Microsoft releases Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 23590 and Build 25997

Microsoft has released new builds of Windows 11 for Windows Insiders on the Dev and Canary Channels.

Build 23590 for the Dev Channel

For the dev channel there are new natural voice previews in Narrator, saving you having to download them.

There is enhanced image consumption experience in Narrator:

• We have introduced a new keyboard command for navigating between the images/graphics on a screen/page. Now, you can use the keys “G” or “Shift + G” to navigate forward or backwards between images in Scan mode (Narrator key + spacebar).
• Recognition of text in images, including handwriting, is improved along with improvements to overall image descriptions. You can try the enhanced experience by navigating to the image and pressing Narrator key + CTRL + D key combination when the focus is on an image. This feature requires an active internet connection, and the setting to get Image Descriptions must be enabled in Narrator Settings.

Here are the other changes, fixes and known issues with the release:

Changes and Improvements

[General]

• Steps Recorder will not receive further updates and is planned for removal in a future Windows release. Starting in this build, Steps Recorder (PSR.exe) will display a new banner notification to guide users towards alternative options. We encourage our users to explore other options in Windows 11 such as Snipping tool, Xbox Game bar or Microsoft Clipchamp. For more, see this article.

[Windows Share]

• The Windows share window will now only show apps under “Share using” that are tied to the account you are signed into Windows with – either Microsoft account (MSA) or Microsoft Entra ID (previously Azure Active Directory). If you are signed in with an MSA, you will see Microsoft Teams (free) instead of Microsoft Teams (work or school) and not both for example.
• If you’re signed in with a Microsoft Entra ID, your Microsoft Teams (work or school) contacts will appear in the Windows share window to quickly share to.

[Nearby Sharing]

• If you turn on nearby sharing via quick settings or directly in Settings and you have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth off, it will turn Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on so nearby sharing will work as expected. If you turn off Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, it will also turn off nearby sharing

[Narrator]

• In Microsoft Word, Narrator will now announce the presence of a draft comment, a resolved comment, a bookmark, or the availability of accessibility suggestions when reading text in the document.

Fixes

[File Explorer]

• Fixed an issue causing File Explorer to crash on launch for some Insiders in the last few builds if you were using a non-default regional sorting option.
• Fixed an issue which was causing opening the context menu on the desktop to crash explorer.exe in the last couple flights for some Insiders.
• Fixed an issue which was causing explorer.exe to crash sometimes when entering paths into the address bar.

[Narrator]

• Fixed an issue where Narrator was not correctly announcing the selected item in combo boxes when users try to change the combo box value using key combination Control + up or down arrow.
• Fixed an issue where Narrator was announcing old dialog names even after users navigate to new dialog on few web pages.
• Fixed an issue where Narrator was not reading Role of a control in tables on the web while using table navigation commands CTRL + ALT + Arrow keys.
• Addressed an issue where Narrator was not announcing the selected state of menu items in few applications such as device manager.
• Fixed an issue where Narrator was announcing both the unselected value and the newly selected value in elements such as date fields or any elements that are formatted as tables.

[Magnifier]

• Fixed an issue in Magnifier settings page where the text below “voice speed” slider was not following the color contrast guidelines.

[Settings]

• Fixed an issue where the Experimental Features section of Narrator Settings didn’t have text.

[Windows Share]

• Fixed an issue which was causing the share window to crash in the last couple builds.

NOTE: Some fixes noted here in Insider Preview builds from the Dev Channel may make their way into the servicing updates for the released version of Windows 11.

Known issues

[Copilot in Windows*]

• When first launching or after refreshing Copilot in Windows while using voice access, you’ll need to use “Show grid” commands to click in the “Ask me anything” box for the first time.

Build 25997 for the Canary Channel

Over on the Canary channel there are just a couple changes and three fixes:

Changes and Improvements

[Windows Share]

• If you’re signed in with a Microsoft Entra ID, your Microsoft Teams (work or school) contacts will appear in the Windows share window to quickly share to.

[Settings]

• We are beginning to roll out a new option under Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Phone Link to disable Phone Link all together in Windows 11. This setting will prevent Phone Link from communicating with your mobile devices.

Fixes for known issues

• Fixed an issue causing some Insiders to see the latest builds unexpectedly fail to install with 0x80004005.
• Fixed an issue causing some Insiders to see an increase in bugchecks after upgrading to the previous build.
• Fixed an issue where the context menu in File Explorer, as well as the command bar dropdowns, might go transparent sometimes.

Known issues

• [REMINDER] Some popular games may not work correctly on the most recent Insider Preview builds in the Canary Channel. Please be sure to submit feedback in Feedback Hub on any issues you see with playing games on these builds.
• We’re working on a fix for an issue where attempting to reboot into safe mode hangs on the boot logo.
• Attempting to navigate to Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Touchpad on this build will crash Settings.