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Imagine a world where you never have to remember another password. Seems like a dream come true for both end users and IT teams, right? But as the old saying goes, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."  If your organization is like many, you may be contemplating a move to passwordless authentication. But the reality is that a passwordless security approach comes with its own

Imagine a world where you never have to remember another password. Seems like a dream come true for both end users and IT teams, right? But as the old saying goes, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."  If your organization is like many, you may be contemplating a move to passwordless authentication. But the reality is that a passwordless security approach comes with its own The Hacker Newshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]

Microsoft has bet big on Copilot, the generative AI (genAI) assistant it’s integrating into nearly its entire product line, notably Microsoft 365. The company believes businesses of all sizes will buy into the productivity gains the tool might deliver — and in so doing, deliver billions of dollars to Microsoft’s bottom line. 

As evidence, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently said sales of Copilot for Microsoft 365 were up 60% in the last quarter alone and that the number of Copilot for Microsoft 365 customers with more than 10,000 seats doubled in that same period.

Copilot for Microsoft 365, he said, “is on a growth rate that’s faster than any other previous generation of software we launched” for the office suite.

That’s certainly good news for Microsoft. But there may be bumps in the road ahead. Researchers and analysts are warning about a variety of serious Copilot security problems, especially for enterprises that use it in concert with Microsoft 365. Gartner has weighed in with its own security warnings and at least one researcher says companies are already shying away from buying Copilot because of it. 

Are the security woes overstated, or does Microsoft have a real problem on its hands? 

Here’s what companies need to keep in mind as they eye deployment.

Data access: Copilot for Microsoft 365’s main problem

Many of the potentially serious security issues with Copilot start with what kind of access the genAI tool is given to corporate data, and how that access can be misused by hackers, or even by people within a company. 

Ivan Fioravanti, co-founder and CTO for CoreView, which focuses on Microsoft 365 management configuration and security, notes in a blog post that when a company installs Copilot for Microsoft 365, it gets the same permissions model for data access already in place for Microsoft 365. That model, he says, is designed to ensure “only authorized users can interact with sensitive information.”

However, there are security gaps enterprises could easily miss. Fioravanti warns that risky Copilot configuration settings could be enabled by default. These settings can give Copilot “access to sensitive data without appropriate safeguards in place. Default settings could allow Copilot to interact with external plugins and access web content, introducing new attack surfaces.”

Beyond that, Copilot reporting tools are insufficient “to identify potential areas of concern, such as users accessing sensitive data inappropriately,” he warns. “…Copilot can inadvertently expose existing security gaps, making it easier for users to discover and share information they shouldn’t have access to.” 

Overall, he concludes, “Copilot’s broad access to data across Microsoft 365 creates additional security risks. If a user’s account is compromised, an attacker could leverage Copilot to extract confidential information. The AI models powering Copilot also present potential vulnerabilities that could be exploited.”

Fioravanti is not alone in his concerns. Gartner points out many of the same issues. And it adds one more: Copilot “has inherent risks of being susceptible to prompt injection attacks, generating undesired output including hallucinations, toxic content or copyright-protected materials.”

Prompt injection attacks, can do even worse than that. A hacker who gains access to Copilot for Microsoft 365 could use prompts to find private company data and steal it. A prompt injection attack could also create and execute malicious code without detection. And it could allow hackers to impersonate someone in a company with high-level access to sensitive information and use that information for nefarious purposes.

Are companies already shying away?

There’s some evidence companies may well already be avoiding Copilot for Microsoft 365 because of potential security woes.

Jack Berkowitz, chief data officer of the security firm Securiti, warns that in large companies with complex permissions rules, employees often have access to information that should be off limits because of “conflicting authorizations or conflicting access to data.” Copilot makes it easier for hackers to get that information because they only need prompts to find it.

Berkowitz argues that security problems associated with Copilot are causing companies to pause their use of the product. “A few weeks ago,” he says, “we hosted a little dinner in New York, and we just asked this question of 20-plus CDOs [chief data officers] in New York City of the biggest companies, ‘Hey, is this an issue?’ 

“And the resounding response was, ‘Yeah, it’s a real mess.'”

According to Berkowitz, half of the businesses at the dinner had cut back or halted a Copilot for Microsoft 365 implementation because of security fears.

What’s next?

Copilot for Microsoft 365 is so new that it’s difficult at this point to tell whether the security concerns are overstated or understated and whether they’re actually making companies leery of adopting it. 

But Microsoft needs to address the issue quickly. The US House of Representatives has banned congressional staffers from using it because the Office of Cybersecurity has said it poses a risk of leaking sensitive government data. (That mirrors the warning from Gartner.) 

As I’ve written before, Microsoft doesn’t have a stellar record when it comes to security. This time around, it has to get security right. The company is the world leader in AI. Security woes could change that. 

Microsoft is working on an AI suite aimed at government agencies, and is apparently taking security into account. That’s a good initial step. But it’s only a small one. If it doesn’t quickly fix Copilot’s AI security issues, it could find itself a laggard in field, not the world leader. 

For the past several days, I’ve been living in The Future™.

Well, okay — I guess it depends which version of The Future™ you want to use:

• There’s the hardware-centric definition we here in the land o’ Android have been eyeing for a while now, in which unusual phone forms (allegedly) guide us to staggering new levels of superhuman productivity.
• And then there’s the more recent software-centric vision of The Future™, where all sorts of heavily hyped AI sorcery (supposedly) sends us soaring to previously unimaginable heights.

Technically, I’ve been dwelling in both of those domains. But only one of them actually matters. (Sorry, AI sorcery.)

It’s all part of the wild adventure of living with Google’s shiny new Pixel 9 Pro Fold phone — better known to Android aficionados as the Pixel Fold 2, following last year’s first-ever foray into folding Pixel waters.

In case you don’t come to these quarters often, lemme tell ya: I’ve got a relatively unusual perspective on this relatively unusual Pixel experience. I’ve used Pixels since the very first model, way back in the prehistoric era of 2016, and I toted around an assortment of other Android devices before that (including more than my fair share of Google-made Nexus goodies). I spent tons of time with the first-gen Pixel Fold last year and had been living with the other new Pixel 9 devices prior to moving into this fresh new Fold — provided to me as a loaner from Google — two weeks ago.

And this latest folding Pixel journey, my fellow gadget explorer, has been a particularly enlightening experience — for two curiously competing reasons I find myself struggling to square.

[Got a Pixel? Any Pixel? Check out my free Pixel Academy e-course to find all sorts of useful new stuff your phone can do for you — no matter which specific Pixel you’ve got in your paws!]

Let me explain.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold reality #1: The productivity power-up

First up is the positive side of using the Pixel 9 Pro Fold — and my goodness, is it a big one.

I won’t beat around the bush: This phone is fantastic. It’s a true treat to use, and once you get past the adjustment of working with such a different type of device, you’re bound to fall in love with the form and the many advantages it affords you.

What makes the Pixel 9 Pro Fold so exceptional is actually amusingly ironic — and that’s the fact that, for the most part, it feels more or less like using any regular ol’ Pixel.

In a sharp and immediately noticeable contrast to last year’s first-gen Pixel Fold (and an even more dramatic contrast to the most popular U.S. foldables of the moment, made by Samsung), using the Pixel 9 Pro Fold in most day-to-day contexts really isn’t all that different from using its Pixel 9 Pro XL sibling. You have the same best-in-class, unmuddled Android software (and the same unmatched promise of timely and reliable ongoing updates for a full seven years to come) along with all the same Pixel-exclusive additions — everything from the game-changing Pixel calling features to the newer Call Notes system and the spectacular system-wide screenshot-connected reminder setup (which you can emulate on any Android device but in a far less simple and seamless way).

And, critically, the phone is almost identical in size to its non-folding counterpart — all the way down to the screen on its outer surface. This is in large part due to the refinements Google made from the first-gen Pixel Fold to this current model, which brought it from being a rather short and squat (and more than a little chunky) square fella to boasting a far more typical-feeling elongated rectangle form.

Google’s Pixel 9 Pro Fold, at left, with the much squatter first-gen Pixel Fold behind it.

JR Raphael, IDG

Make no mistake about it: That outer display is almost certainly how you’ll be interacting with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold most of the time. I’d say it’s at least 95%, for me — maybe even more, on some days. And from that perspective, using the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is virtually no different from using any other current Pixel. (That’s a good thing!)

Where the Fold differs from those other Pixels, of course, is with the extra option it gives you to unfold it and enjoy the spacious 8″ tablet that awaits within. That’ll likely make up a small minority of your time using the device, but when the right sorts of moments arise, you’d better believe that matters.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold atop last year’s Pixel Fold, in their fully opened forms.

JR Raphael, IDG

In short, that possibility strips away many of the standard limitations of using a phone-sized device and gives you a more desktop-like computing experience — which, suffice it to say, can be a massive asset when it comes to work-oriented, productivity-centric tasks.

For instance:

• You can view two apps side by side, on-screen together and at their full regular sizes, and then interact with ’em at the same time — even dragging and dropping text or images between ’em in certain scenarios.
  • I’ve used this to do things like look at a note in Google Keep while working on a related email or document — or glance through a web page while simultaneously working with an email or document.
• You can also summon a splendid floating taskbar that makes it delightfully easy to switch between apps and multitask when in that folded-out form. This was my favorite part of the original Pixel Fold experience, and it remains every bit as much of a highlight in this new second-gen version of the device.
  • The taskbar not only lets you move between apps with ease — it also empowers you to tap into that so often underutilized Android split-screen system that’s especially advantageous in this larger-screen environment. All you’ve gotta do is press and hold any icon from that area and then drag it up into either side of the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s screen to open the app alongside whatever else you were already using.

srcset="https://b2b-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-taskbar.webp?quality=50&strip=all 600w, https://b2b-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-taskbar.webp?resize=289%2C300&quality=50&strip=all 289w, https://b2b-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-taskbar.webp?resize=162%2C168&quality=50&strip=all 162w, https://b2b-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-taskbar.webp?resize=81%2C84&quality=50&strip=all 81w, https://b2b-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-taskbar.webp?resize=463%2C480&quality=50&strip=all 463w, https://b2b-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-taskbar.webp?resize=347%2C360&quality=50&strip=all 347w, https://b2b-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/google-pixel-9-pro-fold-taskbar.webp?resize=241%2C250&quality=50&strip=all 241w" width="600" height="622" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px">The Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s taskbar makes Android-based multitasking easier than ever.

JR Raphael, IDG

It’s smart, simple, and almost painfully sensible. My only complaint is that the same option isn’t available on the Fold’s outer display — or on any other regularly sized Android phone, where it’d be every bit as useful and appreciated.

Beyond those types of tasks, the Fold’s inner display is nice for moments when you simply want to lean back and have more space for anything you’re doing — be it reading on the web or within an app, catching up on newsletters inside your inbox, or scrolling through photos in your gallery collection. It’s also a pleasant way to view videos in a larger size or view videos while you’re simultaneously working on something in an almost laptop-like setup.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold, unfolded — now, that’s what you call mobile multitasking.

JR Raphael, IDG

Again, this isn’t stuff you’re likely to be doing all the time or even necessarily often. But when the need or desire arises, it really is a welcome advantage to be able to pop your phone open and make the most of that added space — and since the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is otherwise so similar to a standard smartphone experience, it’s an advantage you can enjoy without too many downsides (something that certainly hasn’t been the case with most foldables up ’til now).

That being said, you do give some things up in order to gain that advantage — and that’s where those dueling realities come into play.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold reality #2: The back-to-normal relief

For all the positives of living with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold — and there absolutely are a lot of ’em! — I’ve gotta be honest: I’ve found myself slightly relieved when I move back to the regular Pixel 9 Pro XL after an extended period of relying entirely on the Fold in my day-to-day escapades.

In some ways, it’s a difficult sensation to quantify. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold really is just barely thicker than the regular Pixel 9 models. By all counts, the practical impact should be negligible.

Google’s Pixel 9 Pro Fold next to the more traditional Pixel 9 Pro XL.

JR Raphael, IDG

And yet, there’s a definite difference in what it’s like to hold, carry, and use the Fold compared to the more traditional Pixel 9 model. It’s heavier. It feels different in your hand. And its outer display — the one you look at most often — isn’t quite as spacious, sharp, or pleasant on the eyes as what you get with the Pixel 9 Pro XL.

Two Pixel 9 Pro phones — two very different forms and experiences, despite their similarities.

JR Raphael, IDG

It’s a subtle distinction, without a doubt. But it’s one I very much find myself noticing in going back and forth between the devices.

Beyond that, you also sacrifice a certain amount of camera quality with the Fold compared to the regular Pixel 9 Pro. I wouldn’t let yourself get weighed down with the nitty-gritty of the numbers behind the technology, but the Fold’s camera setup is definitely a slight step down from what the other Pixel 9 Pro models are a-packin’.

That being said, I don’t think it’ll be much of a realistic issue for most people — outside of anyone who’s extremely focused on the nuances of camera quality or who’s putting photos under the microscope to seek out and study the differences.

Here, for example, are some photos I took on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold during a quick trip to Chicago last week. They’re straight from the phone’s camera, without any editing or post-capture adjustments. The final photo uses the Fold’s telephoto lens for some serious zooming action. (Bonus points if you can identify the band!)

Downtown Chicago at dusk, as captured on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

JR Raphael, IDG

A darker nighttime shot taken on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

JR Raphael, IDG

Challenging concert lighting, photographed on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

JR Raphael, IDG

Extreme zooming action, courtesy of the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s telephoto lens.

JR Raphael, IDG

So, yeah: The image quality here is generally quite solid, and I really don’t think most folks will be left wanting for anything when it comes to the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s photo prowess.

But still, there’s no denying it’s a step behind the regular Pixel 9 Pro when you tune in closely to the details. And the same can be said for the phone’s front-facing selfie cameras, which are significantly behind the regular 9 Pro’s upgraded lenses in that area.

Beyond that, the Fold model of the Pixel 9 Pro omits the thermometer built into the other Pixel 9 Pro models — an element that seemed silly when it first debuted with last year’s Pixel 8 series but that’s since grown into a genuinely useful addition and something I very much value, now that it supports actual human temperature-taking (hello, my fellow parents!).

And, of course, the Pixel 9 Pro comes at a literal cost — $700 more than you’d pay for the base-level regular 9 Pro XL model, at $1,800 compared to $1,100 for the Pixel 9 Pro XL (which is most similar in size; if you went with the smaller Pixel 9 Pro, you’d be looking at $1,000 instead).

Last but not least, while I certainly haven’t had any causes for concern in my limited time with the phone so far, there’s no getting around the fact that a folding screen raises more questions around durability than what you’d face with a standard phone display — and while the technology has already come a long way in its relatively short existence, it stands to reason that a folding phone may (a) be more likely to fail or incur damage during the time that you’re using it and (b) have a shorter lifespan in general, compared to a phone with fewer moving parts and a non-bending screen.

Again, I’ve seen no real cause for concern so far, and reports from the first-gen Pixel Fold over the past year are encouraging. But I’d be remiss not to at least mention this as a factor to keep in mind when considering the Pixel 9 Pro Fold and how it might (or might not) fit into your life, particularly if you plan to hang onto the thing for more than a few years.

So, how do we put these competing views together — and is the Pixel 9 Pro Fold the right phone for you?

I wish I had an easy universal answer. But ultimately, it all comes down to your personal priorities and what sort of smartphone experience you’re looking to have. Specifically…

The Pixel 9: To Fold or not to Fold?

If someone were asking me if they should buy the Pixel 9 Pro Fold today, I would give them three key nuggets to chew over:

1. The Fold truly is a fantastic phone.
2. It offers up an experience like no other, with all the standard Google Pixel advantages and some useful, interesting, and extraordinarily enjoyable new twists provided by the thoughtful folding form. No exaggeration: It’ll be the most fun and exciting phone you’ve purchased in ages, and especially if you find yourself tending to work-related tidbits on the go throughout your days, it’ll make your life easier in some very meaningful ways.
3. It’ll also, however, cost you — both in terms of the extra dollars you’ll pay for the privilege of owning such a cutting-edge device and as far as the minor but not entirely insignificant sacrifices you’ll make when it comes to factors like comfort, camera and display quality, and the presence of an on-demand thermometer (if that holds any manner of appeal for you).

All in all, then, I’d say this:

• For most high-end phone buyers right now, the Pixel 9 Pro or Pixel 9 Pro XL is the real sweet spot — with a phenomenal all-around experience and a balance of cost and convenience. Those are the go-to devices I’d suggest most people looking for a premium, best-in-class Android experience consider most closely (with the preference for a smaller or larger phone being the only real difference between ’em).
• But for anyone who likes the idea of having a tablet-like add-on and all the associated productivity perks that gives you — even just for the five to 10% of the time that you’re realistically likely to be taking advantage of ’em — the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is an awesome option that you won’t regret investing in, provided you can justify the cost and aren’t overly bothered by the drawbacks.
• And finally, for anyone who already owns a first-gen Pixel Fold, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is 100% worth the upgrade. It’s thinner, lighter, and even more usable in both its folded-up form and its folded-out configuration — thanks to those larger screens in both places. It sports some substantial upgrades in the areas of performance and charging (though, annoyingly, changes to its internal design mean it won’t work with Google’s previous Pixel Stand wireless chargers). And it comes with the now-standard seven-year Pixel software upgrade promise, whereas the first-gen Pixel Fold was at the tail end of the three-year upgrade guarantee era.

Ultimately, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is such an unusual kind of device that it’s impossible to say it’s the right phone for everyone. It just isn’t that kind of device — and, in a sense, it isn’t meant to be a phone for everyone, by design.

But it’s a remarkable product through and through and a business-ready, productivity-boosting powerhouse you’ll absolutely appreciate — if the idea of a refined phone-tablet combo feels like the right fit for you.

Don’t let yourself miss an ounce of Pixel magic. Come start my free Pixel Academy e-course to discover tons of fresh hidden features and time-saving tricks for whatever Pixel phone you’re using!

Your laptop’s battery life will always decrease over time. That’s just how Lithium-ion batteries work — their health declines with age.

To keep your Windows laptop ready for long workdays, road trips, and other assorted tasks, you’ll need to take some steps to preserve battery health. They’re simple, but you have to know where to look and how to begin. (Windows really buries this stuff!)

You can find plenty of tips for getting more battery life from your Windows PC. But battery health is different — and it’s easy to overlook. As battery health declines, your laptop’s battery becomes less effective, and you won’t get as much time between charges.

By preserving battery health, you’ll keep the battery life it came with for longer — and avoid costly and inconvenient battery replacements.

Looking for more useful Windows tips and tricks? My free Windows Intelligence newsletter delivers all the best Windows tips straight to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get free in-depth Windows Field Guides just for subscribing!

Windows battery health step #1: Avoid extreme temperatures

Hot and cold temperatures are bad for a laptop battery — or any battery. Heat is especially bad and extreme heat can permanently damage a battery, reducing its health and life span. With that in mind, avoid leaving your laptop in a hot car while out and about on business travel. The temperature inside a car can quickly get much hotter than the outside temperature. Direct sunlight is also bad for a laptop — especially on a hot summer day.

Laptop manufacturers generally say the ideal temperature ranges are between 50 degrees and 95 degrees Fahrenheit. A laptop that spends a significant amount of time outside these ranges — especially above 95 degrees Fahrenheit — will cause extra wear on the battery.

Windows battery health step #2: Use Smart Charging

Your laptop’s battery health could decline more quickly if you keep it at 100% charge — for example, if you keep it plugged in all the time. Hardware manufacturers recommend charging batteries to somewhere between 60% and 80% rather than leaving them fully charged all the time.

The latest Windows 11 PCs include a feature called “Smart Charging.” When activated, Windows will charge your laptop’s battery only to a lower level, below 100%. This should keep the battery healthier.

Different laptops have different ways of activating this feature (and you might find something similar in the manufacturer-provided settings app on older laptops, too). Look for a battery-related setting that controls the level a laptop charges to before stopping. 

On a Microsoft Surface PC, for example, you’ll find this setting within the Surface app.

Your laptop manufacturer’s preinstalled software may offer a way to tweak the maximum charge level.

Chris Hoffman, IDG

If your laptop doesn’t have an easy way to avoid charging to 100%, just charge it up and move on with your life. There’s no sense in continually trying to keep your laptop at 80% by unplugging it and plugging it back in. That’s no way to live!

Modern smartphones have features like this, too — check out Adaptive charging on a Pixel phone, for example.

Windows battery health step #3: Don’t go to 0

While Lithium-ion batteries don’t enjoy being at 100% battery for long periods of time, they also shouldn’t be stored at 0% battery. A fully drained battery is bad for any battery’s health.

It’s a good idea to charge your laptop before it hits the 0% mark. (The same goes for any other device, too, including smartphones and tablets.) Windows will suspend itself when it gets down to a low battery level, so it shouldn’t hit 0% battery in normal use.

It’s not the end of the world if the battery hits 0% once in a while — it’s not even the end of the world if your PC laptop hits 0% battery and you forget to charge it for a week. But it’s not ideal. And, if you store the laptop and let its battery fall to 0% and stay there for months, that will absolutely degrade the battery’s health.

Windows battery health step #4: Unplug on occasion

Even if you always use your laptop plugged in, it’s a good idea to unplug it occasionally. Let its battery drain some — not all the way, but a decent amount — before you charge it.

Here’s Microsoft’s official recommendation:

To help extend battery life and performance, try to keep the battery level between 20% and 80% several times a week instead of using your device for only a short amount of time, and then plugging it in to recharge the battery.

This will likely happen naturally as you use your laptop. So, if the system’s always plugged in, it’s worthfi letting the battery drain and then recharge every now and then.

Windows battery health step #5: Remove the battery (if you can!)

Most modern Windows laptops no longer have easily removable batteries. But, if your laptop does have a user-removable battery, you can unplug the battery to get more life from it if you’re just using your laptop while it’s plugged in.

This is especially true on heavy-duty workstation (or even gaming) laptops that generate a lot of heat. If you unplug the battery and get it away from the heat, it should last longer. 

Windows battery health step #6: Store smartly

If you won’t be using your laptop for a while (or you’ve unplugged the battery and set it aside), you should take care when storing the battery.

Remember: Laptop batteries don’t like being at 100% battery for a long period of time, and they definitely don’t like being at 0% battery, either. To preserve the battery as much as possible, drain it to 50% or so and then power it off before storing it. (Be sure to store it in a moderate environment, too — since extreme heat, cold, and humidity are bad.)

The battery’s power level will decline over time in extended storage, so you might want to pull the system out of storage and charge it back to 50% every six months or so. If you leave it alone for a few years, you might come back to a 0% battery. And, again, if it’s been at 0% for a while, that’s bad.

Windows battery health step #7: Watch for warning signs

A particularly unhealthy battery can physically swell or expand. With so many Windows laptops containing internal batteries, you might notice that part of your laptop’s chassis is swelling or sticking out.

If a swollen battery is punctured or damaged, it could catch fire. If you ever find yourself facing a device with a swollen battery, you shouldn’t charge or use it — and you should be careful not to puncture or otherwise damage the battery. That’s what’s really dangerous. (Don’t expose it to extreme heat, either.)

Also, don’t throw the battery in the trash, as it could catch fire. Take swollen batteries to electronics recycling centers where they can be disposed of safely.

Windows battery health step #8: Give yourself a checkup

Want to know how healthy your current battery is? Windows has a way of telling you — but Microsoft buries it. To generate a battery health report, open the Start menu, search for “Command,” and launch the Command Prompt shortcut.

Type the following command at the prompt, and then press Enter:

powercfg /batteryreport

You’ll see a message saying the report was saved. It will likely be in C:\Users\YOUR NAME\.

Run the powercfg /batteryreport command at the command prompt to discover battery health status.

Chris Hoffman, IDG

Open a File Explorer window, browse to that folder, and double-click the “batteryreport.html” file you find there.

Look under “Installed batteries” in the report. There are two lines that matter here:

• Design capacity: This is the capacity the battery originally had.
• Full charge capacity: This is the capacity the battery currently has.

In the screenshot below, my laptop’s battery has a design capacity of 90,005 mWh and a full charge capacity of 87,658 mWh. In other words, this example laptop has 97% of its original battery capacity — it’s still healthy!

The “Installed batteries” section of the report shows information about your laptop’s battery.

Chris Hoffman, IDG

Final word: Don’t sweat it too much

Now that you understand the best practices, here’s the most important piece of advice: Don’t worry about achieving perfection. And don’t sweat the small stuff.

You’re going to use your laptop how you need to. Perhaps you live in a hot place and it’s unavoidable that the laptop spends some time above 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Perhaps you use your laptop at a desk plugged in all the time and you don’t really care whether the battery degrades a bit faster — you just don’t want to think about it.

That’s fine. You can always replace the battery if you need to, though it will cost you. And if you treat your laptop battery well, it might be time to replace the entire laptop by the time you start thinking about getting a battery replacement.

If I had to highlight the most important piece of advice, I’d say watch out for heat in particular: A laptop left in a burning-hot car frequently will definitely see its battery life decline much more quickly than it would otherwise. (And of course, watch out for any swollen batteries!)

Get even more Windows insights, tips, and tricks with my Windows Intelligence newsletter — three things to try every Friday. Plus, get free Windows 11 and 10 Field Guides (a $10 value) as a special welcome bonus!

Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered a new set of malicious Python packages that target software developers under the guise of coding assessments. "The new samples were tracked to GitHub projects that have been linked to previous, targeted attacks in which developers are lured using fake job interviews," ReversingLabs researcher Karlo Zanki said. The activity has been assessed to be part of

Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered a new set of malicious Python packages that target software developers under the guise of coding assessments. "The new samples were tracked to GitHub projects that have been linked to previous, targeted attacks in which developers are lured using fake job interviews," ReversingLabs researcher Karlo Zanki said. The activity has been assessed to be part of Ravie Lakshmananhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]

**Microsoft dne 10. září vydal nové servisní aktualizace pro Windows **Windows 11 běží lépe na procesorech Ryzen **Soubory můžete ve Windows 11 snadno sdílet s mobilem

Office 365 and Microsoft 365 subscribers get more frequent software updates than those who have purchased Office without a subscription, which means subscribers have access to the latest features, security patches, and bug fixes. But it can be hard to keep track of the changes in each update and know when they’re available. We’re doing this for you, so you don’t have to.

Following are summaries of the updates to Office 365/Microsoft 365 for Windows, with the latest releases shown first. We’ll add info about new updates as they’re rolled out.

Note: This story covers updates released to regular Office 365/Microsoft 365 for Windows subscribers. If you’re a member of Microsoft’s Office Insider preview program or want to get a sneak peek at upcoming features, see the Microsoft 365 Insider blog.

Version 2408 (Build 17928.20156)

Release date: September 10, 2024

This update will remove Flip video support when the service goes offline on October 1, 2024. The build also includes a variety of security updates. Go here for details.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2408 (Build 17928.20156).

Version 2408 (Build 17928.20114)

Release date: August 26, 2024

This build allows you to disable connected experiences for privacy concerns without impacting data security policies, such as sensitivity labels. Services associated with Microsoft Purview (e.g., sensitivity labels and rights management) are no longer controlled by policy settings to manage privacy controls for Microsoft 365 Apps. Instead, these services will rely on their existing security admin controls in Purview portals.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Outlook that caused default SMIME labels to fail to apply when a user replied to or forwarded an unlabeled message, and one for the entire suite in which people couldn’t install Microsoft 365 apps on an enrolled device.

Get more info about Version 2408 (Build 17928.20114).

Version 2407 (Build 17830.20166)

Release date: August 13, 2024

This build includes a variety of security updates for Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Project, Visio, and the entire Office suite. See Microsoft’s Release notes for Office security updates for details.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2407 (Build 17830.20166).

Version 2407 (Build 17830.20138)

Release date: August 1, 2024

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which coauthoring on text boxes in Excel sometimes gave unexpected results, another in PowerPoint in which line widths were not preserved when exporting arrow shapes to PDF, and another in Word in which revisions were sometimes skipped when reviewing using VBA.

Get more info about Version 2407 (Build 17830.20138).

Version 2406 (Build 17726.20160)

Release date: July 9, 2024

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Word and Excel in which characters don’t appear correctly in Text Box Gallery. It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2406 (Build 17726.20160).

Version 2406 (Build 17726.20126)

Release date: June 26, 2024

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which Excel documents might be unexpectedly edited when a mandatory sensitivity label has not been applied, one that caused Outlook to exit unexpectedly shortly after launch for some users, and one in which pasting data from Word or Excel to an Outlook template as a link would cause an error message to appear.

Get more info about Version 2406 (Build 17726.20126).

Version 2405 (Build 17628.20164)

Release date: June 19, 2024

This build includes a variety of unspecified bug and performance fixes.

Get more info about Version 2405 (Build 17628.20164).

Version 2405 (Build 17628.20144)

Release date: June 11, 2024

This build fixes one bug, which prevented users from sending mail for a few hours after updating add-ins with on-send events. It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2405 (Build 17628.20144).

Version 2405 (Build 17628.20110)

Release date: May 30, 2024

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which an embedded workbook in .xls format might not have closed properly, one that that caused Outlook to close when using Copilot Summarize, one in Word in which content controls may have been removed when coauthoring, and one for the entire Office suite in which the Organization Chart Add-In for Microsoft programs was not loading properly.

Get more info about Version 2405 (Build 17628.20110).

Version 2404 (Build 17531.20152)

Release date: May 14, 2024

This build fixes a number of bugs, including one in Word where content controls might be removed when coauthoring, and one that caused Sovereign users to be unable to create ToDo tasks from Outlook.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2404 (Build 17531.20152).

Version 2404 (Build 17531.20140)

Release date: May 7, 2024

This build fixes two bugs in Outlook, one in which it closed unexpectedly using the Scheduling Assistant when creating a new meeting or viewing an existing meeting, and another that caused add-in developers to hit timeouts when retrieving notifications from an Outlook client context.

Get more info about Version 2404 (Build 17531.20140) .

Version 2404 (Build 17531.20120)

Release date: April 29, 2024

This build reduces workbook size bloat from unnecessary cell formatting with a new “Check Performance” task pane. In addition, it fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which the default font could not be set; one in Outlook in which custom forms from MAPI form servers stopped responding; one in PowerPoint in which online videos did not play in some cases; one in which when opening certain Word documents would cause the error, “Word experienced an error trying to open the file”; and one in which the Office update installer appeared to be unresponsive.

Get more info about Version 2404 (Build 17531.20120) .

Version 2403 (Build 17425.20176)

Release date: April 9, 2024

This build fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2403 (Build 17425.20176).

Version 2402 (Build 17328.20184)

Release date: March 12, 2024

This build fixes three bugs: one in which Access closed unexpectedly, one in which Excel closed unexpectedly when opening files with pivot tables and table design in macro-enabled files, and one in which Word closed unexpectedly when the undo function was used.

This build also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2402 (Build 17328.20184).

Version 2402 (Build 17328.20162)

Release date: March 4, 2024

This build fixes several bugs, including one that crashed Outlook when a link was clicked on, and another for the entire Office suite in which opened Office apps didn’t automatically start when a laptop was reopened, and an error message appeared after manual relaunch.

Get more info about Version 2402 (Build 17328.20162).

Version 2402 (Build 17328.20142)

Release date: February 28, 2024

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one that caused Outlook to exit unexpectedly when expanding a conversation in the search results from a search of “All Mailboxes,” and another in which users were not able to create a bullet list with hyphens in PowerPoint.

Get more info about Version 2402 (Build 17328.20142).

Version 2401 (Build 17231.20236)

Release date: February 13, 2024

This build fixes several bugs, including one in which macros were being corrupted when saving Excel files and another that affected the entire Office suite in which add-ins would not load after Click trust for content add-in was selected.

This build also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2401 (Build 17231.20236).

Version 2401 (Build 17231.20194)

Release date: February 1, 2024

This build fixes a single bug in which expanded groups in the message list collapsed when users changed which column they were arranged by.

Get more info about Version 2401 (Build 17231.20194).

Version 2401 (Build 17231.20182)

Release date: January 30, 2024

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which Excel would stop responding when saving changes, one in PowerPoint in which Notes and Slide layout would open with incorrect proportions when a file was opened from a protected view, and one in Word in which comment cards appeared too wide and cut off text when changing or switching the screen in use.

Get more info about Version 2401 (Build 17231.20182).

Version 2312 (Build 17126.20132)

Release date: January 9, 2024

This build fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2312 (Build 17126.20132).

Version 2312 (Build 17126.20126)

Release date: January 4, 2023

This build introduces a new sensitivity toolbar in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint that helps users understand the security policies that apply to their documents. It’s available when users are creating copies of their documents in File / Save As. In addition, Office now had a new default theme, which Microsoft says is “more modern and accessible.”

It also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which Custom Menu text was truncated when right-clicking in a cell, one in PowerPoint in which restoring a previous version of a presentation was not working as expected when using Version History, and one in Word in which the content control end tag was marked at the end of the document automatically if the document was edited in Word Online and then opened in Word desktop.

Get more info about  Version 2312 (Build 17126.20126).

Version 2311 (Build 17029.20108)

Release date: December 12, 2023

This build fixes one bug in Outlook, in which the message list was blank when switching between the “Focused” and “Other” views.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2311 (Build 17029.20108).

Version 2311 (Build 17029.20068)

Release date: November 29, 2023

This build automatically inserts image captioning for Excel’s images. When you insert an image into a spreadsheet, accessibility image captioning is automatically generated for you.

It also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which list box controls would not respond to mouse clicks after scrolling using the mouse wheel, and one in Word in which the language of a presentation was not retained when saving or exporting the presentation to a PDF file.

Get more info about Version 2311 (Build 17029.20068).

Version 2310 (Build 16924.20150)

Release date: November 14, 2023

This build fixes several bugs, including one in which Outlook failed to comply with the default browser settings for some users, and another in which new lines were added to an Outlook signature when pressing Enter in the body of the email.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2310 (Build 16924.20150).

Version 2310 (Build 16924.20124)

Release date: Oct. 31, 2023

This build fixes a bug that caused Outlook to exit unexpectedly when clicking the More link in the Search results list.

Get more info about Version 2310 (Build 16924.20124).

Version 2310 (Build 16924.20106)

Release date: Oct. 25, 2023

In this build, the Teams Meeting App works in Outlook, too. With it, you’ll be able to configure a meeting app while scheduling an invite in Outlook. The meeting app will be ready to use when you chat or join the meeting on Teams.

A wide variety of bugs have also been fixed, including one in Excel where certain Pivot Tables would load slowly; one in which OneNote would close unexpectedly when rapidly navigating from one .PDF file to another .PDF file between different sections, or when performing an undo operation on a .PDF printout insertion; and one in the entire Office suite that caused unexpected black borders to appear around screen captures added with the Insert Screenshot functionality.

Get more info about Version 2310 (Build 16924.20106).

Version 2309 (Build 16827.20166)

Release date: October 10, 2023

This build fixes two bugs, one in which users were missing their Outlook add-ins, and another in Word in which subheading numbering with a custom Style would disappear if the file was saved and reopened. It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2309 (Build 16827.20166).

Version 2309 (Build 16827.20130)

Release date: September 28, 2023

This build introduces two new features, including the ability to disable specific types of automatic data conversions in Excel and support for the “Present in Teams” button to present local files in PowerPoint Live in Microsoft Teams.

Several bugs have also been fixed, including one in which the setting to control how Outlook opens previous items at start-up was missing from the Options window, and another in Word in which the Add-ins tab was not visible when using custom toolbar information.

Get more info about Version 2309 (Build 16827.20130).

Version 2308 (Build 16731.20234)

Release date: September 12, 2023

This build fixes several bugs, including one that caused Outlook to close unexpectedly when viewing an email, and another in PowerPoint in which the presenter view slide section zoomed in and out when zooming in the notes section.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2308 (Build 16731.20234).

Version 2308 (Build 16731.20170)

Release date: August 28, 2023

This build introduces several new features, including adding AutoComplete functionality to the Data Validation dropdown list in Excel, designed to make data entry and validation more efficient. In Excel, Outlook, Word, and PowerPoint, Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) with 256-bit key length in Cipher Block Chaining mode (AES256-CBC) is now the default Microsoft Purview Information Protection encryption mechanism. (More details here.)

Several bugs in Outlook have also been fixed, including one that that caused Outlook to quit unexpectedly when users executed a search with the “All Mailboxes” scope, and another that caused Outlook to crash when non-HTTP links were clicked.

Get more info about Version 2308 (Build 16731.20170).

Version 2307 (Build 16626.20170)

Release date: August 8, 2023

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Excel in which certain macros used for updating charts caused Excel to close unexpectedly, and another in Outlook that caused Outlook to fail to show Top Search Results in some views. It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2307 (Build 16626.20170).

Version 2307 (Build 16626.20134)

Release date: July 27, 2023

This build fixes an extended range of supported characters to prevent display issues in Office apps.

Get more info about Version 2307 (Build 16626.20134).

Version 2307 (Build 16626.20132)

Release date: July 26, 2023

This build includes several new features, including an improved way to recover from errors when collaborating in Word, and the ability to insert a live camera feed in all slides with one click in PowerPoint.

A number of bugs have also been fixed, including one in Excel, PowerPoint, and Word in which sensitivity labeling was unavailable for documents opened from SharePoint on-premises servers, and one in which Outlook would prompt you to save changes to a meeting when no changes were made.

Get more info about Version 2307 (Build 16626.20132).

Version 2306 (Build 16529.20182)

Release date: July 11, 2023

This build fixes an alert to better communicate text support for picture-to-drawing object conversion in Excel and Word. It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2306 (Build 16529.20182).

Version 2306 (Build 16529.20154)

Release date: June 26, 2023

This build includes several new features, including adding autocomplete capabilities to Excel’s Data Validation dropdown list, and giving Outlook pop-up messages that warn, justify, or block emails being sent based on sensitivity labels.

A number of bugs have also been fixed, including one in Outlook’s Me control that showed the wrong display name in Office apps, and one in Word in which doing a mail merge displayed the error “Microsoft Word is required to run the Mail Merge Wizard.”

Get more info about Version 2306 (Build 16529.20154).

Version 2305 (Build 16501.20210)

Release date: June 13, 2023

This build fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2305 (Build 16501.20210).

Version 2305 (Build 16501.20196)

Release date: June 1, 2023

This build offers faster filtering when cells contain unique or duplicate rules in Excel, as well as a new accessibility ribbon tab in Outlook and PowerPoint for making emails and presentations more accessible.

It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which Conditional Formatting rules were not being preserved after closing and reopening a workbook, one in Outlook in which people were shown the error “We cannot render Actionable Messages right now” when reading some email messages, and one in Access in which refreshing an ODBC connection to an Access database caused the operation to stop working after refreshing the link several times.

Get more info about Version 2305 (Build 16501.20196).

Version 2304 (Build 16327.20248)

Release date: May 9, 2023

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Outlook that caused users of the Event-Based feature to be unable to utilize some of the new APIs included in Mailbox Requirement Set 1.13, and one in Project in which users were unable to connect Project Client from the desktop to a Project Web Access site in Project Server 2016.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2304 (Build 16327.20248).

Version 2304 (Build 16327.20214)

Release date: April 25, 2023

This build offers several new features, including adding closed captions to audio objects in PowerPoint and web browser control for Edge in Access. (Access still supports Internet Explorer browser control.)

The build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which an Excel file could not be previewed in File Explorer if the file’s extension included a capital letter such as XLSX or Xlsx, and one in which PowerPoint sometimes crashed when opening a file.

Get more info about Version 2304 (Build 16327.20214).

Version 2303 (Build 16227.20280)

Release date: April 11, 2023

This build fixes two bugs, one that causes Access to close unexpectedly when exporting from an SAS application to a Microsoft Office format, and another in Outlook that hat caused some users to see the wrong Data Loss Prevention policy annotations in a multi-account profile.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2303 (Build 16227.20280).

Version 2303 (Build 16227.20258)

Release date: April 4, 2023

This build fixes two bugs in Outlook, one that caused the new labels to fail to appear for some users of the Label Inheritance feature, and another that caused the Suggested Replies feature to not be disabled when connected experiences are disabled.

Get more info about  Version 2303 (Build 16227.20258).

Version 2303 (Build 16227.20212)

Release date: March 28, 2023

This build offers a variety of new features, including the ability to assign a sublabel as the default when a parent label is selected in Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word. When using built-in sensitivity labels, admins can specify a sublabel to get applied automatically when a parent label is selected.

The build also disables the Azure Information Protection Add-in by default in Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word. The apps will now automatically disable the legacy Azure Information Protection add-in and use the built-in sensitivity labels to view and apply labels powered by Microsoft Purview Information Protection.

In addition, there is a new Sensitivity toolbar in Excel, PowerPoint, and Word that makes it easier to prevent data leaks. New sensitivity labels powered by Microsoft Purview Information Protection are now displayed alongside the filename in the app’s title bar, allowing you to easily recognize and adhere to your organization’s policies. The sensitivity toolbar is also available while saving new documents or renaming existing ones.

The build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused Outlook to close unexpectedly when using Loop Components in an email, and another in which the task pane add-in API for Microsoft Project was not returning the proper value for the Summary, Milestone, and Active properties. A bug for the entire Office suite was fixed as well, in which spaces were not inserted properly when inserting text with dictation.

Get more info about Version 2303 (Build 16227.20212).

Version 2302 (Build 16130.20332)

Release date: March 20, 2023

This build fixes two bugs, one in Outlook in which some settings did not roam between machines when switching to Focused Inbox, and another in Project in which the task pane add-in API for Microsoft Project was not returning the proper value for the Summary, Milestone, and Active properties.

Get more info about Version 2302 (Build 16130.20332).

Version 2302 (Build 16130.20306)

Release date: March 14, 2023

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Outlook that caused users to see an inaccurate count of the number of new notifications present when opening the notification pane, and another in which the error message “The last time you opened filename, it caused serious error. Do you still want to open it?” may appear when creating Word documents through automation using templates.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about  Version 2302 (Build 16130.20306).

Version 2302 (Build 16130.20218)

Release date: February 28, 2023

This build offers several new features, including one for Excel, Word, and PowerPoint in which user-defined permissions support domain name restrictions. Now, when you choose a sensitivity label configured for user-defined permissions, domain names can be used to restrict file access to all individuals from that domain.

Three bugs have also been fixed, including one in which when clicking on an email notification of @mention in a comment, the Excel app would close unexpectedly if the workbook was already open and was in a hidden window.

Get more info about Version 2302 (Build 16130.20218).

Version 2301 (Build 16026.20200)

Release date: February 14, 2023

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which when clicking on an email notification of an @mention in a comment, the Excel app would close unexpectedly if the workbook was already open and was in a hidden window, and one for the entire Office suite that caused users to experience the application to close unexpectedly when clicking on some non-HTTP links.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2301 (Build 16026.20200).

Version 2301 (Build 16026.20146)

Release date: January 26, 2022

This build makes several improvements in Excel’s pivot tables, including new data support for pivot tables connected to Power BI, as well as new alerts about pivot table compatibility issues and providing documentation and workarounds for them.

It also fixes two bugs, one in Excel in which when you inserted a People Graph add-in in RTL Excel, the application closed unexpectedly, and another in PowerPoint in which you could not add or copy/paste a new slide to the presentation.

Get more info about Version 2301 (Build 16026.20146).

Version 2212 (Build 15928.20216)

Release date: January 10, 2023

This build fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2212 (Build 15928.20216).

Version 2212 (Build 15928.20198)

Release date: January 4, 2022

This build lets you code-sign your Microsoft Access database and VBA code. Signing a database will allow VBA code in the database to be run even if Trust Center settings specify that only digitally signed code should be enabled.

In addition, you can now create tasks and assign them to team members without leaving Word by adding a comment, @mentioning your team member, pressing Ctrl + Enter, and checking Assign.

It also fixes a number of bugs, including one in Excel in which when you right-clicked on a chart and selected Edit, the application closed unexpectedly.

Get more info about Version 2212 (Build 15928.20198).

Version 2211 (Build 15831.20208)

Release date: December 13, 2022

This build fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2211 (Build 15831.20208).

Version 2211 (Build 15831.20190)

Release date: December 6, 2022

This build improves the spacing of the buttons in the Ribbon in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel when tablet posture is being used. It also adds the ability to insert images directly in cells in Excel, and to save media to a file in PowerPoint with closed captions included.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which when toggling the visibility of the Ribbon with sheet tabs hidden, the application would close unexpectedly, and one in Word in which changing the reading speed for Read Aloud would cause Word to stop working.

Get more info about Version 2211 (Build 15831.20190).

Version 2210 (Build 15726.20202)

Release date: November 8, 2022

This build fixes two bugs: One in Word in which when using Admin Managed Plugin and the Group Policy “Block all unmanaged add-ins,” the registry key name was case-sensitive, and one in OneNote that affected scrolling with touch.

It also fixes a number of security holes. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2210 (Build 15726.20202).

Version 2210 (Build 15726.20174)

Release date: October 27, 2022

This build lets you link charts to Dynamic array calculations in Excel, which can produce results of variable length. When the array recalculates, the chart will automatically update to capture all data instead of being limited to a specific number of data points. The build also lets you create e-signature approvals containing signature fields within Teams.

It fixes a number of bugs, including one in Outlook that caused emails to get stuck in the outbox for some profiles with multiple Exchange accounts configured, and another in PowerPoint that caused problems when updating links when the linked file was already open.

Get more info about  Version 2210 (Build 15726.20174).

Version 2209 (Build 15629.20208)

Release date: October 11, 2022

This build fixes a number of bugs, including one in Excel in which some content could have stopped working and not appear correctly after zooming with a touchpad, and another in Outlook that caused emails to get stuck in the outbox for some profiles with multiple Exchange accounts configured.

It also fixes a number of security holes in Word and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2209 (Build 15629.20208).

Version 2209 (Build 15629.20156)

Release date: September 26, 2022

This build adds several new features to Teams, including allowing meeting organizers to assign seats to participants in Together Mode, and the ability for people to see up to 49 videos (7×7) on their screen by default without any explicit action.

It also fixes a number of bugs, including one Outlook that caused users to experience a close unexpectedly when switching views in the calendar module, and another that crashed Outlook shortly after a boot.

Get more info about Version 2209 (Build 15629.20156).

Version 2208 (Build 15601.20148)

Release date: September 13, 2022

This build fixes a number of bugs, including one in Outlook that that caused the Customization Quick Access Toolbar file (.exportedUI) to not import when the simplified Ribbon is in use, and one in the entire Office suite that caused issues in Color Picker text selection scenarios with Shapes and SmartArt.

It also fixes a number of security holes in PowerPoint and Visio. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about  Version 2208 (Build 15601.20148).

Version 2208 (Build 15601.20088)

Release date: August 31, 2022

This build introduces a variety of new features, including protecting PDFs created using Word, Excel, or PowerPoint, taking voice notes in OneNote, the addition of fourteen new text and array functions in Excel, and the ability to join Teams meeting by meeting ID and passcode from Teams rooms on Windows.

It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Access that caused memory leaks when iterating over DAO record sets in VBA code in Excel, one in Word in which you could not copy rows of a table from older versions in Version History to the current version, and one in which Outlook sometimes closed unexpectedly when right-clicking on an app in the new app bar.

Get more info about Version 2208 (Build 15601.20088).

Version 2207 (Build 15427.20210)

Release date: August 9, 2022

This build fixes a bug in Outlook, which would sometimes crash after being opened.

It also fixes a number of security holes in Excel, Outlook, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2207 (Build 15427.20210).

Version 2207 (Build 15427.20194)

Release date: August 3, 2022

This build optimizes Excel recalculation on devices with constrained resources. On resource-constrained devices (two cores or less and eight gigabytes of RAM or less), Excel now by default makes recalculation more optimal by running calculations on a single thread.

In addition, Outlook gets a suggested replies feature that offers you three possible replies to simple messages. Word makes voice dictation easier.

A number of bugs were also fixed, including one in Excel in which cell references in charts were displaying incorrectly, and one in Word in which “paste as link” might not update automatically.

Get more info about Version 2207 (Build 15427.20194).

Version 2206 (Build 15330.20246)

Release date: July 18, 2022

This build fixes one bug in Access, in which when opening an ACCDE/MDE file, users may receive an error message with the text “Requested type library or wizard is not a VBA project.” Go here for more details.

Get more info about Version 2206 (Build 15330.20264).

Version 2206 (Build 15330.20246)

Release date: July 12, 2022

This build fixes one bug, in which Excel closed unexpectedly when interacting with fonts.

It also fixes a Windows Graphics Component Information Disclosure Vulnerability and a Microsoft Office Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability, both for the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2206 (Build 15330.20246).

Version 2206 (Build 15330.20230)

Release date: July 6, 2022

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which Excel crashed when showing a live preview of a chart, one that caused OneNote to crash, one in Outlook in which users could not add room mailboxes to the calendar, and one in Word in which nested fields in headers displayed incorrectly while scrolling.

Get more info about Version 2206 (Build 15330.20230).

Version 2206 (Build 15330.20196)

Release date: June 29, 2022

This build introduces new Excel features such as the ability to quickly copy data from the status bar, including information from aggregations like “Sum,” “Average,” and “Count.” It also lets you find data more quickly in Excel by speeding up the AutoFilter function. In PowerPoint, you can now anchor comments to specific ranges of text.

The build also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which shared workbooks in .xls format improperly merged changes, one in Outlook in which users were not able to add room mailboxes to the calendar, and one in Word in which nested fields in headers displayed incorrectly while scrolling.

Get more info about Version 2206 (Build 15330.20196).

Version 2205 (Build 15225.20288)

Release date: June 14, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Word in which while coauthoring, some replies to comments weren’t shown until the next time a document was opened, and one in Outlook that caused users to see multiple copies of a shared calendar rendered in certain circumstances.

It also fixes a remote code execution vulnerability security for the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2205 (Build 15225.20288).

Version 2205 (Build 15225.20204)

Release date: May 24, 2022

This build offers new automatic groupings in Teams as suggestions to use in channel posts. For example, you can @TeamOwners in a channel posting and all Team Owners will be notified. It also fixes several bugs, including one in Excel in which the letter “j” was not being properly inserted, one in Outlook that caused users to see the error “Cannot perform the requested operation…” when attempting to expand a local contact group, and one in which the entire Office suite crashed when rendering code.

Get more info about Version 2205 (Build 15225.20204).

Version 2204 (Build 15128.20248)

Release date: May 17, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Outlook that caused users to see the error “Cannot perform the requested operation…” when attempting to expand a local contact group; one in Word in which the Office “Insert Screenshot” showed blank/incomplete screenshots for Office Apps; and one in the entire Office suite in which font download requests for endpoints that don’t support font service were being issued.

Get more info about Version 2204 (Build 15128.20248).

Version 2204 (Build 15128.20224)

Release date: May 10, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one that caused Excel to consume excessive memory, one in Word in which in which a document scrolled to the end after deleting a paragraph mark, and an issue with rendering in Excel and Project when using certain older versions of Windows 11.

It also offers a security update for Excel and one for the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2204 (Build 15128.20224).

Version 2204 (Build 15128.20178)

Release date: April 26, 2022

This build reduces unwanted fragmenting of conditional formatting rules in Excel, and also improves Power BI dataset request access from Excel.

It also fixes several bugs, including one in Access that that prevented Outlook event-based add-ins from functioning properly, one that caused Outlook to close unexpectedly during launch when connected to a OneDrive for Business endpoint with no service URL, and one for the entire Office suite in which the font drop-down would not accurately reflect what font was selected in a shape.

Get more info about Version 2204 (Build 15128.20178).

Version 2203 (Build 15028.20228)

Release date: April 20, 2022

This build fixes three bugs, one in Access that prevented Outlook Event-Based Add-Ins from functioning properly, one in Outlook that caused EU users to see information missing from person cards, and another in Outlook that caused users to experience a “stop responding” when responding to certain contacts.

(Get more info about Version 2203 (Build 15028.20228).

Version 2203 (Build 15028.20204)

Release date: April 12, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Outlook in which the “Move to Other” functionality stopped working properly, and another for the entire Office suite in which the font drop-down would not accurately reflect what font was selected in a shape.

It also offers security updates for Excel. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2203 (Build 15028.20204).

Version 2203 (Build 15028.20160)

Release date: March 30, 2022

This build introduces one new feature, a navigation pane for Excel that lets you see the layout of your workbook at a glance and navigate through its elements quickly. The build also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which using custom command bars could cause Excel to crash, one in Outlook that caused the “Index out of date” message to display too often, one in Word that caused a performance issue when opening Word documents with thousands of track changes, and one for the entire Office suite that caused contact cards to display improperly

Get more info about Version 2203 (Build 15028.20160).

Version 2202 (Build 14931.20132)

Release date: March 8, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Outlook that caused users to experience performance issues when switching folders due to a corrupt view setting. It also offers security updates for Visio and Word. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about  Version 2202 (Build 14931.20132).

Version 2202 (Build 14931.20120)

Release date: February 28, 2022

This build offers a wide variety of new features, including one in Excel that disables Excel 4.0 (XML) macros by default to improve security; one in Word that lets you proofread selected text with Editor; one in Outlook that lets you visualize and explore your company’s internal structure, work teams, and individual roles; and one on PowerPoint that lets you pre-record video with animation. It also has many new Teams features, including enabling Teams app developers to test their monetized apps within Teams clients, and the addition of a new compact view in Chat.

Many bugs were also fixed, including one in Outlook in which the folder hierarchy did not synchronize all folders for very large primary mailboxes with more than 100,00 folders, and another in Word in which SVG images that contain external content weren’t showing up.

Get more info about Version 2202 (Build 14931.20120).

Version 2201 (Build 14827.20198)

Release date: February 16, 2022

This build fixes a single bug in Access that caused errors while running an application.

Get more info about Version 2201 (Build 14827.20198).

Version 2201 (Build 14827.20192)

Release date: February 8, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one in which people could not save their files in Project. It also offers security updates for Excel, Visio, and the entire Office suite. For details, see the Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2201 (Build 14827.20192).

Version 2201 (Build 14827.20158)

Release date: January 26, 2022

This build includes a variety of feature updates, including easier scrolling through Excel spreadsheets that are large or that have very wide cells, new Cortana features for Teams, and an improved address book search in Outlook.

A number of bugs were fixed, including one in Outlook that caused applications to become unresponsive after loading a contact card, one in Word in which “Repeat style” applies Normal instead of repeating the style, and another in Access that caused the Insights add-in to stop working intermittently.

Get more info about Version 2201 (Build 14827.20158).

Version 2112 (Build 14729.20260)

Release date: January 12, 2022

This build includes a variety of bugs and performance fixes.

Get more info about Version 2112 (Build 14729.20260).

Version 2112 (Build 14729.20248)

Release date: January 11, 2022

This build fixes a bug in Excel in which shapes and form controls could not call VBA macros. It also offers security updates for two Microsoft Office Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities. For details, see “Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.”

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2112 (Build 14729.20248).

Version 2112 (Build 14729.20194)

Release date: January 4, 2022

This build offers a variety of new features, including the ability to track only your own changes in Word when collaborating, an improved way to search Outlook’s calendar, and several new features in Teams, including one that lets you “raise your hand” virtually to let people know you want to contribute without interrupting the conversation.

It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Access that that caused an application to close unexpectedly when connection to an Access or Jet database using multiple threads, and one in Outlook that caused users to see garbled text in some fields when exporting contacts to a CSV.

Get more info about Version 2112 (Build 14729.20194).

Version 2111 (Build 14701.20262)

Release date: December 16, 2021

This build fixes two bugs, one in Access that prevented multiple users from opening a database on a network file share, and for the entire Office suite related to refreshing elements that may contain text.

Get more info about Version 2111 (Build 14701.20262).

Version 2111 (Build 14701.20248)

Release date: December 14, 2021

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which opening an XLSM file in the SpreedsheetCompare tool sometimes caused the tool to stop responding, and one in which the teaching callouts (tips) about the new look of Office did not appear in Outlook.

It also offers security updates for Excel and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2111 (Build 14701.20248).

Version 2111 (Build 14701.20226)

Release date: December 3, 2021

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which newly created PivotTables could lose custom settings if the data source range was changed; another in PowerPoint and Word in which some pop-up UI elements could not be clicked, such as the Join Meeting pop-up in Outlook or the Welcome Back pop-up in PowerPoint; and another in Project in which some projects would close unexpectedly when loading customized reports.

Get more info about Version 2111 (Build 14701.20226).

Version 2110 (Build 14527.20312)

Release date: December 1, 2021

This build fixes several bugs, including one that wouldn’t allow people to insert their signatures into new emails, replies, or forwards after a restart of Outlook, and another in which the theme picker in Word’s File > Options menu for x64 users didn’t work.

Get more info about Version 2110 (Build 14527.20312).

Version 2110 (Build 14527.20276)

Release date: November 9, 2021

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in Excel in which when opening linked tables to Dynamics, numbers may appear as small squares when the data is displayed, and one in Project in which when tasks are rescheduled, manually scheduled tasks may be scheduled earlier than they should be. It also offers security updates for Excel, Word, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2110 (Build 14527.20276).

Version 2110 (Build 14527.20234)

Release date: October 28, 2021

This build fixes several small bugs, including one in Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word in which each app stopped responding when drawing an image.

Get more info about Version 2110 (Build 14527.20234).

Version 2110 (Build 14527.20226)

Release date: October 25, 2021

This build includes a wide variety of new features, including several dozen in Teams, ranging from making Live Transcript available for web users of Teams meetings, a new Question & Answer application for Teams webinars & meetings, and allowing people to join meetings in other clouds anonymously from the Teams desktop app.

Several Office bugs were also fixed, including one in Excel in which a query update caused Excel to stop responding, and one in Outlook that caused a sync failure to occur when generating a preview.

Get more info about Version 2110 (Build 14527.20226).

Version 2109 (Build 14430.20306)

Release date: October 14, 2021

This build offers a variety of unnamed bug fixes and performance fixes.

Get more info about Version 2109 (Build 14430.20306).

Version 2109 (Build 14430.20298)

Release date: October 12, 2021

This build offers security updates for Excel, Visio, Word, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2109 (Build 14430.20298).

Version 2109 (Build 14430.20270)

Release date: October 6, 2021

This build fixes a bug in Outlook that caused some users to experience a stop responding when attempting to retrieve AutoDiscover settings.

Get more info about Version 2109 (Build 14430.20270).

Version 2109 (Build 14430.20234)

Release date: September 28, 2021

This build introduces more than a dozen new Teams features, including one in which you can now define a default number of days to keep Teams meeting recordings saved to OneDrive and SharePoint before they are automatically deleted, and the introduction of the Network Planner for government clouds to help you determine and organize network requirements for connecting Microsoft Teams users across an organization.

It also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in Excel, Word, and PowerPoint in which some users could not export documents to PDF or XPS formats, and another in Word in which the insert online video button was disabled.

Get more info about Version 2109 (Build 14430.20234).

Version 2108 (Build 14326.20404)

Release date: September 14, 2021

This build fixes a single small bug and includes security updates. The bug fixed is one that caused a loss of HTML formatting when a draft of an email was saved to disk.

The security updates are for Access, Excel, Visio, Word, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2108 (Build 14326.20404).

Version 2108 (Build 14326.20348)

Release date: September 7, 2021

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Excel in which not all columns appeared when linking to or importing from a Dynamics table, one in Outlook that that caused Room Finder to fail to load, and one in Word in which the print preview was not loading when using Print.

Get more info about Version 2108 (Build 14326.20348).

Version 2108 (Build 14326.20238)

Release date: August 25, 2021

This build introduces many new features for Microsoft Teams, including the ability for meeting participants to transfer calls between desktop and mobile, a “top hits” section added to the top of search autosuggestions, and live captions being made available to users accessing Teams meetings via the web.

The build also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which connecting to a data source from within the PowerPivot window in Excel was not working, one that crashed Outlook while email was being composed, one in Word in which the Insert Online Video button was disabled, and one for the entire Office suite in which some documents failed to load after using some web add-ins.

Get more info about Version 2108 (Build 14326.20238).

Version 2107 (Build 14228.20250)

Release date: August 10, 2021

This build fixes a variety of small bugs and includes security updates. Among the bugs fixed are one in Excel that caused some linked Dynamics tables to stop responding and one in multiple Office apps in which document exports to PDF or XPS formats stopped responding due to recent updates.

The security updates are for Word and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2107 (Build 14228.20250).

Version 2107 (Build 14228.20226)

Release date: August 3, 2021

This build fixes two bugs in Outlook. One caused emails resent by a different user to appear to have been sent by the original sender in organizations that enable Send From Alias. The other caused users to see duplicate time entries in the end meeting time drop-down when the start of the meeting and the end of the meeting were on different dates.

Get more info about Version 2107 (Build 14228.20226).

Version 2107 (Build 14228.20204)

Release date: July 26, 2021

This build offers several minor new features and fixes a variety of bugs. Among the new features are one in which you can use the Immersive Reader in Outlook to create custom text spacing, page colors, column width, and line focus, and another in PowerPoint adds Flipgrid video support.

Among the bugs fixed are one Word in which comment cards next to the Word canvas were the incorrect size, and one in which Outlook crashed for some people when performing searches.

Get more info about Version 2107 (Build 14228.20204).

Version 2106 (Build 14131.20332)

Release date: July 20, 2021

This build fixes several small bugs in Outlook, including one that caused some users to experience an unexpected close when Outlook was collecting diagnostic information, and another that caused Cloud Settings users to experience an unexpected close when an incompletely configured account was present in the profile.

Get more info about Version 2106 (Build 14131.20332).

Version 2106 (Build 14131.20320)

Release date: July 13, 2021

This build fixes a variety of small bugs and includes security updates. Among the bugs fixed are one in Outlook that caused some systems to crash while retrieving service-powered search suggestions, and one for the entire Office suite related to instability during DirectX device loss and recovery situations.

The security updates are for Excel, Word, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2106 (Build 14131.20320).

Version 2106 (Build 14131.20278)

Release date: June 29, 2021

This build introduces several new minor features for Outlook, including one that includes the most relevant files related to your search when you type in the Search box, and another alerts you if any suspicious sign-in activity is detected and tells you when and where you last signed into your account.

It also fixes a variety of small bugs, including one in Outlook that disabled translation options for some people, and one in PowerPoint in which people couldn’t to enter credentials into a Windows Security dialog to open a file, because a PowerPoint dialog box obstructed it.

Get more info about Version 2106 (Build 14131.20278).

Version 2105 (Build 14026.20308)

Release date: June 18, 2021

This build fixes several small bugs, including one in Outlook that caused users to experience an unexpected property change prompt when closing a message they had replied to or forwarded, and other for the entire Office suite in which Office crashed when reopening certain files.

Get more info about Version 2105 (Build 14026.20308).

Version 2105 (Build 14026.20270)

Release date: June 8, 2021

This build fixes a variety of small bugs and includes security updates. Among the bugs fixed are one in Excel in which extra entries appeared in the Excel Add-in list for some users, one in Outlook that caused it to close when interacting with Outlook Mail or Calendar Views, and one for the entire Office suite that caused a performance regression on opening SyncBacked files.

The security updates are for Access, Excel, Outlook, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2105 (Build 14026.20270).

Version 2105 (Build 14026.20246)

Release date: May 24, 2021

This build includes nearly two dozen new features in Teams: anonymous users can join a Live Event so that they can present during the event, webinars can be scheduled and delivered for up to 1,000 people at a time, and users can create group chats that include people external to their organization who use Teams.

Word, Excel and PowerPoint now allow documents encrypted with sensitivity labels to be AutoSaved and co-authored with others in real time. (Unencrypted documents have this feature already.)

There are also a wide variety of resolved issues, including fixing a bug in Word in which the Editor Pane didn’t open, and one in PowerPoint in which the Reuse Slides option was not available for some users.

Get more info about Version 2105 (Build 14026.20246).

Version 2104 (Build 13929.20386)

Release date: May 18, 2021

This build fixes two issues with Outlook, one that caused the people picker in Outlook to expand upward rather than downward for users with a perpetual license, and another that caused the feedback option to fail to appear for users of the Office Perpetual 2021 preview.

Get more info about Version 2104 (Build 13929.20386).

Version 2104 (Build 13929.20372)

Release date: May 11, 2021

This build fixes a variety of small bugs and includes security updates. Among the bugs fixed are one in which a major version build rollback could result in crashes when opening files in Excel, Word, and PowerPoint, and one that caused Word to unexpectedly close when the user logged off or restarted their computer.

The security updates are for Access, Excel, Word, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2104 (Build 13929.20372).

Version 2104 (Build 13929.20296)

Release date: April 29, 2021

This build offers a variety of feature updates, including the addition of new linked data types in Excel, improved collaboration and a dark mode in Word, a set of ready-made graphics in Visio, and the ability to create an out-of-office message in Teams.

There are also a variety of bug fixes, including for one in Excel in which some automation add-ins for Excel couldn’t load, another in Excel that caused users to see signatures disappear unexpectedly, one in Project in which users were unable to remove projects from the resource pool, and one in Word in which some texts weren’t visible when using the dark mode theme in reading mode.

Get more info about Version 2104 (Build 13929.20296).

Version 2103 (Build 13901.20400)

Release date: April 13, 2021

This build fixes several small bugs throughout Office and includes security updates. Among the bugs fixed are ones in Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word that caused a resource contention issue when drawing an image.

The security updates are for Excel, Outlook, Word, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Microsoft’s Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2103 (Build 13901.20400).

Version 2103 (Build 13901.20336)

Release date: April 2, 2021

This build fixes a bug in Outlook in which a component of Outlook used by MAPI-enabled applications on computers with ARM processors caused searches to fail or put extra load on the computer as background apps restarted repeatedly.

 Get more info about Version 2103 (Build 13901.20336).

Version 2103 (Build 13901.20312)

Release date: March 30, 2021

This build offers several new features, including getting meeting suggestions when you search for someone in Outlook; being able to send a copy of email messages or conversations, including attachments, from Outlook into Teams chats and channels; and drafting documents with your voice in Word.

In addition, a number of bugs were resolved, including fixing an issue that crashed Outlook when it was syncing folder hierarchy changes, and fixing a bug in Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word in which disabled commands in the Office Ribbon would only have the icon grayed out but not the text in Dark Gray Office Theme.

Get more info about Version 2103 (Build 13901.20312).

Version 2102 (Build 13801.20360)

Release date: March 18, 2021

This build fixes several bugs, including one in Outlook that caused users of the Cloud Settings feature to see customized settings overridden by default setting after configuring Outlook on a new device, and one in Word in which typing at the end of a hidden paragraph cased Word to hang.

Get more info about Version 2102 (Build 13801.20360).

Version 2102 (Build 13801.20294)

Release date: March 9, 2021

This build fixes several small bugs with Outlook and includes security updates. Among the bugs fixed are one that in which newly added calendars didn’t appear in the navigation pane until after Outlook had been restarted, and one in Word in which Narrator skipped over paragraphs.

The security updates are for Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, and the entire Office suite. For details, see Release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2102 (Build 13801.20294).

Version 2102 (Build 13801.20266)

Release date: March 1, 2021

This build introduces a number of new features. In Excel, you can now unhide multiple sheets at a time, and you can also resize Conditional Formatting dialogs. Outlook gets an updated Contacts view list. Teams lets you send “reactions” to others during meetings. In addition, you can add a channel to a calendar tab. Excel, PowerPoint, and Word now require that users apply sensitivity labels to documents if their organization’s policy requires it.

The build also fixes a number of issues. In Excel, an issue was fixed that prevented users from exporting an Excel workbook to PDF. In Outlook, an issue was fixed that caused users to see duplicate calendar groups appearing after creating a new group. In Word, an issue was fixed in resolving conflicts while in coauthoring.

Get more info about Version 2102 (Build 13801.20266).

Version 2101 (Build 13628.20448)

Release date: February 16, 2021

This build fixes several bugs, including one in which Outlook sometimes closed unexpectedly when users were doing a search, and another in Outlook that caused mails to be sent as digitally signed after the user unchecked that option.

It also fixes two bugs for the entire Office suite, including one related to media controller event notifications and another related to media player engine timing.

Get more info about Version 2101 (Build 13628.20448).

Version 2101 (Build 13628.20380)

Release date: February 9, 2021

This build fixes several issues with Outlook and includes security updates for Excel. Among the Outlook bugs fixed are one that caused Cloud Settings users to experience a hang when updating settings, and another that caused issues with displaying the correct default signature in OWA.

The security updates fixed three Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities. For details, see the release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2101 (Build 13628.20380).

Version 2101 (Build 13628.20274)

Release date: January 26, 2021

This build offers a variety of new features, including allowing government customers to apply sensitivity labels to documents and emails in Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word. It also automatically sends audit data about that sensitivity labeling to Microsoft 365 administrators. Additionally, in Outlook, you can now delete conversations based on message owners.

There are also a variety of bug fixes, including for a bug in which Excel would fail to launch or close unexpectedly if certain Windows Security exploit protection settings (SimExec, CallerCheck) were in use, another in which Outlook closed unexpectedly in certain search scenarios, and another in Project in which borders weren’t showing up for tasks in the Team Planner view.

Get more info about Version 2101 (Build 13628.20274).

Version 2012 (Build 13530.20440)

Release date: January 21, 2021

This build fixes a handful of bugs, including one in Outlook that caused users that have Shared or Delegated Mailboxes with large hierarchies in their profile to encounter hangs, and other that caused Outlook to close unexpectedly in certain search scenarios.

Get more info about Version 2012 (Build 13530.20440).

Version 2012 (Build 13530.20376)

Release date: January 12, 2021

This build fixes two bugs, one in which Excel would fail to launch or close unexpectedly if certain Windows Security exploit protection settings (SimExec, CallerCheck) were in use, and another in Outlook that that caused an edited signature to fail to save after prompting the user to do so.

There are also a variety of security fixes for Excel, Word, and the entire Office suite.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2012 (Build 13530.20376).

Version 2012 (Build 13530.20316)

Release date: January 5, 2021

This build lets you change your Outlook settings in the cloud, such as for Automatic Replies, Focused Inbox, and Privacy, and have them available on all of your PCs. PowerPoint gets a new feature called Presenter Coach that helps you helps you prepare to give more effective presentations.

There are also a variety of bug fixes, including for a bug in Outlook that that caused some people to encounter a hang while loading their calendar, and another in PowerPoint in which fonts didn’t properly display inside equations.

Get more info about Version 2012 (Build 13530.20316).

Version 2011 (Build 13426.20404)

Release date: December 21, 2020

This minor build fixes three issues, one in which Excel would incorrectly show in the message bar that a new version of a file is available and force the user to save their changes in a copy of the workbook or discard their changes; another in which Excel left macros disabled without prompting when opening an Excel Add-in file containing Excel 4.0 macros; and one for the entire Office suite, in which a file would be opened as NOT SyncBacked when the URL from cache and the URL from OneDrive did not match.

Get more info about Version 2011 (Build 13426.20404).

Version 2011 (Build 13426.20332)

Release date: December 8, 2020

This minor fixes a single issue for the entire Office suite in which SaveRequestManagerCam was causing the application to close instead of returning an error.

It also has security updates for Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint. Get details here.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2011 (Build 13426.20332).

Version 2011 (Build 13426.20308)

Release date: December 2, 2020

This minor build fixes several minor issues, including one in Outlook that caused the original attendees of some meetings to receive a cancellation when another attendee forwards the meeting, and another in which installing a newer version of Office over certain older versions caused impaired functionality, such as being unable to use Power Query.

Get more info about Version 2011 (Build 13426.20308).

Version 2011 (Build 13426.20294)

Release date: November 30, 2020

This build fixes two minor issues, one that caused problems when copying and pasting an equation from Word to PowerPoint, and another in Word in which document styles were being replaced with other styles from the template.

Get more info about Version 2011 (Build 13426.20294).

Version 2011 (Build 13426.20274)

Release date: November 23, 2020

This build offers a variety of minor new features, including the ability to paste SVG files from Office into third-party apps, and being able to switch Office themes automatically to match your Windows 10 theme settings. There are also several bug fixes, including fixing an issue in Outlook that caused the To field to be blank when sending a status report on a task, and one in PowerPoint in which some corrupt PowerPoint files were not opening correctly, even after a document repair operation.

Get more info about Version 2011 (Build 13426.20274).

Version 2010 (Build 13328.20408)

Release date: November 17, 2020

This build fixes a handful of minor bugs in Office, including one that broke the MailItem.BeforeAttachmentAdd event in Outlook, and one that affected the entire Office suite in which Save As would fail in certain scenarios.

Get more info about Version 2010 (Build 13328.20408).

Version 2010 (Build 13328.20356)

Release date: November 10, 2020

This build fixes two minor bugs and includes security updates. It fixes an Outlook issue in which users couldn’t grant Editor permission to their delegates, and an issue with the entire Office suite in which files that were transitioned from synced to server-only couldn’t be saved.

There are also security updates for Excel, Word and the entire Office suite. For details, see the release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2010 (Build 13328.20356).

Version 2010 (Build 13328.20292)

Release date: October 27, 2020

This build offers several  new features, including the ability to insert iPhone photos directly into Office apps. You can now also create data types with Power Query from any power source. Outlook can now check your grammar as you type. In Teams, you can pin any message in a channel onto the channel info pane.  

There are also a wide variety of bug fixes, including for a bug in Outlook that that caused Cloud Settings not to be turned on by default, one in which Project could crash when opening files where resource contours were specified in a certain manner, and one for the entire Office suite in which when printing to an inkjet printer, the printer reports “Toner Low” or “No Toner” even though inkjet printers don’t use toner.

Get more info about Version 2010 (Build 13328.20292).

Version 2009 (Build 13231.20418)

Release date: October 21, 2020

This build fixes several minor bugs, including one that closed Outlook unexpectedly when selecting a search result, and one in PowerPoint in which the forms content add-in didn’t render after insertion until the user clicked to another slide to make it show.

Get more info about Version 2009 (Build 13231.20418).

Version 2009 (Build 13231.20390)

Release date: October 13, 2020

This build fixes one minor bug and includes several security fixes. It fixes an issue in which Project may have crashed on opening files where resource contours were specified in a certain manner.

It has security fixes for Access, Excel, Outlook, Word, and the entire Office suite. For details, see the release notes for Microsoft Office security updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2009 (Build 13231.20390).

Version 2009 (Build 13231.20368)

Release date: October 8, 2020

This build fixes several minor bugs and has a security fix. It fixes an issue that caused Outlook to unexpectedly start in an offline state, and one for the entire Office suite in which when printing to an inkjet printer, the printer reports “Toner Low” or “No Toner” even though inkjet printers don’t use toner.

It also fixed a security issue in PowerPoint that disabled IRM protections when opening a PowerPoint file in Protected View.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2009 (Build 13231.20368).

Version 2009 (Build 13231.20262)

Release date: September 28, 2020

This build offers several minor new features and fixes a number of bugs. In Excel, you can now save shapes as pictures and can create named variables in new or pre-existing formulas. Outlook has a new profile card with an improved organization view, which matches the card style of Outlook on the web.

Among the bugs fixed are an issue with the Style Gallery dialog in Word, one in PowerPoint that caused slow coauthoring on files containing large numbers of the E2o data object, and one for the entire Office suite in which the Export to Animated GIF feature was not working.

Get more info about Version 2009 (Build 13231.20262). Version 2008 (Build 13127.20508)

Release date: September 22, 2020

This build fixes several small bugs, including one in which Excel could crash when using the Quick Analysis after freezing the top row of the sheet, and another in Outlook that caused users to be unable to close shared calendars by clicking on the “X” in the corner.

Get more info about Version 2008 (Build 13127.20508).

Version 2008 (Build 13127.20408)

Release date: September 9, 2020

This build fixes several small bugs, including one in which Excel could crash in certain circumstances when using the Format Painter, and another in Word in which a user might lose content when resizing a shape.

Get more info about Version 2008 (Build 13127.20408).

Version 2008 (Build 13127.20296)

Release date: August 31, 2020

This build offers a variety of new features and includes several bug fixes. You can now pin folders from the Save dialog in Excel, Word and PowerPoint. Across the entire Office suite, you can switch among multiple panes using a tab on the right side of an app. (The tab only appears if you have two or more panes open.) In Teams, you can use a variety of Cortana voice skills, such as for meetings or collaboration. In Outlook, when you include a link in an email, the file name automatically replaces the URL.

Among the bugs fixed are one that caused crashes when replying to or composing new email in Outlook, and another in Project in which project finish dates weren’t getting updated for projects connected to SharePoint tasks lists.

Get more info about Version 2008 (Build 13127.20296).

Version 2007 (Build 13029.20460)

Release date: August 25, 2020

This build includes a variety of minor bug fixes, including for one in Excel that occurred when trying to save a file that contained a formula with the LET() function, another in Outlook that caused issues when navigating in compact views, and another for the entire Office suite in which a crash could occur when a document was closed while the Share pane was open.

Get more info about Version 2007 (Build 13029.20460).

Version 2007 (Build 13029.20344)

Release date: August 11, 2020

This build includes 13 security updates, including for Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities for Excel, Access, and the entire Office suite, as well as Information Disclosure Vulnerabilities for Excel, Word, Outlook and the entire Office suite. For details, see the Release notes for Microsoft Office Security Updates.

This build also fixes several small bugs, including one that caused Outlook to fail to retrieve search suggestions, and another that caused devices to occasionally crash when retrieving personal information from Outlook.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2007 (Build 13029.20344).

Version 2007 (Build 13029.20308)

Release date: July 30, 2020

This build offers a variety of new features and squashes several bugs. You can now create pivot tables from datasets in Power BI within Excel, and also connect to, import, and refresh data from a PDF in Excel.

In Outlook you can create polls with Quick Poll and quickly reopen items from previous sessions. PowerPoint and Word now let you auto-apply or recommend sensitivity labels. Teams gets a variety of changes, including simplified notification settings and turning off previews for your chat notifications.

Among the issues fixed are one that caused and error or hang in Excel when loading a workbook with multiple sheets in page break preview and another in Project in which the task selected in the assign resources dialog wasn’t the same as the task selected in the task board view. A bug was fixed for the entire Office suite that caused a runtime message to show even though the transition to the full product is complete.

Get more info about Version 2007 (Build 13029.20308).

Version 2006 (Build 13001.20498)

Release date: July 28, 2020

This build fixes several minor issues, including one in Word and Outlook that caused problems when copying and pasting SVG images, and a timing issue for the entire Office suite that caused crashes when closing office files.

Get more info about Version 2006 (Build 13001.20498).

Version 2006 (Build 13001.20384)

Release date: July 14, 2020

This build squashed a number of bugs and includes security updates. Among the issues resolved are one in Access that caused a problem when inserting linked SQL tables that include an identity (e.g., autonumber) field, and one in Excel that could cause a crash when trying to create a data connection if you have signed out from your account.

Among the security updates are ones that fixed a Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities in Excel, Outlook, Project, Word and the entire Office suite, among others. For details and a complete list, see the Microsoft 365 Apps Security Updates release notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2006 (Build 13001.20384).

Version 2006 (Build 13001.20266)

Release date: June 30, 2020

This build offers a variety of new Office feature and squashes a number of bugs. Excel now supports OneDrive/SharePoint files with names and paths of up to 400 characters. Among other changes, PowerPoint has improved streaming video performance, Teams gets a simplified way to manage channel notification settings, and Outlook offers an option to disable @ mention suggestions when you’re composing mail in Outlook.

Among the issues resolved are one that which caused CustomUI XML for a custom ribbon tab to be removed when saving to SharePoint/OneDrive, one that caused users of the Shared Calendar improvements to see calendar failures in Outlook, and another that wouldn’t allow projects to be opened in the Project desktop client from Project Web App if the URL ended in .com.

Get more info about Version 2006 (Build 13001.20266).

Version 2005 (Build 12827.20470)

Release date: June 24, 2020

This build fixes a variety of issues throughout Office 365/Microsoft 365. In Excel, a bug that caused CustomUI XML for a custom ribbon tab to be removed when saving to SharePoint/OneDrive was fixed. Among the several Outlook problems resolved are one that caused users to see Outlook continuously prompt them to run the Inbox Repair tool. Word resolved an issue that may have caused a crash when dragging some content from the app. In PowerPoint an issue that caused the suggestion pane to crash was fixed.

Get more info about Version 2005 (Build 12827.20470).

Version 2005 (Build 12827.20336)

Release date: June 9, 2020

This build fixes a number of issues and has several security updates. In Excel, a bug was fixed in which Excel could crash when PivotTables were inserted into a chart sheet. In Project, an issue was fixed in which the ProjectBeforeTaskChange event didn’t fire when there was a change to the project summary task.

This build includes security fixes for two Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities, a Microsoft Outlook Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability, a Microsoft Project Information Disclosure Vulnerability, and a Microsoft Office Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. For details, see these release notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2005 (Build 12827.20336).

Version 2005 (Build 12827.20268)

Release date: June 2, 2020

This build offers multiple feature updates and fixes a number of issues. In Excel, when you type a data value that resembles a stock or a geographic location, Excel offers to convert it to the right data type, either Stocks or Geography. Outlook’s Calendar has gotten a makeover that makes it easier to scan. PowerPoint lets you use Surface Earbuds to control your presentation. Teams has many new features, including one that allows participants to raise a virtual hand in meetings, and another that lets them customize meeting video backgrounds. Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and Word can now use animated GIFs.

Among the resolved issues are one in which Excel could become unresponsive after using Ctrl+Shift+Arrow keys to scroll when the Excel window is shared through Teams, one in Outlook that caused users to experience a crash when submitting feedback from an Admin Notification, and one throughout the Office suite in which in Visual Basic for Applications in Microsoft Office, certain VBA projects that contained references to code libraries with DBCS characters in the library name or library path would be viewed by the Office application as corrupt on load.

Get more info about Version 2005 (Build 12827.20268).

Version 2004 (Build 12730.20352)

Release date: May 21, 2020

This minor build fixes several bugs, including one in Excel in which the external link stopped working after the file was reopened if the file path was too long, one in Outlook that that caused users to experience crashes when submitting feedback from an Admin Notification, and one that affected the entire Office suite, in which Visual Basic for Applications projects with references that were expected to be found by searching locations specified in the PATH environment variable would not be found properly at runtime, leading to VBA runtime errors.

Get more info about Version 2004 (Build 12730.20352).

Version 2004 (Build 12730.20270)

Release date: May 12, 2020

This build fixes an Outlook issue that caused users to experience a crash when displaying toast notifications. It also includes a security fix for a Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. For details about the security fix, see these release notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2004 (Build 12730.20270).

Version 2004 (Build 12730.20250)

Release date: May 4, 2020

This minor update fixes an issue in Visual Basic for Applications throughout Microsoft Office in which certain VBA projects that contain references to code libraries with DBCS characters in the library name or library path were viewed by the Office application as corrupt on loading.

Get more info about Version 2004 (Build 12730.20250).

Version 2004 (Build 12730.20236)

Release date: April 29, 2020

This update includes a variety of minor updates and bug fixes. Excel no longer supports external data connections that use the Facebook connector, Outlook now lets you join meetings without leaving your Inbox, and Access offers several new improvements to help be more productive working in Query Designer, SQL view, and the Relationships window. Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and Word now have access to thousands of royalty-free stock images, icons, and stickers.

Among the bugs fixed are one that caused cause Excel to crash in some cases after copying a sheet containing a PivotTable, another that caused some users to experience a hang while exiting Outlook, and one that affected the entire Office suite, preventing users from restricting access and protecting files with a password simultaneously.

Get more info about Version 2004 (Build 12730.20236).

Version 2003 (Build 12624.20466)

Release date: April 15, 2020

This update includes “various bug and performance fixes,” which Microsoft has not detailed.

Get more info about Version 2003 (Build 12624.20466).

Version 2003 (Build 12624.20442)

Release date: April 14, 2020

This release includes a variety of security updates and several small bug fixes. Among the security vulnerabilities fixed are a Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability, a Microsoft Word Remote Code Execution Vulnerability and a Microsoft Office Remote Code Execution Vulnerability for the entire suite. Get more details in the Release Notes for Office 365 Security Updates. 

Among the bugs fixed are an issue that caused users to occasionally experience a crash when using the “X” button on their mouse in Word and Outlook, and Application.Evaluate (VBA) not working for user-defined functions in some cases in Excel.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2003 (Build 12624.20442).

Version 2003 (Build 12624.20382)

Release date: March 31, 2020

This update improves OneNote’s sync and server stability and fixes an issue in Project in which users were unable to enter time-phased Baseline Work when the setting to protect actual work is on.

Get more info about Version 2003 (Build 12624.20382).

Version 2003 (Build 12624.20320)

Release date: March 25, 2020

This update introduces several new features and fixes a number of bugs. In Outlook, you can now drag email to a group, and also more easily log into Wi-Fi networks. Co-authoring in Word has been sped up so that collaborators see changes more quickly. And throughout the Office suite, you can now apply sensitivity labels to prompt you for custom permissions.

Among the bugs fixed are one in which Excel crashed in certain cases when reopening a workbook embedded in Word or PowerPoint, and another in which copying a shape in PowerPoint slide might fail.

Get more info about Version 2003 (Build 12624.20320).

Version 2002 (Build 12527.20278)

Release date: March 10, 2020

This update has a single bug fix and addresses several security issues in Word. It fixes an issue in Project in which the OnUndoOrRedo event doesn’t fire without first running the OpenUndoTransaction method. It also plugs four Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities in Word. Find more details in the security release notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 2002 (Build 12527.20278).

Version 2002 (Build 12527.20242)

Release date: March 1, 2020

This update has only a single, minor change: an Outlook bug that that wouldn’t allow third-party applications to send email has been fixed.

Get more info about Version 2002 (Build 12527.20242).

Version 2002 (Build 12527.20194)

Release date: February 25, 2020

This update includes a few minor new features and fixes several bugs. In Excel and Word, you can now save objects as such as charts, shapes, ink, icons and pictures as an SVG (scalable vector graphics file). Click here for details. In Excel, you can also get at-a-glance analysis of the data in your columns, identify error and empty values, and see distribution histograms using the Query Editor.

In Excel, an issue was fixed in which CUBEVALUE functions would sometimes return an incorrect result. Among several Outlook bug fixes are one that that caused commas in the location field of a meeting to turn into semicolons, and another that could cause a crash when viewing the same item in multiple windows.

Get more info about Version 2002 (Build 12527.20194).

Version 2001 (Build 12430.20288)

Release date: February 19, 2020

This update includes “various bugs and performance fixes,” which Microsoft has not detailed.

Get more info about Version 2001 (Build 12430.20288).

Version 2001 (Build 12430.20184)

Release date: January 30, 2020

This update includes new features for Excel, Outlook and Word, along with bug fixes. In Excel, you can now respond to comments and mentions from within email without opening the workbook. Excel also gets a new XLOOKUP function that lets you search in a table by range or row. A new group naming policy in Outlook lets IT admins standardize and manage the names of groups created by users in an organization. Word now lets you save shapes as pictures and use the Lasso tool on the Draw tab to help select objects drawn with ink.

A bug has been fixed in Access that can cause Access to fail to identify an Identity Column in a linked SQL Server table, which can cause rows to be reported as deleted incorrectly. Also fixed was a bug in Excel and Outlook that caused users to experience crashes when renaming a signature.

Get more info about Version 2001 (Build 12430.20184).

Version 1912 (Build 12325.20344)

Release date: January 22, 2020

This very minor update resolves a single issue in which Microsoft Access failed to identify an Identity Column in a linked SQL Server table, which could have caused rows to be reported as deleted incorrectly.

Get more info about Version 1912 (Build 12325.20344).

Version 1912 (Build 12325.20298)

Release date: January 14, 2020

This security update addresses security issues in Excel and the entire Office suite. It plugs holes in three Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities, and one in a Microsoft Office Memory Corruption Vulnerability. Find more details in the security release notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1912 (Build 12325.20298).

Version 1912 (Build 12325.20288)

Release date: January 8, 2020

This update includes a new feature that can create looping GIFs in PowerPoint, and new accessibility features for Outlook and PowerPoint. In PowerPoint, the new Accessibility Checker helps you arrange objects on your slides with screen readers in mind. And Outlook now displays an alert reminding you to make your content accessible when sending mail to a user who prefers accessible content.

There are also a variety of minor bug fixes, including fixing an issue in Outlook that caused users to experience hangs in Outlook when retrieving Cloud Settings, and an issue in Word in which the building blocks organizer had displayed an invalid alert: “You have modified styles, building blocks.”

Get more info about Version 1912 (Build 12325.20288).

Version 1911 (Build 12228.20364)

Release date: December 10, 2019

This update offers a few minor bug fixes and several security updates. It fixes the right-click menu for Excel’s Pivot Charts to enable the “Show Detail” option and also fixes an issue in Outlook that allowed web add-ins to access Digital Rights Managed messages.

Among the security updates are those that fix an Excel Information Disclosure Vulnerability, a Word Denial of Service Vulnerability and a PowerPoint Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. For details, see the security update release notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1911 (Build 12228.20364).

Version 1911 (Build 12228.20332)

Release date: December 3, 2019

This update offers a few minor features and fixes a variety of bugs. Six new functions have been added in Excel: FILTER, SORT, SORTBY, UNIQUE, SEQUENCE and RANDARRAY. Excel also now has a data visualizer add-on that can create flow charts in Visio. Word’s co-authoring capabilities have been improved, making it more likely changes will be seen by others in real time.

Among the bugs fixed are one that caused crashes when users searched for recent files in Excel while no workbook was open, and another in which Office updates unexpectedly downloaded files from the Office CDN instead of the intended source, such as a local or network share or Configuration Manager-provided location.

Get more info about Version 1911 (Build 12228.20332).

Version 1910 (Build 12130.20410)

Release date: November 22, 2019

Microsoft isn’t saying much about this update except that it includes “various [unnamed] bugs and performance fixes.”

Get more info about Version 1910 (Build 12130.20410).

Version 1910 (Build 12130.20390)

Release date: November 18, 2019

This update includes unnamed bug and performance fixes in Microsoft’s description. It also fixes two issues with Outlook, one that caused users to see the location field in meetings change unexpectedly, and another that caused users to see an empty message box with an “OK” button when trying to contact support from the Account Creation context.

Get more info about Version 1910 (Build 12130.20390).

Version 1910 (Build 12130.20344)

Release date: November 12, 2019

This security update comprises two fixes for Excel, including Remote Code Execution Vulnerability CVE-2019-1448 and Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2019-1446, and two for the entire Office suite, including ClickToRun Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability CVE-2019-1449 and Information Disclosure Vulnerability CVE-2019-1402.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1910 (Build 12130.20344).

Version 1910 (Build 12130.20272)

Release date: October 30, 2019

This update introduces a wide variety of minor new features, including one for Excel, Word and PowerPoint that checks PDFs you create for accessibility issues and offers fixes, and another for Excel, Word, Outlook and PowerPoint that applies sensitivity labels to your documents and emails to keep them compliant with your organization’s information protection policies. Word also gets coauthoring improvements.

Get more info about Version 1910 (Build 12130.20272).

Version 1909 (Build 12026.20344)

Release date: October 22, 2019

This very minor non-security update fixes a bug in Microsoft Project, in which users could get several messages when opening a read-only project. And in order to protect Office users’ security, Microsoft Office updates are now being signed using the SHA-2 algorithm exclusively.

Get more info about Version 1909 (Build 12026.20344).

Version 1909 (Build 12026.20334)

Release date: October 14, 2019

This very minor non-security update fixes a single bug that affects the entire Office suite. The bug didn’t allow people to save Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents when they tried to create a new file and bring up the “Save as Model Dialog” option after clicking on the Save icon or pressing Ctrl + S.

Get more info about Version 1909 (Build 12026.20334).

NOTE: On Oct. 15, 2019, Microsoft released an unnamed update that temporarily disables the Cloud Save dialog to address the saving issue addressed on Oct. 14. Microsoft says the feature will be re-enabled soon.

Version 1909 (Build 12026.20320)

Release date: October 8, 2019

This build includes a security update and a number of minor bug fixes. In Outlook, several bugs were squashed, including one that wouldn’t allow people to open some instances of recurring calendar items, and another that caused Outlook to crash when a profile was being created. PowerPoint had an issue fixed that caused data loss when coauthoring and offline editing.  For the entire Office suite, several issues were fixed, including one that crashed Office when files were opened. In addition, Microsoft Updates are now signed using the SHA-2 algorithm exclusively in order to improve security.

There are also fixes for two Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities, detailed in CVE-2019-1327 and CVE-2019-1331.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1909 (Build 12026.20320).

Version 1909 (Build 12026.20264)

Release date: September 30, 2019

This build offers a variety of new features and fixes several bugs. In Outlook, it’s now easier and faster to update shared calendars. In addition, when you search through your mail, the most relevant email messages are now grouped at the top of the results.

PowerPoint lets you save illustrations as SVG files, and you can now animate an ink drawing so that it replays either forward or backward during the presentation. In Excel, Word, and PowerPoint you can now more easily share files by using the “recently used” list without having to open the file.

Get more info about Version 1909 (Build 12026.20264).

Version 1908 (Build 11929.20300)

Release date: September 10, 2019

This build offers several minor bug fixes and a security update. In Outlook, a bug was fixed that caused some users to encounter authentication errors when trying to retrieve their cloud settings. In PowerPoint, an issue was fixed that prevented some animations from starting. For the entire Office suite, an issue was fixed that caused large tree views to fail.

There are also security fixes for Excel and the entire Office suite, including a Microsoft Excel Information Disclosure Vulnerability, a Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability, a Jet Database Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability affecting the entire suite, and a Microsoft Office Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability affecting the entire suite.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1908 (Build 11929.20300).

Version 1908 (Build 11929.20254)

Release date: August 26, 2019

This build offers a several new minor features throughout Office. You now have more control over text boxes and borders in Excel, Word and PowerPoint, and you can also more easily insert and manage icons in those applications as well as in Outlook. The entire Office suite also gets new icons. In addition, there are a variety of bug fixes.

Get more info about Version 1908 (Build 11929.20254).

Version 1907 (Build 11901.20218)

Release date: August 13, 2019

This build offers two minor bug fixes and a variety of security updates for Outlook, Word and the entire Office suite. Among the security issues fixed are remote code execution vulnerabilities in Outlook and Word and a Jet database engine remote code execution vulnerability in the entire Office suite. (See the security release notes for details.)

The non-security changes include fixing an issue in Outlook in which users having their mailbox upgraded from basic to modern authentication were ending up with the wrong account associated with their Outlook profile.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1907 (Build 11901.20218).

Version 1907 (Build 11901.20176)

Release date: July 29, 2019

This build offers a variety of new features for Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and Word. It’s now easier to code using Power Query in Excel, with enhancements including autocomplete and syntax coloring. In Outlook, when you type a person’s name in the Search box, the most relevant email messages will now be included alongside your search suggestions. PowerPoint lets you save a video to Microsoft Stream, which lets you insert a streaming video instead of the entire file into a presentation to reduce file sizes. Word now has two different sized erasers so you can fix small inking imperfections.

In addition, Excel, PowerPoint and Word make it easier to create map charts, and also let you decide whether links to Office documents should open in the appropriate app or instead in a browser.

Get more info about Version 1907 (Build 11901.20176).

Version 1906 (Build 11727.20244)

Release date: July 9, 2019

This build has security updates for Excel, Outlook, Skype for Business and the entire Office suite. For details, see these release notes. In addition, there is a fix to an Outlook bug that caused the current folder search to intermittently fail.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1906 (Build 11727.20244).

Version 1906 (Build 11727.20230)

Release date: June 27, 2019

This extremely minor build has only a single change: It fixes an issue that caused a subset of POP3 users to see all of their emails formatted as plain text, regardless of their settings. Users who want to see their messages formatted with HTML can now do so.

Get more info about Version 1906 (Build 11727.20230).

Version 1906 (Build 11727.20210)

Release date: June 24, 2019

This build offers a variety of new features for several Office applications, primarily Outlook. Outlook gets a simplified Ribbon that tames its frequently complex interface. (The simplified Ribbon has been available in a preview for quite some time, but now is officially launched.) In addition, you can now synchronize more than 500 folders when syncing shared mailboxes. The previous limit was 500. The quick action menu can also be customized.

You can now insert 3D animated graphics into Excel. In Word, multiple people can co-author documents in the open, XML-based.docm format. And in Skype, you can crop video in a meeting on a 4K monitor when the “Crop and Center my video in meetings” setting is turned on.

There are also a number of undocumented bugs and performance fixes, according to Microsoft.

Get more info about Version 1906 (Build 11727.20210).

Version 1905 (Build 11629.20246)

Release date: June 11, 2019

This build addresses two security holes in Word, remote code execution vulnerabilities CVE-2019-1034 and CVE-2019-1035.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1905 (Build 11629.20246).

Version 1905 (Build 11629.20214)

Release date: June 4, 2019

This build fixes a single, minor issue, one in which some add-ins caused unexpected errors to appear around shapes in PowerPoint charts.

Get more info about Version 1905 (Build 11629.20214).

Version 1905 (Build 11629.20196)

Release date: May 29, 2019

This build introduces minor new features to multiple Office applications. In Word, PowerPoint and Excel, if you @mention people in document comments, they will automatically receive an email notification that they’ve been mentioned, so they can check out the comments. Across all Office applications except Outlook, a new account manager is available; it displays all Office 365 work and personal accounts in a single location, making it easier to switch among them.

In addition, in PowerPoint, presenters’ words are automatically shown on screen as captions and can be translated into subtitles in the language of your choice. In Outlook, it’s now easier to add Outlook.com and Gmail accounts that use two-factor authentication.

Get more info about Version 1905 (Build 11629.20196).

Version 1904 (Build 11601.20204)

Release date: May 14, 2019

This build includes security fixes for a Microsoft Word Remote Code Execution Vulnerability, a Microsoft Office Access Connectivity Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability and a Microsoft Office Access Connectivity Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. Go to the release notes for Office 365 ProPlus Security Updates for more details.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1904 (Build 11601.20204).

Version 1904 (Build 11601.20178)

Release date: May 8, 2019

This build includes “various bugs and performances fixes,” in Microsoft’s words, that Microsoft hasn’t provided any details on.

Get more info about Version 1904 (Build 11601.20178).

Version 1904 (Build 11601.20144)

Release date: April 29, 2019

This build includes a few minor updates. The most notable is the ability to find files by typing into the Search box on the File > Home page in Excel, PowerPoint and Word. The entire Office 365 suite sports a new set of icons, and the suite also gets an updated set of privacy controls, covering things such as the types of diagnostic data sent to Microsoft. Administrators, not Office users, have control over setting them. Here’s an overview of the new settings.

Get more info about Version 1904 (Build 11601.20144).

Version 1903 (Build 11425.20244)

Release date: April 23, 2019

This build includes “various bugs and performances fixes,” in Microsoft’s words, that Microsoft hasn’t provided any details on.

Get more info about  Version 1903 (Build 11425.20244).

Version 1903 (Build 11425.20228)

Release date: April 17, 2019

This build includes “various bugs and performances fixes,” in Microsoft’s words, that Microsoft hasn’t provided any details on.

Get more info about Version 1903 (Build 11425.20228).

Version 1903 (Build 11425.20218)

Release date: April 16, 2019

This build includes “various bugs and performances fixes,” in Microsoft’s words, that Microsoft hasn’t provided any details on.

Get more info about Version 1903 (Build 11425.20218).

Version 1903 (Build 11425.20204)

Release date: April 9, 2019

This build includes security updates for Excel and the entire office suite. Among the holes fixed are the Microsoft Excel Remote Code Execution Vulnerability, the Microsoft Graphics Components Remote Code Execution Vulnerability, and the Microsoft Office Access Connectivity Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. For details, go to the security update’s release notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied soon. Over the next few days, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about Version 1903 (Build 11425.20202).

Version 1903 (Build 11425.20202)

Release date: April 1, 2019

This build includes minor updates for Excel, PowerPoint and Word. All three of them now have an accessibility checker which examines documents to see how accessible they are, and offers suggestions if they’re not. Go to Review > Check Accessibility to try it out. In addition, PowerPoint gives you more control over how its Morph feature works.

Get more info about  Version 1903 (Build 11425.20202).

Version 1902 (Build 11328.20158)

Release date: March 12, 2019

This build includes very minor bug and performance fixes — so minor that Microsoft has not detailed what they are.

Get more info about Version 1902 (Build 11328.20158).

Version 1902 (Build 11328.20146)

Release date: March 4, 2019

This build adds a variety of features to several Office applications. It’s now easier in PowerPoint to insert videos from YouTube and Vimeo. You can also hand-draw math expressions in PowerPoint and have them turned into standard characters.

Outlook lets you set meetings to end five to ten minutes early by default, so that people can easily attend back-to-back meetings. Outlook can now also read mail aloud. Excel lets you use @mentions in comments to let co-workers know when you’re looking for their input. And a new Ideas button in Excel lets you look for patterns in your data and uses them to create personalized suggestions for how to use the data.

Access now clearly lets you see the active tab, easily drag tabs to rearrange them, and close database objects with a click.

Get more info about Version 1902 (Build 11328.20146).

Version 1901 (Build 11231.20130)

Release date: January 31, 2019

This minor build includes small changes to Excel, Outlook, Visio and the entire Office suite. A reply box has been added to Excel, making it easier to make comments during collaboration. Outlook now lets you use animated GIFs in your emails. Visio gets a series of Azure stencils so you can design a cloud app or plan a cloud architecture. And the entire Office suite now allows Office add-ins to insert graphics in SVG format.

Get more info about Version 1901 (Build 11231.20130).

Version 1812 (Build 11126.20266)

Release date: January 14, 2019

This minor build addresses performance issues.

Get more info about Version 1812 (Build 11126.20266).

Version 1812 (Build 11126.20196)

Release date: January 8, 2019

This build includes both security fixes and a minor bug fix. The bug was an issue in Project in which you couldn’t uncheck the Critical, Late and Slack bar styles for the Gantt chart after you had checked one of them.

Security patches include closing an information disclosure vulnerability in Outlook, fixing a remote execution vulnerability and an information disclosure vulnerability in Word, and closing a remote code execution vulnerability for the entire Office suite.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied soon. Over the next few days, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

Get more info about non-security changes in Version 1812 (Build 11126.20196) and security fixes in Version 1812 (Build 11126.20196).

Version 1812 (Build 11126.20188)

Release date: January 3, 2019

This build offers minor improvements to several Office applications. In Word, you can now use a feature called line focus that lets you move through a document with one, three, or five lines in view at a time. A new feature also lets you create a web page from a Word document by going to File > Transform > Transform to Web Page.

PowerPoint now lets you convert your ink to standard shapes and text, then get smart slide-design ideas from PowerPoint Designer. Outlook has new options for encrypting messages. And Word, Excel and PowerPoint all now let you keep track of accessibility issues in your documents without having to keep the accessibility checker open all the time.

Get more info about Version 1812 (Build 11126.20188).

Microsoft on Tuesday disclosed that three new security flaws impacting the Windows platform have come under active exploitation as part of its Patch Tuesday update for September 2024. The monthly security release addresses a total of 79 vulnerabilities, of which seven are rated Critical, 71 are rated Important, and one is rated Moderate in severity. This is aside from 26 flaws that the tech

Microsoft on Tuesday disclosed that three new security flaws impacting the Windows platform have come under active exploitation as part of its Patch Tuesday update for September 2024. The monthly security release addresses a total of 79 vulnerabilities, of which seven are rated Critical, 71 are rated Important, and one is rated Moderate in severity. This is aside from 26 flaws that the tech Ravie Lakshmananhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]

Ivanti has released software updates to address multiple security flaws impacting Endpoint Manager (EPM), including 10 critical vulnerabilities that could result in remote code execution. A brief description of the issues is as follows - CVE-2024-29847 (CVSS score: 10.0) - A deserialization of untrusted data vulnerability that allows a remote unauthenticated attacker to achieve code execution.

Ivanti has released software updates to address multiple security flaws impacting Endpoint Manager (EPM), including 10 critical vulnerabilities that could result in remote code execution. A brief description of the issues is as follows - CVE-2024-29847 (CVSS score: 10.0) - A deserialization of untrusted data vulnerability that allows a remote unauthenticated attacker to achieve code execution. Ravie Lakshmananhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]

Need to get up to speed on the latest features in Excel? Wrestling with an old version of Word? Finding your way around Windows 11 or looking to get more out of Windows 10? Computerworld’s cheat sheets are easy-to-use guides to help you navigate Microsoft’s core productivity software.

Here’s a one-stop resource where you can find in-depth stories on several generations of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook for Windows, focusing on what’s new in each major release. We’ve also got guides for Microsoft Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, OneNote, Loop, Whiteboard, Forms, Visio, Planner, and Windows itself.

Microsoft’s subscription-based office suite, called Microsoft 365 or Office 365 depending on your version, is continually updated with new features, so we periodically update the cheat sheets for the “365” versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and other apps in the suite. But we’re willing to bet that many companies and individuals will stay on older versions of the non-subscription software (Office 2019, for example) for some time to come, so we’ve got cheat sheets for several older generations of those products as well.

Windows and Office tutorials and tips

• Windows 10 and 11
• Microsoft 365/Office 365 apps
• Office 2016 and 2019
• Office 2013
• Office 2010
• Windows 8

Windows 10 and 11 Windows 11 cheat sheet

To a great extent, Windows 11 looks and works like Windows 10, but there are several minor differences that take some getting used to. We cover all the important changes here, including new three- and four-finger gestures for touchscreen users in our lists of shortcuts and gestures for Windows 11.

Windows 10 cheat sheet

Windows 10 is continually improving with major feature updates every spring and fall. Get to know the interface and key features, and don’t miss our list of handy gestures and shortcuts for Windows 10. (Current for the Windows 10 version 22H2.)

Microsoft OneDrive cheat sheet: Using OneDrive in Windows

If you have Windows 10 or 11, you have OneDrive. Here’s how to back up, sync and share files in OneDrive and OneDrive for Business on the Windows desktop.

More tips for Windows 10 and 11

• 8 ways to be more productive in Windows 11
• How to handle Windows 10 and 11 updates
• 18 ways to speed up Windows 10
• 13 ways to speed up Windows 11
• How to protect your privacy in Windows 10
• How to share a Windows 10 PC
• How to protect Windows 10 and 11 PCs from ransomware
• 12 classic but essential (and free!) utilities for Windows 10 and 11
• 30+ free and cheap apps for Windows 10
• How to repair Windows 10 or 11 in 4 steps

Microsoft 365/Office 365 apps Updated! Microsoft Loop cheat sheet

Microsoft’s new Loop app provides shared workspaces where teams can collaborate. Our cheat sheet shows you how to use the Loop app.

But what makes Loop particularly useful is the ability to collaborate on content snippets called Loop components across multiple Microsoft 365 apps — so we’ve also got a guide to using Loop components in Outlook and Teams:

• How to use Microsoft Loop in Outlook and Teams

13 tips to get the most out of Microsoft Whiteboard

For Microsoft 365 users, it’s worth adding Microsoft Whiteboard to your collaboration playbook. Here’s how your team can make the most of this digital whiteboard tool.

Word for Office 365/Microsoft 365 cheat sheet

Learn to use the best features introduced in Microsoft Word for Office 365/Microsoft 365 in Windows since 2015. This story covers all the features introduced in Word 2016, 2019, and 2021, plus several more exclusive to Office 365/Microsoft 365 subscribers. It also includes a quick-reference Ribbon guide for download.

Related:

• Handy Word keyboard shortcuts for Windows and Mac
• Microsoft Word for Android (and iOS) cheat sheet

Excel for Office 365/Microsoft 365 cheat sheet

Learn about all the features introduced in Excel 2016, 2019, and 2021, plus several more exclusive to Office 365/Microsoft 365 subscribers. There’s also a quick-reference Ribbon guide for download.

Related:

• Handy Excel keyboard shortcuts for Windows and Mac
• New! How to use PivotTables and PivotCharts in Excel
• New! How to use slicers in Excel
• New! Excel basics: Get started with tables
• How to use Excel formulas and functions
• How (and why) to use conditional formatting in Excel
• How to use Excel macros to save time and automate your work
• 10 spiffy new ways to show data with Excel
• Excel: Your entry into the world of data analytics
• How to use Excel as a data visualization tool
• 8 simple ways to clean data with Excel

PowerPoint for Office 365/Microsoft 365 cheat sheet

Microsoft introduced several highly useful features in PowerPoint 2016 and 2019, and it continually rolls out more for users with Office 365/Microsoft 365 subscriptions. Find out how to make the most of the new features.

Related:

• Handy PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts for Windows and Mac
• Quick-reference Ribbon guide for PowerPoint in Office 365/Microsoft 365

Outlook for Office 365/Microsoft 365 cheat sheet

Discover all the major features introduced in PowerPoint 2016 and 2019, plus more exclusively for Office 365/Microsoft 365 subscribers — including a simplified Ribbon that shows only the most commonly used commands.

Related:

• Handy Outlook keyboard shortcuts for Windows and Mac
• Quick-reference Ribbon guide for Outlook in Office 365/Microsoft 365
• Use Outlook’s new calendar board view to organize your work
• 8 Outlook add-ins to enhance collaboration
• How to filter Outlook emails on all your devices
• How to check someone else’s schedule in Outlook
• How to work across time zones in Outlook

Microsoft Teams cheat sheet: How to get started

Microsoft’s answer to Slack and Zoom, Teams provides group messaging, voice and video calls, and useful integrations with other Microsoft 365 apps. Here’s how to get set up in Teams and find your way around.

Related:

• 28 power user tips for Microsoft Teams
• 14 best practices for Microsoft Teams video meetings
• The 10 best new Microsoft Teams meeting features
• How to have Teams meetings with people outside your organization
• 18 Microsoft Teams apps for content collaboration and management

Microsoft OneNote cheat sheet

Part of Microsoft’s Office suite and built into Windows 10 and 11, OneNote is a robust note-taking app that is also available as a free standalone product. Here’s how to get up and running with OneNote.

Microsoft Forms cheat sheet: How to get started

Online forms help you conduct research, collect feedback, test knowledge, and more. Here’s how to use Microsoft Forms to create surveys, feedback forms, quizzes, and other interactive forms.

Microsoft Visio cheat sheet: How to get started

Visio in Microsoft 365 is an excellent tool for creating custom diagrams to illustrate concepts that are difficult to explain through text. Here’s how to use it.

Microsoft Planner cheat sheet

Planner gives Office 365/Microsoft 365 users a built-in task-management tool that small teams can use to track plans, tasks, and progress. Here’s our guide to using Planner on its own and within Microsoft Teams.

Microsoft Flow: A beginner’s guide

Flow (recently renamed Power Automate) lets you create automated workflows across apps and services that send notifications, ask for and offer approvals, and handle rote tasks automatically — with no coding required. Learn how to get started with this powerful tool.

SharePoint Online cheat sheet

Learn how to find your way around SharePoint Online (the Office 365 version of SharePoint), create sites, share and manage documents, work with calendars, integrate with Outlook and more. Then go beyond the basics in 5 tips for working with SharePoint Online.

More tips for Office 365/Microsoft 365/Office Online

• 10 highly useful add-ins for Microsoft Office
• 5 collaboration tools that enhance Microsoft Office
• 4 steps to repair Microsoft Office

Office 2016 and 2019 Word 2016 and 2019 cheat sheet

Learn how to use Word’s live collaborative editing features, Tell Me and Smart Lookup, and the new Translator pane in Word 2019. Also included is a list of handy keyboard shortcuts for Word 2016 and 2019. If you just want to know where to find various commands on the Ribbon, download our Word 2016 and 2019 Ribbon quick reference.

Excel 2016 and 2019 cheat sheet

Now updated for Excel 2019, our guide covers several useful chart types introduced in Excel 2016 and Excel 2019 for Windows, as well as how to use several impressive new data analysis tools. We’ve also got a list of handy keyboard shortcuts in Excel, as well as the Excel 2016 and 2019 Ribbon quick reference.

PowerPoint 2016 and 2019 cheat sheet

Like Word and Excel, PowerPoint 2016 and PowerPoint 2019 for Windows offer Tell Me, Smart Lookup, live collaborative editing and a slew of new chart types. We cover all that plus some handy features introduced in PowerPoint 2019 — not to mention our list of keyboard shortcuts for PowerPoint and the PowerPoint 2016 and 2019 Ribbon quick reference.

Outlook 2016 and 2019 cheat sheet

Outlook 2016 for Windows has been enhanced with Smart Lookup, Tell Me, and features to help you find files you want to attach and keep a tidy inbox. And don’t miss our list of keyboard shortcuts for Outlook 2016 and 2019 and the Outlook 2016 and 2019 Ribbon quick reference.

Office 2013 Word 2013 cheat sheet

Among the major features introduced in Word 2013 are a Start screen, a Design tab, Read Mode, and OneDrive sync. Our guide covers how to use them all and provides handy keyboard shortcuts for Word 2013. There’s also a Word 2013 Ribbon quick reference.

SharePoint 2013 cheat sheet

Learn the basics of navigating and using a SharePoint site, where to go to find some of the customization options, and 5 advanced SharePoint 2013 tips.

Office 2010 Word 2010 cheat sheet

Learn how to use Word 2010’s Navigation pane, image editing tools, text effects and other new features. Also see the list of handy keyboard shortcuts for Word 2010 and our Word 2010 Ribbon quick reference charts.

Excel 2010 cheat sheet

Excel 2010 introduces Sparklines, Slicers, and other enhancements to PivotTables and PivotCharts. Find out how to use those, along with keyboard shortcuts for Excel 2010 and our quick reference for finding your favorite commands on the Excel 2010 Ribbon.

PowerPoint 2010 cheat sheet

Learn how to use PowerPoint 2010’s multimedia editing tools, sharing options and other handy features. As usual, we’ve got keyboard shortcuts for PowerPoint 2010 and a guide to finding old PowerPoint 2003 commands on the PowerPoint 2010 Ribbon.

Outlook 2010 cheat sheet

The Ribbon was only half-present in Outlook 2007, but in Outlook 2010 it’s ubiquitous. Other notable changes include Conversation View to group email messages, Schedule View for scheduling meetings, and an enhanced search function. We show you how to use them all, provide some handy keyboard shortcuts for Outlook 2010 and detail where old Outlook 2003 commands are located in Outlook 2010.

SharePoint 2010 cheat sheet

Unlike earlier versions of SharePoint, SharePoint 2010 is based on the Ribbon interface. Here’s how to find your way around and get started with a SharePoint site.

Windows 8 Windows 8 cheat sheet

Not many people are still using this nightmare of an operating system, which radically overhauled the classic Windows interface in an attempt to make it more like a mobile OS. But just in case, here’s help finding your way around.

Apple’s iPhone 16 launch on Monday generated plenty of attention, but it didn’t quite blunt the edge of the $14.4 billion European Commission (EC) tax hammer that finally fell against the company and can no longer be appealed.

This concerns an EC decision in 2016 when the courts found Ireland had unlawfully provided Apple with state aid in the form of tax breaks. Apple has fought the decision — CEO Tim Cook once called it “total political crap” — but finally lost that battle Sept. 10. 

Apple’s Irish twist

The case relates to the way Apple was taxed in Ireland between 1991 to 2014.  Basically, Ireland enabled Apple to sell products across Europe, record those profits in Ireland, and then send those profits to head offices that existed only on paper, leaving almost no taxable profit in Ireland.

In a statement, the Court of Justice said: “Ireland granted Apple unlawful aid, which Ireland is required to recover.” During that time, the court decided Apple benefited from state aid as a result of those tax arrangements to the tune of $14 billion, which the company must now pay back. 

An Apple representative offered some pushback: “This case has never been about how much tax we pay, but which government we are required to pay it to. We always pay all the taxes we owe wherever we operate and there has never been a special deal.”

“As a result of the allocation method endorsed in the tax rulings, Apple only paid an effective corporate tax rate that declined from 1% in 2003 to 0.005% in 2014 on the profits of Apple Sales International,” the European Commission explained when the case first hit court eight years ago.

It’s important to note that while Apple and Ireland agreed to the arrangement, Europe argued the deal did not match economic reality and constituted unlawful state aid. 

A complex web of tax arrangements

One way to understand the complicated arrangement is like this:

• Apple had two entities incorporated but not tax resident in Ireland — Apple Sales International and Apple Operations Europe.
• These two companies held the rights to use Apple’s intellectual property to sell and manufacture Apple products outside the US under a “cost-sharing” agreement with Apple Inc.
• Ireland agreed that the two firms were required to make annual payments to Apple towards R&D, which meant (figuratively) that boat loads of cash went to the head offices of the two companies — offices that existed only on paper. 
• To put some perspective around this, Apple Sales International recorded profits of $22 billion in 2011, but under the terms of the tax arrangements it had been given in Ireland only €50 million was subject to tax. 

That quantity of cash constituted around half of Apple’s R&D spending during that time and meant the vast majority of Apple’s European profits were effectively untaxed, or — as Apple prefers to put it — were taxed in the wrong jurisdiction. 

$3,000 each

Apple isn’t happy about the outcome of the case. “We are disappointed with today’s decision,” the company said. “There has never been a special deal.”

Apple was required to hand the cash over to an independent third-party-administered escrow account in 2016. That account now holds around €14 billion. With a population of 5.2 million, the cash hoard is the equivalent of €2,692 (about $3,000) for every man, woman, and child in Ireland. 

According to local reports, Ireland’s Tánaiste Micheál Martin says the money cannot be used for day-to-day spending and that his government will now consider “how to use these funds in the best interests of the Irish people.”

Apple isn’t the only big tech firm in the crosshairs. At a cost of $2.7 billion, Google also lost its final appeal against a European Union penalty for giving its own shopping recommendations an illegal advantage over rivals in search results.

Please follow me on LinkedIn, Mastodon, or join me in the AppleHolic’s bar & grill group on MeWe.

The threat actor known as CosmicBeetle has debuted a new custom ransomware strain called ScRansom in attacks targeting small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America, while also likely working as an affiliate for RansomHub. "CosmicBeetle replaced its previously deployed ransomware, Scarab, with ScRansom, which is continually improved," ESET researcher Jakub

The threat actor known as CosmicBeetle has debuted a new custom ransomware strain called ScRansom in attacks targeting small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America, while also likely working as an affiliate for RansomHub. "CosmicBeetle replaced its previously deployed ransomware, Scarab, with ScRansom, which is continually improved," ESET researcher Jakub Ravie Lakshmananhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]

Kybernetické hrozby se staly globálním fenoménem, který nezná hranice. Státy, velké organizace i menší firmy čelí kybernetickým útokům, které mohou vést k obrovským finančním ztrátám, poškození infrastruktury, nebo dokonce k narušení národní bezpečnosti. Proto je v této oblasti nezbytná mezinárodní ...

A Windows launch isn’t the end a process — it’s really just the beginning. As with Windows 10, Microsoft continually works on improving Windows 11 by fixing bugs, releasing security patches, and occasionally adding new features.

In this story we summarize what you need to know about each update released to the public for the most recent version of Windows 11 — currently version 23H2. For each build, we’ve included the date of its release and a link to Microsoft’s announcement about it. The most recent updates appear first.

The easiest way to install updates is via Windows Update. Not sure how? See “How to handle Windows 10 and 11 updates” for full instructions. Note that Windows 11 version 23H2 is being released as a phased rollout and may not be available to you in Windows Update yet.

If you’re still using Windows 10, see “Windows 10: A guide to the updates.” And if you’re looking for information about Insider Program previews for upcoming feature releases of Windows 11, see “Windows 11 Insider Previews: What’s in the latest build?”

KB5043076 (OS Builds 22621.4169 and 22631.4169)

Release date: September 10, 2024

This update has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and September 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this build, in which you might face issues with booting Linux if you have enabled the dual-boot setup for Windows and Linux in your device. Your device might fail to boot Linux and show the error message “Verifying shim SBAT data failed: Security Policy Violation. Something has gone seriously wrong: SBAT self-check failed: Security Policy Violation.”

(Get more info about KB5043076.)

Windows 11 KB5041587 (OS Builds 22621.4112 and 22631.4112) Preview

Release date: August 27, 2024

This build, for both Windows 11 22H2 and 23H2, includes the ability to share content to your Android device from the Windows Share window. To do it, must pair your Android device to your Windows PC and use the Link to Windows app on your Android device and Phone Link on your PC.

In Voice Access, you can also now dictate the characters that you spell at a faster speed, and you have more editing options for the commands that select, delete, and move within text. The build also fixes several bugs, including one in which when you pressed Ctrl + F, sometimes the search did not start.

The new features and bug fixes will roll out to users gradually.

(Get more info about KB5041587 Preview.)

KB5041585 (OS Builds 22621.4037 and 22631.4037)

Release date: August 13, 2024

This update has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and August 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5041585.)

KB5040527 (OS Builds 22621.3958 and 22631.3958) Preview

Release date: July 25, 2024

This build, for both Windows 11 22H2 and 23H2, offers a variety of new features and bug fixes, some of which will show up immediately and some of which are being rolled out gradually. Among the features that will roll out gradually is pinning apps to the taskbar by dragging them from the Pinned section of the Start menu, and right-clicking a tab in File Explorer to duplicate it. Among the bug fixes that will roll out gradually is a memory leak that occurred when you interacted with archive folders.

Among the bugs fixed immediately is one in which in Group Policy Preferences you could not choose a group from the target domain for ILT or choose an account from Local Users and Groups.

(Get more info about KB5040527 Preview.)

KB5040442 (OS Builds 22621.3880 and 22631.3880)

Release date: July 9, 2024

This update has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and July 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which enterprise users may face issues while upgrading from Windows Pro to a valid Windows Enterprise subscription. OS upgrade operations may fail, and this might be shown in the LicenseAcquisition scheduled task in Task Scheduler > Task Scheduler Library > Microsoft > Windows > Subscription as ‘Access denied error (error code 0x80070005)’ under ‘Last Run Result.’

(Get more info about KB5040442.)

KB5039302 (OS Builds 22621.3810 and 22631.3810) Preview

Release date: June 25, 2024

This build, for both Windows 11 22H2 and 23H2, offers a variety of new features and bug fixes, some of which will show up immediately and some of which are being rolled out gradually. Among the bug fixes that will show up immediately is one that addresses an issue in which ejecting USB devices using the Safely Remove Hardware option failed when Task Manager was open.

Among the features that will roll out gradually is a new account manager on the Start menu that makes it easier to manage your account settings and lets you see your account benefits. Also being rolled out gradually is support for Emoji 15.1.

(Get more info about KB5039302 Preview.)

KB5039212 (OS Builds 22621.3737 and 22631.3737)

Release date: June 11, 2024

This update fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which the taskbar might briefly glitch, not respond, or disappear and reappear.

In addition, it has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and June 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5039212.)

KB5037853 (OS Builds 22621.3672 and 22631.3672) Preview

Release date: May 29, 2024

This build introduces a variety of minor feature updates, including one that lets you use your mouse to drag files between breadcrumbs in the File Explorer address bar and another that lets you create QR codes for webpage URLs and cloud files from the Windows share window.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which File Explorer stopped responding when you swiped from a screen edge after turning off edge swiping, and another in which handwriting panels and touch keyboards did not appear when you used a pen.

(Get more info about KB5037853 Preview.)

KB5037771 (OS Builds 22621.3593 and 22631.3593)

Release date: May 14, 2024

This update fixes a bug that caused VPN connections to fail, and another in which Server Message Block (SMB) clients failed to make SMB Multichannel connections, making file transfers are slow.

In addition, it has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and May 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5037771.)

KB506980 (OS Builds 22621.3527 and 22631.3527) Preview

Release date: April 23, 2024

In this build, the Recommended section of the Start menu will show some Microsoft Store apps. In addition, widgets icons on the taskbar are no longer pixelated or fuzzy, and Windows widgets on the lockscreen are more reliable.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which Windows Local Administrator Password Solution’s Post Authentication Actions (PAAs) did not occur at the end of the grace period. Instead, they occurred at restart.

There is one known issue in this build, in which you might be unable to change your user account profile picture.

(Get more info about KB5036980 Preview.)

KB5036893 (OS Builds 22621.3447 and 22631.3447)

Release date: April 9, 2024

This build offers a wide variety of minor new features, including dedicated mode for Windows 365 Boot. When you sign in on your company-owned device, you also are signed into to your Windows 365 Cloud PC. This uses passwordless authentication, like Windows Hello for Business.

The update also adds suggestions to Snap Layouts. When you hover over the minimize or maximize button of an app to open the layout box, app icons will display various layout options. Use them to help you to choose the best layout option.

In addition, the update changes the apps that appear in the Windows share window. The account you use to sign in affects the apps that are in “Share using.” For example, if you use a Microsoft account (MSA) to sign in, you will see Microsoft Teams (free). When you use a Microsoft Entra ID account (formerly Azure Active Directory) to sign in, your Microsoft Teams (work or school) contacts show instead.

This build also has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and April 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5036893.)

Windows 11 KB5035942 (OS Builds 22621.3374 and 22631.3374) Preview

Release date: March 26, 2024

In addition, in Windows Hello for Business admins can now use mobile device management to turn off the prompt that appears when users sign in to an Entra-joined machine. To do it, turn on the “DisablePostLogonProvisioning” policy setting. After a user signs in, provisioning is off for Windows 10 and Windows 11 devices.

There is one known issue in this build, in which Windows devices using more than one monitor might experience issues with desktop icons moving unexpectedly between monitors or other icon alignment issues when attempting to use Copilot in Windows.

(Get more info about KB5035942 Preview.)

KB5035853 (OS Builds 22621.3296 and 22631.3296)

Release date: March 12, 2024

This build fixes a bug that affected the February 2024 security and preview updates. They might not have installed, and your device might shave stopped responding at 96% with the error code “0x800F0922” and the error message, “Something did not go as planned. No need to worry – undoing changes. Please keep your computer on.”

This build also has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and March 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5035853.)

KB5034848 (OS Builds 22621.3235 and 22631.3235) Preview

Release date: February 29, 2024

In this build, you can now use the Snipping Tool on your PC to edit the most recent photos and screenshots from your Android device. You will get an instant notification on your PC when your Android device captures a new photo or screenshot. To turn this on, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices. Choose Manage devices and allow your PC to access your Android device.

The build also adds support for the USB 80Gbps standard, the next generation of USB4 that has twice the bandwidth of USB 40Gbps. To use USB 80Gbps, you must have a compatible PC and USB4 or Thunderbolt peripheral.

The build also fixes several bugs, including one in which the Windows Settings Home page randomly stopped responding when you went to the page, and another in which devices failed to make the automatic switch from cellular to Wi-Fi when they could use Wi-Fi.

There is one known issue in this build, in which Windows 11 devices attempting to install the February 2024 security update, released February 13, 2024 (KB5034765), might face installation failures and the system might stop responding at 96%.

(Get more info about KB5034848 Preview.)

KB5034765 (OS Builds 22621.3155 and 22631.3155)

Release date: February 13, 2023

In this build, the Copilot in Windows icon now appears on the right side of the system tray on the taskbar. Also, the display of “Show desktop” at the rightmost corner of the taskbar will be off by default. To turn it back on, go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar. You can also right-click the taskbar and choose Taskbar settings. These changes will be gradually rolled out.

This build also has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and February 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5034765.)

KB5034204 (OS Builds 22621.3085 and 22631.3085) Preview

Release date: January 23, 2024

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one that stopped search from working on the Start menu for some users because of a deadlock, and another that that caused devices to intermittently stop responding after you installed a print support app.

There is one known issue in this build, in which Windows devices using more than one monitor might experience issues with desktop icons moving unexpectedly between monitors or other icon alignment issues when attempting to use Copilot in Windows (in preview).

(Get more info about KB5034204 Preview.)

KB5034123 (OS Builds 22621.3007 and 22631.3007)

Release date: January 9, 2024

This build fixes several bugs, including one in which devices shut down after 60 seconds when you used a smart card to authenticate on a remote system, and another in which some Wi-Fi adapters could not connect to some networks, particularly those that use 802.1x to authenticate.

It also has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and January 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this build, including one affecting ID admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment. To mitigate the issue in Microsoft Intune, you can set the “Enforce drive encryption type on operating system drives” or “Enforce drive encryption on fixed drives” policies to not configured.

(Get more info about KB5034123.)

KB5033375 (OS Builds 22621.2861 and 22631.2861)

Release date: December 12, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and December 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are four known issues in this build, including one which affects ID admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management (MDM) apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment. To mitigate the issue in Microsoft Intune, you can set the “Enforce drive encryption type on operating system drives” or “Enforce drive encryption on fixed drives” policies to not configured.

(Get more info about KB5033375.)

KB5032288 (OS Builds 22621.2792 and 22631.2792) Preview

Release date: December 4, 2023

In this update, Copilot in Windows (in preview) can be used across multiple displays, and it can be used with Alt+Tab. When you press Alt+Tab, the thumbnail preview for Copilot in Windows appears among other thumbnail previews of open windows. You can switch between them using the Tab keystroke. This is available to a small audience initially and will deploy more broadly in the months that follow.

The update also fixes a wide range of bugs, including one in which the Copilot icon did not show as being as active when it’s open on the taskbar.

There are four known issues in this update, one applicable to IT admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management (MDM) apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment.

(Get more info about KB5032288 Preview.)

KB5032190 (OS Builds 22621.2715 and 22631.2715)

Release date: November 14, 2023

This build introduces a preview of the Copilot for Windows AI assistant and a File Explorer with a new interface that includes new files displayed as a carousel, and that recognizes local and cloud folders. It also introduces the Windows Backup app that can be used to quickly get your current PC backed up and ready to move to a new PC. In addition, there are many other new features and interface changes throughout Windows, including for Settings, Windows Spotlight, security graphics, voice access, Narrator, and others.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and November 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this build, including one that affects ID admins in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in MDM apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment. To mitigate the issue in Microsoft Intune, you can set the “Enforce drive encryption type on operating system drives” or “Enforce drive encryption on fixed drives” policies to not configured.

(Get more info about KB5032190.)

KB5031455 (OS Builds 22621.2506 and 22631.2506) Preview

Release date: Oct. 31, 2023

This update introduces a preview of the Copilot for Windows AI assistant and File Explorer with a new interface that includes new files displayed as a carousel, and that recognizes local and cloud folders. It also includes minor interface changes to many parts of the operating system, including taskbar, system tray, security notifications, and more.

There is one known issue, which applies to IT admins: using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management (MDM) apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment.

(Get more info about KB5031455 Preview.)

KB5031455 (OS Build 22621.2506) Preview

Release date: Oct. 26, 2023

This build introduces a preview of the Copilot for Windows AI assistant and a File Explorer with a new interface that includes new files displayed as a carousel, and that recognizes local and cloud folders. It also introduces the Windows Backup app that can be used to quickly get your current PC backed up and ready to move to a new PC.

There is one known issue in this build that applies to IT admins: using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management (MDM) apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment.

(Get more info about KB5031455 Preview.)

KB5031354 (OS Build 22621.2428)

Release date: October 10, 2023

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and October 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5031354.)

KB5030310 (OS Build 22621.2361) Preview

Release date: September 26, 2023

This update adds websites to the Recommended section of the Start menu. These websites come from your browsing history. You can remove any website URL from the Recommended section using the shortcut menu. To turn off the feature, go to Settings > Personalization > Start.

It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which the search box tooltip did not appear in the correct position, and another in which the search button disappeared when you interacted with the search flyout box.

In addition, if you want to use a variety of new features, such as the AI-driven Copilot for Windows and improvements to File Manager, Paint, and other apps, go to Settings > Windows Update, toggle on “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available,” and then restart your PC. For more details, see Microsoft’s blog post.

(Get more info about KB5030310 Preview.)

KB5030219 (OS Build 22621.2283)

Release date: September 12, 2023

This build removes a blank menu item from the Sticky Keys menu and includes a variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and September 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5030219.)

KB5029351 (OS Build 22621.2215) Preview

Release date: August 22, 2023

This update makes a variety of changes to the way app defaults are handled. For details, see “A principled approach to app pinning and app defaults in Windows.” It also adds a new policy called “Enable optional updates,” which administrators can use to configure the monthly, optional cumulative updates for commercial devices. You can also use this policy for the gradual Controlled Feature Rollouts (CFR). To learn more, see “Enable and control optional updates for your organization.”

It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which Start menu icons were missing after you signed in for the first time, and another in which settings did not sync even if you turned on the toggle on the Windows Backup page in the Settings app.

(Get more info about KB5029351 Preview.)

KB5029263 (OS Build 22621.2134)

Release date: August 8, 2023

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and August 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5029263.)

KB5028254 (OS Build 22621.2070) Preview

Release date: July 26, 2023

This update makes brightness settings more accurate and fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which the Defender Firewall Profile failed to automatically switch from a trusted LAN to a public network. Another fix makes the connection between the client and the Windows Push Notification Services (WNS) server more reliable.

There is one known issue in this update, applicable to IT admins, in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5028254 Preview.)

KB5028185 (OS Build 22621.1992)

Release date: July 13, 2023

This build introduces a wide variety of new features, including improved sharing of a local file in File Explorer with Microsoft Outlook contacts, the rollout of notification badging for Microsoft accounts on the Start menu, and new text selection and editing voice access commands, such as for selecting a range of text in a text box and deleting all text in a text box. It also adds a “USB4 hubs and devices” Settings page at Settings > Bluetooth & devices > USB > USB4 Hubs and Devices.

The build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and July 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5028185.)

KB5027303 (OS Build 22621.1928) Preview

Release date: June 27, 2023

This update improves the sharing of a local file in File Explorer with Microsoft Outlook contacts. You now have the option to quickly email the file to yourself. In addition, loading your contacts from Outlook has been made simpler. This feature is not available for files stored in Microsoft OneDrive folders; OneDrive has its own sharing functionality.

The build also adds a VPN status icon, a small shield, to the system tray. It displays when you are connected to a recognized VPN profile. The VPN icon will be overlayed in your system’s accent color over the active network connection.

It also adds new features and improvements to Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. For more information, see Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. It also lets you authenticate across Microsoft clouds. This feature also satisfies Conditional Access checks if they are needed.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one in which Narrator read the wrong state when you canceled the selection of an option button, and another that stopped Teams from alerting you about missed calls or messages.

There is one known issue in this update, applicable to IT admins, in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5027303 Preview.)

KB5027231 (OS Build 22621.1848)

Release date: June 13, 2023

The update fixes several bugs, including one that affects 32-bit apps that are large address aware and use the CopyFile API. You might have issues when you save, copy, or attach files. If you use some commercial or enterprise security software that uses extended file attributes, this issue will likely affect you. For Microsoft Office apps, this issue only affects the 32-bit versions. You might receive the error, “Document not saved.”

This build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and June 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5027231.)

KB5026446 (OS Build 22621.1778) Preview

Release date: May 24, 2023

This update shows the full amount of storage capacity of all your Microsoft OneDrive subscriptions on the Accounts page in the Settings app. It also adds Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) Audio, which improves audio fidelity and battery life when you pair your device with Bluetooth LE Audio earbuds and headphones. To use the feature, your device needs to support Bluetooth LE Audio.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one that did not let you access the Server Message Block (SMB) shared folder and another in which the Windows Firewall dropped all connections to the IP address of a captive portal when you chose the Captive Portal Addresses option.

There is one known issue in this update, applicable to IT admins, in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

Get more info about KB5026446 Preview.)

KB5026372 (OS Build 22621.1702)

Release date: May 9, 2023

This update adds a new toggle control on the Settings > Windows Update page. When you turn it on, your device will be prioritized to get the latest non-security updates and enhancements when they are available for your device. For managed devices, the toggle is disabled by default.

The update also fixes several bugs, including a race condition in the Windows Local Administrator Password Solution (LAPS) in which the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS) stopped responding when the system processed multiple local account operations at the same time.

It includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and May 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this update, one in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected, and another in which some apps might have intermittent issues with speech recognition, expressive input, and handwriting when using Chinese or Japanese languages.

(Get more info about KB5026372.)

KB5025305 (OS Build 22621.1635) Preview

Release date: April 25, 2023

This update lets you configure application group rules for firewall settings. It also adds a new toggle control on the Settings > Windows Update page. When you turn it on, your device will be prioritized to get the latest non-security updates and enhancements when they are available. For managed devices, the toggle is disabled by default.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one that stopped mobile device management customers from printing, and another in which the Tab Window Manager stopped responding in IE mode.

There are two known issues in this update, both of which are applicable to IT admins: one in which copying large multiple gigabyte files might take longer than expected to finish, and another in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5025305 Preview.)

KB5025239 (OS Build 22621.1555)

Release date: April 11, 2023

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and April 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, two of which are applicable to IT admins: one in which copying large multiple gigabyte files might take longer than expected to finish, and another in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5025239.)

KB5023778 (OS Build 22621.1485) Preview

Release date: March 28, 2023

This build includes several new features, including one in which notifications for Microsoft accounts are now on the Start menu. (Note that this feature is available to only a small number of people and will roll out to more in the next several months.) The build also offers a variety of new features and improvements in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint — go here for details.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one in which USB printers were classified as multimedia devices even though they are not, and another in which Microsoft PowerPoint stopped responding when you used accessibility tools.

There are four known issues in this update, three of which are applicable to IT admins, including one in which copying large multiple gigabyte (GB) files might take longer than expected to finish, and another in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5023778 Preview.)

Updates to Windows 11 version 22H2 KB5023706 (OS Build 22621.1413)

Release date: March 14, 2023

This build implements phase three of Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) hardening. After you install this update, you cannot turn off the changes using the registry key. See KB5004442 for details. It also fixes a bug in which trying to join an Active Directory domain when reusing an existing computer account failed. See KB5020276 for details.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and March 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are four known issues in this update, three of which are applicable to IT admins, including one in which copying large multiple gigabyte (GB) files might take longer than expected to finish, and another in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5023706.)

KB5022913 (OS Build 22621.1344) Preview

Release date: February 28, 2023

This build, Micorosoft’s second “moments” build, introduces a wide variety of new features, including an improved search box. As you type in the search box, search results now appear in a search flyout pane. And those who have preview access to Bing’s AI-powered search can now perform searches directly from the search box. (You can sign up get access to Bing’s AI-powered search.)

There are a variety of other new features as well, including the ability to link iPhone devices to Windows 11 PCs using a new preview of Phone Link for iOS. The update also lets you adjust Windows Studio Effects settings directly from quick settings in the taskbar. You can adjust background blur, eye contact, and automatic framing and apply them to your communications applications, with integration into Microsoft Teams. 

You can also open Quick Assist directly from the Start menu. The update also includes new widgets for Phone Link, Xbox Game Pass, and Spotify. In addition, the Snipping Tool has been given the ability to capture video, and Notepad gets tabs.

Windows 11 Pro devices and higher that are Azure Active Directory (AAD) joined can now get AI-powered recommended content on the Start menu, and touch devices get a variety of new ways to interact via touch. The Quick Assist app has been redesigned and can be opened directly from the Start menu. Windows will now offer energy recommendations to improve the energy efficiency of your PC and reduce your carbon footprint. Task Manager gets a variety of enhancements, including being able to filter processes using the binary name, PID, or publisher name.

For more information about these changes, see Microsoft’s blog post announcing today’s release.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one in which provisioning packages on Windows 11 failed to apply in certain circumstances when elevation was required, and another that caused reliability issues in Task View.

(Get more info about KB5022913 Preview.)

KB5022845 (OS Build 22621.1265)

Release date: February 14, 2023

This build includes wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and February 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, each applicable to IT admins, including one in which copying large multiple gigabyte (GB) files might take longer than expected to finish, and another in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5022845.)

KB5022360 (OS Build 22621.1194) Preview

Release date: January 26, 2023

This build changes the way you view and control preview (optional) .NET Framework updates. All preview.NET Framework updates will now display on the Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options > Optional updates page. On that page, you can control which optional updates you want to install.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in searchindexer.exe that randomly stopped you from signing in or signing out, and another in which you would not be able to use AutoPilot to set up some systems with Trusted Platform Modules (TPM) firmware.

There are two known issues in this update, both of which affect IT admins. In one, using provisioning packages on Windows 11, version 22H2 might not work as expected. In the other, copying large multiple gigabyte (GB) files might take longer than expected to finish.

(Get more info about KB5022360 Preview.)

KB5022303 (OS Build 22621.1105)

Release date: January 10, 2023

This build fixes Local Session Manager (LSM) bugs that allowed users who did not have admin rights to perform admin actions.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and January 2023 Security Updates. It also fixes a bug in the Camera app, which stopped responding when memory was low.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this update, each applicable to IT admins, one in which copying large multiple gigabyte (GB) files might take longer than expected to finish, and another in which using provisioning packages might not work as expected.

(Get more info about KB5022303.)

KB5021255 (OS Build 22621.963)

Release date: December 13, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the December 2022 Security Updates. It also fixes a bug in which Task Manager sometimes displayed certain elements in the user interface in unexpected colors, making some parts of the UI unreadable.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are four known issue in this update, each applicable to IT admins, including one in which After you install this update, you might be unable to reconnect to Direct Access after temporarily losing network connectivity or transitioning between Wi-Fi networks or access points.

(Get more info KB5021255.)

KB5020044 (OS Build 22621.900) Preview

Release date: November 29, 2022

In this build, Microsoft OneDrive subscribers get storage alerts on the Systems page in the Settings app. The alert appears when someone is close to their storage limit. You can also manage your storage and purchase additional storage in Settings. The build also combines Windows Spotlight with Themes on the Personalization page. This makes it easier to discover and turn on the Windows Spotlight feature.

Several bugs have been fixed, including one that stopped some modern applications from opening, and another that caused File Explorer to stop working when you close context menus and menu items.

There are two known issues in this update, both of which affect IT admins. In one, using provisioning packages on Windows 11, version 22H2 might not work as expected. In the other, copying large multiple gigabyte (GB) files might take longer than expected to finish.

(Get more info about KB5020044 Preview.)

KB5019980 (OS Build 22621.819)

Release date: November 8, 2022

This build fixes a bug in Windows Explorer in which Explorer failed to localize folders. It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and November 2022 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this update, applicable to IT admins, including one in which file copies using Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files using 0 (zero) bytes. Known affected Group Policy Objects are related to files and shortcuts in User Configuration > Preferences > Windows Settings in Group Policy Editor.

(Get more info KB5019980.)

KB5018496 (OS Build 22621.755) Preview

Release date: October 25, 2022

This build adds Task Manager to the context menu when you right-click the taskbar. It is not yet enabled on all PCs, and will roll out in the coming weeks. Microsoft says the build also “enhances search visual treatments on the taskbar to improve discoverability.” Only a small group of people will get this feature right away. It will be deployed more broadly over the next few months.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one that caused vertical and horizontal line artifacts to appear on the screen, and another that stopped the credential UI from displaying in IE mode when you use Microsoft Edge.

There are two known issues in this build that affect IT admins, including one in which copying large multiple-gigabyte files might take longer than expected to finish.

(Get more info about KB5018496 Preview.)

KB5019509 (OS Build 22621.675)

Release date: October 18, 2022

This build, Microsoft’s first “moment” update for Windows 11, introduces several new features, the most significant of which is the addition of tabs in File Explorer like those in browsers. Among other File Explorer improvements are the ability to pin important files on its home page for easy access to them. You’ll also be able to see actions that colleagues take on your shared files.

In addition, with a new feature called Suggested Actions, when you copy phone numbers or future dates, Windows provides suggestions for what you might want to do with them, such as making a call with Teams or Skype or adding an event in the Calendar app.

The new taskbar overflow menu shows all of your taskbar apps on a single menu entry. Also, there are new sharing features, letting you discover and share to more devices.

(Get more info about KB5019509.)

KB5018427 (OS Build 22621.674)

Release date: October 11, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and October 2022 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, applicable to IT admins, in which files copied using Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files using 0 (zero) bytes. Known affected Group Policy Objects are related to files and shortcuts in User Configuration > Preferences > Windows Settings in Group Policy Editor.

(Get more info KB5018427.)

Windows 11 KB5017389 (OS Build 22621.608) Preview

Release date: September 30, 2022

This build for Windows 11 22H2 fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused updates to the Microsoft Store to fail, another that stopped you from signing in to various Microsoft 365 apps, and another in which Task Manager stopped working when you switched between light and dark mode or changed the accent color.

(Get more info about KB5017389 Preview.)

Windows 11 2022 Update (version 22H2)

Release date: September 20, 2022

Version 22H2, called the Windows 11 2022 Update, is the first feature update released for Windows 11. Here’s a quick summary of what’s new:

• The Start menu now lets you create folders to organize your apps. You can now also choose from three layouts for the menu.
• The Task Manager has gotten a visual facelift and includes a new efficiency mode that lets you limit how many resources specific apps use.
• You can now open File Explorer directly into OneDrive, and you can also see at a glance OneDrive’s sync status, total capacity, and total space used — and get quick access to settings and options for managing storage.
• Multiple new touchscreen gestures have been added, including for toggling the Start menu and minimizing apps.
• The Clipchamp free video editor now comes as part of Windows 11.
• In Snap Layouts, you can now drag a window to the top of the screen and then drop it into a snap layout. In addition, Task View (Windows key + Tab) will show your Snap Groups so you can easily switch between them.

There are also these changes for IT and businesses:

• Sys admins get some new group policies for controlling the Start menu, taskbar, and system tray for their users.
• Sys admins also get a new group policy default with an account lockout policy to offer additional protections to Remote Desktop Protocol and other brute force password vectors.
• Security has been enhanced in several ways that protect against malware, ransomware, and more sophisticated attacks.

For more information about Windows 11 22H2, see our in-depth review.

Updates to Windows 11 original release (version 21H2) KB5017383 (OS Build 22000.1042) Preview

Release date: September 20, 2022

This build adds more dynamic Widgets content to the taskbar with notification badging. When you open the Widgets board, a banner appears at the top of the board. It provides more information about what triggered the notification badge.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one that caused a “blue screen of death” after you changed the display mode while using more than one display. It also fixes a bug that forced the IE mode tabs in a session to reload.

(Get more info about KB5017383 Preview.)

KB5017328 (OS Build 22000.978)

Release date: September 13, 2022

This build fixes a bug in Microsoft accounts (MSA) in which the web dialog that you use to sign in or sign out might not appear. This issue occurs on devices that have installed KB5016691.

The build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this update, including one in which XPS Viewer might be unable to open XML Paper Specification (XPS) documents in some non-English languages, including some Japanese and Chinese character encodings.

(Get more info KB5017328.)

KB5016691 (OS Build 22000.918) Preview

Release date: August 25, 2022

This build gives IT admins the ability to remotely add languages and language-related features. Additionally, they can now manage language scenarios across several endpoint managers. It also enhances Microsoft Defender for Endpoint’s ability to identify and intercept ransomware and advanced attacks.

It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one that caused ServerAssignedConfigurations to be null in a few full configuration scenarios, and another that caused Microsoft Edge to stop responding when you use IE mode.

There is one known issue in this build: After installing this update, XPS Viewer might be unable to open XML Paper Specification (XPS) documents in some non-English languages, including some Japanese and Chinese character encodings.

(Get more info about KB5016691 Preview.)

KB5016629 (OS Build 22000.856)

Release date: August 9, 2022

This build fixes a bug that can prevent opening the Start menu. It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which IE mode tabs in Microsoft Edge might stop responding when a site displays a modal dialog box, which is a form or dialog box that requires the user to respond before continuing or interacting with other portions of the web page or app.

(Get more info about KB5016629.)

KB5015882 (OS Build 22000.832) Preview

Release date: July 21, 2022

This build lets you receive urgent notifications when focus assist is on, and gives you the option to update to a newer Windows 11 version at the very first startup of Windows if your device is eligible. It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one that prevented troubleshooters from opening, one that caused port mapping conflicts for containers, and another that caused Windows to stop working when you enable Windows Defender Application Control with the Intelligent Security Graph feature turned on.

There are two known issues in this update, including one which IE mode tabs in Microsoft Edge might stop responding when a site displays a modal dialog box. In the other issue, after installing this update, some devices might be unable to open the Start menu. On affected devices, clicking or selecting the Start button or using the Windows key on your keyboard might have no effect.

(Get more info about KB5015882 Preview.)

KB5015814 (OS Build 22000.795)

Date: July 12, 2022

This build addresses an issue that redirects the PowerShell command output so that transcript logs do not contain any output of the command. That means the decrypted password is lost. The build also includes improvements made in the KB5014668 update.

There are two known issues in this update, one in which after installing the update, some .NET Framework 3.5 apps might have issues or might fail to open. In the other, after installing this update, IE mode tabs in Microsoft Edge might stop responding when a site displays a form or dialog box that requires the user to respond before continuing or interacting with other portions of the web page or app.

(Get more info about KB5015814.)

KB5014668 (OS Build 22000.778) Preview

Release date: June 23, 2022

This build adds IP address auditing for incoming Windows Remote Management (WinRM) connections in security event 4262 and WinRM event 91. This addresses an issue that fails to log the source IP address and machine name for a remote PowerShell connection.

The build also introduces search highlights — daily notable events and anniversaries and, for corporate customers, updates from your organization. Search highlights will roll out to Windows 11 customers over the next several weeks.

The build also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that affected the Cloud Clipboard service and prevented syncing between machines after a period of inactivity. It also fixes a bug that failed to hide the Windows Sandbox startup screen after Sandbox starts to run.

There are two known issues in this update, one in which after installing the update, some .NET Framework 3.5 apps might have issues or might fail to open. In the other, after installing this update, IE mode tabs in Microsoft Edge might stop responding when a site displays a form or dialog box that requires the user to respond before continuing or interacting with other portions of the webpage or app.

(Get more info about KB5014668 Preview.)

KB5016138 (OS Build 22000.740)

Release date: June 20, 2022

This out-of-band build, which is only available for Windows devices that use Arm processors, fixes a bug that prevented Windows Arm-based devices from signing in using Azure Active Directory (AAD). Apps and services that use AAD to sign in, such as VPN connections, Microsoft Teams, and Microsoft Outlook, might also be affected.

This build has two known issues. In one, for IT admins, some .NET Framework 3.5 apps might have issues or might fail to open. In the other, for all users, Windows devices might be unable use the Wi-Fi hotspot feature. When attempting to use the hotspot feature, the host device might lose the connection to the internet after a client device connects.

(Get more info about KB5016138.)

KB5014697 (OS Build 22000.739)

Release date: June 14, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which after installing this update, some .NET Framework 3.5 apps might have issues or might fail to open.

(Get more info about KB5014697.)

KB5014019 (OS Build 22000.708) Preview

Release date: May 24, 2022

This build introduces Windows spotlight on the desktop, which automatically displays new pictures on your desktop. It already exists for the lock screen. To turn it on, go to Settings > Personalization > Background > Personalize your background and choose Windows spotlight.

The build also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused the Input (TextInputHost.exe) app to stop working, another that caused some users to see a black screen when they sign in and sign out of Windows, and another that caused the Remote Desktop client application to stop working when you end a session.

There is one known issue in this update, in which after installing the update, some .NET Framework 3.5 apps might have issues or might fail to open.

(Get more info about KB5014019 Preview.)

KB5013943 (OS Build 22000.675)

Release date: May 10, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the May 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which after installing Windows updates released January 11, 2022 or later on an affected version of Windows, recovery discs created using the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) app in Control Panel might be unable to start. Recovery discs that were created by using the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) app on devices that have installed Windows updates released before January 11, 2022 are not affected by this issue and should start as expected.

(Get more info about KB5013943.)

KB5012643 (OS Build 22000.652) Preview

Release date: April 25, 2022

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including a memory leak issue that affected Windows systems that are in use 24 hours each day of the week, another that caused video subtitles to be partially cut off, and another that prevented you from using the minimize, maximize, and close buttons on a maximized app window.

There is one known issue in this update: after IT admins install the Windows updates released January 11, 2022 or later, recovery discs created by using the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) app in Control Panel might be unable to start. Recovery discs that were created with this app on devices running Windows updates released before January 11, 2022 are not affected by this issue.

(Get more info about KB5012643 Preview.)

KB5012592 (OS Build 22000.613)

Release date: April 12, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the April 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which after installing the Windows updates released January 11, 2022 or later on an affected version of Windows, recovery discs (CD or DVD) created by using the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) app in Control Panel might be unable to start. Recovery discs that were created by using the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) app on devices that have installed Windows updates released before January 11, 2022 are not affected by this issue and should start as expected.

(Get more info about KB5012592.)

KB5011563 (OS Build 22000.593) Preview

Release date: March 28, 2022

This build allows Windows to display up to three high-priority “toast” (popup) notifications simultaneously for apps that send notifications for calls, reminders, or alarms using Windows notifications. It also fixes more than two dozen bugs, including one that crashed SystemSettings.exe, and another that affected searchindexer.exe and prevented Microsoft Outlook’s offline search from returning recent emails. 

There is one known issue in this update, in which when after IT admins install the Windows updates released January 11, 2022 or later, recovery discs (CDs or DVDs) created by using the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) app in Control Panel might be unable to start. Recovery discs that were created by using the Backup and Restore (Windows 7) app on devices which have installed Windows updates released before January 11, 2022 are not affected by this issue and should start as expected.

 (Get more info about KB5011563 Preview.)

KB5011493 (OS Build 22000.556)

Release date: March 8, 2022

This build fixes a bug that occurs when you attempt to reset a Windows device and its apps have folders that contain reparse data, such as Microsoft OneDrive or OneDrive for Business. When you select Remove everything, files that have been downloaded or synced locally from OneDrive might not be deleted.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the March 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5011493.)

KB5010414 (OS Build 22000.527) Preview

Release date: February 15, 2022

This build lets you share cookies between Microsoft Edge Internet Explorer mode and Microsoft Edge, and adds support for hot adding and the removal of non-volatile memory (NVMe) namespaces. It also adds a variety of other features, including the ability to instantly mute and unmute a Microsoft Teams call from the taskbar, and quickly share open application windows directly from your taskbar to a Microsoft Teams call.

It also fixes many bugs, including one that affected the Windows search service and occurred when you queried using the proximity operator, and one that prevented printing properly for some low integrity process apps.

(Get more info about KB5010414 Preview.)

KB5010386 (OS Build 22000.493)

Release date: February 8, 2022

The build fixes a bug that causes a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) modify operation to fail if the operation contains the SamAccountName and UserAccountControl attribute. It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the February 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5010386.)

KB5008353 (OS Build 22000.469) Preview

Release date: January 25, 2022

The build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which Windows’ audio service stopped responding on some devices that support hardware-accelerated Bluetooth audio, another that prevented icons from appearing on the taskbar of a secondary display, and another that prevented the touch keyboard from appearing on the lock screen when a device has a Microsoft account (MSA).

There is one known issue in this update, in which recent emails might not appear in the search results of the Microsoft Outlook desktop app. For a short-term fix, you can disable Windows Desktop Search, which will cause Microsoft Outlook to use its built-in search.

 (Get more info about KB5008353.)

KB5010795 (OS Build 22000.438)

Release date: January 17, 2022

The out-of-band build fixes two bugs, one of which caused IP Security (IPSEC) connections that contain a Vendor ID to fail. VPN connections using Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) or IP security Internet Key Exchange (IPSEC IKE) could have also been affected. The other fixed bug prevented removable media formatted using the Resilient File System (ReFS) from mounting or caused the removable media to mount in the RAW file format. This issue occured after installing the January 11, 2022 Windows update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which some image editing programs might not render colors correctly on certain high dynamic range (HDR) displays.

(Get more info about KB5010795.)

KB5009566 (OS Build 22000.434)

Release date: January 11, 2022

The build fixes a bug in the Japanese Input Method Editors (IME), and includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the January 2022 Security Update notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one issue in this update, in which after installing Windows 11, some image editing programs might not render colors correctly on certain high dynamic range (HDR) displays. 

(Get more info about KB5009566.)

KB5008215 (OS Build 22000.376)

Release date: December 14, 2021

The build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the December 2021 Security Update notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are no known issues in this update.

(Get more info about KB5008215.)

KB5007262 (OS Build 22000.348) Preview

Release date: November 22, 2021

This optional update can be downloaded from the Microsoft Update Catalog or by going to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Optional updates available.

This builds fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused File Explorer to stop working after you closed a File Explorer window, and another that caused flickering when you hovered over icons on the taskbar if you’ve applied a high contrast theme.

There are no known issues in this update.

(Get more info about KB5007262 Preview.)

KB5007215 (OS Build 22000.318)

Release date: November 9, 2021

The build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the November 2021 Security Update notes. It also fixes a bug that causes improper rendering of some user interface elements or when drawing within some apps. And it makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5007215.)

KB5006746 (OS Build 22000.282) Preview

Release date: October 21, 2021

This non-security build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused distortion in the audio captured by voice assistants, and another in Windows Defender Exploit Protection that prevented some Microsoft Office applications from working on machines that have certain processors.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which Windows print clients might encounter errors when connecting to a remote printer shared on a Windows print server after the build is installed.

(Get more info about KB5006746.)

KB5006674 (OS Build 22000.258)

Release date: October 12, 2021

This build fixes a bug related to compatibility issues between some Intel “Killer” and “SmartByte” networking software and Windows 11 (original release). It also makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates.

The build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the October 2021 Security Update notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5006674.)

Windows 11 original release

Release date: October 5, 2021

Windows 11 is the first new version of Windows that Microsoft has released since July 2015, when it launched Windows 10. Here’s a quick summary of what’s new in it. (For more details, see our in-depth review of Windows 11.)

• The Start menu has been redesigned and slimmed down, and Live Tiles have been eliminated. It’s now easier to find applications to launch and files on which you’ve recently worked.
• Snap Layouts lets you group your open windows into one of a half-dozen pre-built screen layouts. Snap Groups helps you quickly switch from one Snap Layout to another.
• The Windows look and feel has gotten an overhaul, with rounded windows, spiffier animations, and an overall softer feel. Some built-in apps, such as File Explorer, get a simpler, easier-to-use interface.
• You can chat and videoconference directly from the taskbar using Microsoft Teams. However, it isn’t the full Teams service, so the full suite of enterprise Teams features, such the use of channels and being able to search through message archives, isn’t available.
• Cortana is still available in Windows 11 but doesn’t appear in the taskbar and is not enabled by default.

For IT, these features are notable:

• Windows 11 requires hardware with a TPM (Trusted Platform Module) 2.0 built into it for security. TPM uses hardware-based encryption to encrypt disks using Windows capabilities like BitLocker, and can stop dictionary attacks against passwords, among other capabilities.
• Windows 11 has a once-a-year feature update schedule rather than the two-a-year cycle under Windows 10. That will reduce update time, effort, and headaches.
• To help make sure enterprise applications and other software can run on Windows 11, Microsoft has released Test Base for Microsoft 365, an automated testing tool to check application compatibility.

The launch of a major Windows 10 update isn’t the end of a process — it’s really just the beginning. As soon as one of Microsoft’s feature updates (such as Windows 10 version 22H2) is released, the company quickly gets to work on improving it by fixing bugs, releasing security patches, and occasionally adding new features.

In this story we summarize what you need to know about each update released to the public for the most recent versions of Windows 10 — versions 22H2 and 21H2. (Microsoft releases updates for those two versions together.) For each build, we’ve included the date of its initial release and a link to Microsoft’s announcement about it. The most recent updates appear first.

For details about how to install and manage Windows updates, see “How to handle Windows 10 and 11 updates.” If you’re looking for information about Insider Program previews for upcoming feature releases of Windows 10, see “Windows 10 Insider Previews: A guide to the builds.”

Updates to Windows 10 versions 21H2 and 22H2 KB5043064 (OS Builds 19044.4894 and 19045.4894)

Release date: September 10, 2024

This update has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and September 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5043064.)

KB5041582 (OS Build 19045.4842) Preview

Release date: August 29, 2024

This build fixes several bugs, including one in which when a combo box had input focus, a memory leak could occur when you closed that window.

There is one known issue in this update, in which you might be unable to change your user account profile picture.

(Get more info about KB5041582 Preview.)

KB5041580 (OS Builds 19044.4780 and 19045.4780)

Release date: August 13, 2024

This release has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and August 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5041580.)

KB5040525 (OS Build 19045.4717) Preview

Release date: July 23, 2024

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) send code caused systems to stop responding during routine tasks, such as file transfers. This issue led to an extended send loop.

There is one known issue in this update, in which you might be unable to change your user account profile picture.

(Get more info about KB5040525 Preview.)

KB5040427 (OS Builds 19044.4651 and 19045.4651)

Release date: July 9, 2024

This update has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and July 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which you might be unable to change your user account profile picture.

(Get more info about KB5040427.)

KB5039299 (OS Build 19045.4598) Preview

Release date: June 25, 2024

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which apps’ jump lists on the taskbar sometimes failed, and another in which systems didn’t resume from hibernation after BitLocker was turned off.

There are four known issues in this update, including one in which Windows devices using more than one monitor might experience issues with desktop icons moving unexpectedly between monitors or have other icon alignment issues when attempting to use Copilot in Windows.

(Get more info about KB5039299 Preview.)

KB5039211 (OS Builds 19044.4529 and 19045.4529)

Release date: June 11, 2024

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and June 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which Copilot in Windows is not currently supported when your taskbar is located vertically on the right or left of your screen.

(Get more info about KB5039211.)

KB5037849 (OS Build 19045.4474) Preview

Release date: May 29, 2024

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which devices could not authenticate a second Microsoft Entra ID account, and another in which TWAIN drivers stopped responding when used in a virtual environment.

There are four known issues in this update, including one in which Windows devices using more than one monitor might experience desktop icons moving unexpectedly between monitors or have other icon alignment issues when attempting to use Copilot in Windows.

(Get more info about KB5037849 Preview.)

KB5037768 (OS Builds 19044.4412 and 19045.4412)

Release date: May 14, 2024

This update fixes a bug that caused VPN connections to fail. In addition, it has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and May 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are four known issues in this build, including one in which Copilot in Windows is not currently supported when your taskbar is located vertically on the right or left of your screen.

(Get more info about KB5037768.)

KB5036979 (OS Build 19045.4355) Preview

Release date: April 23, 2024

With this build, you will start getting account-related notifications for Microsoft accounts in Settings > Home. The account also backs up all your account-related data and helps you to manage your subscriptions. The update also makes the Widgets on the lock screen more reliable.

A number of bugs have also been fixed, including one in which Windows Local Administrator Password Solution’s Post Authentication Actions (PAAs) did not occur at the end of the grace period. Instead, they occurred at restart.

(Get more info about KB5036979 Preview.)

KB5036892 (OS Builds 19044.4291 and 19045.4291)

Release date: April 9, 2024

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and April 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which Copilot in Windows is not currently supported when your taskbar is located vertically on the right or left of your screen.

(Get more info about KB5036892.)

KB5035941 (OS Build 19045.4239) Preview

Release date: March 26, 2024

In this build, Windows Hello for Business admins can now use mobile device management to turn off the prompt that appears when users sign in to an Entra-joined machine. To do it, turn on the “DisablePostLogonProvisioning” policy setting. After a user signs in, provisioning is off for Windows 10 and Windows 11 devices.

The update also update improves the Remote Desktop Session Host. You can now set up its “clipboard redirection” policy to work in a single direction from the local computer to the remote computer. You can also reverse that order.

A number of bugs have also been fixed, including one in which a network resource could not be accessed from a Remote Desktop session when the Remote Credential Guard feature was turned on, and another that affected the time service, in which the Windows Settings app did not match what IT admins configured using MDM or a Group Policy Object.

(Get more info about KB5035941 Preview.)

KB5035845 (OS Builds 19044.4170 and 19045.4170)

Release date: March 12, 2024

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and March 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which Copilot in Windows is not currently supported when your taskbar is located vertically on the right or left of your screen.

(Get more info about KB5035845.)

KB5034843 (OS Build 19045.4123) Preview

Release date: February 29, 2024

In this update, using Windows share, you can now directly share URLs to apps like WhatsApp, Gmail, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Sharing to X (formerly Twitter) is coming soon.

The update also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which Azure Virtual Desktop virtual machines restarted randomly because of an access violation in lsass.exe, and another in Remote Desktop Web Authentication in which you might not have been able to connect to sovereign cloud endpoints.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which Windows devices using more than one monitor might experience issues with desktop icons moving unexpectedly between monitors or other icon alignment issues when attempting to use Copilot in Windows. In the second issue, Copilot in Windows is not supported when your taskbar is located vertically on the right or left of your screen.

(Get more info about KB5034843 Preview.)

KB5034763 (OS Builds 19044.4046 and 19045.4046)

Release date: February 13, 2023

This build fixes several bugs, including one in which explorer.exe stopped responding when you restarted or shut down a PC that had a controller accessory attached to it.

It also has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and February 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which Copilot in Windows (in preview) is not currently supported when your taskbar is located vertically on the right or left of your screen.

(Get more info about KB5034763.)

KB5034203 (OS Build 19045.3996) Preview

Release date: January 23, 2024

The update fixes a variety of bugs, including one that affected BitLocker data-only encryption. A mobile device management (MDM) service, such as Microsoft Intune, might not get the right data when you use the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node.

It also fixed a bug that affected Group Policy Folder Redirection in a multi-forest deployment. The issue stopped you from choosing a group account from the target domain. And it addresses an issue that caused some single-function printers to be installed as scanners.

There are two known issues in this build, including one in which Windows devices using more than one monitor might experience issues with desktop icons moving unexpectedly between monitors or other icon alignment issues when attempting to use Copilot in Windows. In the second issue, Copilot in Windows is not supported when your taskbar is located vertically on the right or left of your screen.

(Get more info about KB5034203 Preview.)

KB5034122 (OS Builds 19044.3930 and 19045.3930)

Release date: January 9, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and January 2024 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this build, affecting ID admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment. To mitigate the issue in Microsoft Intune, you can set the “Enforce drive encryption type on operating system drives” or “Enforce drive encryption on fixed drives” policies to not configured.

(Get more info about KB5034122.)

KB5032189 (OS Builds 19044.3693 and 19045.3693)

Release date: December 12, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and December 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this build, which affects ID admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in MDM apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment. To mitigate the issue in Intune, you can set the “Enforce drive encryption type on operating system drives” or “Enforce drive encryption on fixed drives” policies to not configured.

(Get more info about KB5033372.)

Windows 10 22H2 KB5032278 (OS Build 19045.3758) Preview

Release date: November 30, 2023

The update adds the Copilot in Windows (in preview) button to the right side of the taskbar. This only applies to devices that run Home or Pro editions (non-managed business devices). When you select it, the AI-powered Copilot in Windows appears at the right on your screen. It will not overlap with desktop content or block open app windows. The update also adds Windows Update opt-in notifications to the screen when you sign in.

The update also fixes a variety of bugs, including one that affected non-admin processes. It also fixes a leak in volatile notifications, which might have stopped you from signing into your computer.

There is one known issue in this build that applies to IT admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management (MDM) apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment.

(Get more info about Windows 10 22H2 KB5032278 Preview.)

KB5032189 (OS Builds 19044.3693 and 19045.3693)

Release date: November 14, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and November 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this build that affects ID admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in MDM apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment. To mitigate the issue in Microsoft Intune, you can set the “Enforce drive encryption type on operating system drives” or “Enforce drive encryption on fixed drives” policies to not configured.

(Get more info about KB5032189.)

KB5031445 (OS Build 19045.3636) Preview

Release date: October 26, 2023

The update fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which touchscreens did not work properly when you used more than one display, and another in which there was a memory leak in ctfmon.exe.

There is one known issue in this build, which applies to IT admins, in which using the FixedDrivesEncryptionType or SystemDrivesEncryptionType policy settings in the BitLocker configuration service provider (CSP) node in mobile device management (MDM) apps might incorrectly show a 65000 error in the “Require Device Encryption” setting for some devices in your environment.

(Get more info about KB5031445 Preview.)

KB5031356 (OS Builds 19044.3570 and 19045.3570)

Release date: October 10, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and October 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5031356.)

KB5030300 (OS Build 19045.3516) Preview

Release date: September 26, 2023

This update brings back a search box design for accessing apps, files, settings, and more from Windows and the web. If you have a top, bottom, regular, or small icons taskbar, the search box appears.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which Microsoft Defender stopped some USB printers from printing, and another in which in Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC) AppID Tagging policies could have greatly increased device startup time.

(Get more info about KB5030300 Preview.)

KB5030211 (OS Builds 19044.3448 and 19045.3448)

Release date: September 12, 2023

This build fixes a bug that affected authentication in which using a smart card to join or rejoin a computer to an Active Directory domain could have failed.

The build also has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and September 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5030211.)

KB5029331 (OS Build 19045.3393) Preview

Release date: August 22, 2023

This update improves how Windows detects your location to help give you better weather, news, and traffic information. It also expands the rollout of notification badging for Microsoft accounts on the Start menu, which gives you quick access to important account-related notifications. In addition, it adds Windows Backup to your device.

The update also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which print jobs sent to a virtual print queue failed without an error, and another in which Remote Desktop (RD) sessions disconnected when multiple apps were in use.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5029331 Preview.)

KB5029244 (OS Builds 19044.3324 and 19045.3324)

Release date: August 8, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and August 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5029244.)

KB5028244 (OS Build 19045.3271) Preview

Release date: July 25, 2023

This update fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one in which Timeout Detection and Recovery (TDR) errors might have occurred when you played a game, another in which some display and audio devices were missing when your system resumed from sleep, and another in which some VPN clients could not establish connections.

There is one issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5028244 Preview.)

KB5028166 (OS Builds 19044.3208 and 19045.3208)

Release date: July 11, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and July 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5028166.)

KB5027293 (OS Build 19045.3155) Preview

Release date: June 27, 2023

This update adds new features and improvements to Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. For more information, see Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. It also lets you authenticate across Microsoft clouds. This feature also satisfies Conditional Access checks if they are needed.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one in which scheduled monthly tasks might not have run on time if the next occurrence happened when daylight savings time occured, and another in which all the registry settings under the Policies paths could have been deleted when you did not rename the local temporary user policy file during Group Policy processing.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5027293 Preview.)

KB5027215 (OS Builds 19044.3086 and 19045.3086)

Release date: June 13, 2023

This build has a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and June 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5027215.)

KB5026435 (OS Build 19045.3031) Preview

Release date: May 23, 2023

This update revamps the search box; Microsoft claims it will let you “easily access apps, files, settings, and more from Windows and the web. You will also have access to the latest search updates, such as search highlights.” If you don’t like the design, you can revert to the existing search box via taskbar context menu or by responding to a dialog that appears when you use search.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one that did not let you access the Server Message Block (SMB) shared folder and another in which the Windows Firewall dropped all connections to the IP address of a captive portal when you chose the Captive Portal Addresses option.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5026435 Preview.)

Updates to Windows 10 versions 20H2, 21H1, 21H2, and 22H2 KB5026361 (OS Builds 19042.2965, 19044.2965, and 19045.2965)

Release date: May 9, 2023

The update fixes a race condition in the Windows Local Administrator Password Solution (LAPS) in which the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS) stopped responding when the system processed multiple local account operations at the same time.

This build also includes the quality updates from the April 25 KB5025297 Preview (detailed below), along with a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and May 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5026361.)

KB5025297 (OS Build 19045.2913) Preview

Release date: April 25, 2023

This update adds the ability to sync language and region settings when you change your Microsoft account display language or regional format. Windows saves those settings to your account if you have turned on Language preferences sync in your Windows backup settings. It also lets you configure application group rules for firewall settings.

A variety of bugs have been fixed, including one that stopped mobile device management (MDM) customers from printing, and another in which the Tab Window Manager stopped responding in IE mode.

There is one known issue in this update: devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5025297 Preview.)

KB5025221 (OS Builds 19042.2846, 19044.2846, and 19045.2846)

Release date: April 11, 2023

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and April 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5025221.)

KB5023773 (OS Builds 19042.2788, 19044.2788, and 19045.2788) Preview

Release date: March 21, 2023

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which Windows classifies USB printers as multimedia devices even though they are not, and another in which lsass.exe might stop responding when it sends a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) query to a domain controller that has a very large LDAP filter.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5023773 Preview.)

KB5023696 (OS Builds 19042.2728, 19044.2728, and 19045.2728)

Release date: March 14, 2023

This build implements phase three of Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) hardening. After you install this update, you cannot turn off the changes using the registry key. See KB5004442 for details. It also fixes a bug in which joining an Active Directory domain failed when you reused an existing computer account. See KB5020276 for details.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and March 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5023696.)

KB5022906 (OS Builds 19042.2673, 19044.2673, and 19045.2673) Preview

Release date: February 21, 2023

In this build, informational links open faster when you use Windows Spotlight on the lock screen. Several bugs were also fixed, including one that that stopped hyperlinks from working in Microsoft Excel, and another in IE mode in which the text on the status bar was not always visible.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5022906 Preview.)

KB5022834 (OS Builds 19042.2604, 19044.2604, and 19045.2604)

Release date: February 14, 2023

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and February 2023 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5022834.)

KB5019275 (OS Builds 19042.2546, 19044.2546, and 19045.2546) Preview

Release date: January 19, 2023

This build displays storage alerts for Microsoft OneDrive subscribers on the Systems page in the Settings app. Alerts appear when you are close to your storage limit. You can also manage your storage and purchase additional storage.

The build also fixes a number of bugs, including one that affected searchindexer.exe and randomly stopped you from signing in or signing out.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5019275 Preview.)

KB5022282 (OS Builds 19042.2486, 19044.2486, and 19045.2486)

Release date: January 10, 2023

This build fixes Local Session Manager (LSM) bugs that allowed users who did not have admin rights to perform admin actions.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and January 2023 Security Updates. It also fixes a bug in the Camera app, which stopped responding when memory is low.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5022282.)

KB5021233 (OS Builds 19042.2364, 19043.2364, 19044.2364, and 19045.2364)

Release date: December 13, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the December 2022 Security Updates. It also fixes a bug in the Camera app, which stopped responding when memory was low.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5019959.)

KB5020030 (OS Builds 19042.2311, 19043.2311, 19044.2311, and 19045.2311) Preview

Release date: November 15, 2022

In this build, the search box now appears, by default, on the taskbar when the taskbar is at the top of your screen or when you turn on small taskbar button mode. In addition, Cortana is no longer pre-pinned to your taskbar by default.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which print outputs were misaligned on some printers and another in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint in which automated investigation blocked live response investigations. The build also addresses some persistent update failures for the Microsoft Store.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge. In another bug, after installing this update, the audio on some Windows devices might not work.

(Get more info about KB5020030 Preview.)

KB5019959 (OS Builds 19042.2251, 19043.2251, 19044.2251, and 19045.2251)

Release date: November 8, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this update, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5019959.)

KB5020953 (OS Builds 19042.2194, 19043.2194, 19044.2194, and 19045.2194)

Release date: October 28, 2022

This build fixes a single bug that caused Microsoft OneDrive to stop working. It happened after you unlinked your device, stopped syncing, or signed out of your account.

This build has one known issue, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5020953.)

Windows 10 2022 Update (version 22H2)

Release date: October 18, 2022

The Windows 10 2022 Update is, in Microsoft’s words, “a scoped release focused on quality improvements to the overall Windows experience in existing feature areas such as quality, productivity and security.” In other words, there’s not much new here, although Computerworld blogger Susan Bradley did uncover a handful of new group policies in the release.

Home and Pro editions of the 2022 Update will receive 18 months of servicing, and Enterprise and Education editions will have 30 months of servicing.

To install the update, go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update and select Check for updates. If the update appears, select Download to install it.

(Get more info about the Windows 10 2022 Update.)

Updates to Windows 10 versions 20H2, 21H1, and 21H2 KB5018482 (OS Builds 19042.2193, 19043.2193, and 19044.2193)

Release date: October 25, 2022

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one that that caused an OS upgrade to stop responding, and then fail, and another in Microsoft Direct3D 9 games in which the graphics hardware stopped working if it didn’t have a native Direct3D 9 driver.

This build has one known issue, in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5018482.)

KB5020435 (OS Builds 19042.2132, 19043.2132, and 19044.2132)

Release date: October 17, 2022

This build fixes an issue that affected some types of Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Transport Layer Security (TLS) connections, in which there were handshake failures. For developers, the affected connections are likely to receive one or more records followed by a partial record with a size of less than 5 bytes within a single input buffer. If the connection fails, your app will receive the error, “SEC_E_ILLEGAL_MESSAGE”.

This build has two known issues, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5020435 (OS Builds 19042.2132, 19043.2132, and 19044.2132)

KB5018410 (OS Builds 19042.2130, 19043.2130, and 19044.2130)

Release date: October 11, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and October 2022 Security Updates.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5018410.)

KB5017380 (OS Builds 19042.2075, 19043.2075, and 19044.2075) Preview

Release date: September 20, 2022

This build lets you search for the controls for news and interests on the taskbar and modify them using the Settings app. To change your settings, navigate to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > News and interests. You can also right-click the taskbar and select Taskbar settings.

The build also fixes a variety of bugs, including one that required you to reinstall an app if you didn’t get the app from the Microsoft Store. This occurs after you upgrade to Windows 10. It also fixes a bug that forced the IE mode tabs in a session to reload.

There are three known issues in this update, including one which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge. In another bug, after installing this update, the audio on some Windows devices might not work.

(Get more info about KB5017380 Preview.)

KB5017308 (OS Builds 19042.2006, 19043.2006, and 19044.2006)

Release date: September 13, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5017308.)

KB5016688 (OS Builds 19042.1949, 19043.1949, and 19044.1949) Preview

Release date: August 26, 2022

This build fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which Microsoft Edge stopped responding when you use IE mode. This issue also prevented you from interacting with a dialog. It also fixes a bug that caused error 0x1E when a device was shut down or restarted.

There are three known issues in this update, including one which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge. In another bug, after installing this update, the audio on some Windows devices might not work.

(Get more info about KB5016688 Preview.)

KB5016616 (OS Builds 19042.1889, 19043.1889, and 19044.1889)

Release date: August 9, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one that can prevent the Input Indicator and Language Bar from displaying in the notification area. This issue affects devices that have more than one language installed.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

KB5015807 (OS Builds 19042.1826, 19043.1826, and 19044.1826)

Date: July 12, 2022

This build addresses an issue that redirects the PowerShell command output so that transcript logs do not contain any output of the command. That means the decrypted password is lost. The build also includes improvements made in the KB5014666 update.

This build has three known issues, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5015807.)

KB5014666 (OS Builds 19042.1806, 19043.1806, and 19044.1806) Preview

Release Date: June 28, 2022

This build adds IP address auditing for incoming Windows Remote Management (WinRM) connections in security event 4262 and WinRM event 91. This addresses an issue that fails to log the source IP address and machine name for a remote PowerShell connection. The build also includes several new Print and Scan features.

The build also fixes a number of bugs, including one that prevented the Snip & Sketch app from capturing a screenshot or from opening using the keyboard shortcut (Windows logo key + Shift + S).

This build has three known issues, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5014666 Preview.)

KB5016139 (OS Builds 19042.1767, 19043.1767, and 19044.1767)

Release date: June 20, 2022

This out-of-band build, which is only available for Windows devices that use Arm processors, fixes a bug that prevented Windows Arm-based devices from signing in using Azure Active Directory (AAD). Apps and services that use AAD to sign in, such as VPN connections, Microsoft Teams, and Microsoft Outlook, might also be affected.

This build has four known issues, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge. In another, Windows devices might be unable use the Wi-Fi hotspot feature. When attempting to use the hotspot feature, the host device might lose the connection to the internet after a client device connects.

(Get more info about KB5016139.)

KB5014699 (OS Builds 19042.1766, 19043.1766, and 19044.1766)

Release date: June 14, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5014699.)

KB5014023 (OS Builds 19042.1741, 19043.1741, and 19044.1741) Preview

Release date: June 2, 2022

This build fixes several bugs, including one that prevented Excel or Outlook from opening, one that slowed down file copying, and one that prevented internet shortcuts from updating.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info KB5014023 Preview.)

KB5015020 (OS Build 19042.1708)

Release date: May 19, 2022

This out-of-band build fixes two bugs: one that could cause authentication failures for some services on a server or client after you install the May 10, 2022 update on domain controllers, and another that could prevent the installation of Microsoft Store apps when you enable Control-flow Enforcement.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5015020.)

KB5013942 (OS Builds 19042.1706, 19043.1706, and 19044.1706)

Release date: May 10, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the May 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5013942).

KB5011831 (OS Builds 19042.1682, 19043.1682, and 19044.1682) Preview

Release date: April 25, 2022

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused a remote desktop session to close or a reconnection to stop responding while waiting on the accessibility shortcut handler (sethc.exe), another that that displayed a black screen for some users when they sign in or sign out, and another that prevented you from changing a password that has expired when you sign in to a Windows device.

(Get more info about KB5011831 Preview.)

KB5012599 (OS Builds 19042.1645, 19043.1645, and 19044.1645)

Release date: April 12, 2022

This build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the April 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5012599.)

KB5011543 (OS Builds 19042.1620, 19043.1620, and 19044.1620) Preview

Release date: March 22, 2022

This build introduces Search highlights, which display notable moments about each day, including holidays, anniversaries, and other events globally and in your region. To see more details at a glance, hover or click on the illustration in the search box.

There are also a variety of small new features, including a new policy that expands an app’s top three notifications by default in the Action Center for apps that send Windows notifications. It displays multiple notifications that you can interact with simultaneously.

In addition, there are a wide variety of bug fixes, including for a bug that stopped Microsoft Outlook’s offline search from returning recent emails, and another that prevented the User Account Control (UAC) dialog from correctly showing the application that is requesting elevated privileges.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5011543 Preview.)

KB5011487 (OS Builds 19042.1586, 19043.1586, and 19044.1586)

Release date: March 8, 2022

This build fixes a bug that occurs when you attempt to reset a Windows device and its apps have folders that contain reparse data, such as Microsoft OneDrive or OneDrive for Business. When you select Remove everything, files that have been downloaded or synced locally from Microsoft OneDrive might not be deleted.

It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the March 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5011487.)

KB5010415 (OS Builds 19042.1566, 19043.1566, and 19044.1566) Preview

Release date: February 15, 2022

The build lets you share cookies between Microsoft Edge Internet Explorer mode and Microsoft Edge, and adds support for hot adding and the removal of non-volatile memory (NVMe) namespaces.

It also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that affected the Windows search service and occurred when you queried using the proximity operator, and one that caused the Remote Desktop Service (RDS) server to become unstable when the number of signed in users exceeds 100. This prevented you from accessing published applications using RDS on Windows Server 2019.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5010415 Preview.)

KB5010342 (OS Builds 19042.1526, 19043.1526, and 19044.1526)

Release date: February 8, 2022

The build fixes a bug that causes a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) modify operation to fail if the operation contains the SamAccountName and UserAccountControl attribute. It also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the February 2022 Security Updates notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5010342.)

KB5009596 (OS Builds 19042.1503, 19043.1503, and 19044.1503) Preview

Release date: January 25, 2022

The build fixes a variety of bugs, including one that stops printing or prints the wrong output when you print using USB on Windows 10 version 2004 or later, and another that causes functioning Bluetooth devices to stop working when you attempt to connect to a non-functioning Bluetooth device. It also adds a reminder to Internet Explorer 11 that notifies you about its upcoming retirement.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5009596.)

KB5010793 (OS Builds 19042.1469, 19043.1469, and 19044.1469)

Release date: January 17, 2022

This out-of-band build fixes several bugs, including one that caused IP Security (IPSEC) connections that contain a Vendor ID to fail. VPN connections using Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) or IP security Internet Key Exchange (IPSEC IKE) could have also been affected. It also fixed a bug that could cause Windows Servers to restart unexpectedly after installing the January 11, 2022 update on domain controllers (DCs).

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5010793.)

KB5009543 (OS Builds 19042.1466, 19043.1466, and 19044.1466)

Release date: January 11, 2022

The build fixes a bug in the Japanese Input Method Editors (IME) and includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the January 2022 Security Update notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5009543.)

Updates to Windows 10 versions 2004, 20H2, 21H1, and 21H2 KB5008212 (OS Builds 19041.1415, 19042.1415, 19043.1415, and 19044.1415)

Release date: December 14, 2021

The build includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the December 2021 Security Update notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5008212.)

KB5007253 (OS Builds 19041.1387, 19042.1387, 19043.1387, and 19044.1387) Preview

Release date: November 22, 2021

This optional update can be downloaded from the Microsoft Update Catalog or by going to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Optional updates available.

The build fixes a variety of bugs, including one that caused the 32-bit version of Microsoft Excel to stop working on certain devices when you exported to PDF, and another that caused the Settings page to unexpectedly close after you uninstalled a font.

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5007253 Preview.)

Windows 10 November 2021 Update (version 21H2)

Release date: November 16, 2021

Version 21H2, called the Windows 10 November 2021 Update, is the second feature update to Windows 10 released in 2021. Here’s a quick summary of what’s new:

• Wi-Fi security has been enhanced with WPA3 H2E standards support.
• GPU compute support has been added in the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) and Azure IoT Edge for Linux on Windows (EFLOW) deployments for machine learning and other compute-intensive workflows.

There are also a number of features designed for IT and business:

• Windows Hello for Business has a new deployment method called cloud trust that simplifies passwordless deployments.
• For increased security, there have been changes to the Universal Windows Platform (UWP) VPN APIs, which includes the ability to implement common web-based authentication schemes and to reuse existing protocols.
• Apps can now be provisioned from Azure Virtual Desktop. This allows those apps to run just like local apps, including the ability to copy and paste between remote and local apps.
• The release closes the gap between Group Policy and mobile device management (MDM) settings. The device configuration settings catalog has been updated to list more than 1,400 settings previously not available for configuration via MDM. The new MDM policies include administrative template (ADMX) policies, such as App Compat, Event Forwarding, Servicing, and Task Scheduler.
• An upgrade to Windows 10 Enterprise includes Universal Print, which now supports print jobs of up to 1GB or a series of print jobs from an individual user that add up to 1GB within any 15-minute period.
• Universal Print integrates with OneDrive for web and Excel for web. This allows users of any browser or device connected to the internet to print documents hosted in OneDrive for web to a printer in their organization without installing printer drivers on their devices.

Microsoft has also announced that starting with this release, Windows 10 will get feature updates only once a year.

Updates to Windows 10 versions 2004, 20H2, and 21H1 KB5007186 (OS Builds 19041.1348, 19042.1348, and 19043.1348)

Release date: November 9, 2021

This update makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. The build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the November 2021 Security Update notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5007186.)

KB5006738 (OS Builds 19041.1320, 19042.1320, and 19043.1320)

Release date: October 26, 2021

This update makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. It also fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that prevented subtitles from displaying for some video apps and streaming video sites, and another that sometimes caused lock screen backgrounds to appear black if they were set up to have a slideshow of pictures as the lock screen background.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5006738.)

KB5006670 (OS Builds 19041.1288, 19042.1288, and 19043.1288)

Release date: October 12, 2021

This update makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. It also fixes a bug that prevented some applications, such as Microsoft Office and Adobe Reader, from opening or caused them to stop responding.

The build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide and the October 2021 Security Update notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5006670.)

KB5005611 (OS Builds 19041.1266, 19042.1266, and 19043.1266) Preview

Release date: September 30, 2021

This build fixes a small number of bugs, including one in which applications such as Microsoft Outlook suddenly stopped working during normal use, and another that caused blurry News and Interests icons with certain screen resolutions.

(Get more info about KB5005611.)

KB5005565 (OS Builds 19041.1237, 19042.1237, and 19043.1237)

Release date: September 14, 2021

This update makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. It also fixes a bug that caused PowerShell to create an infinite number of child directories. The issue occurred when you used the PowerShell Move-Item command to move a directory to one of its children. As a result, the volume filled up and the system stopped responding.

The build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are two known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5005565.)

KB5005101 (OS Builds 19041.1202, 19042.1202, and 19043.1202)

Release date: September 1, 2021

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that reset syncing for Microsoft OneDrive to “Known folders only” after you installed a Windows update, and another in which flickering and residual line artifacts appeared when resizing images.

The build also includes more than 1,400 new mobile device management (MDM) policies. With them, you can configure policies that Group Policies also support. These new MDM policies include administrative template (ADMX) policies, such as App Compat, Event Forwarding, Servicing, and Task Scheduler. Starting in September 2021, you can use the Microsoft Endpoint Manager (MEM) Settings Catalog to configure these new MDM policies.

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5005101.)

KB5005033 (OS Builds 19041.1165, 19042.1165, and 19043.1165)

Release date: August 10, 2021

This build changes the default privilege requirement for installing drivers when using Point and Print. After installing this update, you must have administrative privileges to install drivers. See KB5005652, Point and Print Default Behavior Change, and CVE-2021-34481 for more information. The build also makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates.

The build also includes a wide variety of security updates. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5005033.)

KB5004296 (OS Builds 19041.1151, 19042.1151, and 19043.1151)

Release date: July 29, 2021

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused the File Explorer window to lose focus when mapping a network drive, another that failed to detect internet connectivity when connected to a VPN, and another that caused System Integrity to leak memory.

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or a custom ISO image might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5004296.)

KB5004237 (OS Builds 19041.1110, 19042.1110, and 19043.1110)

Release date: July 13, 2021

This build fixes several bugs, including one that made it difficult to print to a variety of printers, primarily USB receipt or label printers. It also removes support for the PerformTicketSignature setting and permanently enables Enforcement mode for CVE-2020-17049.

It also has a variety of security updates for Windows Apps, Windows Management, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Authentication, Windows User Account Control (UAC), Operating System Security, Windows Virtualization, Windows Linux, the Windows Kernel, the Microsoft Scripting Engine, the Windows HTML Platforms, the Windows MSHTML Platform, and Windows Graphics.

For more details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have Microsoft Edge Legacy removed by this update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5004237.)

KB5004945 (OS Builds 19041.1083, 19042.1083, and 19043.1083)

Release date: July 6, 2021

This build closes a remote code execution exploit in the Windows Print Spooler service, known as “PrintNightmare,” as documented in CVE-2021-34527.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

 (Get more info about KB5004945.)

KB5004760 (OS Builds 19041.1082, 19042.1082, and 19043.1082)

Release date: June 29, 2021

This out-of-band build fixes a bug that may prevent you from opening PDFs using Internet Explorer 11 or apps that use the 64-bit version of the WebBrowser control.

Among the build’s known issues are one in which when using the Microsoft Japanese Input Method Editor (IME) to enter Kanji characters in an app that automatically allows the input of Furigana characters, you might not get the correct Furigana characters. You might need to enter the characters manually.

(Get more info about KB5004760.)

KB5003690 (OS Builds 19041.1081, 19042.1081, and 19043.1081)

Release date: June 21, 2021

This build addresses about three dozen bugs, including one in which signing in using a PIN fails, and another that might cause a VPN to fail after renewing a user auto-enrolled certificate. It also removes Adobe Flash from your PC and makes improvements to the servicing stack, the component that installs Windows updates.

Among the build’s known issues are one in which when using the Microsoft Japanese Input Method Editor (IME) to enter Kanji characters in an app that automatically allows the input of Furigana characters, you might not get the correct Furigana characters. You might need to enter the characters manually.

(Get more info about KB5003690.)

KB5004476 (OS Builds 19041.1055, 19042.1055, and 19043.1055)

Release date: June 11, 2021

This out-of-band build fixes a bug that might redirect you to the Microsoft Store page for Gaming Services when you try to install or start an Xbox Game Pass game on your Windows 10 device. Additionally, you might receive error 0x80073D26 or 0x8007139F. For more information, see KB5004327.

In addition, the build makes improvements to the servicing stack, the component that installs Windows updates.

(Get more info about KB5004476.)

KB5003637 (OS Builds 19041.1052, 19042.1052, and 19043.1052)

Release date: June 8, 2021

This build includes improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. It also includes changes for verifying user names and passwords and for storing and managing files.

It also has a variety of security updates to the Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Management, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Authentication, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Virtualization, Windows Kernel, Windows HTML Platform, and Windows Storage and Filesystems.

For more details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide.

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10. Devices using Windows Update for Business or that connect directly to Windows Update are not impacted.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5003637.)

KB5003214 (OS Builds 19041.1023, 19042.1023, and 19043.1023) Preview

Release date: May 25, 2021

This build adds the Open on hover option (which is checked by default) to the News and interests menu. To access it, right-click a blank space on the Windows taskbar and open the News and interests menu.

In addition, it makes quality improvements to the servicing stack, which is the component that installs Windows updates. It also includes a wide variety of small bug fixes, including one that displayed items on the desktop after they have been deleted from the desktop, and another that caused configuration problems with devices that were configured using mobile device management (MDM) RestrictedGroups, LocalUsersAndGroups, or UserRights policies.

(Get more info about KB5003214 Preview.)

Windows 10 May 2021 Update (version 21H1)

Release date: May 18, 2021

Version 21H1, called the Windows 10 May 2021 Update, is the most recent update to Windows 10. This is a relatively minor update, but it does have a few new features.

Here’s a quick summary of what’s new in 21H1:

• Windows Hello multicamera support: If you have an external Windows Hello camera for your PC, you can set the external camera as your default camera. (Windows Hello is used for signing into PCs.) Why should this change matter to you? If you have an external camera, you probably bought it because it’s superior to the built-in, internal one on your computer. So with this change, you’ll be able to use the more accurate camera for logging into your PC.
• Improved Windows Defender Application Guard performance: Windows Defender Application Guard lets administrators configure applications to run in an isolated, virtualized container for improved security. With this change, documents will open more quickly. It can currently take up to a minute to open an Office document in it.
• Better Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) Group Policy Service support: Microsoft has made it easier for administrators to change settings to support remote work.

Updates to Windows 10 versions 2004 and 20H2 prior to the 21H1 release KB5003173 (OS Builds 19041.985 and 19042.985)

Release date: May 11, 2021

This build includes a variety of security updates for Windows App Platform and Frameworks, the Windows Kernel, Windows Media, the Microsoft Scripting Engine, and the Windows Silicon Platform. For more details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide. It also updates security for Bluetooth drivers and Windows OLE (compound documents).

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10. Devices using Windows Update for Business or that connect directly to Windows Update are not impacted.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5003173.)

KB5001391 (OS Builds 19041.964 and 19042.964) Preview

Release date: April 28, 2021

This update gives you quick access to an integrated feed of dynamic content, such as news, weather, sports, and more, that updates throughout the day, via the Windows taskbar. You can personalize the feed to match your interests. For more details, see Microsoft’s “Personalized content at a glance: Introducing news and interests on the Windows 10 taskbar.”

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10. In addition, devices with Windows installations created from custom offline media or custom ISO images might have the legacy version of Microsoft Edge removed by the update, but not automatically replaced by the new Microsoft Edge.

(Get more info about KB5001391 Preview.)

KB5001330 (OS Builds 19041.928 and 19042.928)

Release date: April 13, 2021

This update includes a wide variety of security updates, for Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Apps, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Office Media, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Cryptography, the Windows AI Platform, Windows Kernel, Windows Virtualization, and Windows Media. For details, see Microsoft’s Security Update Guide website.

There are several other security issues addressed, including fixing a potential elevation of privilege vulnerability in the way Azure Active Directory web sign-in allows arbitrary browsing from the third-party endpoints used for federated authentication.

In this build, Microsoft also removed the Microsoft Edge legacy browser and replaced it with the new Chromium-based Edge.

There are several known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10. Devices using Windows Update for Business or that connect directly to Windows Update are not impacted.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5001330.)

KB5000842 (OS Builds 19041.906 and 19042.906) Preview

Release date: March 29, 2021

This update fixes a variety of minor bugs, including one that made high dynamic range (HDR) screens appear much darker than expected, and another that caused video playback to be out of sync in duplicate mode with multiple monitors.

There are several known issues in this build, including one in which System and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10. Devices using Windows Update for Business or that connect directly to Windows Update are not impacted.

(Get more info about KB5000842 Preview.)

KB5001649 (OS Builds 19041.870 and 19042.870)

Release date: March 18, 2021

This out-of-band update fixes a single bug in which graphical content could not be printed.

There is one known issue in this update, in which system and user certificates may be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10.

(Get more info about KB5001649.)

KB5001567 (OS Builds 19041.868 and 19042.868)

Date: March 15, 2021

This out-of-band update fixes a single bug, which caused a blue screen when you attempted to print to certain printers using some apps.

There is one known issue in this update, in which system and user certificates may be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10.

(Get more info about KB5001567.)

KB5000802 (OS Builds 19041.867 and 19042.867)

Release date: March 9, 2021

This update includes a wide variety of security updates for the Windows Shell, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Management, Windows Apps, Windows User Account Control (UAC), Windows Virtualization, the Windows Kernel, the Microsoft Graphics Component, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge Legacy, and Windows Media. For details, see the Microsoft Security Update Guide.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB5000802.)

KB4601382 (OS Builds 19041.844 and 19042.844) Preview

Release date: February 24, 2021

This update fixes a variety of minor bugs, including one that caused video playback to flicker when rendering on certain low-latency capable monitors, and another that sometimes prevented the input of strings into the Input Method Editor (IME).

(Get more info about KB4601382.)

KB4601319 (OS Builds 19041.804 and 19042.804)

Release date: February 9, 2021

This update fixes a bug and includes a variety of security updates. The bug fixed could damage the file system of some devices and prevent them from starting up after running chkdsk /f.

Security updates are provided for Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Apps, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Management, Windows Authentication, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Cryptography, Windows Virtualization, Windows Core Networking, and Windows Hybrid Cloud Networking. For details, see the Microsoft Security Update Guide.

There are three known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4601319.)

KB4598242 (OS Builds 19041.746 and 19042.746)

Release date: January 12, 2021

This build fixes a variety of security vulnerabilities, including one with HTTPS-based intranet servers, and a security bypass vulnerability in the way the Printer Remote Procedure Call (RPC) binding handles authentication for the remote Winspool interface.

There are also security updates to Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Media, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Kernel, Windows Cryptography, Windows Virtualization, Windows Peripherals, and Windows Hybrid Storage Services. For details see the Microsoft Security Update Guide.

There are two known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10, version 1809.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4598242.)

KB4592438 (OS Builds 19041.685 and 19042.685)

Release date: December 8, 2020

This update fixes a security vulnerability by preventing applications that run as a SYSTEM account from printing to “FILE:” ports. It also has security updates for the legacy version of Microsoft Edge, the Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Media, Windows Fundamentals, and Windows Virtualization. For details see the Microsoft Security Update Guide.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4592438.)

KB4586853 (OS Builds 19041.662 and 19042.662) Preview

Release date: November 30, 2020

This build fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused Narrator to stop responding after you unlock a device if the app was in use before you locked the device, and another that made makes the touch keyboard unstable in the Mail app.

There are two known issues in this update, one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10, and another in which users of the Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Japanese or Chinese languages might experience issues when attempting various tasks.

(Get more info about KB4586853.)

KB4594440 (OS Builds 19041.631 and 19042.631)

Release date: November 19, 2020

This minor build fixes issues with Kerberos authentication related to the PerformTicketSignature registry subkey value in CVE-2020-17049, which was a part of the November 10, 2020 Windows update.

There are two known issues in this update, one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10, version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10, and another in which users of the Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Japanese or Chinese languages might experience issues when attempting various tasks.

(Get more info about KB4594440.)

KB4586781 (OS Builds 19041.630 and 19042.630)

Release date: November 10, 2020

This build updates the 2020 DST start date for the Fiji Islands to December 20, 2020 and includes security updates to the Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows Input and Composition, Microsoft Graphics Component, the Windows Wallet Service, Windows Fundamentals, and the Windows Kernel. For details see the release notes for November 2020 Security Updates.

There are two known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10, and another in which users of the Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Japanese or Chinese languages might experience issues when attempting various tasks.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4586781.)

KB4580364 (OS Builds 19041.610 and 19042.610)

Release date: October 29, 2020

This update makes it easier to connect to others in Skype, using Meet Now from the taskbar. In addition, there are a wide variety of bug fixes, including for one that displayed the incorrect CPU frequency for certain processors, another that displayed nothing on the screen for five minutes or more during a Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) session, and another that caused the Docker pull operation to fail due to a Code Integrity (CI) Policy that blocks the import of a Windows container image.

There are two known issues in this update, including one in which system and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10 version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10, and another in which users of the Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Japanese or Chinese languages might experience issues when attempting various tasks.

(Get more info about KB4580364.)

Windows 10 October 2020 Update (version 20H2)

Release date: October 20, 2020

Version 20H2, called the Windows 10 October 2020 Update, is the most recent update to Windows 10. This is a relatively minor update but does have a few new features.

Here’s a quick summary of what’s new in 20H2:

• The new Chromium-based version of the Microsoft Edge browser is now built directly into Windows 10.
• The System page of Control Panel has been removed. Those settings have been moved to the Settings app.
• The Start menu’s tiled background will match your choice of Windows themes. So the tiled background will be light if you’re using the Windows 10 light theme and dark if you’re using the Windows 10 dark theme.
• When you use Alt-Tab, Edge will now display each tab in your browser in a different Alt-Tab window. Previously, when you used Alt-Tab, Edge would get only a single window. You can change this new behavior by going to Settings > System > Multitasking.
• When you pin a site to the taskbar in Edge, you can click or mouse over its icon to see all your browser tabs that are open for that website.
• When you detach a keyboard on a 2-in-1 device, the device will automatically switch to the tablet-based interface. Previously, you were asked whether you wanted to switch. You can change that setting by going to Settings > System > Tablet.
• The Your Phone app gets a variety of new features for some Samsung devices. When using one of the devices, you can interact with the Android apps on your phone from the Your Phone app on Windows 10.

What IT needs to know: Windows 10 version 20H2 also has a variety of small changes of note for sysadmins and those in IT.

• IT professionals who administer multiple mobile devices get a new Modern Device Management (MDM) “Local Users and Groups” settings policy that mirrors options available for devices that are managed through Group Policy.
• Windows Autopilot, used to set up and configure devices in enterprises, has gained a variety of small enhancement, including better deployment of HoloLens devices, the addition of co-management policies, enhancements to Autopilot deployment reporting, and the ability to reuse Configuration Manager task sequences to configure devices.
• Microsoft Defender Application Guard now supports Office. This allows untrusted Office documents from outside an enterprise to launch in an isolated container to stop potentially malicious content from compromising computers or exploiting personal information found on them.
• Latest Cumulative Updates (LCUs) and Servicing Stack Updates (SSUs) have been combined into a single cumulative monthly update, available via Microsoft Catalog or Windows Server Update Services.
• Biometric sign-on has been made more secure. Windows Hello now has support for virtualization-based security for certain fingerprint and face sensors, which protects, isolates, and secures a user’s biometric authentication data.

For more details, see Microsoft’s “What’s new for IT pros in Windows 10, version 20H2.”

Updates to Windows 10 version 2004 prior to the 20H2 release KB4579311 (OS Build 19041.572)

Release date: October 13, 2020

This build fixes a few minor bugs and includes a variety of security updates. Among the bugs fixed are an issue with creating null ports using the user interface, and another issue with a possible elevation of privilege in win32k.

Security updates were issued for Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Media, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Authentication, Windows Virtualization, and Windows Kernel. For details, see the Release Notes for October 2020 Security Updates.

There are two known issues in this build: In one, users of Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese and Japanese might have issues with input. In the other, when installing a third-party driver you might receive the error “Windows can’t verify the publisher of this driver software.” You might also see the error “No signature was present in the subject” when attempting to view the signature properties using Windows Explorer.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4579311.)

KB4577063 (OS Build 19041.546) Preview

Release date: October 1, 2020

This build reduces distortions and aberrations in Windows Mixed Reality head-mounted displays and fixes a wide variety of bugs, including one that caused random line breaks when you redirect PowerShell console error output, and another that that prevented the Language Bar from appearing when a user signs in to a new session.

There is one known issue in this build: Users of Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese and Japanese might have issues with input.

(Get more info about KB4577063.)

KB4571756 (OS Build 19041.508)

Release date: September 8, 2020

This build includes security updates for Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Media, Windows Shell, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Management, Windows Kernel, Windows Virtualization, Windows Storage and Filesystems, the Microsoft Scripting Engine, and the Microsoft JET Database Engine.

For details, see the Release Notes for September 2020 Security Updates.

The build also fixes a security vulnerability issue with user proxies and HTTP-based intranet servers, and addresses an issue with a possible elevation of privileges in windowmanagement.dll.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this build: Users of Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese and Japanese might have issues with input.

(Get more info about KB4571756.)

KB4571744 (OS Build 19041.488)

Release date: September 3, 2020

This build fixes a laundry list of minor bugs, including one that prevented apps from downloading an update or opening in certain scenarios, another that prevented users from reducing the size of windows and another that caused File Explorer to stop working when you browsed directories of RAW images and other file types.

There is one known issue in this build: Users of Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese and Japanese might have issues with input.

(Get more info about KB4571744.)

KB4566782 (OS Build 19041.450)

Release date: August 11, 2020

This build includes security updates for the Microsoft Scripting Engine, Internet Explorer, Windows Graphics, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Kernel, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Media, Windows Shell, the Windows Wallet Service, Microsoft Edge Legacy, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Authentication, the Windows AI Platform, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Storage and Filesystems, Windows Update Stack, Windows File Server and Clustering, Windows Hybrid Storage Services, Windows App Platform and Frameworks, the Microsoft JET Database Engine, and Windows SQL components.

For details, see the Release Notes for August 2020 Security Updates.

The build also fixes an issue in Universal Windows Platform (UWP) apps that allows single sign-on authentication when an app does not have the Enterprise Authentication capability.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

There is one known issue in this build: When using some apps, such as Microsoft Excel, users of the Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese and Japanese might receive an error, or the app might stop responding or close when attempting to drag using the mouse.

(Get more info about KB4566782.)

KB4568831 (OS Build 19041.423)

Release date: July 31, 2020

This minor build addresses a wide variety of bugs and issues, including one that caused the Settings page to close unexpectedly, which prevented default applications from being set up properly, and another that prevented some applications from printing to network printers.

There is one known issue in this build, in which when using some apps such as Excel, users of the Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese and Japanese might receive an error, or the app might stop responding or close when users attempt to drag using the mouse.

(Get more info about KB4568831.)

KB4565503 (OS Build 19041.388)

Release date: July 14, 2020

This build fixes several bugs, including one that might prevent you from connecting to OneDrive using the OneDrive app. It also has security updates for the Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows App Platform and Frameworks, the Microsoft Store, Windows Graphics, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Media, Windows Shell, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Management, Windows Kernel, Windows Hybrid Cloud Networking, Windows Storage and Filesystems, Windows Update Stack, Windows MSXML, Windows File Server and Clustering, Windows Remote Desktop, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge Legacy, and the Microsoft JET Database Engine. For details, see the Release notes for the July 2020 Security Updates.

There is one known issue in this build, in which when using some apps, such as Microsoft Excel, users of the Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese and Japanese might receive an error, or the app might stop responding or close when attempting to drag using the mouse.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4565503.)

KB4567523 (OS Build 19041.331)

Release date: June 18, 2020

This minor build fixes a single issue, in which certain printers could not print, generated print errors, or caused apps and print spoolers to close unexpectedly.

There is one known issue in this build, which affects the ImeMode property to control the Input Method Editor (IME) mode for individual text entry fields to increase typing efficiency. Some IMEs in this build might have issues using the ImeMode property with certain apps, for example the input mode will not switch automatically to Kanji or Hiragana.

(Get more info about KB4567523.)

KB4557957 (OS Build 19041.329)

Release date: June 9, 2020

This build improves the reliability of voice assistants that use keywords and has security updates for the Microsoft Scripting Engine, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Media, Windows Kernel, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Shell, Windows Silicon Platform, Microsoft Xbox, the Microsoft Store, Windows Cloud Infrastructure, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Management, Windows Authentication, Windows Cryptography, Microsoft HoloLens, Windows Virtualization, Windows Peripherals, Windows Storage and Filesystems, Windows File Server and Clustering, Windows Hybrid Storage Services, the Microsoft JET Database Engine, and the Windows Update Stack. For details, see the Release Notes for June 2020 Security Updates.

There are no known issues in this build.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4557957.)

Windows 10 May 2020 Update (version 2004)

Release date: May 27, 2020

Version 2004, called the Windows 10 May 2020 Update, is the most recent update to Windows 10. This is a relatively minor update but does have a variety of new features for both users and system administrators. For more details, see: “Review: Windows 10 May 2020 Update delivers little tweaks that add up to… well, not a lot.”

Here’s a quick summary of what’s new in 2004:

• Cortana now runs as a standalone app in a resizable window. It also loses a variety of capabilities, such as playing music, controlling home devices, and working on the lock screen.
• Task Manager now displays new information, including the temperature of your GPU and your disk type.
• Settings gets many small tweaks, including adding a header with account information, and a redone network status page that combines information that used to be found on multiple pages, such as your IP address, current connection properties and data usage.
• The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) gets more features. It now uses a real Linux kernel, and is faster than previously.
• IT can now take advantage of Windows Hello biometrics logins rather than passwords, by setting that up as the default on enterprise devices.
• Installing and setting up Windows for others has been made easier thanks to new controls added to Dynamic Update, which can lead to less downtime during installation for users.
• A variety of new commands have been given to PowerShell for Delivery Optimization, a Windows networking service that reduces bandwidth consumption by sharing the work of downloading update and upgrade packages among multiple devices in business deployments.
• The security of the Chromium version of Edge has been improved, thanks to porting Application Guard to it.

Updates to the November 2019 Update (version 1909) KB4556799 (OS Build 18363.836)

Release date: May 12, 2020

This build updates the 2020 start date for daylight saving time (DST) in the Kingdom of Morocco, and has security updates for Internet Explorer, the Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Media, Windows Shell, Microsoft Xbox, Microsoft Edge, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Cryptography, Windows Authentication, Windows Kernel, Windows Linux, Windows Update Stack, Windows Network Security and Containers, Windows Active Directory, Windows Storage and Filesystems, and the Microsoft JET Database Engine. For details, see the Release Notes for May 2020 Security Updates.

There are no known issues in this build.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4556799.)

KB4550945 (OS Build 18363.815)

Release date: April 21, 2020

This update fixes a variety of small bugs, including one that turned off notifications for devices that use a VPN on a cellular network, and another that generated unexpected notifications when you change the default application settings.

(Get more info about KB4550945.)

KB4549951 (OS Build 18363.778)

Release date: April 14, 2020

This security update fixes a variety of security holes in Windows 10, including for Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, and a Win32k Information Disclosure Vulnerability. For more details, see the April 2020 Security Update Release Notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4549951.)

KB4554364 (OS Build 18363.753)

Release date: March 30, 2020

This optional update fixes a bug that could cause Windows to display a limited or no internet connection status in the notification area on devices that use a manual or auto-configured proxy, especially with a virtual private network (VPN). The bug also could prevent some devices from connecting to the internet using applications that use WinHTTP or WinINet.

Note: Microsoft recommends that the update be applied only to devices that are affected by the bug.

There are no known issues in the update.

(Get more info about KB4554364.)

KB4541335 (OS Build 18363.752)

Release date: March 24, 2020

This minor update fixes half-a-dozen small bugs, including one that caused an error when printing to a document share, and another that prevented applications from closing. There are no known issues in the update.

(Get more info about KB4541335).

KB4551762 (OS Build 18363.720)

Release date: March 12, 2020

This security-only update has a patch for Microsoft Server Message Block 3.1.1 (SMBv3), a network communication protocol issue that provides shared access to files, printers, and serial ports. For details, see the March 2020 Security Updates Release Notes.

There is one known issue with the update: when using Windows Server containers, you might encounter problems with 32-bit applications and processes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4551762.)

KB4540673 (OS Build 18363.719)

Release date: March 10, 2020

This build fixes one small bug and plugs a series of security holes. It fixes an issue that prevented some users from upgrading Windows 10 because of corrupted third-party assemblies.

The update also has security patches Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Media, Windows Silicon Platform, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Authentication, Windows Peripherals, Windows Update Stack, and Windows Server. For details, see the March 2020 Security Updates Release Notes.

There is one known issue with the update, in which when using Windows Server containers, you might encounter problems with 32-bit applications and processes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4540673.)

KB4535996 (OS Build 18363.693)

Release date: February 27, 2020

This build fixes a wide variety of minor bugs, including one that prevented some applications from printing to network printers, and another that caused Microsoft Narrator to stop working when a user session is longer than 30 minutes.

(Get more info about KB4535996.)

KB4532693 (OS Build 18363.657)

Release date: February 11, 2020

This Patch Tuesday build fixes two small bugs and plugs a series of security holes. It fixes problems people experienced when migrating cloud printers during an upgrade and improves the installation experience when updating to Windows 10, version 1903.

The update also has security patches for Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Windows Fundamentals, Windows Cryptography, Windows Virtualization, Windows Network Security and Containers, Windows Server, Windows Management, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Media, the Microsoft Scripting Engine, and Windows Shell. For details, see the February 2020 Security Updates Release Notes.

There are no known issues with the update.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4532693.)

KB4532695 (OS Build 18363.628)

Release date: January 28, 2020

This build improves the accuracy of Windows Hello face authentication and fixes a variety of small bugs, including one that caused a gray box to appear when you searched within Control Panel and File Explorer, another that prevented File Explorer’s Quick Access control from pasting clipboard content using the right mouse button, and another that caused the touch keyboard to close when you selected any key. There are no known issues with the update.

(Get more info about KB4532695.)

KB4528760 (OS Build 18363.592)

Release date: January 14, 2020

This build has security updates for Windows App Platform and Frameworks, Windows Input and Composition, Windows Management, Windows Cryptography, Windows Storage and Filesystems, the Microsoft Scripting Engine, and Windows Server. For details, see the January 2020 Security Updates Release Notes. It also has updates for Microsoft HoloLens (OS Build 18362.1044).

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4528760.)

KB4530684 (OS Build 18363.535)

Release date: December 10, 2019

This minor update fixes two minor issues — one that might cause error 0x3B in cldflt.sys on some devices, and another that might prevent you from creating a local user account using the Input Method Editor (IME) for Chinese, Japanese, or Korean languages when setting up a new Windows device during the Out of Box Experience (OOBE).

The update also has security patches for Windows Virtualization, Windows Kernel, the Microsoft Scripting Engine, and Windows Server. For details, see the December 2019 Security Updates Release Notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4530684.)

KB4524570 (OS Build 18363.476)

Release date: November 12, 2019

This update fixes security issues in Windows, Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge (EdgeHTML-based). For details, see Microsoft’s November 2019 Security Update notes.  

There is one known issue in this update, in which you may not be able to create a local user when setting up a new Windows device during the Out of Box Experience (OOBE) while using Input Method Editor (IME). This issue might affect you if you are using the IME for Chinese, Japanese, or Korean languages. 

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4524570.)

Windows 10 November 2019 Update (version 1909)

Release date: Nov. 12, 2019

Version 1909, called the Windows 10 November 2019 Update, is the most recent update to Windows 10. There are very few new features in this update, making it more like a service pack of old than a feature update. At this point it’s not clear whether in the future there will be one full-featured update and one service-pack-like update per year or whether Microsoft will go back to its two-feature-updates-a-year schedule. For more details, see “What we know so far about the unusual Windows 10 1909” and “5 unanswered questions about Windows 10 1909.”

Here’s a quick summary of what’s new for users in 1909.

• It lets you create calendar events straight from the taskbar. To do it, click the time on the taskbar and you’ll open the Calendar view. Now click a date and time, then type the event’s name into the text box. You’ll also be able to choose the date, time and location.
• When you type a search into the search box, it will now search through files in your OneDrive account as well as on your PC. Also, as you type, a drop-down menu with suggested files appears. Click a file to open it.
• Voice assistants in addition to Cortana, including Amazon’s Alexa, will be able to run on Windows 10’s lock screen.
• Under-the-hood improvements should speed up the performance of some PCs, as well as increase the battery life in some laptops.
• The Start Menu has gotten minor tweaks. When you hover over items in the navigation pane on the left side of the menu, the items clearly show what you’re about to click.

What IT needs to know: The following features in 1909 are of note for IT staff.

• Windows containers no longer need to have their host and container versions match. That requirement restricted Windows from supporting mixed-version container pod scenarios. Previously, containers from older versions of Windows 10 couldn’t be run on newer versions of Windows 10. In this update, it’s possible, so that a container made using 1903, for example, can be run on 1909.
• Windows Defender Credential Guard, which protects enterprise users’ logins and credentials against theft, is now available for ARM64 devices. Some Windows 10 convertible PCs use ARM64.
• Enterprises can now use Microsoft’s Intune enterprise mobility management (EMM) service to allow devices running Windows 10 in S mode to install and run Win32 (desktop) apps. Before this, S Mode only allowed devices to run apps from the Microsoft Store. Microsoft Store apps don’t run on the desktop.
• The security of BitLocker encryption has been improved. Whenever BitLocker is used to encrypt a device, a recovery key is created, but before this security improvement, it was possible for an unauthorized user to get access to the recovery key and decrypt the device. Now, PCs have additional security if a key is exposed. Here’s how Microsoft explains the change: “Key-rolling or Key-rotation feature enables secure rolling of Recovery passwords on MDM managed AAD devices upon on demand request from Microsoft Intune/MDM tools or upon every time recovery password is used to unlock the BitLocker protected drive.”

There are two known issues in this update: one in which some users cannot set Win32 program defaults for certain app and file type combinations using the Open with… command or Settings > Apps > Default apps, and another in which Microsoft Notepad and other Win32 programs cannot be set as default applications.

(Get more info about KB4464455.)

KB4464330 (OS Build 17763.55)

Release date: October 9, 2018

This very minor, non-feature update fixes an issue in which an incorrect timing calculation may prematurely delete user profiles on devices subject to the “Delete user profiles older than a specified number of day” group policy. It also has security updates for Windows Kernel, Microsoft Graphics Component, Microsoft Scripting Engine, Internet Explorer, Windows Storage and Filesystems, Windows Linux, Windows Wireless Networking, Windows MSXML, the Microsoft JET Database Engine, Windows Peripherals, Microsoft Edge, Windows Media Player, and Internet Explorer. (Go to the Security Update Guide for more details about these updates.)

There are no known issues with the update.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4464330.)

Windows 10 October 2018 Update (version 1809)

Release date: October 2, 2018; paused October 5; re-released November 13, 2018

Version 1809, called the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, is the feature update that preceded the May 2019 Update. Here’s a quick summary of what’s new for users in it. (For more details, see our full review.)

• A new, powered-up Windows Clipboard can hold multiple clips, store clips permanently, let you preview clips and choose which one you’d like to paste into a document, and share clips across Windows 10 devices.
• A new screenshot and annotation tool called Snip & Sketch lets you capture and annotate the entire screen, a rectangular portion of the screen or a freehand-drawn portion of it. After you take a screen capture, you can annotate it and then save it to a file, copy it to the Clipboard, open it in another program or share it via email, social media and other methods.
• Storage Sense, which helps save storage space, now works with OneDrive Files On-Demand to clean out files you’ve downloaded from OneDrive cloud storage to your PC but that you don’t use any longer. You can choose how long you would like the cloud files to stay on your PC unused before you want them deleted, from never to 60 days.
• The Microsoft Edge browser lets you set autoplay permissions for sound and video on websites on a site-by-site basis. It also lets you look up word definitions in its built-in eReader for books and PDFs, and mark up PDFs and books using a highlighter and by adding notes.
• The new Your Phone app links Windows 10 devices to iOS and Android phones. It allows you to start web browsing on an iOS or Android device and then continue where you left off on your PC. It also lets you view photos on your Android phone from your Windows 10 PC.
• Search Previews have been powered up slightly. You no longer need to click to display the preview panel; it opens automatically. It also now shows files found on your PC.
• Smaller changes include a new dark theme for File Explorer; the addition of the SwiftKey swipe keyboard, which lets you enter text by swiping a finger across an onscreen keyboard; updates that are less intrusive; and faster sign-ins on shared PCs.

What IT needs to know: There are few significant changes that affect IT in the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, other than New Microsoft Edge Group Policies that let admins enable and disable full-screen mode, printing, the favorites bar, and browser history saves. IT can also allow or ban Edge extensions (not that there are many available) and configure the Home button and new tab page and startup options.

Updates to the April 2018 Update (version 1803) KB4458469 (OS Build 17134.319)

Release date: September 20, 2018

This non-feature update fixes several dozen issues, including one that prevents custom keyboard layouts from working correctly, another that prevents some Bluetooth devices from pairing with Windows, and another in which a daily, repetitive task starts unexpectedly when the task is first created or starts when the task is updated.

There are no known issues with the update.

(Get more info about KB4458469.)

KB4464218 (OS Build 17134.286)

Release date: September 17, 2018

This non-feature update fixes a single issue that occurs after installing any of the updates released between July 24, 2018 and September 11, 2018. In those updates, Windows no longer recognizes the Personal Information exchange (PFX) certificate used for authenticating to a Wi-Fi or VPN connection. So Intune takes a long time to deliver user profiles because it doesn’t recognize that the required certificate is on the device. This build fixes the problem.

There are no known issues with the update.

(Get more info about KB4464218.)

KB4457128 (OS Build 17134.285)

Release date: September 11, 2018

This non-feature update includes several security updates and fixes an issue that causes the Program Compatibility Assistant (PCA) service to have excessive CPU usage. It provides protection against a Spectre Variant 2 vulnerability (CVE-2017-5715) for ARM64 devices. And it also includes security updates to Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft scripting engine, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows Media, Windows Shell, Windows Hyper-V, Windows datacenter networking, Windows virtualization and kernel, Windows Linux, Windows kernel, Microsoft JET Database Engine, Windows MSXML, and Windows Server. (See the Security Update Guide for details.)

There are no known issues with the update.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4457128.)

KB4346783 (OS Build 17134.254)

Release date: August 30, 2018

This non-feature update addresses a little more than a dozen problems, including one in which an issue in Microsoft Foundation Class applications may cause applications to flicker, and another in which Microsoft Edge or other UWP applications can’t perform client authentication when the private key is stored on a TPM 2.0 device.

There is one known issue in the update: Microsoft Edge may fail when using the New Application Guard Window, but normal Microsoft Edge instances aren’t affected.

(Get more info about KB4346783.)

KB4343909 (OS Build 17134.228)

Release date: August 14, 2018

This non-feature update addresses a handful of minor issues, including fixing a problem that caused high CPU usage and performance degradation on some systems with Family 15h and 16h AMD processors, and fixing another one that significantly reduced battery life after upgrading to Windows 10 version 1803, the Windows 10 April 2018 Update.

It also has security fixes, including several for Windows Server, and protections against a new speculative execution side-channel vulnerability known as L1 Terminal Fault (L1TF) that affects Intel Core processors and Intel Xeon processors

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4343909.)

KB4340917 (OS Build 17134.191)

Release date: July 24, 2018

This non-feature update addresses a dozen minor issues, including problems updating time zone information, an issue that prevented OpenType fonts from printing in Win32 applications and an issue with Roaming User Profiles where the AppDataLocal and AppDataLocallow folders are incorrectly synchronized at user logon and logoff, among others.

There is one known issue: After installation of any of the July 2018 .NET Framework Security Updates, a COM component will fail to load because of “access denied,” “class not registered,” or “internal failure occurred for unknown reasons” errors. For more details, see KB4345913.

(Get more info about KB4340917.)

KB4345421 (OS Build 17134.166)

Release date: July 16, 2018

This non-feature update addresses a small number of issues, including one in which the DHCP Failover server may cause enterprise clients to receive an invalid configuration when requesting a new IP address, resulting in a loss of connectivity. It also fixes another issue that may cause the restart of the SQL Server service to fail occasionally, listing the error “Tcp port is already in use.” There are no known issues with the update.

(Get more info about KB4345421.)

KB4338819 (OS Build 17134.165)

Release date: July 10, 2018

This security update addresses a small number of issues, including one that may cause the Mitigation Options Group Policy client-side extension to fail during GPO processing. It also evaluates the Windows ecosystem to help ensure application and device compatibility for all updates to Windows and enables debugging of WebView content in UWP apps using the Microsoft Edge DevTools Preview app that’s available in the Microsoft Store.

The update also includes security updates for Internet Explorer, Windows apps, Windows graphics, Windows data center networking, Windows wireless networking, Windows virtualization, Windows kernel, and Windows Server. All security updates fix vulnerabilities in the Microsoft .NET Framework.

The update has a known issue: After installing this update on a DHCP Failover Server, Enterprise clients may receive an invalid configuration when requesting a new IP address.  This may result in loss of connectivity as systems fail to renew their leases.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4338819.)

KB4284848 (OS Build 17134.137)

Release date: June 26, 2018

This non-feature update fixes a wide variety of bugs, including a performance issue on Windows Mixed Reality that occurred on some laptops with hybrid graphics adapters, such as the Surface Book 2, and another in which the Video Settings HDR streaming calibration slider stopped working due to a conflict with the panel brightness intensity settings configured by some OEMs.

The ancient, security-challenged SMBv1 protocol also has a fix for a bug in which users got the “An invalid argument was supplied” error message when accessing files or running programs from a shared folder using the protocol. The release also fixes a bug in which media content previously generated by Media Center didn’t play after the Windows 10 April 2018 Update was installed. There were more than a dozen other minor bugs squashed as well.

(Get more info about KB4284848.)

KB4284835 (OS Build 17134.112)

Release date: June 12, 2018

This update addresses a variety of issues, including several security problems. It fixes a problem that stops the GameBar from launching and also adds support for the SameSite cookie web standard to Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer. Among other changes, it also addresses an issue in which some systems started up to a black screen. That occurred because previous updates to Windows 10 version 1803 were incompatible with specific versions of PC tune-up utilities after installation.

The update also provides protections for an additional subclass of speculative execution side channel vulnerabilities known as Speculative Store Bypass  (CVE-2018-3639). The protections aren’t enabled by default. IT administrators who want to turn them on for the Windows client should follow the instructions in KB4073119. For Windows Server guidance, follow the instructions in KB4072698. This should be done in addition to the mitigations already released for Spectre Variant 2 (CVE-2017-5715) and Meltdown (CVE-2017-5754).

The release also includes security updates to Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft scripting engine, Windows Desktop Bridge, Windows apps, Windows shell, Windows kernel, Windows Server, Windows storage and filesystems, Windows wireless networking, remote code execution, and Windows virtualization and kernel.

There is a known issue in this update, in which some users running Windows 10 version 1803 may receive an error “An invalid argument was supplied” when accessing files or running programs from a shared folder using the SMBv1 protocol. To work around the problem, enable SMBv2 or SMBv3 on both the SMB server and the SMB client, as described in KB2696547.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4284835.)

KB4338548 (OS Build 17134.83)

Release date: June 5, 2018

This extremely minor update fixes a single bug in which 2017 and 2018 versions of Intuit QuickBooks Desktop couldn’t run in multi-user mode on Windows 10 version 1803 devices.

(Get more info about KB4338548.)

KB4100403 (OS Build 17134.81)

Release date: May 23, 2018

This update fixes a variety of minor bugs, including one in which Internet Explorer might cause communication between web workers to fail in certain asynchronous scenarios with multiple visits to a web page, and another that caused Windows Hello enrollment to fail on hardware with dGPUs.

There are several known issues with the update, including one in which some users running Windows 10 version 1803 may receive an error “An invalid argument was supplied” when accessing files or running programs from a shared folder using the SMBv1 protocol.

(Get more info about KB4100403.)

KB4103721 (OS Build 17134.48)

Release date: May 8, 2018

This update fixes several minor bugs, closes security holes and introduces no new features. Among other fixes, it addresses one that causes some devices to stop responding or working when using applications such as Cortana or Chrome after installing the Windows 10 April 2018 Update. And security updates are included for Windows Server, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Microsoft scripting engine, Windows app platform and frameworks, Windows kernel, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows storage and filesystems, HTML help and Windows Hyper-V.

The update has one known issue – when some devices with Intel SSD 600p Series or Intel SSD Pro 6000p Series hard disks attempt to upgrade to the Windows 10 April 2018 Update, they may repeatedly enter a UEFI screen after restart or stop working. Microsoft is working with Intel and hardware partners  to identify and block devices with Intel SSD 600p Series or Intel SSD Pro 6000p Series from installing the April 2018 Update. It also is working on a fix that will allow those devices to eventually install the update.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4103721.)

Windows 10 April 2018 Update (version 1803)

Release date: April 30, 2018

Version 1803, called the Windows 10 April 2018 Update, is the major update to Windows 10 that preceded the October 2018 Update. Here’s a quick summary of what’s new for users in it. (For more details, see our full review.)

• The most important new feature is Timeline, which lets you review and resume activities and open files you’ve started on your PC, or any other Windows PCs you have. It also tracks what you’ve done on iOS and Android devices if you install Microsoft’s digital assistant Cortana on them and are logged in. It shows a list of activities day by day for up to 30 days. Each activity shows up as a large tile, with the file name and document title or URL and website name across it, and the name of the application or app that created it across the top. Click any activity to reopen it. (Note that at present, Timeline only tracks activities in certain Microsoft programs such as the Edge browser and Office applications.)
• The new Diagnostic Data Viewer is supported, which Microsoft is designed to let you see the “diagnostic data collected from your Windows devices, how it is used, and to provide you with increased control over that data.” However, the information is presented in such a complex, technical way that even programmers will likely have a difficult time understanding it. The viewer isn’t built directly into the Windows 10 April 2018 Update. Instead, you have to download it from the Microsoft Store.
• The My People feature now lets you pin up to 10 contacts on the Windows taskbar. Previously, you could only pin up to three.
• Microsoft Edge gets several minor tweaks, including a revamped Hub, the ability to mute auto-playing audio in tabs, and a forms-filler for web-based forms.
• The Notebook feature of Cortana gets a new, cleaner interface for its Notebook. It now has two tabs, Organizer and Manage Skills. The Organizer makes it easier to create lists and set reminders. The Manage Skills tab lets you add “skills” to Cortana, such as controlling your home and its appliances, connecting Cortana to music services such as Spotify, tracking your fitness and more.
• You get more control over app permissions, such as whether they can access your camera, location and contacts.

What IT needs to know: IT staff should be aware of these features that are new in the Windows 10 April 2018 Update:

• Windows 10 Professional now gets the Windows Defender Application Guard, which protects Microsoft Edge. There’s also a new feature in the application guard that lets users download files inside Edge instead of directly to the operating system, as a way to increase security.
• There are new policies for Group Policy and Mobile Device Management (MDM) that can better control how Delivery Optimization is used for Windows Update and Windows Store app updates. You can also now monitor Delivery Optimization using Windows Analytics.
• Windows AutoPilot also gets a tweak that lets IT make sure policies, settings and apps are provisioned on devices before users begin using them.
• Windows gets the Linux curl and tar utilities for downloading files and extracting .tar archives built directly into Windows. Windows also now natively supports Unix sockets (AF_UNIX) with a new afunix.sys kernel driver. That will make it easier to port software to Windows from Linux as well as from other Unix-like operating systems.
• There are a host of improvements to the Windows Subsystem for Linux, which lets you run a variety of Linux distributions on Windows 10. Linux applications can run in the background, some launch settings for Linux distributions can be customized, and Linux applications have been given access to serial devices. The new Unix sockets report is available for the Windows Subsystem for Linux as well as Windows itself.
• The Windows 10 Pro for Workstations version of Windows 10 gets a new power scheme called Ultimate Performance it’s only for desktop PCs, not those that can be powered by batteries. In addition, Windows 10 Pro for Workstations no longer ships with games like Candy Crush or other similar consumer-focused apps. Instead, it features enterprise- and business-related apps.
• Administrators have been given the power to configure an enterprise’s PCs to run custom scripts during feature updates, which will make configuration and deployment easier.

For  more details, see the Microsoft blog post “Making IT simpler with a modern workplace.”

Updates to the Fall Creators Update (version 1709) KB4093105 (OS Build 16299.402)

Release date: April 23, 2018

This update fixes three dozen minor bugs and issues and introduces no new features. Among other fixes, it addresses one that removes user-pinned folders or tiles from the Start menu in some cases, and another that causes Skype and Xbox to stop working.

The update has one known issue — it reports that KB4054517 failed to install because of error 0x80070643, even though the installation was successful. If you want to verify the installation and make sure are no additional updates available, select Check for Updates. Microsoft is working on a resolution to the problem and will issue a fix in an upcoming Windows update.

(Get more info about KB4093105.)

KB4093112 (OS Build 16299.371)

Release date: April 10, 2018

This update fixes a variety of minor bugs and issues and plugs a number of security holes. Among other fixes, it addresses one that causes an access violation in Internet Explorer when it runs on the Microsoft Application Virtualization platform. It also fixes an issue that might cause the App-V service to stop working on an RDS server that hosts many users. There are also updates to Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Windows kpp platform and frameworks, Microsoft scripting engine, Windows graphics, Windows Server, Windows kernel, Windows datacenter networking, Windows wireless networking, Windows virtualization and Kernel, and Windows Hyper-V.

The update has a variety of issues. In one, after it’s installed, users may experience unexpected panning or scrolling in certain apps while using the pen. In another, Windows Update History reports that KB4054517 failed to install because of error 0x80070643.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4093112.)

KB4089848 (OS Build 16299.334)

Release date: March 22, 2018

This non-security updates fixes a variety of minor bugs and issues but offers no new features. Among other issues, it fixes a problem in which Bluetooth devices failed to receive data after a restart, and problems Microsoft Edge had in rendering PDF documents with backgrounds created using various third-party publishing tools. It also fixed an issue with the press-and-hold feature when using a pen in Tablet mode, and another that caused monitors to disconnect after a computer woke from Sleep.

(Get more info about KB4089848.)

KB4088776 (OS Build 16299.309)

Release date: March 13, 2018

This update fixes a variety of bugs and closes several security holes. It fixes a problem in which pinch and zoom gestures don’t work on some hardware when using Internet Explorer, and another one in which Internet Explorer becomes unresponsive in certain scenarios when a Browser Helper Object is installed. It also fixes a bug in which media and other applications become unresponsive or fail when upgrading graphics drivers, and one in which after installing KB4090913, the Mixed Reality Portal failed to initialize.

The update also includes security updates to Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows Desktop Bridge, Windows Kernel, Windows Shell, Windows MSXML, Device Guard, Windows Hyper-V, Windows Installer, and the Microsoft Scripting Engine.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4088776.)

KB4090913 (OS Build 16299.251)

Release date: March 5, 2018

This update fixes a significant bug and adds no new features. The bug was one in which some USB devices and onboard devices, including built-in laptop cameras, keyboards, or mice, stopped working. It occurred when the Windows Update servicing stack incorrectly skipped installing newer versions of critical drivers in the cumulative update and uninstalled the currently active drivers.

The current update has a variety of known issues, including that some devices may fail to start after installing it and return the error message INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE. See Microsoft’s suggested workarounds.

(Get more info about KB4090913.)

KB4074588 (OS Build 16299.248)

Release date: February 13, 2018

This February 2018 “Patch Tuesday” update fixes a wide variety of bugs, adds no new features and offers a several security updates. Among other bugs handled, it fixes an issue in Internet Explorer where pressing the delete key inserted a new line in input boxes in an application. It also updates time zone information and fixes a bug that caused delays when switching keyboard languages using Alt+Shift. There are a number of known issues with the update, including one in which Windows Update History incorrectly reports that KB4054517 failed to install. 

The patch also includes security updates to Microsoft Scripting Engine, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Windows Search component, Windows Kernel, Windows Authentication, Device Guard, Common Log File System driver, and the Windows storage and file systems.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4074588.)

KB4058258 (OS Build 16299.214)

Release date: January 31, 2018

This minor non-feature update fixes a variety of minor bugs, including one in which colors are distorted when the system is connected to displays that support the wide color gamut, and another in which delays are caused when switching keyboard languages using Alt+Shift. The update also includes unnamed security protections for 32-bit (x86) versions of the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. There are several known issues with the update, including that after its installation, “Windows Update History reports that KB4054517 failed to install because of error 0x80070643.”

(Get more info about KB4058258.)

KB4073291 (OS Build 16299.201)

Release date: January 18, 2018

This update is only for PCs with the 32-bit (x86) version of Windows 10 1709 that have already installed the January 3, 2018 update (KB4056892, OS Build 16299.192). Microsoft has provided no information about this update beyond a list of files that are in it (CSV download) and that it “provides additional protections for 32-Bit (x86) version of Windows 10 1709.” However, it notes that there are a number of known issues with the update, including that “Windows Update History reports that KB4054517 failed to install because of Error 0x80070643.”

(Get more info about KB4073291.)

KB4056892 (OS Build 16299.192)

Release date: January 3, 2018

This update fixes a variety of minor bugs, including one in which event logs stop receiving events when a maximum file size policy is applied to the channel. It also fixes several Microsoft Edge-related issues including one in which printing an Office Online document in Microsoft Edge fails and another in which Microsoft Edge stops responding for up to 3 seconds while displaying content from a software rendering path.

Also included are security updates for Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Windows 10, .NET Framework and more. For details see the January 2018 Security Updates Release Notes.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4056892.)

KB4054517 (OS Build 16299.125)

Release date: December 12, 2017 

This update fixes a variety of minor bugs, including one in which Windows Defender Device Guard and Application Control block some applications from running, even in Audit-Only Enforcement Mode. It also fixes a variety of issues with updating time zone information.

Also included are 34 security updates to the Microsoft Scripting Engine, Microsoft Edge and Windows Server. The most notable of them are fixes to two remote code execution bugs in the Microsoft Malware Protection Engine. For details about the two remote execution bugs, see CVE-2017-11937 and CVE-2017-11940.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4054517.)

KB4051963 (OS Build 16299.98)

Release date: November 30, 2017

This minor, non-feature update includes a variety of bug fixes. It addresses several problems with Internet Explorer, including a script-related issue that caused the browser to stop working in some cases, and another in which forms submissions didn’t work properly. It also fixed performance problems when users run full-screen Microsoft DirectX 9 games and applications. And it fixes an issue in which user selections for Feedback Frequency in Settings > Privacy > Feedback & diagnostics weren’t saved.

(Get more info about KB4051963.)

KB4048955 (OS Build 16299.64)

Release date: November 14, 2017

This first “Patch Tuesday” release for the Fall Creators Update contains no new features, but has a variety of bug fixes and security patches. It fixes a problem that caused the Mixed Reality Portal to stop responding on launch and one where black screens appeared when switching between windowed and full-screen modes when playing some Microsoft DirectX games. It also fixes an issue in which application tiles were missing from the Start menu. A variety of other problems have been solved as well.

Fifty-three security vulnerabilities have also been also fixed, with 20 of them rated as critical. Security holes have been patched throughout Windows, including in Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Windows, Microsoft Office, ASP.NET Core, and Chakra Core.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4048955.)

KB4043961 (OS Build 16299.19)

Release date: October 17, 2017

This very minor, non-feature update addresses only a few small issues, including a bug in which, after apps are removed, they’re reinstalled on every restart, logoff and login. There are also security updates to Windows kernel-mode drivers, Microsoft Graphics Component, Internet Explorer, Windows kernel, Microsoft Windows Search Component, Windows TPM, Windows NTLM, Device Guard, Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows Wireless Networking, Microsoft Windows DNS, Windows Server, Microsoft JET Database Engine, and the Windows SMB Server.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4043961.)

Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (version 1709)

Release date: October 17, 2017

Version 1709, called the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, is the major update to Windows 10 that preceded the April 2018 Update. Here’s a quick summary of what’s new for users in it. (For more details, see our full review.)

• OneDrive gets a new feature called Files On-Demand that gives you access to all of your OneDrive files on every device, without having to download them first. You’ll be able to see all the files you have in OneDrive, even if they’re only in the cloud and not on your PC. Icons tell you which are local and which are in the cloud. Just open the file, and if it’s not on your PC, it gets downloaded.
• The new My People feature lets you pin three contacts to the Windows taskbar and then communicate with them instantly without having to open a separate app such as Skype or Mail. You can also click to see a list of all communications between them and you at a glance.
• You can now send web links from your iOS or Android device to your PC and have them open in Microsoft Edge.
• Cortana gets several new features, including displaying results in a scrollable flyout panel, so you don’t have to launch a web browser.
• Microsoft Edge gets some minor improvements, including better Favorites handling and the ability to mark up PDFs and e-books.
• Security has been beefed up, including the addition of Windows Defender Exploit Guard, which includes intrusion rules and policies to protect against a variety of threats, notably zero-day exploits. A new anti-ransomware feature called Controlled Folder Access has also been added; it lets only approved apps have access to Windows system files and folders.
• New privacy features include the ability to review the kinds of devices and services apps from the Microsoft Store want access to before you download them.
• The update incorporates Microsoft’s new design system and guidelines, called Fluent Design. Overall, transitions are smoother, and there are subtle changes to the transparency effect.

What IT needs to know: IT staff should be aware of these features that are new in the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update:

• The notoriously insecure SMBv1 networking protocol, exploited in recent ransomware attacks including WannaCry and Petya, won’t be included on clean installs of the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, but SMBv1 components will remain if you do in-place upgrades on PCs that already have the component installed.
• Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP), a suite of tools introduced in Windows 10 that helps enterprise customers protect their users and networks against threats and respond to attacks, is being beefed up. Among other things, it will run on the Windows Server OS.
• ATP is also part of Windows Defender Application Guard for Microsoft Edge, available only for Windows 10 Enterprise Edition. It protects against malware attacks by confining visits to unknown or untrusted websites to a virtual machine, so that attacks can’t spread to a PC or the network.
• Windows AutoPilot, which improves self-service deployments of Windows 10 PCs, gets a variety of tweaks, including better mobile device management (MDM) services.
• Windows Analytics’ new Device Health tool gathers information on how PCs perform in an enterprise, and based on that, identifies potential issues and outlines steps to resolve them.
• Enterprises get more control over what kind of information Windows Analytics gathers for the IT staff. In order to improve users’ privacy, IT staff can limit the information collected by Windows Analytics to only diagnostic data.

For more details about new features for IT, see “What’s new in Windows 10, version 1709 IT Pro content,”  “Announcing end-to-end security features in Windows 10” and “Delivering the Modern IT promise with Windows 10” from Microsoft.

Updates to the Creators Update (version 1703) KB4041676 (OS Build 15063.674)

Release date: October 10, 2017

This non-feature update addresses a wide variety of issues, including ones related to security. It fixes a bug that won’t allow some games from downloading from the MIcrosoft Store. The build also fixes an issue in which some Universal Windows Platform (UWP) apps and Centennial apps (.NET and Win32-based Windows applications that have been packaged to be published to the Microsoft Store) have a gray icon and display the error message “This app can’t open” on launch.

In addition, security updates are included for many parts of Windows, including Microsoft Windows Search Component, Windows kernel-mode drivers, Microsoft Graphics Component, Internet Explorer, Windows kernel, Microsoft Edge, Windows Authentication, Windows TPM, Device Guard, Windows Wireless Networking, Windows Storage and Filesystems, Microsoft Windows DNS, Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows Server, Windows Subsystem for Linux, Microsoft JET Database Engine, and the Windows SMB Server.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4041767.)

KB4040724 (OS Build 15063.632)

Release date: September 25, 2017

This non-feature update addresses two very minor issues: Cellular connectivity and reliability have been improved, and performance problems with Microsoft Edge that were introduced in KB40387888 have been resolved.

(Get more info about KB4040724.)

KB4038788 (OS Build 15063.608)

Release date: Sept. 12, 2017

This non-feature update addresses a wide variety of miscellaneous minor issues, including one where some machines fail to load wireless WAN devices when they resume from Sleep, and another where spoolsv.exe stops working. Also addressed is a problem in which the option to join Azure AAD is sometimes unavailable during the out-of-box experience, and another in which clicking the buttons on Windows Action Center notifications results in no action being taken.

What IT needs to know

This release includes security updates to Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows kernel-mode drivers, Windows shell, Microsoft Uniscribe, Microsoft Edge, Device Guard, Windows TPM, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Scripting Engine, Windows Hyper-V, Windows kernel and Windows Virtualization. Because it’s a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4038788.)

KB4034674 (OS Build 15063.540)

Release date: Aug. 8, 2017

This non-feature update addresses a variety of minor issues, primarily aimed at IT. Two fixes are for mobile devices: One in which the policies provisioned using Mobile Device Management (MDM) don’t take precedence over policies set by provisioning packages, but should, and another in which an access violation in the Mobile Device Manager Enterprise feature causes stop errors. Also addressed is an issue in which the Site to Zone Assignment List group policy (GPO) was not set on machines when it was enabled.

There are also security updates for many Windows features and services, including Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Windows Search Component, Microsoft Scripting Engine, Microsoft Windows PDF Library, Windows Hyper-V, Windows Server, Windows kernel-mode drivers, Windows Subsystem for Linux, Windows shell, Common Log File System Driver, Internet Explorer, and the Microsoft JET Database Engine.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update.

(Get more info about KB4034674.)

KB4032188 (OS Build 15063.502)

Release date: July 31, 2017

This non-feature update addresses a variety of minor issues and bugs, including one in which Win32 applications have problems working with various Bluetooth LE devices including head tracking devices, a reliability issue with launching the Settings app while an application is using the camera, and a bug in which video playback artifacts appear during transitions from portrait to landscape on mobile devices.

What IT needs to know: Several minor issues addressed in this update affect IT, including the Mobile Device Manager Enterprise feature not allowing headsets to work correctly, and a bug that can cause a service using a Managed Service Account (MSA) to fail to connect to a domain after an automatic password update.

(Get more info about KB4032188.)

KB4025342 (OS Build 15063.483)

Release date: July 11, 2017

This security update (a Patch Tuesday release) fixes 54 vulnerabilities in Windows 10, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office and Microsoft Exchange. Nineteen of the vulnerabilities were rated as critical, 32 as important and three as moderate.

The critical bugs include six remote code execution ones, including one for Microsoft’s HoloLens mixed reality head-mounted display that is currently available only to developers. It allowed the device to be hacked “by merely receiving WiFi packets, apparently without any form of authentication at all,” in Microsoft’s words.

Microsoft Edge received patches for thirteen critical scripting engine memory corruption vulnerabilities, including one in which an attacker could gain the same user rights as the current user.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update. In addition to the patches for Windows 10 Creators Update are security patches for Windows Server 2016 / Windows 10 Anniversary Update.

(Get more info about KB4025342.)

KB4022716 (OS Build 15063.447)

Release date: June 27, 2017

This non-security update kills more than three dozen minor bugs. Among them are one that causes the Camera app to use a lot of memory on mobile platforms, which reduces battery life. The update also improves Bluetooth connectivity with wearable devices.

What IT needs to know: Some of the bugs affect networks, including one in which network printers may fail when using the printer vendor’s setup software on machines with less than 4GB of RAM. Installing the printers using the Settings app or from Devices and Printers in Control Panel will ensure they’re installed properly. In addition, the update fixes an issue which prevented users from connecting to the Terminal Services Gateway (TSG) running on Windows Server 2008 SP2 after it has been upgraded to the Creators Update, with the result that users were not able to access Remote Desktop Services or remote apps.

(Get more info about KB4022716.)

KB4022725 (OS Builds 15063.413 and 15063.414)

Release date: June 13, 2017

This security update closes dozens of security holes, including two remote code execution vulnerabilities (CVE-2017-8464, which is similar to Stuxnet, and CVE-2017-8543, which is a wormlike attack).

It also fixes a variety of bugs, including one in which a user may have to press the space bar to dismiss the lock screen to log in, even after the log on is authenticated using a companion device.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied immediately, especially because several of the security holes are being actively used by attackers. (Get more info about KB4022725.)

KB4020102 (OS Build 15063.332)

Release date: May 25, 2017

This non-security update fixes a wide variety of bugs but offers no new features. Among other issues, it fixes a problem when network printers may fail to install using the printer vendor’s setup software on PCs with less than 4GB of RAM. It also fixes several problems with Internet Explorer, including one where non-administrator users can’t install ActiveX controls. (Get more info about KB4020102.)

KB4016871 (OS Builds 15063.296 and 15063.297)

Release date: May 9, 2017

This is a security update that also includes minor bug fixes, but no new features. The security updates are for Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Graphics Component, Windows SMB Server, Windows COM, Microsoft Scripting Engine, the Windows kernel, Windows Server, and the .NET Framework. Among the bugs fixed are one in which autochk.exe can randomly skip drive checks and not fix data corruptions, which could lead to data loss.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update. (Get more info about KB4016871.)

KB4016240 (OS Build 15063.250)

Release date: April 25, 2017

This non-security update squashes a wide variety of bugs but includes no new features. It fixes a bug that caused intermittent logout from web applications and another that made systems unresponsive in certain situations after running Direct3D apps in full-screen exclusive mode. Previous to this patch, Windows Forms configuration issues caused antivirus applications to stop working at startup; they now work.

What IT needs to know: Two of the bugs fixed with this release are one in which some VMs experienced network connectivity loss while provisioning IP addresses and another that prevented Group Policy settings from disabling the lock screen. (Get more info about  KB4016240.)

KB4015583 (OS Build 15063.138)

Release date: April 11, 2017

This security update includes only a few minor bug fixes and no new features. It updates security for Scripting Engine, libjpeg image-processing library, Hyper-V, Windows kernel-mode drivers, Adobe Type Manager Font Driver, Internet Explorer, Graphics Component, Active Directory Federation Services, .NET Framework, Lightweight Directory Access Protocol, Microsoft Edge and Windows OLE. In addition, it fixes a problem with updating time zone information.

What IT needs to know: Because this is a security update, it should be applied relatively soon. Over the next few weeks, check for reports about problematic issues, and if all seems well, apply the update. (Get more info about KB4015583.)

KB4016251 (OS Build 15063.13)

Release date: April 5, 2017

This non-security update fixes a few very minor bugs and has no new features. It repairs a problem that caused the Surface USB: Bluetooth radio to sometimes fail during hibernate/resume, and fixes an issue in which a virus protection product driver installation would trigger a system crash on Windows build 15060 configured with DeviceGuard. (Get more info about KB4016251.)

Windows 10 Creators Update (version 1703)

Release date: April 5, 2017

Version 1703, dubbed the Creators Update, is the major update to Windows 10 that preceded the Fall Creators Update. Here’s a quick summary of what’s new for users in the Creators Update. (For more details, see our full review.)

• It helps you better organize the Start menu by letting you put multiple tiles for apps into a single folder — for example, you can group all social media apps into one folder.
• Users are given a bit more control over the update process: They can delay an update for three days and keep delaying it in three-day increments, or choose specific times for updates to install.
• The Edge browser has gotten some improvements, including having Flash disabled by default for security reasons and supporting the ePub and PDF formats for reading books and other content.
• Microsoft added some 3D and virtual reality features, including running HoloLens virtual reality and mixed reality apps for the first time, and introducing a Paint 3D app for creating 3D objects.
• System settings that previously were in multiple locations have been consolidated into the Settings app.
• There’s a new all-in-one security dashboard called Windows Defender Security Center that consolidates many security and computer health settings and information.
• New gaming features include streaming gaming sessions over the internet; a Game Mode to improve gaming performance; and a Game bar to let you record your gameplay, take screenshots and perform games-related tasks.
• The Cortana personal assistant gets a few modest additions, including scheduling monthly reminders and helping you set up devices.

What IT needs to know: IT staff should be aware of these features that are new in the Windows 10 Creators Update:

• Security has been improved in a number of ways, including adding new features and insights into Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) to better investigate and respond to network threats. Among the new features are sensors in memory, better intelligence and improved remediation capabilities.
• Several new configuration service providers (CSPs) available in the Creators Update let administrators manage Windows 10 devices through Mobile Device Management (MDM) or provisioning packages. The DynamicManagement CSP, for instance, can enable or disable certain device features depending on location, network presence or time.
• New mobile application management capabilities can protect data on personal mobile devices without requiring each device to be part of the corporate MDM.
• The Windows Configuration Designer (previously called Windows Imaging and Configuration Designer) includes new wizards to make it easier to create provisioning packages, including for desktop devices, Windows mobile devices, Surface Hub devices, HoloLens devices and kiosk devices.
• Enterprise security administrators get a more comprehensive documentation library for Windows Defender Antivirus.
• If an enterprise-wide update policy hasn’t been configured, users with Windows Pro, Windows Enterprise or Windows Education editions have much more control over how Windows updates. With the Creators Update, users can now automatically delay cumulative monthly updates for up to 30 days, and can delay feature updates by up to 365 days.

For more details about new features for IT, see the Microsoft blog posts “Windows 10 Creators Update advances security and best-in-class modern IT tools” and “What’s new in Windows 10, version 1703 IT pro content.”