An especially inquisitive Reddit user has worked out a trick that lets you use Windows 10’s File Explorer in Windows 11 without having to mess with your Windows Registry.

Windows 10’s File Explorer and overall user interface (UI) are some of the biggest reasons that many folks prefer the older operating system, so this will be regarded as quite the breakthrough in some respects. Mainly because other workarounds to be able to achieve the same end require that you tinker with your Windows Registry, requiring a degree of understanding and care (or a third-party tool, most of which are not free).

Now, thanks to Reddit user The_Blank_Spot, you can achieve the same thing a lot more easily. 

To fire up Windows 10’s File Explorer within Windows 11, follow these steps: 

1. Type ‘Control Panel’ into the search box in the Windows 11 taskbar and open the panel.

2. Click on ‘System and Security.’

3. Click on ‘Windows Tools.’

This should open the ‘Windows Tools’ folder, but here’s the trick: it opens in the classic Windows 10 File Explorer UI. From here, you can go on to navigate to different file locations or system drives, and those who have tried, including us, have observed that the interface won’t change while that window stays open.

In other words, you’ll have the Windows 10 File Explorer the whole time you’re working with this window, until you close it.

An easy workaround with seemingly no downside

This workaround seemingly doesn’t cause any issues with your OS and it also doesn’t replace the current Windows 11 UI. You can use the rest of Windows 11 as usual, and you can even use both File Explorers side by side at the same time (if you open any folder in Windows 11 as normal).

Using Windows 10’s UI here also means you get access to a feature that was cut in Windows 11 - though admittedly it’s coming back in testing - namely ‘drag and drop’ in File Explorer’s address bar. This allows you to select a file or folder that’s currently open in a location in File Explorer, then drag it to another location listed in the address bar to move it there. 

A commenter in the thread regarding The_Blank_Spot’s discovery, RockFox, pointed out that once you’re in ‘System and Security’ within ‘Control Panel,’ you can right-click ‘Windows Tools’ and use ‘Create shortcut.’ Then, you can right-click this shortcut and select ‘Pin to Start’ or  ‘Pin to Taskbar’ to place it in a convenient place in those parts of the Windows 11 interface, and rename it to whatever you want.

Many people might be delighted to find out about this, and I will probably take these steps on my own device, too. However, since this does appear to be a bug that Microsoft hasn’t caught yet, it’s likely the company might close this loophole when the next huge Windows 11 update, 24H2, is released later in 2024.

Via Notebookcheck.net

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Microsoft recently pushed out an update for the Photos app in Windows 11, one that brings some major changes under the hood, and it could also produce a noticeable change in terms of how the app runs on your PC.

The crux of the matter is that the Photos app has been migrated from Microsoft's UWP (Universal Windows Platform) to Windows App SDK, meaning that the app has been redeveloped using a different framework making it better suited for newer versions of Windows. 

The revamped version of Photos is currently available to testers in the Windows Insider Program, and, as Windows Latest reports, it has already begun rolling out to individual customers running the finished version of Windows 11, too. 

The new Photos app shifting to Windows App SDK allows for the incorporation of WebView2, and this web tech allows for various improvements to the software. Microsoft notes that these benefits include better image rendering quality for starters, and AI-related boosts.

There are many other tangible improvements ushered in with the new Photos app, such as it being able to run at a medium integrity level by default, the security status assigned to most activities and processes on a Windows PC. Furthermore, you can save a newly edited photo in the same location as the original photo without having to choose a file destination manually.

Another useful change is the previous multiple processes the Photos app consisted of being combined into a single process clearly labeled as ‘Photos,’ making it easier to hunt out and force-close the Photos app in Task Manager. 

However, there’s apparently a downside here, namely that as Windows Latest claims, the big switchover to a new way of working for the Photos app means it takes longer to load than before. 

Balancing new features with longer load times

Seemingly we’re looking at a trade-off between better quality-of-life and new features, versus a longer loading time. Windows Latest observes that this is a characteristic of many Windows App SDK apps, and that you may be staring at a ‘Getting things ready’ loading splash screen for some time while Photos fires itself up (perhaps for 20 seconds or so).

Additionally, the new Photos app could use more of your PC’s resources, especially when using the new web-based functions of the client. For example, when you’re editing a pic, the Photos app is rendering web-based image editing (WebView2) within the app’s native interface.

If you’re not interested in having this newer version of the Photos app, and the new AI features recently added to the software, you can download the Legacy Photos app from the Microsoft Store, and stick with that (for now anyway). 

So, if you’re fine with these changes, your Windows 11 PC should automatically install the updated Photos app in the coming weeks, but if you find that you’re not happy with the app’s performance, you can switch back to the legacy version of Photos instead.

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Microsoft has recently released an optional update, KB5037849, for Windows 10 that brings in a useful feature that we’ve only seen in Windows 11 thus far, one that improves integration with Android devices.

This development is a little unexpected as Microsoft has been pushing Windows 10 users to transition to Windows 11, and reminding them that its end-of-support date is approaching - so you’d expect that adding new features to the older OS would be shoved down the priority list by now, but apparently that’s not the case.

After installing KB5037849, Windows Latest noticed that the 'Mobile Devices' feature page, previously seen only in Windows 11, had been introduced to Windows 10. This feature enables you to access photos taken and stored on your phone instantly on your PC. It appears as a ‘Mobile Devices’ page found in the Settings app, and when you toggle ‘Allow this PC to access your mobile devices’ on, it will prompt you to ‘Download and install Cross Device Experience Host’ from the Microsoft Store. 

Apparently, it does require that you’re logged into a Microsoft account, but it doesn’t need setting up via the Phone Link app (which allows users to fully sync their Android or iPhone with their Windows PC towards all kinds of ends). 

Once you do this, you can head to the ‘Manage Devices’ page (via the ‘Mobile Devices’ panel) and turn on ‘Get new photo notifications.’ You will then receive notifications on your PC when you take new photos on the Android phone that you’ve linked, allowing you to view the photos and edit them with the Snipping Tool in Windows 11. Or indeed you can also open the photos with Paint, or share them with others via Windows Share. 

How to get this new photo-sharing with Android feature

For now, Windows 10 users will have to install the optional May 2024 update to gain these capabilities, but all Windows 10 users are set to get this feature as part of the mandatory June 2024 Patch Tuesday update. 

Remember that any optional update is still in testing, and could have unpredictable results, so you may want to wait for the full release of the patch (which happens a week today, in fact, so it’s not far off).

If you can’t wait and want to install the optional update KB5037849 now, go to the following location: Settings > Updates & Security > Windows Update. Then click on ‘Download and install’ where the optional update is flagged up (check for updates if it isn’t).

This update also delivers several bug fixes, as well as other changes, that you can check out in more detail on Microsoft’s official support page for the patch. 

I’m glad Windows 10 is still receiving new features, even if they’re not the biggest updates, and it’s good to see Microsoft hasn’t completely given up on the OS, despite the scheduled end-of-support date being just over a year away.

Hopefully, Microsoft will continue to add features to improve Windows 10, although I’d imagine the company will halt this practice in the near future, as resources are likely to be redirected elsewhere, which will no doubt disappoint Windows 10 fans even further. 

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It seems Microsoft really doesn’t want you to be using Windows 11 with a local account - meaning one that doesn’t require signing in to your Microsoft account - as the company just closed another well-known loophole that enabled users to bypass that sign-in process.

The loophole in question could have previously been used when Microsoft prompted you to sign in to the account during Windows 11 setup. It worked by using a blocked email, such as example@example.com, a@a.com, or no@thankyou.com. If you used such an email address, and typed in any random password with it, you’d get past the sign-in page and end up with Windows 11 having a local installation (with no Microsoft account attached to it).

Unfortunately, according to a post shared on X by Zac Bowden of Windows Central, Windows 11 now redirects you back to the sign-in page if you try to enter an invalid email address when asked to sign in to a Microsoft account.

Apparently, if you try this now, you’ll be met with an ‘Oops, something went wrong’ message and be made to restart the sign-in process again. In short, the fake email isn’t accepted any longer, and you’re forced to enter a genuine one for your Microsoft account.

One workaround to get you in without a Microsoft account

That’s the bad news, then, but not all hope is lost if you’re installing Windows 11 and want to start using it without logging into a Microsoft account.

Tom’s Hardware reports that there is another existing workaround, albeit it’s a more complicated affair. Should you wish to try, it goes like this:

1. During Windows 11 setup, at the ‘Choose a country’ screen, press the Shift + F10 keys together.

2. At the command prompt that appears, type in OOBE/BYPASSNRO and press Enter.

3. The PC will reboot and you’ll return to the same screen, then you need to again press the Shift + F10 keys together.

4. This time at the command prompt that appears, you must type in ipconfig /release and press Enter. This disables your internet to allow for creating a local account.

5. Close the command prompt and continue Windows 11 setup as normal. When you reach the ‘Let’s connect you to a network’ panel, click on ‘I don’t have Internet.’

6. At the next screen click ‘Continue with limited setup.’

7. In the next panel, when prompted for a name, enter one you’d like for your local account, then enter a password (or leave it blank and press Enter if you don’t want any password for when Windows 11 starts up, but that isn’t recommended for obvious security reasons).

Then you can proceed with the rest of the Windows 11 installation as normal, but you’ll end up with a local account.

However, you’ve got to wonder how long Microsoft will leave this particular loophole working - although it is quite convoluted, and most users probably don’t know about it, so it could remain an option that’s present going forward.

A good many Windows 11 users have expressed their frustration that they are forced to sign into a Microsoft account to use the OS. This strategy is one of several that Microsoft has been pushing that has seemingly rubbed users the wrong way, and yet that doesn’t seem to have discouraged the company from continuing in this direction.

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Microsoft has already been dragged over the coals regarding its Recall functionality inbound for Windows 11 by security researchers and privacy watchdogs alike – and it’ll need a flame-retardant suit for the latest fiery outpouring against the AI-powered feature.

This comes from security expert Kevin Beaumont, as highlighted by The Verge. The site notes that Beaumont worked for Microsoft briefly a few years ago.

To recap – in case you missed it somehow – Recall is an AI feature for Copilot+ PCs, which launches later this month and acts as a photographic timeline – essentially a history of everything you’ve done on your PC, recorded via screenshots that are taken regularly in the background of Windows 11.

Beaumont got Recall working on a normal (non-Copilot+) PC – which can be done, though it isn’t recommended performance-wise – and has been messing around with it for a week.

He’s come to the conclusion that Microsoft has made a giant mistake here, at least going by the feature as currently implemented – and it’s about to ship, of course. Indeed, Beaumont asserts that Microsoft is “probably going to set fire to the entire Copilot brand due to how poorly this has been implemented and rolled out,” no less.

So, what’s the big problem? Well, principally, it’s the lack of thought around security and how there’s a major discrepancy between Microsoft’s description of the way Recall is apparently kept watertight and what Beaumont has found.

As you can see in the above post on X (formerly Twitter), one of the security expert’s main beef with Microsoft is that it informed media outlets that a hacker can’t possibly nab Copilot+ Recall data remotely. In other words, an attacker would need to access the device physically, in-person – and this isn’t true.

In a long blog post on this topic, Beaumont explains: “This is wrong. Data can be accessed remotely.” Note that Recall does work entirely locally, as Microsoft said – it’s just that it isn’t impossible to tap into the data remotely, as suggested (if you can access the PC, of course).

As Beaumont elaborates, the other big problem here is the Recall database itself, which contains all the data from those screenshots and the history of your PC usage – as all of this is stored in plain text (in an SQLite database).

This makes it very easy to snaffle all the Recall-related info of exactly how you’ve been using your Windows 11 PC – assuming an attacker can get access to the device (either remotely, or in-person).

Analysis: Recall the Recall feature, or regret it

There are lots of further concerns here, too. As Microsoft pointed out when it revealed Recall, there are no limits to what can be captured in the AI-powered history of the activity on your PC (save for some slight exceptions, like Microsoft Edge’s private browsing mode – but not Chrome Incognito, tellingly).

Sensitive financial info, for example, won’t be excluded, and Beaumont further points out that auto-deleting messages in messaging apps will be screenshotted, too, so they could be accessed via a stolen Recall database. Indeed, any message you delete from the likes of WhatsApp, Signal, or whatever could be read via a Recall compromise.

But wait a minute, you might be thinking – if your PC is remotely accessed by a hacker, aren’t you in deep trouble anyway? Well, yes, that’s true – it’s not like these Recall details can be accessed unless your PC is actively exploited (though part of Beaumont’s problem is Microsoft’s apparently errant statement that any kind of remote access to Recall data wasn’t possible at all, as mentioned above).

The real kicker here is that if someone does access your PC, Recall seemingly makes it very easy for that attacker to grab all these potentially hugely sensitive details about your usage history.

While info stealer Trojans already exist and scrape victims at a large scale on an ongoing basis, Recall could enable this kind of personal data hoovering to be done ridiculously quickly and easily.

This is the crux of the criticism, as Beaumont explains it: “Recall enables threat actors to automate scraping everything you’ve ever looked at within seconds. During testing this with an off the shelf infostealer, I used Microsoft Defender for Endpoint – which detected the off the shelve infostealer – but by the time the automated remediation kicked in (which took over ten minutes) my Recall data was already long gone.”

This is a major part of the reason why Beaumont calls Recall “one of the most ridiculous security failings I’ve ever seen.”

If Microsoft doesn’t take action before it ships, mind – as there’s still time, in theory anyway, although the release of Copilot+ PCs is very close now. (However, Recall could still be kicked temporarily to touch while it’s further worked on – perhaps).

If Recall does ship as it’s currently implemented, Beaumont advises turning it off: “Also to be super clear you can disable this in Settings when it ships, and I highly recommend you do unless they rework the feature and experience.”

Herein lies another thorny issue: the AI-powered functionality is on by default. Recall is highlighted during the Copilot+ PC setup experience, and you can switch it off, but the way this is implemented means you have to tick a box to enter settings post-setup, and then turn off Recall there – otherwise, it will simply be left on. And some Windows 11 users will likely fall into the trap of not understanding what the tick box option means during setup and just end up with Recall on by default.

This is not the way a feature like this should operate – particularly given the privacy concerns highlighted here – and we’ve made our feelings on this quite clear before. Anything with wide-ranging abilities like Recall should be off by default, surely – or users should have a very clear choice presented to them during setup. Not some kind of weird ‘tick this box, jump through this hoop later’ kind of shenanigans.

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Microsoft has taken a new tack with its continued campaign of full-screen banner ads designed to push Windows 10 users to upgrade to Windows 11, and this time, users of suitable and unsuitable PCs - those that don’t meet the hardware requirements for the newest OS - are seeing different adverts. 

Windows 11’s market share has remained relatively static in recent months, and Microsoft is clearly eager to change that, with Windows 10 holding the vast majority of market share with around 70% (according to StatCounter). 

As for Microsoft's latest tactic to drive upgrades, Windows Latest noticed two separate initiatives as mentioned. The first was witnessed on a Windows 10 PC that wasn’t eligible for a Windows 11 upgrade, and it showed a screen warning that the device will stop receiving updates come October 2025, reminding users that their PC can’t run Windows 11. The full-screen notification was titled “A new journey with Windows” and appeared after monthly mandatory security updates were installed, possibly implying that this could be a repeating occurrence.

The notification screen also offers users the ability to be reminded at a later date, and to learn more about the end of support for Windows 10. It links to a support document that encourages you to consider a Windows 11 upgrade, partly by including a comparison of the two operating systems. 

This differed from a PC running Windows 10 and eligible for a straightforward Windows 11 upgrade. On this system, Windows Latest received a notification encouraging them to go ahead and schedule their update or just upgrade right away, alerting them of the upcoming end-of-support date and reminding them to make sure that their device stays supported past that date. This notification has been seen before, of course (a number of times).

Microsoft's ambitions vs Windows 10 fans' devotion

Windows 10 continues to be the dominant flavor of Windows and users aren’t happy about being forced to move on or face losing support. Windows 11 was released the best part of three years ago, but it’s still struggling to get near Windows 10’s popularity, as mentioned. Part of the problem here is those hardware requirements, of course, which are a stumbling block for some folks with older PCs.

Users who want to stick with Windows 10 do have a few choices and we’ve recently discussed this in-depth. One option will be to continue getting security updates past Windows 10’s end-of-life date with Microsoft’s Extended Security Update (ESU) program. Currently, this is only available for commercial customers, but Windows Latest asserts that a version for individual consumers will arrive later in 2024. Currently, an ESU license for a single device is $61 a year for businesses, but the price doubles every year (for up to three years). 

Windows 10 users are faced with three primary options in the longer term: upgrade to Windows 11, continue to use Windows 10 without crucial security updates (not a good idea at all), or opt into a pricey extended security update plan. I understand Windows 10 users’ frustrations as many are not sold on Windows 11 as being an improvement in quality. Additionally, many users aren’t keen on Microsoft’s insistence on integrating AI into many apps and parts of the operating system, and Windows 10 still looks and feels like a modern, up-to-date OS. Furthermore, there are those hardware requirements to consider, as already noted. 

I don’t know how well Microsoft will weather this transition, but the company needs to walk a fine line between reminding users about the reality of Windows 10 running out of support, and getting too pushy with all these notifications. Right now, it feels like Microsoft is erring (again) towards the latter, but I don’t see the company backing down.

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Microsoft is gearing up to roll out a pretty substantial update for Windows 11, 24H2, with the update currently making its way through the final stages of testing. According to recent reports, it will see the end of several long-standing Microsoft products, including Cortana and WordPad, along with a few of Windows 11’s other old features. 

There is a provisional list of Windows features that are in the process of being deprecated on the official Microsoft Learn blog, although not all of them have a confirmed date. However, Swedish tech news site Sweclocker has shared that the first 24H2 release candidate version is now available via the Windows Insider Program. The final version that will roll out to all Windows 11 users is expected to be released in September or October.

We wrote about the announcements of WordPad’s and Cortana’s deprecation a while back, with Cortana giving way to Microsoft’s new all-purpose digital AI assistant, Copilot. Tips is another app that’s going to be absent in this build, along with Step Recorder. Steps Recorder is a built-in Windows assistance tool that has the ability to record user actions and analyze them to help troubleshoot their device.

These are just some of the apps and features being sent to the Microsoft Graveyard, but the preview release candidate build also brings new features, as detailed in an official Windows Blogs post. This includes HDR background support, the ability to create 7-zip and TAR archives directly in File Explorer, and improvements to Bluetooth connectivity for certain devices. 

Copilot is also getting a ramp-up in this update, with the dedicated app rolling out to all Windows 11 users. It will also grant users the ability to move, resize, and snap the Copilot window. 

Reflecting on bygones and Windows 11's future

Cortana wasn’t the biggest hit with Windows users and I doubt many will miss it, but there was a pretty vocal response from users who lamented the news that WordPad was on its way out. WordPad is a basic text editor that’s been a default application on Windows devices since the 90s, and many people have grown fond of it, especially as an increasing number of familiar apps have become more complex and been injected with often-unwanted AI features. 

If enough people continue to voice their thoughts and positive sentiments about WordPad, we might see it return as an optional download from the Microsoft Store - like what happened with the Paint app that’s since gone on to have a second life. PCGamer speculates that for most of these apps and features, with the exception of Cortana, perhaps Microsoft doesn’t feel like continuing the upkeep of these apps and would prefer to dedicate those resources elsewhere - a move that might see more users take up Microsoft 365 subscriptions. 

Some of these features and apps, like Steps Recorder, won’t be especially missed by me, but I do personally hope that Microsoft reconsiders giving WordPad a permanent chop. It would be an easy win that would remind users that Microsoft doesn’t completely plug its ears when it comes to users’ opinions and that it’s still willing to leave things that aren’t broken - even if they’re not the biggest money makers. 

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Windows 10 might hold a share of around 70% of the overall Windows user base, but that’s not making Microsoft flinch when it comes to its plans to deprecate the fan-favorite operating system. The date when Windows 10 is going to stop receiving support and new updates has been set (it’s October 14, 2025), and current Windows 10 users are being reminded again. 

This isn’t the first time Microsoft has prodded users to upgrade to Windows 11 - far from it. Previously the company has shown full-screen multi-page reminders, and now, Microsoft has added an official web page detailing the inevitable.

The new ‘End of support’ page offers Microsoft’s advice and recommendations for transitioning to Windows 11 if you’re running Windows 10 (or an older Windows version than that like Windows 8.1 or Windows 7). 

Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 have already been ditched and haven’t been receiving updates for a long time, and Windows 10 will join them next year. The official page goes into detail about what will happen when support ends and what users can expect. 

The Windows 10-specific page has a prominent banner urging users to upgrade to Windows 11 for free if their PC is eligible. Microsoft also explains that Windows 10 users will no longer receive security or technical updates after October 2025. Their PCs will continue to work, but they won't get security updates and will be left open to potential security exploits, and so Microsoft recommends that they move on to Windows 11 (if their hardware allows the upgrade).

The dedicated transition page also has other linked pages detailing Windows 11’s features and how they’re an apparent improvement on Windows 10, as well as a straightforward comparison page between the two operating systems. There’s a page that even takes you through the process of how to shop for a new laptop, should you wish to upgrade to Windows 11 on a new device, and how you can back up your data on OneDrive to make sure you don’t lose it when you transition to a new machine. 

Microsoft is pretty insistent that you will need to get a device capable of running Windows 11, preferably a new one and, if you really want to make Microsoft happy, you can go for one of its brand new next-gen Copilot+ PCs. 

So, what's next for Windows 10 users?

Windows 10 users who don’t want to migrate to Windows 11 will be faced with a difficult choice - switch to an alternative OS entirely (like Linux), or stick with Windows 10 and open up their PC to possible malware and security holes that don’t get resolved by updates after October 2025. These users will also not see any new features for their system or apps introduced through updates.

The other choice is to continue receiving critical security updates for Windows 10 by opting in for the Extended Security Updates (ESU) program for the operating system. It's intended to be a permanent fix, and its purpose is to offer a temporary solution. This is mainly for organizations and businesses while they transition to a newer operating system.

The pricing plans for individual users opting for the ESU program haven’t been revealed yet, but Windows Latest has learned that Microsoft will share this information later in the year. Businesses will pay $61 per device for year one (and that price will increase every year).

Many people just prefer Windows 10 to Windows 11, but there are also folks whose devices don’t meet the hardware requirements to run Microsoft’s newest OS. While there are workarounds for some PCs to fudge an installation of Windows 11, we wouldn’t necessarily recommend that course of action (and neither is it suitable for the less tech-savvy out there).

Microsoft might be eager for people to move on to its shiny new AI-driven Copilot+ PCs, but many people can’t afford a new computer right now, and, for the time being, Windows 10 works perfectly well. A lot of people aren’t that keen on Windows 11 either, due to some of its performance issues, perceived flaws in the operating system’s design, and Microsoft’s persistent effort to integrate AI features into multiple parts of the OS. 

I don’t know if Microsoft will be successful in converting more users to Windows 11 and its new line-up of PCs, but Windows 10 fans are reluctant to move on just yet. As to whether that will change next year, we’ll just have to see, but Windows 11 adoption appears to have stalled recently, so it’s not looking great for Microsoft. That said, Windows is still the most widely used desktop operating system in the world, and there’s no threat to its dominance that will mean Microsoft feels the heat in any meaningful way - for now.

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We now know a lot more about how Microsoft’s Automatic Super Resolution (Auto SR) feature for speeding up gaming frame rates in Windows 11 will work, and what games it will initially support.

VideoCardz noticed a new entry in Microsoft’s support database on the topic of Auto SR, which underlines the requirements, as well as detailing what games will come as fully verified for the tech.

For those who missed it, Auto SR is an upscaling feature, meaning it runs a game at a lower resolution, upscaling to a higher one, so that you get a close-to-native-resolution image quality with a faster frame rate – using AI to pull off this trickery.

The notable catches are that you need a Copilot+ PC and indeed a Snapdragon X processor, one of the ARM-based chips that’ll power laptops launching next month. (You’ll also need Windows 11 24H2, which launches with those AI PCs).

As for the games which are verified and tested by Microsoft for Auto SR, the initial collection is as follows:

• 7 Days to Die
• BeamNG Drive
• Borderlands 3
• Control
• Dark Souls III
• God of War
• Kingdom Come: Deliverance
• Resident Evil 2
• Resident Evil 3
• Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
• Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Analysis: Useful clarifications – and caveats

It’s interesting to see the fully verified games, and even if it’s only a small selection of a dozen right now, there are some big-name titles. However, the really interesting bit is the clarification that Automatic Super Resolution is a sweeping upscaling feature that can be applied to any game (DX11 or DX12).

We always assumed it would be a system-wide feature – after all, that was the whole point, compared to more targeted upscaling solutions that require support from the game dev such as Nvidia DLSS – and indeed this is the case. It’s just Microsoft worried us with its mention of Auto SR just applying to a “curated set of games” last week when it launched the feature, but these are just the verified games guaranteed to work well.

The majority of games should be fine with Auto SR in theory, but some may be wonky, or some may not work at all, and to that end, Microsoft is collaborating with the Worksonwoa.com website that lists games that can use the feature successfully – and also those that can’t use Auto SR for whatever reason. (This is the same website that also tells you whether your favorite PC game will run on Windows on ARM).

There are some nuances to note here, and the first is that verified games are set to work ‘out of the box’ with Auto SR, meaning the feature will be on by default. That could cause some confusion or conflict if a gamer is using another type of upscaling potentially – though you are told that by Windows that Auto SR is being enabled when the game is launched.

We guess Microsoft feels that less tech-savvy folks will benefit from having the feature automatically applied where it makes sense, in games that are fully tested to work well with Auto SR.

The Snapdragon X requirement is the other important point to note here, although we assume this will be widened to include future AMD and Intel laptop CPUs – those with a powerful enough NPU to qualify as the engine of a Copilot+ PC (as Auto SR will be for these PCs only).

However, we also noticed that Microsoft says Auto SR is only supported for games running on ARM64 natively or emulated x64 games (with the latter using Prism, the translation layer for running Windows games on ARM chips). Presumably that’s a reflection that currently (well, as of next month) only the new Snapdragon X can drive a Copilot+ PC, and that when AMD Strix Point or Intel Lunar Lake CPUs arrive for these AI-powered laptops, there’ll surely be fine with Auto SR.

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