Summary
- Windows 11 24H2 gets a new Taskbar feature with improved app previews and animations.
- Security updates for Windows 10 and older versions of Windows 11 lack exciting new features.
- Detailed list of updates for different Windows versions, available for manual download on Microsoft Update Catalog.
Well, it's that time of the month again: Patch Tuesday. Every second Tuesday of the month, Microsoft unleashes a wave of updates for all of its supported Windows systems. And while this month wasn't incredibly exciting, there are some interesting tidbits to enjoy.
The Windows 11 2024 Update is now available — here's what's new and why it's not Windows 12
The Windows 11 2024 Update will bring a ton of changes to the operating system, including better support for Arm devices.
Windows 11 24H2 gets a new Taskbar feature, but not the one you want
First up, let's check out the notes for Windows 11's patch, KB5051987. On the surface, it doesn't seem very exciting; the main highlight just notes "This update addresses security issues for your Windows operating system."
However, the "Improvements" section notes that this also contains the KB5050094 build we saw in preview back in late January, and those changes are far more fun. It includes a new Taskbar change, albeit anyone looking for a way to freely move the taskbar around like they could in older editions of Windows will be sorely disappointed:
- [Taskbar] New! This update improves the previews that show when your cursor hovers over apps on the taskbar. The update also improves their animations.
- [ Windows Studio Effects ] New! An icon will appear in the system tray when you use an app that supports Windows Studio Effects. This only occurs on a device that has a neural processing unit (NPU). Select the icon to open the Studio Effects page in Quick Settings. To view the app that is using the camera, hover over the icon for a tooltip.
-
[Fonts] New! This update adds Simsun-ExtG, a new simplified Chinese font. It includes the Biangbiang noodles character. Some apps might not be able to display these new extension characters yet. The font has 9,753 ideographs that support Unicode Extensions G, H, and I. See the list below.
- Unicode range G 30000-3134A (4,939 chars)
- Unicode range H 31350-323AF (4,192 chars)
- Unicode range I 2EBF0-2EE5D (622 chars)
-
[File Explorer]
- New! When you right-click items in the left pane, the “New Folder” command appears on the context menu.
- New! Windows restores all the previously open tabs in each File Explorer window. This occurs when you enable “Restore previous folder windows at logon.”
- New! Windows turns on specific File Explorer settings for you. This occurs when you enable “Automatically save my restartable apps and restart them when I sign back in.” Go to Settings > Accounts > Sign in options.
Other versions of Windows get a security update
If you're looking for new, shiny features for either Windows 10 or older versions of Windows 11, it doesn't seem that Microsoft added anything special there. There's the usual round of security updates for the operating system, and while they're undeniably important to keeping your PC running smoothly, they're not too exciting.
As usual, here's a list of all the updates:
|
Windows version |
Build number |
Changelog |
Supported editions |
Manual Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Windows 11 24H2 |
26100.3194 |
All editions |
||
|
Windows 11 23H2 |
22631.4890 |
All editions |
||
|
Windows 11 22H2 |
22621.4890 |
All editions |
||
|
Windows 10 22H2 |
19045.5487 |
All editions |
||
|
Windows 10 21H2 |
19044.5487 |
Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2021, Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2021 |