Windows 11 preview build adds new features, doesn’t address annoying bug
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The latest version of Windows 11 continues its rocky launch as new features are currently being rolled out to the preview channel, while a new performance bug was discovered at the same time.
Windows 11 22H2 was first launched a few weeks ago on September 20 and brought a number of changes such as tabs in File Explorer plus the return of several functions to the taskbar. Now with Example Build 22621, users will see more changes coming to the File Explorer, a new tool called Suggested Actions, and a number of non-security fixes. You can download this build from the Release Preview Channel, but you need to register for the Windows Insider Program.
Example Build 22621
To get into the preview build, most of the features will be rolled out globally, except for one: Suggested Actions which is only available to users in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. As the name implies, it gives you a suggestion on what to do for copied text. Microsoft gives the example of copying a phone number, which makes Windows 11 suggest that you call via the Teams app. If you copy a date, the operating system suggests that you add the event to the Calendar app.
File Explorer gets three minor changes to “improve” usability. First, users can pin important files and folders to the app’s home page for quick access. Second, you can see recent changes made to shared files in Microsoft OneDrive. And third, File Explorer will “provide personalized suggestions” according to one’s Microsoft 365 account.
Very little information is available for the last two important functions. According to Microsoft, there is a new taskbar overflow menu. This means that if too many apps are open on the taskbar, they will spill over into a smaller context menu, so you don’t have to scroll through the bottom bar to find them. And users can “share with more devices”, but which ones are still unknown. We’ve reached out to Microsoft for more information about these features. This story will be updated if we hear anything.
As for the fixes, there are a total of 30, ranging from font issues with Chinese characters to the Microsoft Store suddenly failing after an update, and forced reloads affecting IE mode in the Edge browser. The full patch notes are available at: Microsoft’s support page (opens in new tab).
Future Solutions
But it looks like there’s still more to fix, as Microsoft overlooked a pretty substantial bug. According to a post on the company’s Tech Community page (opens in new tab), file transfer speeds can suddenly drop to 40 percent when copying large “multi-GB” files on Windows 11 22H2. Transferring that same file to a non-22H2 PC doesn’t suffer from this performance drop. The original poster offers a temporary fix, but couldn’t give an “ETA for a permanent fix”.
While the bug is unfortunate, it’s not surprising for Windows 11 22H2. The operating system has had a shaky launch. About a week ago, there were reports of a bug that crashed PCs running the Intel Smart Sound Technology audio driver. Then there’s the more recent printer bug that causes certain features to stop working.
Microsoft has said it is working on fixes for all of these bugs, but has not said when we can expect the rollout. In the meantime, check out Ditching’s guide on how to fix common issues on Windows 11.