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Microsoft has released a new build of Windows 11 for Insiders enrolled in the Canary channel that debuted a few weeks ago. Windows 11 build 25324 introduces a few changes, some of which first appeared in a Dev channel build earlier this week, but others are completely new. Most notably, there's a new design for the Widgets board that might actually make it more useful.
Separating Widgets and news
Indeed, the big news with this build has to do with the Widgets bord, which has received a fair number of changes since its original iteration. In the first version we saw in early preview, widgets were at the top and news had a separate section at the bottom, but later, Microsoft changed the design so that news appeared right after widgets without any interruptions. This latest change seems to undo that, but in a different way. Now, you'll see a section for widgets on the left side of the Widgets board, and a section for news on the right. The Widgets board is also wider now to accommodate more content at once.
As with many changes in the Insider program, this is being tested with a subset of Insiders, so not everyone will see it for now. Another change is that the Widgets icon on the taskbar will now be animated, adding a bit more life to the experience.
New features in Settings
Some changes are also arriving in the Settings app, starting with a new page for USB4 settings, which lets you see information about the USB4 routers on your PC and the devices connected to it. This first appeared in the Dev channel with build 23419 earlier this week.
Another change is the ability to change your preferred Windows Hello camera in devices that have more than one camera available. For example, if you're using a laptop that supports Windows Hello connected to a docking station with another Windows Hello-enabled webcam, you can now head into the Settings app, under Accounts > Sign-in options, and choose a preferred camera to use with Windows Hello.
Additionally, Microsoft is removing some old troubleshooters from the System > Troubleshoot page and moving their functionality into the Get Help app.
Security improvements
With this build, Microsoft is adding support for the SHA-3 family of hash functions, as well as derived functions and algorithms. These cryptographic hash functions play an important role in security in certain scenarios, and SHA-3 is significantly different from its predecessor, SHA-2.
Another security improvement in this build is a new warning message that will be displayed when users copy and paste a password. This warning was previously displayed when users entered a known password into a website, letting them know that reusing passwords is potentially dangerous. Now, the same warning will appear when a password is copied instead of typed.
Other changes
A couple of smaller changes in this release include an improvement for File Explorer which addresses the slow performance of the "Calculating" phase when deleting files to send to the Recycle Bin, particularly when dealing with a lot of files at once. Microsoft has also updated some simplified Chinese fonts and the Microsoft Pinyin IME with support for GB18030-2022. Finally, if you're part of the Bing preview, you can now access Bing faster from your taskbar.
Unlike builds in other channels, Canary builds don't include a list of fixes and known issues, so you're truly installing them at your own risk. At this point, there isn't anything overly exciting in the Canary channel to justify this risk.
The Beta channel also gets a new build
In addition to the Canary channel, Windows Insiders enrolled in the Beta channel are also getting a new build today. This is build 22624.1470 (and 22621.1470) and it includes many changes that have been previously released to Insiders in the Canary and Dev channels. This includes the USB4 settings page mentioned above, which is rolling out in multiple channels around the same time.
Other changes in the Beta channel include the ability to copy two-factor authentication security codes from email notifications and enable seconds on the taskbar clock for those that like to keep a close eye on the exact time. What's more, the network icon has been updated when using a VPN connection, with the VPN icon overlay now using your system's theme color. On that note, the search bar on the taskbar will now display in a lighter color when you're using a custom color mode in Settings (dark for Windows, light for apps). As per usual, all these changes are only enabled for build 22624.1470.
This release does include some fixes, which you can find below:
There are also some known issues for this one, all related to the live captions feature. You can read about those below:
If you're enrolled in either the Beta channel or the Canary channel, you can get today's updates by simply checking for updates in the Settings app.
Source: Microsoft 1, 2