In this article, we will talk about the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build for the Beta Channel, which is Build 22635.4870.
The Beta Channel is temporarily having 2 different Builds, one on 24H2 and the other on 23H2. Builds released on the Dev Channel, will also be released on the Beta Channel, in the month of February.
Customize Widgets in the Lock Screen
Microsoft is beginning to roll out support for lock screen widgets (previously referred to as “Weather and more”) to Windows Insiders in the European Economic Area (EEA). You can add, remove, and rearrange lock screen widgets such as Weather, Watchlist, Sports, Traffic, and more. Any widget that supports the small sizing option can be added here. To customize your lock screen widgets, navigate to Settings > Personalization > Lock screen. Microsoft is starting this rollout first with Insiders in the EEA and plan to expand to Insiders in other regions in the future. Insiders outside the EEA will continue to see the “Weather and more” experience.
As part of this, they’re also adding support for a new group policy called “Disable Widgets On Lock Screen” that will allow IT administrators to disable lock screen widgets without disabling widgets elsewhere on PCs they manage. To edit this policy, please launch the Local Group Policy Editor app and navigate to Computer Configurations > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Widgets. This policy is only supported in EEA regions at this time but will expand to include other regions in the future as well.
New File Explorer Feature
For Windows Insiders signed in with a work or school account (Entra ID), File Explorer will begin showing people icons under the “Activity” column on File Explorer Home and on “Recommended” at the top of File Explorer Home. When you hover or click over a people icon, it will display the Live Persona Card for that person from Microsoft 365.
Fixes in this Build
Start Menu
- Fixed an issue causing Start menu to crash for some Insiders when interacting with the letters in the apps list.
- Fixed an issue where the colors were not correct when opening the account manager flyout on the when using a mixed dark and light custom mode in Settings > Personalization > Colors.
File Explorer
- Fixed an issue where if you opened a File Explorer window and minimized it, it might not be rendered correctly when you restored it.
- Fixed an issue which was impacting File Explorer reliability for some Insiders.
- Fixed an issue which was causing explorer.exe to crash when dropping files into File Explorer sometimes in the latest flights.
Other Fixes
- Fixed a high hitting background sihost.exe crash in the latest flights.
- [USB cameras] Fixed: Your device does not recognize the camera is on. This issue occurs after you install the January 2025 security update.
- [USB audio device drivers] Fixed: The code 10 error message, “This device cannot start” appears. This occurs when you connect to certain external audio management devices.
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.
8
20
