Microsoft is rolling out an update preview for the Microsoft Store, probably hoping to get users to spend more time (and maybe even some money) in it, and the biggest changes are for product pages for apps and games, which get a Netflix-like visual refresh. The preview, dubbed version 22409, is currently available to Windows Insiders in all Insider Channels – and Microsoft says that it will be available to all users soon.

Microsoft is bringing what it calls ‘an immersive experience’ to the top of app pages instead of just images and text descriptions. When you visit the page of an app or a game that has a trailer, it’ll play as you navigate around the product page. If the app or game doesn’t have an accompanying trailer, you’ll see a large catchy promotional image from the developers instead.

If you’re a user of a streaming platform (not pointing any fingers, but Netflix has been a little prolific in this) that has developed a hatred of autoplay ads, Microsoft does thankfully reassure users that you’ll be able to disable video autoplay in the Microsoft Store’s settings.

The company also notes that these new reworked product pages will be available in both light and dark modes to match your Windows 11 themes.

We’ll have to see how app and game developers respond, and Microsoft is encouraging them to make use of the Microsoft Store’s new capabilities.

One small step for the Microsoft Store...

It’s not the biggest or boldest change in the world, but I could see how gradual improvements to the user experience like this could persuade more people to try the Microsoft Store, a part of Windows 10 and Windows 11 that Microsoft is keen for more people to use.

This development follows a pretty notable update that was intended to make the Microsoft Store faster and easier to use overall. If this works as intended, hopefully you should notice that it loads faster, as well as appearing more organized - so you can find apps and games more easily.

While the company is keen to get more people to use its rather unloved store (compared to Apple’s successful App store for Macs), I can also understand why Microsoft doesn’t roll out huge updates at once. Especially considering the journey Windows 11 has been on, updates can sometimes be buggy or even disruptive thanks to unexpected quirks. 

I'd like to see the Microsoft Store become a robust, functional, and trustworthy place for Windows users to download and install apps and games - and that’s not going to happen if Microsoft rushes out a load of updates that break almost as many things as they fix. If Microsoft really wants the Microsoft Store to be a success, it’s going to have to take its time.

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Users have been complaining about a new, very specific issue with the Windows 11 24H2 update. This time it affects Western Digital SSDs, more specifically owners of the SN770 and SN580. The bug has been causing crashes and triggering Blue Screens of Death, and it’s not clear yet just how many are affected as the 24H2 update rollout continues.

Owners of Western Digital’s SN770 and SN580 SSDs began noticing the crashes over a week ago. At first, it wasn’t clear what caused them, but the common denominator was they started after installing the 24H2 update. Users have made various attempts to fix the issues, and a temporary workaround has been found.

The nitty-gritty details

The issue is caused by the way the SN770 and SN580 handle data. These SSDs are DRAM-less. DRAM is Dynamic Random Access Memory, and it’s used to store and quickly retrieve metadata about stored files. If an SSD lacks DRAM, it means it will have to rely on an NVMe feature, Host Memory Buffer (HMB), where that metadata is stored in your PC’s main memory.

Normally the SSDs ask your PC to allocate 64 MB of HMB to store temp info, but with the update, the SSDs are asking for up to 200 MB, and sending the system into a frenzy from which the only possible escape is BSOD.

DRAM-less SSDs are usually affordable, budget drives. They are cheaper to make, and also consume less power, making them suited to laptops and mobile phones. They usually have a smaller form factor, too, because the DRAM chip increases the size of the SSD.

Performance does take a hit for this saving. Accessing memory via HMB introduces latency, particularly with read and write operations. Drives of this type are also prone to more issues because improperly managed HMB can cause, yep, you guessed it, BSODs. And they might not last as long either; their cells wear out faster, not benefiting from DRAM’s ability to clear old data and make way for the new (garbage collection).

User woes

As far back as Sep 10, members of WD’s community forum shared news of the bug. One user wrote:

After installed Windows 11 24h2 I got this in event viewer:
The driver detected a controller error on \Device\RaidPort1.
Blue Screen ands restart.
WD SN580 2TB. Firmware is updated to 281040.
WD Dashboard showing Drive Health 100%.

Any fix?

edit: Since I bought my pc 6 months ago I didn’t have any problems with Windows 23h2. Today installed 24h2 and after 10-15 restarts I got 4-5 blue screens with the same error “The driver detected a controller error on \Device\RaidPort1”.

Another user on the same thread wrote:

hey man i’ve been looking everywhere for info on this. just got a new pre-built pc with windows version 24H2. I have a WD blue SN 580 2 TB NVME and keep getting blue screens when restarting the pc or opening certain files in file explorer. the event logs leading up to the blue screen in event viewer give the same event ID 11 stornvme and volmgr error. You’re saying the main reason is the new windows update? would it be wise to roll back or have you figured anything out since your last post.

Then on 8 October, a WD community forum member posted a potential workaround, apparently bemoaning the lack of response from Western Digital and Microsoft:

While we still have no official answer neither from WD or MS, there is a workaround!
Thank you @nissel! This will create two registry entries. If you want to remove them again, delete them by hand or use this: Registry file to remove the HMB policy entries · GitHub 22. Apparently for some devices it is enough to just disable HBM: Windows Registry disable HMB · GitHub 19.

Does Microsoft deserve the hate?

Of course, no major OS updates are without issue. Windows 10’s now-infamous April 2021 KB5001330 update caused a slew of crashes, performance issues, and the long-feared BSODs. There were installation failures, missing files, performance drops in games, system crashes, and more. So, far the Windows 11 24H2 bugs aren’t nearly as bad.

Microsoft and Western Digital are aware of the issue, and patches and firmware updates are likely on their way. It remains to be seen if more users with similar SSDs will encounter the same issues.

Whatever exciting bugs are yet to come with Windows 11’s new version, we’ll be here to tell you about them.

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The long-awaited major Windows 11 update (version 24H2) was supposed to bring shiny new features and security updates, but it also seems to be bringing headaches for a lot of people as well - and some users are complaining that their internet connections aren’t working after installing the update.

That’s right: in addition to issues like the dreaded blue screen of death crashes, a glitch making mouse cursors vanish, and worse, filling up your hard drive with files you can’t even delete, 24H2 might now impact your internet connection if you install the update. Windows Report, which broke the news, refers to a Microsoft Community forum post where a user describes encountering this problem on multiple devices.

Even if they could connect, some devices were still unable to access the internet, whether they were connected by Wi-Fi or by cable. Adding to the confusion, the user claims to have seen strange IP address numbers, starting with ‘169…’ which are unusual, as they usually start with ‘192’ and indicated that there was no network connection.

Basically, it seems this resulted in these PCs “thinking” they’re connected, but in fact not actually being so. The poster goes on to explain that they even tried updating and modifying software that could affect internet connectivity, such as drivers, firmware, and resetting network settings, and didn’t see much luck. Multiple people echoed the first poster’s complaints, and now PCWorld is reporting that it’s an issue that’s affecting both private computers and Windows 11 PCs connected to servers.

It appears that for many users, this problem was triggered by the update as their connection seemed fine before installing it.

Get a move on, Microsoft

The situation doesn’t look great right now, but the silver lining is that there is a workaround that will hopefully do the trick until Microsoft puts out an update resolving the problem. If your internet connection is down after installing this update, you’ll have to roll it back by uninstalling it, reverting your PC to the previous version of Windows 11 you had installed.

This looks to have helped fix the problem and restored internet connectivity for most people. PCWorld recommends that you check out the Community forum post to see if your experience matches up, and then you can follow its guidance about how to roll back a problematic Windows update.

The reason why I echo this suggestion is because it’s not totally foolproof, so you’ll have to decide yourself whether or not to roll back the update. Apparently, this workaround hasn’t resolved the issue for some devices, and it might be worth investigating further what solutions worked for others on the forum if you’re still affected.

I expect that Microsoft will acknowledge this shortly, and hopefully release an update addressing this issue - especially as Windows 11 24H2 is supposed to be a major, exciting update that will get people to upgrade, and embarrassing and frustrating problems like this certainly won’t help.

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Microsoft is making it easier for Windows 11 users to log in to their various services and websites without having to remember a plethora of passwords, instead using passkeys, for which the software giant has just broadened its support.

Specifically, Microsoft has just introduced support in Windows 11 for third-party passkeys (in other words, passkeys made by companies other than Microsoft).

Passkeys are a more secure method of signing into devices, apps, or websites which can leverage biometric authentication such as facial recognition, a fingerprint ID, or PIN via Windows Hello. For the uninitiated, Windows Hello is a security feature in Windows 11 that offers biometric authentication (facial or fingerprint), or indeed a PIN.

Passkeys utilize two unique keys - one stored with the service you're logging into, and the other is on your Windows 11 device, protected by those biometrics (or a PIN) - and they offer far stronger security than traditional username and password combos.

Another step towards a password-free world

Microsoft is constantly working to bolster the security of Windows 11 devices, and part of that is a push towards a world that no longer relies on passwords - but more secure logins such as passkeys.

As part of this, Microsoft brought in the ability to use passkeys with Microsoft consumer accounts (rather than just commercial users) earlier this year (back in May 2024).

So now, this capability is being extended to allow the use of passkeys made by third-party developers in Windows 11. That includes the likes of apps such as 1Password and Bitwarden, as Microsoft informs us it’s collaborating with the developers of those applications - and others - in a post on its Windows Developer Blog, aiming for more seamless integration of such third-party offerings in Windows 11.

Microsoft has also updated Windows 11 to make it easier to use Windows Hello and passkeys. The idea is when you open a website or app that supports logging in with a passkey, you’ll be prompted to select how you’d like to save the passkey – whether you want to use it with your Microsoft account, or another service.

It’s good to see passkey support being widened, and Microsoft getting behind this security measure, and I’m happy enough to give them a go as while I’m alright at living with traditional passwords, I run into a lot of the same frustrations with them as many of you probably do.

I’m also glad that Microsoft is taking a collaborative approach to working with third-party developers here in implementing something that hopefully works well for Windows 11 users.

Via PC World

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Windows 11 24H2 has got off to a somewhat wobbly start - with a number of bugs being discovered, though thankfully, there are no huge blunders (yet) - but one thing to be aware of is that the upgrade can take a pretty long time to install.

There’s an official Reddit thread detailing what features and changes users can expect to see with version 24H2 of Windows 11, as well as a FAQ section. And in the latter, Microsoft admits that 24H2 can be very slow going with respect to the time it takes to install.

Microsoft observes: “This is a significantly larger update than the regular monthly updates you have been installing up until now. In some cases, it can take a few hours to install, so be patient! You do not need to babysit it, and you can continue to use your computer during most of the installation.”

So, as noted, you can keep using your PC while the installation process is churning away in the background. Or so Microsoft assures us, anyway, though performance will be affected to some extent at times. And, of course, once the update is ready to go, you will be forced to sit through a whole lot of spinning circles and multiple reboots where you can’t do anything (with your PC, anyway).

What’s the secret of a great installation? Timing

If you want a rough idea of installation times, there’s a report from PC World which tested how long it takes to install Windows 11 24H2 on various laptops. While noting that Microsoft describes 24H2 as a ‘full OS swap’ to underline how noticeably bigger it is than previous updates, PC World recorded installation times varying from just over an hour, to one hour and 45 minutes. Four laptops were tested in total, with the average time taken for those devices being around an hour and a half. So yes, that is longer than most folks are used to - certainly these days anyway.

PC World notes that as you’d expect, as a general rule, older laptops take longer to update, and I echo its recommendation that you set aside some time in your day (an hour or two) if you want to update to version 24H2. Time during which you can at least keep glancing at, and keeping an eye on, your PC while it’s updating.

Windows 11 24H2 is in the process of being rolled out in a phased, gradual manner, and when it’s your device’s turn, the upgrade should be offered automatically. You can keep manually checking for it in Windows Update if you’re keen, though.

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A new preview for Windows 11 version 23H2 has been released with some nifty additions in terms of new features, including one that Phone Link fans will definitely enjoy.

This is preview build 22631 (also known as KB5044380 in Microsoft’s documentation) and it has arrived in the Release Preview channel of the Windows Insider Program. In other words, this is the final testing channel before release, meaning that in theory, the features therein should arrive as part of November’s cumulative update for 23H2.

One of the most interesting moves is on the phone front, and it means that if you have an Android device hooked up to your PC courtesy of the Phone Link app, you’ll soon be able to access content on your mobile right from Windows 11’s Start menu. You’ll be able to check the status of your phone’s battery, listen to voice messages and look at photos, and continue recent activities that you were in the midst of on your handset – all right from the Start menu.

To benefit, as mentioned you’ll need to have Phone Link set up with your Android phone, and for the moment, it’s an Android-only affair (Microsoft says that iOS support is coming soon, though). This feature will be managed in the Settings app, and you’ll need to head to Settings > Personalization > Start.

More features and fixes coming to Windows 11

If you use an Xbox controller with your PC, build 22631 provides a new on-screen keyboard to allow typing using the controller, and also shortcuts that leverage the gamepad’s buttons (the ‘X’ button is backspace, for example).

With the broader Windows 11 interface, this preview also allows you to prevent apps from displaying suggestions to turn off notifications.

Furthermore, newer PCs with a ‘Copilot’ key can now customize this key to do something other than fire up the AI assistant, so it can be programmed to open a specific app. (With some limitations, mind you - this only works with signed MSIX apps, as we discussed when this feature was spotted in an earlier testing channel).

Build 22631 also delivers fixes for various bugs in Windows 11 and Microsoft apps, including a Microsoft Teams issue, a battery power drain glitch for some devices while in standby mode, and a fix for multi-function printer problems.

This is a very solid and thankfully uncontroversial update that brings nifty new ways to link your phone and Windows 11 PC, as well as addresses various bugs and performance issues. This is the kind of Windows 11 update I can get behind and as mentioned, hopefully, these features will be arriving in the November update for 23H2.

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Windows 11 24H2 contains a bug (among others already spotted) that seemingly eats a sizeable portion of your drive space.

Windows Latest reports that the 24H2 update leaves behind an undeletable 8.63GB cache of files in its wake (a bit like a visitor who doesn’t know when it’s time to go home).

Normally, Windows 11’s Disk Cleanup feature would be able to remove these temporary files after the installation of 24H2, but if you try to do so, this doesn’t work due to the bug – the 8GB cache still remains.

The problem seems to be related to a new improvement made to Windows Update known as ‘checkpoint cumulative updates’ which were brought in with Windows 11 24H2. This is a system designed to trim down update sizes by providing more compact incremental cumulative monthly updates (though some will still be larger baseline updates – we go into this in more detail here).

The issue began with the release of Windows 11 24H2, and hasn’t been cured with the latest cumulative update for October, as folks are still complaining about the 8.6GB of files being eaten up.

Is there any way around this? The best bet is to play a waiting game

Is the bug actually grabbing 8.6GB of your drive, though? Well, we can’t be sure of that, as the 8.6GB of files might not really exist in their entirety on your drive (that’s just the size being reported, and Windows Latest notes the size might actually be smaller than this).

Even so, this is still lost drive space, which is certainly an annoyance – especially if you have a small system drive. So, what can be done?

Well, one option is a clean installation of Windows 11 24H2, which won’t leave any such cache behind – but that’s a lot of trouble to go to in order to swerve around this bug, and it’s hardly a practical solution.

A more sensible option is to wait for Microsoft to fix the problem, as the issue is now on the software giant’s radar, and a cure is going to be incorporated in a future update, we’re told. Hopefully the next cumulative update for 24H2, with any luck.

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Another bug in the Windows 11 24H2 update has been found, which causes sfc /scannow to detect corrupt files on every run.

Many users will know the incantation sfc /scannow. You type it into your Windows Terminal, and it runs for a very long time, reporting on corrupt or missing files it finds, and whether it was able to repair or replace them.

The new bug causes sfc to find corrupt files, fix them, and then when it is run again, find another “corrupt file” and “fixes/replaces it” again. It doesn’t matter how many times you run it, Windows File checker will repair something.

This indicates that the problems found are false positives. Users use sfc to perform system maintenance, so seeing recurrent corrupt files on every scan will cause confusion, and cause them to keep trying to fix a problem that doesn’t exist.

Users first flagged up the issue in Microsoft’s Windows 11 Feedback hub posts.

One user wrote:

"With the latest Windows 11 updates, when I try to do SFC /scannnow, it shows errors every time even though it should have fixed them already."

Another wrote:

"SFC Scan on the new 24H2 shows errors and does not correct itself despite repeated attempts to correct it. Each time I run the SFC Scan, it shows “Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them.”

Windowslatest.com ran tests to see the bug in action. After running sfc /scannow, they were met with this message:

"Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them. For online repairs, details are included in the CBS log file located at windir\Logs\CBS\CBS.log. For example C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log. For offline repairs, details are included in the log file provided by the /OFFLOGFILE flag."

When they ran the scan again, the same message, saying the exact same thing popped up again.

It’s not unusual for large software updates like this to experience bugs. In the Windows 11 22H2 update, File Explorer had a bug that would frequently cause freezes or crashes. And we’ve previously reported on two bugs found so far in the Windows 11 24H2 update: the first, disappearing cursors; the second, an undeletable 8.63 GB update cache.

Microsoft is aware of the bugs and is probably working on some patches as we write. So, keep your eyes peeled.

The latest update for Windows 10, KB5044273, is now available - and it brings bug fixes, security issue resolutions, and even a feature change. We are now about a year out from the scheduled deprecation date for Windows 10 (14 October 2025) after which Microsoft will no longer support it with regular updates. 

Microsoft describes the new developments as improvements to the security of Windows 10's internal workings. Those aren’t the only changes, however. There’s also a minor update to the position of your profile picture in the Start menu - wow, Microsoft, really pulling out all the stops here, are you? 

It's possible that this could be an effort by Microsoft to integrate account management like that of Windows 11 into the Start menu. It had previously spotted a more fleshed-out Microsoft account management, allowing you to manage Microsoft product purchases and subscriptions, in the Start menu of another Windows 10 preview build. If it’s realized in a similar way to Windows 11’s Microsoft account manager, it’ll remind users to use apps and products like OneDrive, Microsoft 365, and Copilot, which I imagine most Windows 10 users will find pretty annoying. 

What to expect after the update

Windows 10 users can expect the new update to be downloaded and installed on their devices automatically, similar to previous security updates. If you open Windows Update in the Settings app, you should see new updates being downloaded and installed, but in case you don’t, you can follow Windows Latest’s advice to install them using offline installers, as well as being able to check the exact names of each constituent update you can expect to see. 

Once your PC is updated, your operating system’s build number (similar to the version number) should change to Build 19045.5011 or 19044.5011.

Apart from security updates and the change related to profile pictures in the Start menu, this update also fixes some known issues, such as a bug related to media playback and reducing the number of notifications asking you to log into your Microsoft account when using an app that prompts you to do so. Microsoft Edge users can look forward to issues relating to Internet Explorer mode, an optional mode in Edge that allows more advanced or commercial users to use Edge similarly to Internet Explorer, Microsoft’s deprecated (and somewhat iconic) legacy browser. 

You can go through the full list of changes and fixes in Microsoft’s release document for KB5044273. I would recommend ensuring updates like this are downloaded and installed to keep your Windows 10 device up to date, especially in terms of security - though it’s another unhappy reminder that this beloved OS is rapidly approaching the end of its life. 

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