Microsoft has released Windows 11 Build 26100.5061 to Windows Insiders in the Release Preview Channel on Windows 11 24H2. The release includes several features and improvements, including a personalized homepage, a redesigned system dialog box, a larger clock in the notification center, a new grid view for searching, and improved lock screen widget personalization. Additionally, AI actions in File Explorer are now available for editing images or summarizing documents, and Dividers now appear between top-level icons in the File Explorer context menu. The release also includes a new navigation bar, interactive tutorials, and improved security features. However, some features may not be immediately available to all users due to their gradual rollout.

Windows 11 has introduced several updates and improvements to enhance user experience. The redesigned Windows Hello interface supports fast, clear communication across multiple authentication flows, including the Windows sign-in screen, passkey, Recall, and the Microsoft Store. The Windows security credential experience for passkey offers a cleaner, more intuitive interface. Windows activation and expiration prompts match the Windows 11 design, and users can now view the Device Card on the Settings home page. More time, language, and keyboard settings have moved from Control Panel to Settings, and the agent in Settings now supports AMD- and Intel:tm:-powered Copilot+ PCs. Windows Backup for Organizations is now generally available, providing seamless device transitions with enterprise-grade backup and restore. Starting in August 2025, Windows 11 version 24H2 will no longer include Windows PowerShell 2.0. The update addresses issues with Live captions, input, login, dbgcore.dll, and audio. The normal rollout includes features and improvements for device management, file system, input, and performance. Windows 11 Build 26100.5061 is now available for preview.

Releasing Windows 11 Build 26100.5061 to the Release Preview Channel

Hello Windows Insiders, today we’re releasing Windows 11 Build 26100.5061 (KB5064081) to Insiders in the Release Preview Channel on Windows 11, version 24H2 (Build 26100). 

Gradual rollout

The following features and improvements might not be available to all users because they will roll out gradually. Text bolded in brackets indicate the area of the change being documented. Please note that features and improvements that gradually roll out may not begin rolling out right away nor will they immediately show up right away.

• [Recall] New! Recall opens to a personalized homepage that puts your recent activity and top-used apps and websites front and center, making it easy to pick up where you left off. After turning on snapshot collection, the homepage highlights key productivity features like Recent Snapshots, which show the latest snapshots to help you quickly resume tasks, and Top Apps and Websites, which display the three apps and websites you’ve used most in the past 24 hours. You can  set filters in Settings to control which apps and websites are saved in snapshots. A new navigation bar on the leftmost side of the screen provides quick access to Home, Timeline, Feedback, and Settings.
• [Click to Do] New! When you launch Click to Do for the first time, you’ll see a quick interactive tutorial. It shows how to complete tasks faster by demonstrating actions on both text and images—such as summarizing large blocks of text or removing image backgrounds. To revisit the tutorial later, select More options … > Start tutorial.
• [General] New! When an app requests access to location, camera, microphone, or other device capabilities, Windows shows a redesigned system dialog box. The screen dims slightly, and the privacy prompt appears centered on the screen.

• [Taskbar]
  • New! The larger clock with seconds is now back in the notification center, displayed above the date and calendar. To turn this option on, go to Settings > Time & language > Date & time, and turn on Show time in the Notification Center.
  • Fixed: If you accidentally click down and slide your mouse on the taskbar preview thumbnail, clicking it may stop working.
  • Fixed: File Explorer preview windows may appear when hovering over unrelated app icons in the taskbar.

• [Search on the Taskbar]
  • New! When you use Search from the Windows taskbar, a new grid view will help you more quickly and accurately identify the desired image within your search.
  • New! Search on the taskbar now provides clearer status information. If your search results are incomplete while your PC is organizing files in the background, Windows shows a notice with a link to check progress. You can dismiss the notice when you’re done. There is also a status for files and folders, so you can easily tell whether they’re available online (cloud) or stored on your device.
• [Lock screen] New! After rolling this experience out to Windows Insiders in the EEA, we are now beginning to roll out more widget options on the lock screen as well as support for lock screen widget personalization ( previously referred to as “Weather and more”) with Insiders in all regions. 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.
• [File Explorer]
  • New! Use AI actions in File Explorer to edit images or summarize documents. Just right click (or Press Shift+F10) on a file and select AI Actions.
    • Image actions: You can now use four AI-powered image actions with .jpg, .jpeg, and .png files. Visual Search searches the web using an image instead of text. Blur Background opens the Photos app to highlight the subject and blur the background. Erase Objects removes unwanted elements from your photo. Remove Background uses Paint to change any image leaving a smooth cut out of the subject.
    • AI actions for Microsoft 365 makes it easier to work with your documents. With the Summarize action in Copilot, you can quickly generate summaries of files stored in OneDrive and SharePoint—no need to open each one. This AI action requires an active Microsoft 365 subscription and a Copilot license (Microsoft account and Microsoft Entra ID supported).New! Dividers now appear between top-level icons in the File Explorer context menu.
  • New! When you’re signed in with a work or school account (Entra ID), File Explorer will display people icons in the Activity column and the Recommended section at the top of File Explorer Home. Hover over or select a person’s icon to open their Microsoft 365 Live  Persona Card, which shows who they are and how they’re connected to the file.
  • Fixed: If you try to use the unblock open in Properties for a file, it still shows as blocked when you open Properties the next time.
• Windows Hello]
  • New! As part of the  enhanced passkey features released in September 2023, you’ll see a redesigned Windows Hello interface. These modernized visual updates support fast, clear communication that appear across multiple authentication flows, including the Windows sign-in screen, passkey, Recall, the Microsoft Store, and more. The Windows  security credential experience for passkey offers a cleaner, more intuitive interface designed to support fast, secure sign-in. You can now easily switch between authentication options such as passkeys or connected devices.
  • Fixed: Windows Hello may recognize your face on the login screen, however it would still fail and then prompt you to enter your pin. If you continue experiencing issues, you may need to go to the Facial Recognition section under Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options, and select Improve recognition.
  • Improved: Fingerprint login after standby is now more robust.

• [Advanced Settings] New! The redesigned Advanced settings page under Settings > System > Advanced is an update of the For Developers page and makes it easier to find key options. New settings include Enable long paths, which  removes MAX_PATH limitations; Virtual workspaces, which let you turn environments like Hyper-V and Windows Sandbox on or off; and File Explorer + version control, which shows Git details such as branch, diff count, and last commit message directly in File Explorer when you select a repository folder.
• [Settings]
  • New! Windows activation and expiration prompts match the Windows 11 design and appear as system notifications when action is required. There also have been improvements to messaging under Settings > System > Activation.
  • New! You can go to Settings > Privacy & security > Text and Image Generation to see which third-party apps have recently used generative AI models provided by Windows. You can also choose which apps are permitted to use them—putting you in charge of your device’s AI experience.
  • New! You can view the Device Card on the Settings home page. It shows key specifications and usage details of your PC. From the card, go directly to Settings > About page for more detailed information about your PC. This card will show when signed in with your Microsoft account and in the U.S. only.
  • New! More time, language, and keyboard settings have moved from Control Panel to Settings. You can now add additional clocks, change your time server, and customize date and time formatting—including AM/PM symbols—directly from Settings > Time & language > Date & time. Number and currency formats, Unicode UTF-8 support, and options to copy language and region settings to other accounts are now under Settings > Time & language > Language & region. Keyboard character repeat and cursor blink rate settings are now easier to find under Settings > Accessibility.
  • New! As part of the Copilot+ PC experience, the agent in Settings helps you quickly find and change settings. Initially available on Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs, agent in Settings now supports AMD- and Intel-powered Copilot+ PCs. It currently works only when your primary display language is set to English.
  • Fixed: Settings may crash if you attempt to add a security key under Settings > Account > Sign-in options.
• [Task Manager] New! Task Manager now uses standard metrics to show CPU workload consistently across all pages, aligning with industry standards and third-party tools. If you prefer the previous view, you can enable a new optional column called CPU Utility in the Details tab to display the earlier CPU usage value shown on the Processes page.

• [Windows Backup for Organizations] New! Windows Backup for Organizations is now generally available! Experience seamless device transitions with enterprise-grade backup and restore. Whether you’re refreshing your organization’s devices, upgrading to Windows 11, or deploying AI-powered PCs, this solution helps sustain productivity with minimal disruption, ensuring business continuity and organizational resilience.
• [PowerShell 2.0] Starting in August 2025, Windows 11, version 24H2, will no longer include Windows PowerShell 2.0.This  legacy component was  introduced in Windows 7 and officially  deprecated in 2017. Most users won’t be affected, as newer versions such as  PowerShell 5.1 and PowerShell 7.x remain available and supported. If you use older scripts or tools that depend on PowerShell 2.0, update them to avoid compatibility issues.
• [Live captions] Fixed: Changing the opacity of live captions in Settings > Accessibility > Captions > Caption Style, has no effect.
• [Input]
  • Fixed: Attempting to type Chinese with an IME after copying something with CTRL + C can result in the first character not displaying.
  • Fixed: An underlying issue related to textinputframework.dll could result in certain apps like Sticky Notes and Notepad crashing.
• [Kerberos] Fixed: There may be an underlying crash in  Kerberos when attempting to access a cloud file share.
• [Login] Improved: Addressed some underlying cases which could lead to you seeing a blank white screen, or a screen saying, “just a moment”, for a few minutes when logging in to your PC.
• [dbgcore.dll] Fixed: An underlying issue with dbgcore.dll could result in certain apps, including explorer.exe, crashing.
• [Audio] Improved: Addressed an underlying audio service hang which could impact the ability to play audio in certain cases.

Normal rollout

This update includes the following features and improvements that are rolling out as part of this update. Text bolded in brackets indicates the area of the change being documented.

• [Device management] Fixed: This update addresses an issue that prevented some system recovery features from working properly due to a temporary file sharing conflict. This affected certain device management tools and disrupted key functions on some devices.
• [File system] Fixed: An issue in Resilient File System (ReFS) where using backup apps with large files could sometimes exhaust system memory.
• [Input]
  • Fixed: This update addresses an issue with the Chinese (Simplified) Input Method Editor (IME) where some extended characters appear as empty boxes.
  • Fixed: This update addresses an issue that prevents typing on the touch keyboard when using the Microsoft Changjie, Microsoft Bopomofo, or Microsoft Japanese Input Method Editors (IMEs). The issue occurs after switching to a previous version of the IME.
• [Performance] Fixed: This update addresses an issue that slows application installation on ARM64 devices. Some installers might take longer to complete.

Releasing Windows 11 Build 26100.5061 to the Release Preview Channel