Microsoft releases Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22621.2262 and 22631.2262

Microsoft has released build 22621.2262 and 22631.2262 for Windows Insiders on the beta channel. KB5029339 takes the builds to 22621.2262 (features off) and 22631.2262 (features on) and due to a bug in the previous build you may not see the Check for update button. If you don’t have the button you can start the update off from the command line, you can run: USOClient StartInteractiveScan to start the update downloading.

The build has a new settings home page first seen in the dev channel a few months ago:

The cards that are available are:

1. Recommended settings: This card adapts to your specific usage patterns, providing timely and relevant settings options. It’s designed to streamline your settings management and save you time.
2. Cloud storage: Gives you an overview of your cloud storage use and lets you know when you’re nearing capacity.
3. Account recovery: Helps keep your Microsoft account more secure by helping you add additional recovery info so you never get locked out of your account, even if you forget your password.
4. Personalization: Brings customization to the forefront by offering one-click access to update your background theme or change your color mode.
5. Microsoft 365: Provides a quick glimpse of your subscription status and benefits, along with the ability to take some key actions right in Settings instead of going to the web.
6. Xbox: Similar to the Microsoft 365 card, you’ll be able to view your subscription status and manage the subscription from the Settings app.
7. Bluetooth Devices: To simplify your Bluetooth device management experience, we’ve brought this to the forefront so you can quickly access and connect to your favorite Bluetooth-enabled devices.

Another feature making the move from the dev channel to the beta channel is the Windows Backup improvements:

You can now restore your folders, apps, settings and credentials when you retore your PC during the out of box experience.

Here are the other changes, fixes and known issues:

Changes and Improvements in Build 22631.2262

[File Explorer]

• Made some changes which should noticeably help improve the performance of the “calculating” phase when sending a large number of files at once in File Explorer to the recycle bin.

[Cast]

• Building off the Cast improvements introduced with Build 22631.2129, we have updated the Cast flyout in Quick Settings with additional support for you in case you face any trouble discovering nearby displays, fixing connections, and more.

[Dynamic Lighting]

• You can now instantly sync your Windows accent color with the devices around you with the “Match my Windows accent color” toggle under “Effects” for Dynamic Lighting via Settings > Personalization > Dynamic Lighting.
• We have added the ability to choose a custom color to light up your devices with.

Fixes in Build 22631.2262

[Taskbar & System Tray]

• Fixed an issue where after upgrading the Bluetooth icon in the system tray might not display in the system tray after upgrade even though your PC supported Bluetooth and the Bluetooth options were shown in Settings.
• Fixed an issue where the new bell icon might be very difficult to see in some cases because it was using a dark outline when your taskbar was dark.
• Fixed an issue where the titles were missing from taskbar previews when turning on tablet-optimized taskbar while using uncombined taskbar.
• Fixed an issue where app icons on the taskbar would become empty (with no icon) in recent Insider builds after switching between desktops.
• Fixed an issue where if the taskbar was set to uncombined it would still show animations even if they’d been turned off.
• Disabled the setting for uncombining taskbar buttons on other screens by default when no secondary monitors are connected.
• Fixed an issue where using drag to rearrange icons in the overflow area wasn’t working well when the taskbar was set to uncombined.
• Fixed an issue where uncombined taskbar’s app indicators weren’t shown correctly after it showed something was being downloaded.
• Fixed an issue where the hidden icons flyout might close unexpectedly when using keyboard navigation to move focus between icons.

[File Explorer]

• Fixed an issue where in some cases, the context menu background in File Explorer appeared transparent. This also impacted the command bar dropdown menus.
• Fixed an issue where the context menu and dropdown menus in File Explorer weren’t working with touch.
• Fixed an issue which was causing the search box in File Explorer to not work well with IMEs.
• Fixed a white flash in dark mode when switching between Home and Gallery.
• Fixed an issue impacted File Explorer reliability.
• Fixed an issue where “Automatically type into the Search Box” wasn’t working when File Explorer was open to Home.
• Fixed an issue where pasting using the context menu in the address bar wasn’t working (or other context menu actions in the address bar).
• Added a little more space between Home in the navigation page and the bottom of the command bar.

[Input]

• Fixed an issue where typing with the Japanese and Chinese IMEs may not have performed as expected in certain apps in the last few flights when you had selected the option to use the previous version of the IME. If you are continuing to experience issues with this build installed, please file feedback.
• Fixed an issue where when inking into a text field, if you were writing in Chinese, certain characters were being perceived as taps and not working.
• Fixed an issue where inking into a text field while magnifier was running was not working well as the ink was offset.

[HDR Wallpapers]

• Fixed an issue which could cause sporadic explorer.exe crashes when using an HDR wallpaper.

[Task Manager]

• Fixed an issue where Task Manager was crashing when using the reset to default button in Settings.
• Did some work to help improve the performance when switching between different pages in Task Manager.

[Other]

• Fixed an issue which could cause sporadic explorer.exe crashes when using an HDR wallpaper.

Fixes for BOTH Build 22621.2262 & Build 22631.2262

• We fixed the issue causing the “Check for updates” button to not appear as expected under Settings > Windows Update. After updating to this build, the “Check for updates” button should appear as expected. If you are on the previous Beta Channel flight, you can manually check for updates by opening Windows Terminal (or the Run dialog) and entering the USOClient StartInteractiveScan command which will perform the same function as clicking the “Check for updates” button in Windows Update. Note that running the command will not display any output. To confirm that the operation was successful, you can run the command while the Windows Update settings page is open. You should see your device checking for updates.
• Fixed an issue where removing a monitor while connected to a Cloud PC could result in a black screen with only a mouse visible in recent builds.

Known issues

[General]

• We’re working on the fix for an issue causing explorer.exe to crash on the login screen when attempting to enter safe mode.

[File Explorer]

• Investigating an issue where the icons on your desktop may all go blank. Right-click and refresh on the desktop will bypass the issue if it occurs.

[Narrator]

• You may see some of the strings are NOT localized to the selected language. This will be fixed in a future flight.

Via