Microsoft has a late-day treat for Windows Insiders in the Beta channel. There are two new Windows 11 builds to download. Build 22623.1325 is for those who have new features rolling out, and build 22621.1325 is for those who have new features off by default. Across both builds, you can enjoy some new widgets for Spotify, Game Pass, Phone Link, and Messenger. This is on top of the usual bug tweaks that address issues Windows Insiders have reported.

New features in both builds

As we just said, the highlight feature for both of these builds is the new widgets. You can go to the widgets collection in the Microsoft Store to get the latest version of the Spotify, Game Pass, Phone Link, and Messenger apps to grab these widgets. You should then see the widgets on the board by clicking the "+" button at the top-right to pin them down wherever you please. This is all possible because of Windows App SDK 1.2 which lets developers create widgets for their apps. Previously, this feature was only available in the lesser stable Windows 11 Dev Channel, so it's nice to see the expansion here, too.

Note that this release also brings a new policy that enables commercial customers to enable features introduced via servicing (outside of the annual feature update) that are off by default for devices that have their Windows updates managed. If you're an IT admin, you can learn more about this through Microsoft.

Fixes for both builds

Across both of these builds, Microsoft rolled out a laundry list of changes. These impact bugs with printers, Task View, Bluetooth keyboards, and more. We've included everything you need to know below.

• We fixed compatibility issues that affected some printers. Those printers used Windows Graphical Device Interface (GDI) printer drivers. Those drivers did not completely adhere to GDI specifications.
• We fixed a reliability issue that occurred when you used Task View.
• We fixed an issue that affected copying from a network to a local drive. Copying was slower than expected for some users.
• We provided support for the United Mexican States’ daylight-saving time change order for 2023.
• We fixed a date information issue. It affected the format of dates sent between Windows and some versions of the Heimdal Kerberos library.
• We fixed an issue that affected provisioning packages. They failed to apply in certain circumstances when elevation was required.
• We fixed an issue that affected which folders appeared in the Browse for Folder picker.
• We fixed an issue that affected File Explorer. When you used Shift + Tab or Shift + F6, the input focus did not move.
• We fixed an issue that affected the user interface (UI). The volume up and volume down commands from a Bluetooth keyboard did not display.
• We improved the reliability of Windows after you installed an update.
• We fixed an issue that might have affected lsass.exe. It might have stopped responding when it sent a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) query to a domain controller that had a very large LDAP filter.
• We fixed an issue that affected Azure Active Directory (Azure AD). Using a provisioning package for bulk provisioning failed.
• We fixed an issue that affected the software keyboard. It did not appear in the Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE) after a Push-button reset (factory reset). This type of reset required an external keyboard to be attached to provide credentials.
• We fixed an issue that affected AppV. It stopped file names from having the correct letter case (uppercase or lowercase).
• We fixed an issue that affected Universal Print’s Configuration Service Provider (CSP). A command prompt window appeared when you installed a printer.
• We fixed an issue that might have affected the touch keyboard and the PIN entry keyboard. You might not have been able to use them to enter text when you signed in to your device.
• We fixed an issue that displayed a blue screen during video playback. This occurred after you set high dynamic range (HDR) on your display.
• We fixed an issue that affected parity virtual disks. Using Server Manager to create them failed
• We fixed an issue that affected IE mode. The text on the status bar was not always visible.
• We fixed an issue that affected the Color filters setting. When you selected Inverted, the system set it to Grayscale instead.
• We fixed an issue that affected Microsoft Edge. The issue removed conflicting policies for Microsoft Edge. This occurred when you set the MDMWinsOverGPFlag in a Microsoft Intune tenant and Intune detected a policy conflict.
• We fixed an issue that affected the Appx State Repository. When you removed a user profile, the cleanup was incomplete. Because of that, its database grew as time passes. This growth might have caused delays when users signed in to multi-user environments like FSLogix.

read more

Other changes and fixes in build 22623.1325

With just build 22623.1325, Microsoft has added the ability to see AI-powered recommended content within your Start menu for devices that are Azure Active Directory joined. You'll see things that consumers with regular Windows 11 are familiar with, like suggested files, and other content you might have commented on or opened before. This is in addition to a fix that caused the taskbar to be cut off after resolution changes.

That's all for this week's action in the Beta channel. As a reminder, if you're also running the Dev channel version of Windows 11, you got a new release on Wednesday. That build added live caption support in more languages, and a revamped Microsoft Store with a new cleaner UI for featured products on the store's home page, a cleaner search result page, and cleaner designs for product cards for apps.

Source: Microsoft