation media. Content acquired includes: Setup Updates: Fixes to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates. Safe OS Updates: Fixes for the "safe OS" that are used to update Windows recovery environment (WinRE). Servicing Stack Updates: Fixes that are necessary to address the Windows 10 servicing stack issue and thus required to complete the feature update. Latest Cumulative Update: Installs the latest cumulative quality update. Driver Updates: Latest version of applicable drivers that have already been published by manufacturers into Windows Update and specifically targeted for Dynamic Update. In addition to these updates, Dynamic Update will preserve Language Pack (LP) and Features on Demand (FODs) content during the upgrade process. These are not updates to LPs and FODs, but reacquisition to ensure the user has these elements present with the update completes. This Dynamic update was automatically downloaded with Windows 10 July Patch Tuesday updates. You can also download it manually by visiting the Microsoft Update Catalog website. Windows 11 versions 22H2 and 21H2 also got their Dynamic updates under KB5028312 and KB5028314 which you can find here.

KB5027317: Microsoft release critical Dynamic update to improve Windows 11 21H2 Setup, WinRE by Sayan Sen Last week, at the end of June, Microsoft released KB5027317 Dynamic Update, labeled "critical" for Windows 11 version 21H2. The dynamic update helps to improve the setup process of Windows, generally when a new feature update initiates. The support article for the new KB5027317 update says: KB5027317: Setup Dynamic Update for Windows 11, version 21H2: Summary This update makes improvements to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates in Windows 11, version 21H2. In a Techcommunity blog post about Windows 10 Dynamic Updates, Microsoft explained Dynamic Updates in more detail regarding its various components and uses. These packages include fixes to Setup.exe binaries, SafeOS updates for Windows Recovery Environment, and more: As soon as a Windows 10 feature update initiates, whether from media or a Windows Update service-connected environment, Dynamic Update is one of the first steps invoked. Windows 10 Setup reaches out to an Internet-facing URL hosted by Microsoft to fetch Dynamic Update content, then applies those updates to your OS installation media. Content acquired includes: Setup Updates: Fixes to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates. Safe OS Updates: Fixes for the "safe OS" that are used to update Windows recovery environment (WinRE). Servicing Stack Updates: Fixes that are necessary to address the Windows 10 servicing stack issue and thus required to complete the feature update. Latest Cumulative Update: Installs the latest cumulative quality update. Driver Updates: Latest version of applicable drivers that have already been published by manufacturers into Windows Update and specifically targeted for Dynamic Update. In addition to these updates, Dynamic Update will preserve Language Pack (LP) and Features on Demand (FODs) content during the upgrade process. These are not updates to LPs and FODs, but reacquisition to ensure the user has these elements present with the update completes. The Dynamic update is available only via Microsoft Update Catalog. You can download it by visiting this link. Windows 11 22H2 also got its Dynamic update under KB5027318 which you can find here.

KB5027318: Microsoft release critical Dynamic update to improve Windows 11 22H2 Setup, WinRE by Sayan Sen Last week, at the end of June, Microsoft released KB5027318 Dynamic Update, labeled "critical" for Windows 11 version 22H2. The dynamic update helps to improve the setup process of Windows, generally when a new feature update initiates. The support article for the new KB5027318 update says: KB5027318: Setup Dynamic Update for Windows 11, version 22H2: Summary This update makes improvements to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates in Windows 11, version 22H2. In a Techcommunity blog post about Windows 10 Dynamic Updates, Microsoft explained Dynamic Updates in more detail regarding its various components and uses. These packages include fixes to Setup.exe binaries, SafeOS updates for Windows Recovery Environment, and more: As soon as a Windows 10 feature update initiates, whether from media or a Windows Update service-connected environment, Dynamic Update is one of the first steps invoked. Windows 10 Setup reaches out to an Internet-facing URL hosted by Microsoft to fetch Dynamic Update content, then applies those updates to your OS installation media. Content acquired includes: Setup Updates: Fixes to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates. Safe OS Updates: Fixes for the "safe OS" that are used to update Windows recovery environment (WinRE). Servicing Stack Updates: Fixes that are necessary to address the Windows 10 servicing stack issue and thus required to complete the feature update. Latest Cumulative Update: Installs the latest cumulative quality update. Driver Updates: Latest version of applicable drivers that have already been published by manufacturers into Windows Update and specifically targeted for Dynamic Update. In addition to these updates, Dynamic Update will preserve Language Pack (LP) and Features on Demand (FODs) content during the upgrade process. These are not updates to LPs and FODs, but reacquisition to ensure the user has these elements present with the update completes. The Dynamic update is available only via Microsoft Update Catalog. You can download it by visiting this link. Windows 11 21H2 also got its Dynamic update under KB5027317 which you can find here.

Microsoft issues PowerShell scripts to fix WinRE BitLocker bypass on Windows 11, Windows 10 by Sayan Sen Microsoft has released a fix for Windows 11 and Windows 10 devices in relation to a BitLocker bypass security flaw. The company has developed two sample PowerShell scripts that will essentially allow system admins and IT administrators to automate the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) update process to mitigate a BitLocker security bypass vulnerability (CVE-2022-41099). If you are wondering about the differences between the two scripts, Microsoft says that its first script, the recommended one, is more robust and applies to Windows 10 version 2004 and later, as well as Windows 11. The second, general script, is mainly for devices running Windows 10 version 1909 and older, but it too works on all versions of Windows 11 and Windows 10. The company writes: Microsoft has developed a sample PowerShell script that can help you automate updating the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) on deployed devices to address the security vulnerabilities in CVE-2022-41099. Sample PowerShell script The sample PowerShell script was developed by the Microsoft product team to help automate the updating of WinRE images on Windows 10 and Windows 11 devices. Run the script with Administrator credentials in PowerShell on the affected devices. There are two scripts available—which script you should use depends on the version of Windows you are running. Please use the appropriate version for your environment. You can find more details regarding the script as well as their installation process on Microsoft's official advisory on the topic under KB5025175.

Windows 11 Dev build 25300 has new Snap layouts, fixes WinRE issue, and much more by Sayan Sen Microsoft has released a new Windows 11 Insider build 25300 to the Dev Channel today. The new release brings new Snap Layouts, Live Captions in more languages, a rendering bug fix related to WinRE, and more. You can find the full changelog below: What’s new Introducing live captions in more languages Live captions helps everyone and people who are deaf or hard of hearing read live captions in their native language. The first release of live captions in the Windows 11 2022 Update provided captions in English, with a focus on English (United States). In this build, live captions gains the ability to also provide captions in Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish and other English dialects. We will add more languages as they become available. Live captions in Japanese. To get started, live captions can be turned on with the WIN + Ctrl + L keyboard shortcut, or from the quick settings accessibility flyout via Quick Settings. When turned on for the first time, live captions will prompt for download of the required speech recognition support to enable on-device captioning. If speech recognition support is not available in your preferred Windows language or you want support in other languages, you will be able to download speech recognition support for live captions under Settings > Time & Language > Language & region. We look forward to you trying out live captions in more languages and would love to hear your feedback. FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Accessibility > Live captions. Changes and Improvements [Snap layouts] We are trying out different treatments for snap layouts with Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel. We are investigating ways to improve the discoverability and usage of the snap layouts such as decreasing the hover time required to invoke the flyout when you mouse over the maximum/restore button in an app’s title bar. In addition to a few other tweaks, you’ll notice some treatments will also pull in the icon of the app window you are working in and adding a descriptive title. If you see one of these treatments, give us feedback on what you think. As a reminder, it is normal for us to try out different concepts in the Dev Channel to get feedback. Example of a snap layout treatment we’re trying with Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel.[Voice typing] The change to sync voice typing settings, Automatic punctuation and Voice typing launcher, across all devices signed in using the same Microsoft account that began rolling out with Build 25227 is now available to all Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel. You can toggle this feature via Settings > Accounts > Windows backup > Remember my preferences > Accessibility This currently only works with Microsoft accounts today with AAD support coming later. [Settings] Updated Settings > Apps > Startup to make it easier to access more information about the apps listed. Right-clicking on a Win32 app in Start, or searching for the app, and choosing “Uninstall” will now take you to the Settings to uninstall the app. [WSL] Improved the upgrade experience to the new Windows Subsystem for Linux Store app (mentioned in Build 25272), so it now prompts for installation if wsl.exe is invoked. Fixes [General] We fixed the underlying issue related to combase.dll, causing crashes with multiple apps using GetKnownFolder APIs after upgrading to Build 25290, including Notepad and Windows Terminal for IME users. This issue is also believed to be the root cause of some Insiders finding that certain actions in File Explorer were taking minutes to complete in these builds. We fixed the issue causing rendering issues and difficulty using Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE). Fixed an issue where some users experienced issues authenticating into enterprise websites that require windows integrated authentication. [Taskbar & System Tray] The ability to show seconds in the clock on the system tray, first introduced with Build 25247, should return after updating to Build 25300 if it had disappeared for you after updating to Build 25295 last week. Fixed an issue that was causing taskbar to be cut off after resolution changes. We fixed an issue where when hovering over app icons on the taskbar could switch window focus unexpectedly. [Widgets] As a result of fixing the issue causing third-party widgets to get unpinned when signed in with a Microsoft account across multiple Windows 11 devices, the most recent Widgets update in the Dev Channel will unpin third-party widgets. Insiders will need to go back to their widgets board and re-pin these widgets again. If you still see issues where widgets are being unpinned unexpectedly – please file feedback. The link for “Find more widgets” in the widgets picker currently is no longer broke and will point to the Store collection here. [Input] We are beginning to roll out a fix for an issue where the IME candidate window and IME toolbar weren’t shown or cropped sometimes. [File Explorer] Drag and dropping files and folders across tabs should work again. [Task Manager] Process names typed into the search box should no longer unexpectedly get spellchecked. Fixed a couple of issues with how Narrator was reading out content in Task Manager. Fixed an issue where the dropdowns in settings might not match your currently selected theme. When using search on the App History page, results should no longer suddenly disappear. If you open the Default Start Page dropdown in settings, clicking the Task Manager window should make the dropdown disappear now. Dragging the window using the search box area should work now (like other areas of the title bar). Fixed an issue where ending processes in the Details tab wasn’t showing a confirmation dialog. Increasing the text scaling should no longer result in a “see more” button appearing with no contents. If you do a search and then press the down arrow, keyboard focus should now move from the search box into the results. If you have a contrast theme enabled and select one of the rows in the Processes page, that row should now show that it’s selected. Fixed an issue where focus might not get set properly to search, leading to Narrator not saying that focus was on the search box. [Other] Fixed an issue where Narrator’s focus wasn’t going back to the Quick Settings’ window correctly when using the back button in the Cast page. NOTE: Some fixes noted here in Insider Preview builds from the Dev Channel may make their way into the servicing updates for the released version of Windows 11. Known issues [General] We are investigating an issue where some users are experiencing longer than expected update times installing recent builds. If you experienced this issue, please submit a new feedback item with logs in Feedback Hub. Some AAD (Azure Active Directory joined users are now seeing “Getting ready for you” screens when signing into Windows after updating the latest builds. We are investigating the issue. Launching Group Policy Editor may show an error about a displayName attribute not being found. Using Windows Hello to sign in with facial recognition may not work on Arm64 PCs. A workaround for this is to use the Hello PIN path. We are investigating reports that the Windows Insider Program settings page is showing that a newer build is available in Windows Update even though they are on the latest available build in the Dev Channel. [NEW] We’re investigating reports that the New button in Snipping Tool isn’t working for some Insiders after upgrading to Build 25295. If you are impacted by this, going to Settings > Apps > Default apps, and setting screen snipping as the default for ms-screenclip, it should resolve the issue. [Widgets] We’re investigating an issue where under certain circumstances third-party widgets may not load as expected. [Taskbar & System Tray] App icons on the taskbar may appear on the wrong monitor for some Insiders with multiple monitors. [Windows Spotlight] The following known issues only apply for Windows Insiders who received one of the different treatments of Windows Spotlight that began rolling out to Insiders with Build 25281: Clicking on a secondary monitor does not dismiss the full screen experience. [Live captions] On Arm64 devices, enhanced speech recognition support will install incorrectly through the Language & Region settings page. Arm64 users who don’t have support for speech recognition with live captions in their preferred language can use this work-around: (1) Uninstall all “Speech Pack – ” app entries in Settings > Apps > Installed apps; (2) Temporarily set the first language in their preferred language list in Settings > Time & language > Language & region to an acceptable alternative language; (3) Launch live captions. Live captions for Chinese Traditional currently does not work on Arm64 devices. Certain languages shown on the Language & Region settings page will indicate speech recognition support (e.g., Korean) but don’t yet have support for live captions. When adding a language through the Language & Region settings page, language feature installation progress may become hidden, and you may not see install completion of “Enhanced speech recognition” (required by Live Captions). (You can use the language’s “Language options” to monitor progress.) If this happens, there may be an unexpected delay before the live captions setup experience detects this and lets you continue. The Language & Region settings page may not offer the necessary speech recognition language support for live captions for up to an hour after first login. Captioning performance may be degraded in non-English languages and missing out-of-language filtering in non-English (United States) languages which means that incorrect captions will be shown for speech not in the caption language. You can find the official blog post here.

Microsoft improving Windows 11 22H2 compatibility as it begins pushing it to everyone by Sayan Sen Microsoft announced earlier today that it has begun pushing Windows 11 version 22H2 to all eligible 21H2 devices. Hence, such systems will automatically be updated to the latest Windows 11 2022 feature update following a gradual rollout phase. This may be surprising to many as the end of support for Windows 11 21H2 is still about nine months away. However, Microsoft believes a move to the newer version will lead to more secure user PCs. Almost as soon as that, the company has also begun rolling out a special compatibility update (KB5022609) for Windows 11 22H2 devices. Microsoft says this update will help improve the installation and recovery of the 2022 feature update and it applies to all Windows 11 22H2 versions. On the support page announcing the update, Microsoft writes: KB5022609: Compatibility update for installing and recovering Windows 11, version 22H2 Summary This update makes improvements to the Windows recovery features for Windows 11, version 22H2. You can download it manually from Microsoft's Update Catalog website. While the information on this particular update package is not provided in detail, it is known that compatibility updates are generally released from time to time to make certain user experience upgrades in terms of installing and/or recovering Windows. In related news, Microsoft also released KB5022370 Dynamic Update recently, which was said to improve the OS setup and recovery on Windows 11 21H2 devices.

KB5022370: Microsoft releases Dynamic update to improve Windows 11 Setup, WinRE, more by Sayan Sen Earlier today, Microsoft released KB5022370 Dynamic Update, labeled "critical" for Windows 11 version 21H2. The dynamic update helps to improve the setup process of Windows, generally when a new feature update, like say Windows 11 2022 update, initiates. The support article for the new KB5022370 update says: KB5022370: Setup Dynamic Update for Windows 11, version 21H2 Summary This update makes improvements to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates in Windows 11, version 21H2. In a Techcommunity blog post about Windows 10 Dynamic Updates, Microsoft explained Dynamic Updates in more detail regarding its various components and uses. These packages include fixes to Setup.exe binaries, SafeOS updates for Windows Recovery Environment, and more: As soon as a Windows 10 feature update initiates, whether from media or a Windows Update service-connected environment, Dynamic Update is one of the first steps invoked. Windows 10 Setup reaches out to an Internet-facing URL hosted by Microsoft to fetch Dynamic Update content, then applies those updates to your OS installation media. Content acquired includes: Setup Updates: Fixes to Setup binaries or any files that Setup uses for feature updates. Safe OS Updates: Fixes for the "safe OS" that are used to update Windows recovery environment (WinRE). Servicing Stack Updates: Fixes that are necessary to address the Windows 10 servicing stack issue and thus required to complete the feature update. Latest Cumulative Update: Installs the latest cumulative quality update. Driver Updates: Latest version of applicable drivers that have already been published by manufacturers into Windows Update and specifically targeted for Dynamic Update. In addition to these updates, Dynamic Update will preserve Language Pack (LP) and Features on Demand (FODs) content during the upgrade process. These are not updates to LPs and FODs, but reacquisition to ensure the user has these elements present with the update completes. The Dynamic update is available only via Microsoft Update Catalog. You can download it by visiting this link.

Microsoft is improving Shut Down and WinRE in Windows 11 with modern look and icons by Alap Naik Desai Microsoft is actively tweaking the User Interface (UI) of Windows 11 to bring it in line with the WinUI design aesthetics. In the latest Windows 11 Build 25115, the Shut Down dialogue box as well as the WinRE have undergone a facelift. When Windows users press Alt+F4, a shutdown options dialogue box appears. The shutdown box in Windows 11 currently looks identical to the one present in Windows 10. Microsoft has tweaked the appearance of the “Shut Down Windows” option and given it a more modern look. The shutdown dialogue box includes a drop-down menu giving users the choice to hibernate, shut down, restart or standby their PC. All these options look slightly different in Build 25115. Microsoft is trying a slightly updated interface for the famous Alt+F4 dialog. The revamp replaces the traditional Windows logo with a cleaner look. However, the tweaked shutdown dialogue box in Windows 11 ironically looks similar to the dialog from the Windows 95-era. With the introduction of Windows 11, Microsoft has been actively adding WinUI elements like Mica to various aspects of the operating system. The Shutdown dialog seemed to have missed the transition, but the latest build activates the new look. Currently, Mica applies to the Windows apps title bar only and Fluent Design is also missing. Apart from the Shutdown dialog box, Microsoft is also testing WinUI and Fluent Design icons for WinRE (Windows Recovery Environment). Windows 11 still has a Windows 8-era WinRE interface, which appears outdated in the modern OS. Microsoft recently replaced most of the icons in WinRE with new ones. While these aren't huge changes, they indicate Microsoft is serious about ensuring consistency in various design elements. Although the cosmetic changes in the latest build available in the Dev channel are in line with the rest of the OS, there’s no assurance Microsoft will retain them in Windows 11 23H2.