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Windows Insider

Build 26220.7653

Build 26220.7653: Windows Insider Beta Channel, January 2026. Dark-mode account dialogs and fixes for taskbar and Start

In short

Brings redesigned account dialogs, .webp desktop backgrounds, and fixes for taskbar, Start, Settings, and other issues to Windows Insiders in the Beta and Dev Channels.

Does it affect you? Applies to: Devices enrolled in the Windows Insider Program in the Beta Channel and Dev Channel.

Build
26220.7653
Review notes Additional details from the official release notes (1) Read note
  • What changes Build 26220.7653 is for Windows Insiders in the Beta and Dev Channels.

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 14 changes

Taskbar and System Tray

Gradual rollout 2 items

For: Insiders with the latest-updates toggle on

  • When the taskbar is set to autohide, it no longer appears early and blocks apps at the bottom of the screen.1
  • Start, notification center, and quick settings open when clicked in cases where they sometimes did not.2

Start menu

Gradual rollout 3 items
  • Opening the Start menu no longer causes the memory leak that could lead to performance problems over time.3
  • For Arabic and Hebrew users, the Start menu opens on the correct side of the screen when taskbar icons are not centered.4
  • Touch-panning a folder of pinned apps no longer dismisses the Start menu.5

Bluetooth

Gradual rollout
  • The battery level appears for supported Bluetooth devices for Insiders affected by the issue.6

Xbox full screen experience for PC

Gradual rollout

For: PC users with the latest-updates toggle on

  • Some unexpected app and game behavior in Xbox full screen experience is fixed, though Microsoft is still validating scenarios.7
    Xbox full screen experience (FSE).

Login and Lock Screens

Gradual rollout

For: Insiders with the latest-updates toggle on

  • The password icon no longer appears blank on the login screen.8

Settings

Gradual rollout 2 items

For: Insiders with the latest-updates toggle on

  • Settings no longer crashes when you interact with audio devices.9
  • The keyboard character repeat delay setting now matches the way it is applied.10
    The issue affected Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Keyboard.

Other

Gradual rollout 4 items
  • Text in msinfo32 is less likely to be clipped when the display is set to high scaling.11
  • Clicking .appinstaller files no longer fails with an invalid argument error for affected Insiders installing MSIX packages.12
    The issue affected installation through .appinstaller files.
  • Notepad displays underscores in text with certain fonts when the display is set to 125%.13
  • Explorer is less likely to hang the first time you sign in when certain apps are configured to start automatically; this issue could prevent the taskbar from appearing.14
    Fixes an underlying issue that could cause explorer.exe to hang on first sign-in when certain apps were configured as startup apps.

Improvements 2 changes

Account Settings

Gradual rollout

For: Insiders with the latest-updates toggle on

  • The dialogs under Accounts > Other Users have a refreshed design and support dark mode.15
    The dialogs use the modern WinUI framework. The Add account dialog's visibility depends on whether a domain-joined work or school account is configured.

Click to Do

Gradual rollout

For: Insiders outside the EEA and China with the latest-updates toggle on

  • Copilot prompt suggestions in Click to Do load instantly. This change is not yet rolling out to Insiders in the EEA or China.16

New feature 1 change

Desktop Background

Gradual rollout

For: Insiders with the latest-updates toggle on

  • You can use .webp images as your desktop background in Settings > Personalization > Background.17

Technical details

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

Data sheet

Released
2026-01-16
Type
Windows Insider build
VersionBuildChannel
— 26220.7653 Beta Channel
— 26220.7653 Experimental Channel

Security

No vulnerabilities are listed for this update.

Sources

Updated
Cited passages from Microsoft's official notes (17)
  1. 1. Fixed an issue in the latest builds where, when the taskbar was set to autohide, it might invoke before interacting with the bottom of the screen, blocking the use of apps in that area. blogs.windows.com
  2. 2. Fixed a recent issue which was causing the Start menu, notification center, and quick settings to not open on click sometimes, although using the keyboard shortcuts for each of these still worked. blogs.windows.com
  3. 3. Fixed a memory leak when opening the Start menu, which could lead to performance issues over time. blogs.windows.com
  4. 4. Fixed an issue for Arabic and Hebrew users, where Start menu was opening on the wrong side of the screen when the taskbar icons weren’t centered. blogs.windows.com
  5. 5. Fixed an issue where if you opened a folder of pinned apps in Start menu and tried to pan it with touch, it would dismiss Start menu. blogs.windows.com
  6. 6. Fixed an issue causing Bluetooth device battery level to not show for some Insiders after the latest builds, even though the devices supported it. blogs.windows.com
  7. 7. This build fixes some unexpected app and game behavior when using FSE. We’re continuing to validate scenarios and as such keeping the known issue active for now. blogs.windows.com
  8. 8. Fixed an issue which could cause the password icon to appear blank on the login screen. blogs.windows.com
  9. 9. Fixed an issue causing Settings to crash when interacting with audio devices in the last two builds. blogs.windows.com
  10. 10. Fixed an issue where the keyboard character repeat delay in Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Keyboard was backwards from how it was set in the backend. blogs.windows.com
  11. 11. Fixed a few issues with clipped text in msinfo32 when using a high display scaling. blogs.windows.com
  12. 12. Fixed an issue impacting some Insiders where clicking on .appinstaller files to install MSIX packages was unexpectedly failing with an invalid argument error. blogs.windows.com
  13. 13. Fixed an underlying issue which was causing Notepad to not display an underscore in text with certain fonts when your display was set to 125%. blogs.windows.com
  14. 14. Fixed an underlying issue which could cause explorer.exe to hang when first logging into your PC, if certain apps were configured as startup apps. This could make the taskbar not appear. blogs.windows.com
  15. 15. We’re updating the design of dialogs in “Accounts > Other Users” based on modern WinUI framework with support for dark mode: blogs.windows.com
  16. 16. The Copilot prompt suggestions in Click to Do will now load instantly. This change is not yet rolling out to Windows Insiders in the EEA (European Economic Area) or China. blogs.windows.com
  17. 17. You can now set .webp images for your desktop background in Settings > Personalization > Background. blogs.windows.com
Checked automatically: 8 of 8 checks passed, 17 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 4/5, completeness 5/5. 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