Windows 11 updates are coming to make your PC more stable
Insiders in the Microsoft Windows 11 Release Preview Channel will be treated to a new Windows 11 update that focuses on stability rather than new features, according to an official Windows blog post.
A brand new update for the OS, called Windows 11 Build 22000.1757 (KB5023774), has been shipped out to those in the Release Preview Channel, which consists of a lengthy list of stability improvements. This channel is considered the most stable of the Insider build channels, which then follows why the latest update focuses on bug fixes rather than rolling out brand-new features.
Some of the stability improvements include fixes to various program applications, Notepad, Microsoft PowerPoint, Remote Procedure Call Service, Windows Search, some printers including USB ones, and even Xbox subscribers. It seems this update runs the full gamut of issues and affected software, but then again it’s never a bad thing to be thorough.
If you’re looking for more radical and experimental changes, however, then Microsoft’s brand new Canary Channel might be for you. Recently, Canary has been testing new code that could be the foundation for the upcoming Windows 12 release. And Microsoft has been sending out free flash drives to some testers with what’s very likely to be an early Windows 12 build. There have been plenty of rumors and leaks surrounding the new operating system, which was further exacerbated by Intel leaking the name by accident.
For the full list of updates, be sure to check out the patch notes from Microsoft here.
Microsoft pushes down stealth updates too
Microsoft makes plenty of changes to Windows 11 publicly and out in the open, including the introduction of brand-new features to the OS and to the Edge browser. One such feature was the introduction and integration of ChatGTP to the browser, while another will upscale low-resolution videos right in the browser itself.
Lately, Microsoft has been adding in stealth features or making changes to OS settings without telling users upfront. In beta build 2262x, the ‘Recommend’ section in the Start menu was renamed to ‘For you’ but details of this were hidden in testing. The Voice Access commands help page was completely overhauled to actually be functional and presence-sensing privacy settings were added, but none of this was listed in the preview build notes.
Then there was the recent discovery that Windows was stealth-nerfing graphics cards by turning back on a security feature in a recent OS update – even if users previously disabled it. That feature is called VBS (Virtualization Based Security) and it can interfere with GPUs, even the RTX 4090, causing performance and framerate decreases.