In this article, we will talk about the latest Windows 11 25H2 Insider Preview Build for the Dev and the Beta Channels, which is the Build 26220.7070.
Windows 11 25H2
Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel will see the versioning updated under Settings > System > About (and winver) to version 25H2. This denotes that Windows 11, version 25H2 will be this year’s annual feature update. As mentioned here, Windows 11 will have an annual feature update cadence that releases in the second half of the calendar year. For more information, see this blog post here.
New Widgets Settings
- Launching the Widget Board when it’s showing live weather content will now open the first dashboard in your navigation bar instead of your most recently used dashboard for a more predictable Widget Board experience.
- To modify your default dashboard, navigate to the new full-page Widgets Settings experience by clicking the gear icon at the bottom of your Widget navigation bar and re-arrange your desired default dashboard to the top position.
- Badges on the dashboard icons in the Widget navigation bar will now show numbers corresponding to the number of alerts from that dashboard. Navigation bar badges clear automatically when you leave a dashboard, making it easy to track what’s new.
New Quick Machine Recovery Changes
Microsoft is updating Quick Machine Recovery in Windows – Microsoft Support make getting back to a working PC clearer and faster. The experience in both Windows Settings and the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) has been streamlined so options are easier to find and use. On PCs with the settings “quick machine recovery” and “automatically check for solutions” both enabled, QMR now runs a one‑time scan by default instead of repeating scans in a loop. If a fix isn’t available right away, you won’t be left waiting; QMR will quickly point you to the most appropriate recovery options to get you back up and running.
New Smart App Control
- Microsoft is updating Smart App Control (SAC) so you will now be able to switch SAC off or on without any clean install requirement. To make changes, go to Windows Security > App & Browser Control > Smart App Control settings.
- When it’s on, it helps block untrusted or potentially harmful apps. You can learn more about SAC App & Browser Control in the Windows Security App – Microsoft Support.
New File Explorer Changes
- Microsoft is re-enabling people icons under the “Activity” column in File Explorer Home detailed here.
- Microsoft is temporarily turning off the integration supporting the StorageProvider APIs for cloud providers as detailed here.
- Microsoft is temporarily turning off support for frequently used and recently downloaded recommended files in File Explorer as detailed here.
Fixes in this Build
General
- Fixed an underlying issue which was causing interacting with the desktop to unexpectedly open Task View recently for some people.
File Explorer
- Fixed an issue where Shift + Click (or middle clicking) on File Explorer in the taskbar wasn’t opening a new File Explorer instance.
- Fixed an issue where the File Explorer active tab title might not display bolded until you hovered your mouse over it.
Taskbar
- Fixed an issue which could lead to the “Automatically hide the taskbar” setting unexpectedly turning off, after seeing a message saying “a toolbar is already hidden on this side of your screen”.
Settings
- Fixed an issue which could lead to Settings hanging when trying to navigate to the Network & Internet section.
For more information about this Build, you can check this article from the Microsoft Blog.
For a more in-depth presentation of the New Build, you can watch the video below from the youtube channel.
9
20
