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Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.1542 (Dev Channel)

Written By published August 19, 2024

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.1542 (KB5041872) to the Dev Channel. This update is delivered in a format that offers a preview of enhancements to servicing technology on Windows 11, version 24H2. To learn more, see https://aka.ms/CheckpointCumulativeUpdates.

Please note we will not be publishing symbols for this build.

REMINDER: Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel will now receive updates based on Windows 11, version 24H2 via an enablement package (Build 26120.xxxx). For Insiders in the Dev Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle (shown in the image below) to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.

Turn on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available to get new features rolled out to you.
Turn on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available to get new features rolled out to you.

Going forward, we will document changes in Dev Channel builds in two buckets: new features, improvements, and fixes that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available and then new features, improvements, and fixes available to everyone in the Dev Channel.

New features gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

New position for the Widgets entry-point on left-aligned taskbars 

We’re beginning to roll out a new position for the Widgets entry-point on left-aligned taskbars. The taskbar entry-point will move to the left of the systems tray and will be wider so you can see richer content from Widgets on your taskbar. When you launch the Widgets board, it will fly out from the right side instead of the left side.

The Widgets entry-point at its new position to the left of system tray on a left-aligned taskbar.
The Widgets entry-point at its new position to the left of system tray on a left-aligned taskbar.

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Desktop Environment > Widgets.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Taskbar & System Tray]

  • Updated the taskbar to now support first letter navigation, so when keyboard focus is set to the taskbar (WIN + T), you can press a letter, and it will jump to the open or pinned app whose name starts with that letter. Pressing the letter multiple times will jump to the subsequent app which starts with that letter, if there are multiple apps for that letter. For those using uncombined taskbar, rather than app name, the first letter navigation will use window name. Along with this, pressing Home and End will now move keyboard focus to the first and last (respectively) items in the taskbar.

[Widgets]

  • We are rolling out an update to the Widgets Board to improve security and the APIs for creating widgets and feeds for users in EEA regions. As part of this update, the Microsoft Start Experiences app will power the Microsoft Start widget and feed experiences. Also, as part of this update, some existing widgets will be removed and others will be modified, temporarily affecting their functionality. This update sets the foundation for new widgets and other features in development, set to roll out soon.

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Dev Channel with toggle on*

[Input]

  • Fixed an issue causing text suggestions for the hardware keyboard to not work properly (selecting one unexpectedly concatenated).
  • Fixed an issue causing the emoji panel to close when trying to switch to the kaomoji and symbols sections, or after selecting an emoji.

[Other]

  • Fixed an issue in Registry Editor where when editing a DWORD or QWORD if you pasted in a HEX value into the text box and saved it, the value saved might not be the one you had entered (for example, pasting 0x1 would become 0x411).

Fixes for everyone in the Dev Channel

[General]

  • Fixed an issue where adding additional languages or optional features might fail with error 0x800f081f in the last few flights.

[Other]

  • [Windows Kernel Vulnerable Driver Blocklist file (DriverSiPolicy.p7b)] This update adds to the list of drivers that are at risk for Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver (BYOVD) attacks.
  • [Group Policy Preferences Item Level Targeting (ILT) and Local Users and Groups] You cannot choose a group from the target domain for ILT. Also, you cannot choose an account from Local Users and Groups. The forest does not appear. This issue occurs when you deploy multiple forests, and the target domain has a one-way trust with the domain of the admin. This issue affects Enhanced Security Admin Environment (ESAE), Hardened Forests (HF), or Privileged Access Management (PAM) deployments.
  • [NetJoinLegacyAccountReuse] This update removes this registry key. For more information refer to KB5020276—Netjoin: Domain join hardening changes.
  • [Share button] On USB controllers, the button might not work with Game Bar.
  • [GPU-Paravirtualized VM or Container] After you restart it, graphic allocation creation might fail. Because of this, the VM and Container are not as reliable as you expect.
  • [Domain Name System (DNS)] This update hardens DNS server security to address CVE-2024-37968. If the configurations of your domains are not up to date, you might get the SERVFAIL error or time out.
  • [PowerShell and VBScript] The issue stops you from using Windows Update Agent (WUA) APIs in your scripts.
  • [BitLocker] A firmware update might fail if you turn on BitLocker.

Known issues

[General]

  • [IMPORTANT] Windows Insiders joining the Dev Channel on PCs running Windows 11, version 24H2 Build 26100.xxxx will see “(repair version)” noted next to the latest Dev Channel build from Windows Update. This is nothing to worry about as all it means is that an in-place upgrade will happen to update your PC to the latest build in the Dev Channel.

[Task Manager]

  • Navigating between different pages in Task Manager may crash Task Manager.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel

  • Updates released to the Dev Channel are based off Windows 11, version 24H2.
  • Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
  • Many features in the Dev Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
  • Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
  • Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you*, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.
  • Because the Dev and Beta Channels represent parallel development paths from our engineers, there may be cases where features and experiences show up in the Beta Channel first.
  • Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.

Thanks,
Amanda & Brandon

Tags:
Windows Insider Program