Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22621.730 and 22623.730 (Beta Channel)

Good Morning friends! Microsoft has released new preview builds of Windows 11 (version 22H2) numbered 22621.730 and 22623.730 (KB5017385) for members of the Windows Insider Beta Program.

• Assembly 22623.730 – testing of new functions is available.
• Assembly 22621.730 – new features are disabled by default.

Insiders who were previously on Build 22622 will automatically be upgraded to Build 22623 via the Service Pack. This package artificially increments the build number to make it easier for Microsoft engineers to distinguish between enabled and disabled devices by default.

If you are in a group with features disabled by default (build 22621.xxx), then check for updates and agree to install an optional update that will make these features available (build 22623.xxx).

Full build numbers:

• 10.0.22621.730.ni_release_svc_prod2.220916-1226
• 10.0.22623.730.ni_release_svc_prod2.220916-1226

Innovations in assembly 22623.730

Taskbar optimized for tablets

Microsoft continues to test a new version of the taskbar, which is specially designed for a more comfortable use of the operating system on tablets. The taskbar will automatically switch to this option when you enter tablet mode on 2-in-1 hybrid devices. The feature does not work on laptops and desktops.

The new version of the taskbar has two states: collapsed and expanded. When minimized, it frees up screen space by preventing accidental taps on the taskbar in tablet mode. When expanded, it’s a familiar taskbar, but optimized for touch. You can switch between states by swiping up and down at the bottom of the screen.

To see if this feature is available on your device, go to Options -> Personalization -> Taskbar -> Taskbar Behavior. There you will find a new option “Automatically hide the taskbar when using the device as a tablet”which is enabled by default.

This change is not yet available to all Insiders in the Dev channel. Microsoft wants to collect feedback from a small group of users before the change is made available to all Insiders.

System tray update

With this build, Microsoft is introducing an updated system tray that is now available for all computers, not just 2-in-1 hybrid devices. When hovering over the icons in the lower right corner of the taskbar, all buttons will have a rounded shape.

You will also notice that from now on you will not be able to drag or change the position of icons on the taskbar. Insiders have already complained about this in the past, and Microsoft is working on implementing this feature. The ability to drag and drop tray icons will come in future builds.

This change is not yet available to all Insiders in the Dev channel. Microsoft wants to collect feedback from a small group of users before the change is made available to all Insiders.

Changes and improvements in build 22623.730

Conductor:

• On the Home page, you can now search for recently opened Microsoft 365 cloud files if your Microsoft account is linked to a system profile using the Settings app. The search will display recent activity on Cloud Files. You can also search for files in the Microsoft 365 cloud using advanced file properties such as location, extension, and activity.
• Search in File Explorer will now display results as you type. The full page of search results will be updated in real time without having to press the Enter key.

Fixes in build 22623.730

• System tray updates:
  Note. These fixes will only appear if your device has a tablet-optimized taskbar enabled. See above for more information about the tablet-optimized taskbar. This feature is currently not available to all Insiders in the Dev channel.
  • The taskbar should no longer flicker due to system tray changes in non-tablet-optimized scenarios.
  • We fixed an issue where certain parts of the taskbar or its icons, such as Search, could have the wrong color when switching between light and dark skins.
  • The date and time should no longer be truncated due to system tray changes.
• Start menu:
  • We fixed an issue that caused the Start menu to crash.
  • We fixed an issue where the Featured section could only show one column instead of two.
  • If you change the application associated with a particular file type, the icon for any of the displayed file types should now update in the Recommended section.

Fixes in both builds

• Fixed an issue seen on some issues that occurred when enabling Hyper-V and Direct Memory Access (DMA) protection.
• Fixed an issue with the Microsoft Japanese IME. When using third party virtual desktops, text conversion might fail.
• We fixed an issue that could cause the app to stop responding. This could happen when the input queue overflowed.
• We fixed an issue resulting in failure to sign in to Microsoft 365 apps, including Outlook, Word, Teams, and more.
• We fixed an issue that affected graphics drivers using d3d9on12.dll.
• We fixed issues that resulted in a crash when updating apps through the Microsoft Store.
• We fixed an issue that resulted in a memory leak in the LanmanWorkstation service when mounting a network drive.
• We fixed an issue affecting the Miracast user interface. Sometimes it closed too quickly when transferring data to devices using DeviceObjectType: Aep.
• We fixed an issue that caused the Task Manager to stop working after switching between light and dark skins or changing the accent color.
• We fixed an issue where the width of three Chinese characters was incorrect when set to bold.
• We fixed an issue affecting Microsoft and third-party input method editors (IMEs). They stopped working after closing the IME window. This only happens if the IME is using Windows Text Services Framework (TSF) 1.0.
• We fixed an issue resulting in IE mode webpages failing to open in Microsoft Edge. This happened when Windows Defender Application Guard (WDAG) was enabled and the Network Isolation policy was configured.
• We fixed an issue resulting in pop-up and tab titles not displaying correctly in IE mode in Microsoft Edge.
• We fixed an issue where the credentials UI was not displayed in IE mode.
• Fixed an issue affecting certificate matching. On failure lsass.exe could stop working schannel.dll.

Known Issues

• General:
  • We are investigating reports of some Insiders having audio playback stop working after updating to the latest builds on the Beta channel.
• Taskbar optimized for tablets:
  • The taskbar may flicker when switching between desktop mode and tablet mode.
  • Switching the taskbar to the touch version is taking longer than expected. This will be noticeable when switching between desktop mode and tablet mode.
  • The taskbar may overlap the Widgets and Action Center panels when opened with gestures from the left and right edges of the screen.
  • When opening the Quick Actions menu with a gesture in the lower right corner of the screen, the taskbar may not collapse and remain in an expanded state.
  • If there are no running windows on the desktop, the taskbar can sometimes be minimized, although it should be maximized.

We wish you a successful update!