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Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25987 (Canary Channel)

Written By published November 1, 2023

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25987 to the Canary Channel.

REMINDER: As builds released to the Canary Channel are “hot off the presses,” we will offer limited documentation for builds flighted to the Canary Channel including documenting only the most significant and highly impactful known issues. Please note that we will not publish a blog post for every flight – only when new features are available in a build.

What’s new in Build 25987

Changes and Improvements

[General]

  • During setup (OOBE), when you need to connect to a network and there’s no Wi-Fi drivers, you’ll be given an option to press an “Install Drivers” button to install drivers you have previously downloaded. You will see this change using the ISO for Build 25977 provided here for download and higher.
  • Starting with this build, the Windows Maps and Movies and TV apps will no longer be installed after doing a clean install of the OS. The Windows Maps and Movies and TV apps will not be removed on upgrade for Insiders in the Canary Channel and continue to be available and updated via the Microsoft Store.

[Settings]

  • We’ve designed the settings page for Delivery Optimization under Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options > Delivery Optimization to match the Windows 11 design principles.

[File Explorer]

  • PNG files now support viewing and editing metadata – for example, if you’d like to set a star rating in Properties, edit the description, or add keywords.

Fixes for known issues

  • Fixed an issue causing File Explorer to crash in Windows Sandbox when using a non-English display language.

Known issues

  • [REMINDER] Some popular games may not work correctly on the most recent Insider Preview builds in the Canary Channel. Please be sure to submit feedback in Feedback Hub on any issues you see with playing games on these builds.
  • [NEW] There are blank options showing on the Personalization and Privacy & Security settings pages where if clicked on will crash Settings.
  • [NEW] We’re investigating reports that attempting to reboot into safe mode hangs on the boot logo.

Microsoft Store Update

Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels running version 22310.xxxx.x of the Microsoft Store and higher will see the following improvement rolling out:

Customize the install location of your games: When downloading games like Starfield, Halo Infinite, or Forza Motorsport, you will now be able to specify the installation drive. For example, when clicking the install button from Starfield’s page, you’ll be greeted with a new dialog providing you a chance to select a drive. You can change your default drive from the Microsoft Store’s settings page. Also in the settings page, you can specify the folder location of your games within that drive. These settings are synchronized with the Xbox app on PC to ensure a consistent gaming experience.

Game installation options in the Microsoft Store.
Game installation options in the Microsoft Store.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Microsoft Store.

For developers

You can download the latest Windows Insider SDK at aka.ms/windowsinsidersdk.

SDK NuGet packages are now also flighting at NuGet Gallery | WindowsSDK which include:

These NuGet packages provide more granular access to the SDK and better integration in CI/CD pipelines.

SDK flights are now published for both the Canary and Dev Channels, so be sure to choose the right version for your Insider Channel.

Remember to use adaptive code when targeting new APIs to make sure your app runs on all customer machines, particularly when building against the Dev Channel SDK. Feature detection is recommended over OS version checks, as OS version checks are unreliable and will not work as expected in all cases.

About the Canary Channel

The Canary Channel is the place to preview platform changes that require longer-lead time before getting released to customers. Some examples of this include major changes to the Windows kernel, new APIs, etc. Builds that we release to the Canary Channel should not be seen as matched to any specific release of Windows and some of the changes we try out in the Canary Channel will never ship, and others could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.

The builds that will be flighted to the Canary Channel are “hot off the presses,” flighting very soon after they are built, which means very little validation and documentation will be done before they are offered to Insiders. These builds could include major issues that could result in not being able to use your PC correctly or even in some rare cases require you to reinstall Windows. We will offer limited documentation for the Canary Channel, but we will not publish a blog post for every flight – only when new features are available in a build.

Our Canary Channel won’t receive daily builds; however, we may ramp up releasing builds more frequently in the future.

The desktop watermark you see at the lower right corner of your desktop is normal for these pre-release builds.

*Availability of Copilot in Windows: Copilot in Windows in preview is being rolled out gradually to Windows Insiders in select global markets. The initial markets for the Copilot in Windows preview include North America, United Kingdom and parts of Asia and South America. It is our intention to add additional markets over time.

Important Insider Links

Thanks,
Amanda & Brandon

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Windows Insider Program