Windows 10 Beta Channel

Corrine · Jun 4, 2024

Opening the Beta Channel for Windows Insiders on Windows 10

At the end of last year, Microsoft announced a change in approach for Windows 10 to make sure everyone can get the maximum value from their current Windows PC. To bring new features and more improvements to Windows 10 as needed, a place is needed to do active feature development with Windows Insiders. So today, Microsoft is opening the Beta Channel for Windows Insiders who are currently on Windows 10. This will allow trying out new features for Windows 10, version 22H2, with Insiders before releasing them to all Windows 10 customers.

If you are an Insider on Windows 10 today and want to try out new features for Windows 10 when available, it is recommended that you join or switch to the Beta Channel. You can do this by going to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Insider Program, clicking on the current Insider Channel selection to expand and see the full list of Insider Channels, and choosing Beta Channel.

For Insiders on a Windows 10 PC that meet the minimum system requirements for Windows 11:

Microsoft will not automatically upgrade you to Windows 11 when you join the Beta Channel. The Windows 11 upgrade will be available as optional, where you can choose to upgrade when you are ready.
You will be able to switch to the Canary or Dev Channels but in doing so it will upgrade your PC to the latest Windows 11 build for those channels.
If you switch to the Canary or Dev Channels, you will have a small window to roll back to Windows 10 but once this window closes, the only way to go back to the Beta Channel and/or Windows 10 will be to do a clean install of Windows.

For Insiders on a Windows 10 PC that DO NOT meet the minimum system requirements for Windows 11:

You will not see the options to switch to the Canary or Dev Channels as these channels are only for Windows 11 Insider Preview builds.
The Windows 10 end of support date of October 14, 2025, is unchanged. Joining the Beta Channel on your Windows 10 PC does not change that. For more information on the Extended Security Update program for Windows 10, see this blog post here.

Many features in the Beta Channel will be rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as feedback is monitored to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel. Insiders in the Beta Channel on Windows 10 who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to them can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update.

Features and experiences included in the Windows 10 builds flighted to the Beta Channel might not ever get released as different concepts are tried feedback received. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in updates to Windows 10 for everyone when they’re ready.

Insiders in the Beta Channel who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Updated & Security > Windows Update. Over time, the rollouts of features will be increased to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.

Please note that once you opt your Windows 10 PC into the Beta Channel today, you will not receive a new build just yet. A new build will be available for you in the coming weeks.

For more information on the 4 Insider Preview Channels, click here.

Corrine · Jun 13, 2024

Releasing Windows 10 Build 19045.4593 to Beta and Release Preview Channels

Going forward, the Beta Channel and Release Preview Channel will receive the same Windows 10 builds; however, the Beta Channel is where new features will be tried out with Insiders that are not yet ready for all Windows 10 customers.

For Windows Insiders on Windows 10 in the Beta Channel, we’re beginning to roll out the following improvements:

[Search on the Taskbar]

We’re made some fixes to improve the overall stability of searching for apps in the search box on the taskbar.

[Windows Backup]

You will be able to seamlessly backup and restore personalization preferences of Activity History and Printer Device Settings that are not hardware or accessory dependent such as “Let Windows manager my default printer” and “Store my activity history on this device”. The goal is to ensure that the most used preferences of these settings are backed up, while avoiding those that are tied to specific hardware, to facilitate a seamless transition to a new PC.
We are making some important bug fixes to enhance the backup and restore functionality. As part of this work, the issue causing backup failures when desktop and lock screen backgrounds were backed up twice has been resolved.

Insiders in the Beta Channel on Windows 10 who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Updated & Security > Windows Update. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.

This update includes the following features and improvements for Windows Insiders in BOTH the Beta and Release Preview Channels:

This update addresses an issue that affects MSIX applications. When you install them from an HTTPS URI, they fail to open. This issue occurs when the download of the application is not complete. This damages the package.
This update affects mobile device management (MDM). When you enroll a device, the MDM client sends more details about the device. The MDM service uses those details to identify the device model and the company that made it.
This update addresses an issue that affects the default Japanese Input Method Editor (IME). The candidate window stops responding when you do not expect it. Then, it goes back to a former composition state at random.
This update addresses an issue that affects Direct Composition batched presentations. A brief flash of triangles or boxes show on the screen. This issue affects browsers, like Microsoft Edge, and other apps.
This update brings Country and Operator Settings Asset (COSA) profiles up to date for certain mobile operators.
This update addresses an issue that might stop your system from resuming from hibernate. This occurs after you turn on BitLocker.
This update addresses an issue that affects Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC). The issue copies unsigned WDAC policies to the Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) disk partition. It is reserved for signed policies.
This update addresses an issue that affects an app’s jump list on the taskbar. Completing actions from that list might fail. A jump list is a menu that appears when you right-click an app on the taskbar or Start menu. It gives you quick access to recently or frequently used app items.
This update addresses an issue that affects a folder context menu. When you choose the command that removes items, the command adds items instead. This occurs when a third-party service implements a sync feature.

Corrine · Jun 19, 2024

ADDED 6/19:

*New! We are advancing the Copilot experience on Windows. It is now pinned to the taskbar and will behave like an app. This gives you the benefits of a typical app experience. For example, you can do things like resize, move, and snap the window. PLEASE NOTE: Managed commercial devices will not receive this new experience. This includes devices not running Windows 10 Home and are managed by an IT administrator.

Corrine · Jul 11, 2024

Releasing Windows 10 Build 19045.4713 to Beta and Release Preview Channels

The Beta Channel and Release Preview Channel will receive the same Windows 10 builds; however, the Beta Channel is where new features will be tried out with Insiders that are not yet ready for all Windows 10 customers. You can read ther announcement for opening the Beta Channel for Windows Insiders on Windows 10 here.

For Windows Insiders on Windows 10 in the Beta Channel, we’re beginning to roll out the following improvements

[Search on the Taskbar]

We are beginning to roll out a fix where you will see search box on your secondary monitors when the setting for search on the taskbar is set to “Search box”.

Insiders in the Beta Channel on Windows 10 who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Updated & Security > Windows Update. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your device over time once they are ready.

This update includes the following features and improvements for Windows Insiders in BOTH the Beta and Release Preview Channels
Items bolded in brackets indicate the area of the change being documented:

[FrameShutdownDelay] The browser ignores its value in the “HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main” registry key.
[Wi-Fi Protected Access 3 (WPA3)] In the Group Policy editor, HTML preview rendering fails.
[Group Policy Preferences Item Level Targeting (ILT) and Local Users and Groups] You cannot choose a group from the target domain for ILT. Also, you cannot choose an account from Local Users and Groups. The forest does not appear. This issue occurs when you deploy multiple forests, and the target domain has a one-way trust with the domain of the admin. This issue affects Enhanced Security Admin Environment (ESAE), Hardened Forests (HF), or Privileged Access Management (PAM) deployments.
[Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)] The TCP send code often causes a system to stop responding during routine tasks, such as file transfers. This issue leads to an extended send loop.
[Print Support App] When you use the app with a USB device, the app stops responding and does not print. This issue also limits the functions of the user interface.
[Universal Print clients] They fail to communicate with the Universal Print service. This affects printing functions. This issue occurs when you turn on Web Proxy Auto Discovery (WPAD).
[Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC)]
- This update prevents a stop error that occurs when you apply more than 32 policies.
- A memory leak occurs that might exhaust system memory as time goes by. This issue occurs when you provision a device.
- WDAC fails to verify the policies of some apps.
[Windows Kernel Vulnerable Driver Blocklist file (DriverSiPolicy.p7b)] This update adds to the list of drivers that are at risk for Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver (BYOVD) attacks.
[Windows Backup] Backup sometimes fails. This occurs when a device has an Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) system partition (ESP).
[DHCP Option 235 (known issue)] Some Windows devices use this option to find Microsoft Connected Cache (MCC) nodes in their network. But you might not be able to use these nodes when you find them. Instead, these devices download updates and apps from the public internet. Because of this, download traffic increases.

Corrine · Aug 23, 2024

Releasing Windows 10 Build 19045.4842 to Beta and Release Preview Channels

Windows 10 22H2 Build 19045.4842 (KB5041582) is being released to BOTH the Beta Channel and Release Preview Channel for Insiders who are on Windows 10, version 22H2.

This update includes the following features and improvements for Windows Insiders in BOTH the Beta and Release Preview Channels
Items bolded in brackets indicate the area of the change being documented:

[Input Method Editor (IME)] When a combo box has input focus, a memory leak might occur when you close that window.
[Country and Operator Settings Asset] This update brings COSA profiles up to date for certain mobile operators.
[Bluetooth] An app stops responding because of a memory leak in a device.
[Bind Filter Driver] Your system might stop responding when it accesses symbolic links.
[Unified Write Filter (UWF) and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM)] An SCCM task to re-enable UWF fails because of a deadlock in UWF. This stops the device from restarting when you expect it.

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Windows 10 Beta Channel

Corrine

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Windows 10 Beta Channel

Corrine

Administrator, Microsoft MVP, Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator, Microsoft MVP, Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator, Microsoft MVP, Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator, Microsoft MVP, Security Analyst

Corrine

Administrator, Microsoft MVP, Security Analyst

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst

Administrator,
Microsoft MVP,
Security Analyst