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Windows 11 Windows 11 Insider 26H2 Insider Preview, Experimental Channel
Windows Insider

Build 27718

Build 27718: Windows Insider Experimental Channel, October 2024. Lock screen media controls and taskbar keyboard navigation

In short

Media controls move to the bottom center of the Lock screen, and taskbar keyboard navigation gains letter, Home, and End controls. The build is for Windows Insiders in the Experimental Channel.

Does it affect you? Applies to: Devices enrolled in the Experimental Channel, as listed for this build in the dossier. Some separate app updates in the post apply to Canary and Dev Channel Insiders, or to Insiders across all channels.

Build
27718
Review notes Additional details from the official release notes (2) Read notes
  • This page Build 27718 is released to the Canary Channel.
  • What changes Build 27718 is released to the Canary Channel.

The official sources are linked at the end of the page.

This is a test build for people in the Windows Insider Program. Features in it can change, be removed, or never reach regular Windows releases.

What changes

Fixes 9 changes

Upgrade

  • Some Insiders no longer get stuck at the boot screen and rolled back with error 0xC1900101 when upgrading from the previous flight.1
    Fixes an upgrade hang and rollback with error 0xC1900101.

File Explorer

  • Moving windows no longer causes sporadic File Explorer crashes.2
    Fixes sporadic explorer.exe crashes in the previous two Canary builds.

System crash

  • Some Insiders no longer see a system crash with the “SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION” error.3
    Fixes a bugcheck with error message SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION in the previous two Canary builds.

Emoji panel

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • The emoji panel no longer closes when you switch to kaomoji or symbols, or after you choose an emoji.4

Touchpad

For: users with touchpads that do not support the function

  • The right-click setting no longer appears when a touchpad does not support that action.5
    Updates the logic for “Press the lower right corner of the touchpad to right-click” under Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Touchpad.

Widgets

  • The Widgets icon no longer appears twice on the taskbar unexpectedly.6

WMI Provider Host

  • A frequent crash in WMI Provider Host is fixed.7
    Fixes a high-hitting wmiprvse.exe crash in the previous two Canary flights.

Audio playback

  • Some apps, including Media Player, no longer crash when playing audio.8
    Fixes crashes in certain apps in the previous two Canary flights.

Dual-boot menu

  • The menu for choosing an operating system displays correctly on some dual-boot PCs.9
    Fixes incorrect color and a menu that could use only half the available space.

New features 8 changes

Start menu

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • You can drag apps from the Start menu’s Pinned section to the taskbar.10

Taskbar & System Tray

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • With keyboard focus on the taskbar, press a letter to jump to an app or window that starts with it. Press the letter again to move to another match; Home and End move to the first and last items.11
    Press Win + T to set keyboard focus to the taskbar. With an uncombined taskbar, letter navigation uses window names instead of app names.

Notifications

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • You can turn off suggestions that ask you to disable notifications from certain apps.12
    Use the notification’s “…” menu or go to Settings > System > Notifications and turn off “Notification Suggestions.” The setting appears in the sender list after you receive one.

Energy Saver

For: laptop users

  • On a laptop running on battery, a notification asks you to plug in when the battery reaches 20% and Energy Saver is set to “Always On.”13

Touch

Gradual rollout

For: Insiders receiving the gradual rollout

  • A new touch setting lets you turn off left- or right-edge gestures on the touch screen.14
    Find the setting under Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Touch.

Administrator protection

  • An upcoming security feature aims to let administrators perform admin tasks with temporary privileges.15
    Administrator protection is off by default and must be enabled through group policy.

Microsoft Store app categories

Gradual rollout

For: Canary and Dev Channel Insiders with the required Store version

  • The Microsoft Store apps page adds categories below the featured section. Select a category to browse apps.16
    For Canary and Dev Channel Insiders running Microsoft Store version 22409.xxxx.x or higher.

Clock widgets

Gradual rollout

For: Insiders across all channels with the required Clock app version

  • The Clock app adds countdown and timer widgets to the widgets board.17
    Requires Clock app version 11.2408.9.0 or higher. Add the widgets from the widgets picker.

Improvements 5 changes

Insider Preview build expiration

For: Insiders in the Canary Channel

  • Canary Insider Preview builds have an updated expiration date. Keep your device on the latest Canary build.18
    The updated expiration date applies to Canary builds starting with Build 27695.

Lock screen

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • When media is playing, its controls now appear at the bottom center of the Lock screen.19

Start menu account manager

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • The sign-out option is now visible, and the menu lists signed-in users for faster account switching.20
    Signed-in users appear under the “…” menu.

Narrator

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • Narrator scan mode should respond much faster, especially in Microsoft Edge and when reading large documents.21
    Start Narrator with Win + Ctrl + Enter. During a Narrator session, press Caps Lock + Spacebar to turn on scan mode.

Windows Update

For: everyone in the Experimental Channel

  • The dialog that asks you to address an issue before an update proceeds has updated icon sizes and spacing.22
    Examples include needing more disk space or having a compatibility issue.

Removal 1 change

Windows Share

Gradual rollout

For: Insiders receiving the gradual rollout

  • The Windows Share window is getting a simpler layout without its search box.23

Technical details

Data sheet · Security · Downloads · Components Click to collapse or expand

Data sheet

Released
2024-10-02
Type
Windows Insider build
VersionBuildChannel
— 27718 Experimental Channel

Security

No vulnerabilities are listed for this update.

Sources

Updated
Cited passages from Microsoft's official notes (23)
  1. 1. Fixed an issue which was causing some Insiders to experience a hang at the boot screen and their PC to roll back with error 0xC1900101 when trying to upgrade to the previous flight. blogs.windows.com
  2. 2. Fixed an issue in the last 2 Canary builds which was causing sporadic explorer.exe crashes when moving windows around. blogs.windows.com
  3. 3. Fixed an issue causing some Insiders on the last 2 Canary builds to see a bugcheck with error message “SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION”. blogs.windows.com
  4. 4. Fixed an issue causing the emoji panel to close when trying to switch to the kaomoji and symbols sections, or after selecting an emoji. blogs.windows.com
  5. 5. Updated the logic for the setting “Press the lower right corner of the touchpad to right-click” Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Touchpad so it shouldn’t show in cases where the touchpad doesn’t support the functionality. blogs.windows.com
  6. 6. Fixed an issue which could result in the Widgets icon unexpectedly displaying in the taskbar twice sometimes. blogs.windows.com
  7. 7. Fixed a high hitting wmiprvse.exe crash in the last 2 Canary flights. blogs.windows.com
  8. 8. Fixed an issue which was causing certain apps (like Media Player) to crash when playing audio for some Insiders in the last 2 Canary flights. blogs.windows.com
  9. 9. Fixed an issue for some Insiders with dual boot devices, where the boot menu (where you select which OS to boot into) wasn’t displaying correctly (the color was wrong, and it might only display in half the available space). blogs.windows.com
  10. 10. You can drag apps from the Pinned section of the menu and pin them to the taskbar. blogs.windows.com
  11. 11. Updated the taskbar to now support first letter navigation, so when keyboard focus is set to the taskbar (WIN + T), you can press a letter, and it will jump to the open or pinned app whose name starts with that letter. blogs.windows.com
  12. 12. You can now press the “…” within the notification to disable the notification, as you can with other notifications, or you can go to the list of notification senders in Settings > System > Notifications and turn it off from there blogs.windows.com
  13. 13. For laptops on battery, a notification will pop up asking you to plug in your laptop if the battery level reaches 20% while Energy Saver is set to “Always On”. blogs.windows.com
  14. 14. Note, this feature is rolling out so not all Insiders in the Canary Channel will see it right away. blogs.windows.com
  15. 15. This feature is off by default and needs to be enabled via group policy. blogs.windows.com
  16. 16. The apps page on the Microsoft Store will now show a new categories experience just under the featured section. blogs.windows.com
  17. 17. We are rolling out a Clock app update to Windows Insiders across all Insider Channels that includes two new clock widgets: countdown and timer. blogs.windows.com
  18. 18. The expiration date for Insider Preview builds flighted to the Canary Channel has been updated to 9/15/2025 starting with Build 27695. Please make sure you are updated to the latest build in the Canary Channel. blogs.windows.com
  19. 19. We have updated the Lock screen so that the media controls will now show at the lower bottom center of the Lock screen now when media is being played. blogs.windows.com
  20. 20. Based on feedback, we’ve made some updates to the new account manager on the Start menu making the sign out option directly visible, and adding a list of signed in users under “…” so it’s faster to switch accounts. blogs.windows.com
  21. 21. This is expected to make scan mode responses much quicker, especially while using Microsoft Edge, and reading through large documents. blogs.windows.com
  22. 22. This includes updating the icon sizes and spacing. blogs.windows.com
  23. 23. We’re rolling out some minor UI changes to simplify the Windows share window which removes the search box. blogs.windows.com
Checked automatically: 8 of 8 checks passed, 23 quoted passages
  • Quotes found in the official pages: passed
  • Numbers found in the sources: passed
  • Vulnerabilities from the dossier only: passed
  • Links to allowed domains only: passed
  • Every official change covered: passed
  • Readable plain text: passed
  • Changes confirmed by the file list: passed
  • Sources agree: passed

A second AI read the text against the sources: correctness 3/5, clarity 3/5, completeness 4/5. How we work

Published by The Update Bureau. Written with AI from Microsoft's own documents, checked by rules and a second AI. How we work · Report a mistake