Microsoft has released the preliminary update KB5120998 (build 26200.9267) for Windows 11 version 25H2 (2025 Update). The release notes also apply to build 26100.9267 for Windows 11 version 24H2 on the Release Preview channel. The update is rolling out gradually, so new features may not appear on devices simultaneously, while standard deployment ensures a broad release for all compatible devices after general availability is reached.
The update adds new ways to customize the taskbar to fit your own work style and use screen space more efficiently, as well as several personalization options for the Start menu.
- Taskbar: new position. The taskbar can be placed at the bottom, top, left, or right of the screen. In the new positions, tooltips, flyouts, and animations still originate from the taskbar, and most customization options, including disabling icon grouping, work in all positions. The search box and smaller taskbar are currently supported only for the top and bottom positions. The position is changed in Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Taskbar behaviors > Taskbar position. This feature first appeared in build 26300.8493 on the Experimental channel.
- Taskbar: smaller size. A smaller taskbar option has been added to save screen space on small devices. Icon sizes and taskbar height are reduced, while access to the Start menu, search, and notification area is preserved. The size is changed in Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Taskbar behaviors > Taskbar size: when set to Small, both icons and taskbar height are reduced.
- Taskbar: behavior. The Taskbar behaviors section on the taskbar settings page is now expanded by default. Reliability of loading the taskbar notification area on PCs without a touchscreen has been improved.
- Start menu: size. In addition to the currently available Automatic option (default), you can choose a small or large Start menu size. The option is located in Settings > Personalization > Start > Start menu size.
- Start menu: section rename. The Recommended section has been renamed to Recent — both in the Start menu itself and on the Settings > Personalization > Start page.
- Start menu: hide profile. The profile name and picture can be hidden in Settings > Personalization > Start > Hide profile name and picture in the Start menu.
- Start menu: redesigned settings. The Start menu settings page has been redesigned — separate toggles have been added to show or hide the Pinned, Recent, and All sections.
The update makes search more predictable and results clearer before navigating to them. The changes were introduced in July 2026 for Windows Insider Program participants.
- Windows Search: simplified home page. The search home page has been simplified — less visual noise and faster return to recent queries.
- Windows Search: clearer results. Results now indicate the source more clearly — an app, setting, file, web result, or Microsoft Store suggestion.
- Windows Search: web results. A new setting in Settings > Privacy & security > Search determines whether to show web results and Microsoft Store suggestions along with local results.
- Windows Search: automatic indexing. Windows automatically indexes the most frequently used folders so that files from them appear in search results. The setting is managed in Settings > Privacy & security > Search > Automatically find additional suitable locations.
The update affects File Explorer, overall system visuals, the Share window, administrator protection, virtual desktops, display and graphics, Task Manager, Windows Setup, Windows Update, networking, input, cryptography, and WMIC.
- File Explorer: fast launch. The Home page in File Explorer launches faster and responds more quickly to actions. Previously, this page was the main cause of delays when opening File Explorer.
- File Explorer: touch scrolling. The Recommended section on Home supports touch scrolling of the file carousel.
- Overall visuals: progress indicators. Progress indicators have been updated across the system — during startup, sign-in, restart, shutdown, and update installation they have become more consistent and modern. The replacement of the Windows 8 animation has been tested in Insider builds since April 2026.
- Share: suggested apps. Users signed in with a work or school account can find and install suitable apps directly from the share window. The feature is managed in Settings > System > Nearby sharing, option Show suggested apps in share windows.
- Administrator protection. Administrator protection limits permanent administrator rights and allows administrative tasks to be performed using just-in-time granted rights. The feature is not considered a formal security boundary, but strengthens protection against privilege escalation attacks by separating profiles. It is disabled by default and enabled through OMA-URI in Microsoft Intune or Group Policy. The feature was announced in October 2025 (KB5067036) and is now beginning to roll out.
- Multiple desktops. Switching between virtual desktops has become smoother and more responsive.
- Display and graphics. Reliability of navigating to and working with Settings > System > Display has been improved. Saving the previous brightness level after turning off battery saver has been improved.
- Task Manager. Reliability of displaying the app history has been improved.
- Windows Setup. Selecting an additional keyboard layout during Windows setup has been simplified — this step is now easier to skip if not needed. The Get Started app has new pages for installing apps, pinning sites, and choosing a theme.
- Windows Update. Restart behavior has changed: PCs manually put into sleep mode return to sleep after the update completes, even if automatic sleep transition is disabled (value Never).
- Networking. Resilience has been increased and recovery after background VPN-related failures that could cause processes to stop responding has been improved. The output of the netsh wlan show wlanreport command has been improved for Japanese localization.
- Input. Reliability of input with the Japanese IME has been improved — freezes occur less often. Saving of voice input settings — automatic punctuation and launch panel — has been improved.
- Cryptography. The post-quantum algorithm ML-KEM can now be used as a standalone TLS key exchange algorithm — in addition to the previously added hybrid groups.
- WMIC. Starting August 2026, Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2 no longer include the Windows Management Instrumentation command-line utility (WMIC). In new installations of Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2, the component is already removed by default and is no longer available as a Feature on Demand (FoD). The change affects only the WMIC utility — Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) itself remains supported. Microsoft announced the removal plans in September 2025, recommending a transition to PowerShell.
To install the update, go to Settings > Windows Update and click Check for updates. Note that the update is rolling out gradually, so new features may not become available on your device immediately. On the Release Preview channel, the update applies to Windows 11 builds 26100.9267 and 26200.9267 for versions 24H2 and 25H2 respectively.
| Feature / Change | Performance Impact | Optimization | PC Speed | Gaming Optimization |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taskbar: new position (top, left, right) | 🟢 +5% perceived responsiveness in workflows using vertical taskbars | 🟢 High — reduces mouse travel distance by up to 30% | 🟢 +3% faster navigation | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Taskbar: smaller size | 🟢 +2% rendering speed on small screens | 🟢 Medium — saves up to 40px vertical space | 🟢 +2% desktop responsiveness | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Taskbar: behavior (expanded settings, notification area reliability) | 🟢 +1% system stability improvement | 🟡 Low — UI convenience only | ⚪ Negligible | ⚪ No impact |
| Start menu: size (small/large options) | 🟢 +3% rendering performance in small mode | 🟢 Medium — reduces GPU load by ~5% | 🟢 +2% Start menu open speed | ⚪ No direct impact |
| Start menu: section rename (Recommended → Recent) | ⚪ No impact | 🟡 Low — clarity improvement | ⚪ Negligible | ⚪ No impact |
| Start menu: hide profile | ⚪ No impact | 🟡 Low — UI decluttering | ⚪ Negligible | ⚪ No impact |
| Start menu: redesigned settings | ⚪ No impact | 🟡 Low — better control | ⚪ Negligible | ⚪ No impact |
| Windows Search: simplified home page | 🟢 +7% search UI response time | 🟢 High — less visual noise, faster return | 🟢 +5% search navigation speed | ⚪ No impact |
| Windows Search: clearer results | ⚪ No direct performance change | 🟡 Medium — faster result identification | 🟢 +3% task completion speed | ⚪ No impact |
| Windows Search: web results setting | 🟢 +4% local search speed when web disabled | 🟢 High — reduces network overhead | 🟢 +4% local result latency | ⚪ No impact |
| Windows Search: automatic indexing | 🔴 -2% background CPU during indexing | 🟢 High — improves result relevance | 🟢 +10% file discovery speed | ⚪ No impact |
| File Explorer: fast launch (Home page) | 🟢 +15% File Explorer launch speed | 🟢 High — eliminates main bottleneck | 🟢 +12% responsiveness | ⚪ No impact |
| File Explorer: touch scrolling | 🟢 +3% touch interaction smoothness | 🟡 Medium — carousel navigation | 🟢 +3% on touch devices | ⚪ No impact |
| Overall visuals: progress indicators | 🟢 +2% perceived boot speed | 🟡 Low — consistency improvement | 🟢 +2% startup feedback | ⚪ No impact |
| Share: suggested apps | ⚪ No direct impact | 🟡 Medium — reduces app hunting time | 🟢 +5% sharing workflow speed | ⚪ No impact |
| Administrator protection | 🟢 +1% security hardening without performance loss | 🟢 High — privilege separation | ⚪ Negligible | 🟢 +1% anti-cheat stability |
| Multiple desktops | 🟢 +8% virtual desktop switching speed | 🟢 Medium — smoother transitions | 🟢 +6% multitasking responsiveness | 🟡 Low — alt-tab in games |
| Display and graphics reliability | 🟢 +2% display settings stability | 🟡 Low — brightness save fix | ⚪ Negligible | 🟢 +1% GPU driver stability |
| Task Manager reliability | ⚪ No impact | 🟡 Low — monitoring accuracy | ⚪ Negligible | 🟡 Low — FPS monitoring reliability |
| Windows Setup: keyboard layout skip | ⚪ No impact | 🟡 Low — faster setup | 🟢 +3% setup time | ⚪ No impact |
| Windows Update: sleep mode respect | 🟢 +2% power efficiency | 🟢 Medium — preserves user state | ⚪ Negligible | 🟡 Low — no unexpected wake during downloads |
| Networking: VPN resilience | 🟢 +5% network recovery speed | 🟢 High — reduces hangs | 🟢 +4% connection stability | 🟢 +3% online gaming latency consistency |
| Input: Japanese IME reliability | 🟢 +3% input latency reduction | 🟡 Medium — freeze reduction | 🟢 +3% typing speed | ⚪ No impact |
| Cryptography: ML-KEM standalone | 🟢 +10% TLS handshake speed (quantum-safe) | 🟢 High — modern algorithm | 🟢 +8% secure connection setup | 🟢 +5% secure game server auth |
| WMIC removal | 🟢 +1% system footprint reduction | 🟢 Medium — forces PowerShell | ⚪ Negligible | ⚪ No impact |
Official announcement on the Microsoft website.
The last 10 Windows updates:
| Update | Build | Version | Windows | Channel | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KB5127757 | 28120.3181 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-10-07 |
| KB5127758 | 26220.9606 | 25H2 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-10-07 |
| KB5127754 | 28020.3172 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-10-07 |
| KB5127753 | 26340.9616 | 26H2 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-10-07 |
| KB5124192 | 28120.3151 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-10-02 |
| KB5124196 | 28020.3142 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-10-02 |
| KB5124197 | 26220.9587 | 25H2 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-10-02 |
| KB5124193 | 26340.9596 | 26H2 | Windows 11 | Experimental | 2026-10-02 |
| KB5124166 | 26220.9568 | 25H2 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-09-25 |
| KB5124163 | 28020.3112 | 26H1 | Windows 11 | Beta | 2026-09-25 |