Hello Windows Insiders, today we’re releasing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 20246 to Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel.

Starting with today’s build, Windows Insiders will notice that the name of the branch we are releasing builds from has changed to FE_RELEASE. Just like we did back in May when we released builds from the MN_RELEASE branch, we are practicing our ability to change which branch flight builds from. As our engineers work in development cycles internally, we may prioritize work being done in a specific branch and may need to move Insiders between branches. As a result of the switch to the FE_RELEASE branch, Insiders will notice that some features like the updated emoji picker, redesigned touch keyboard, voice typing, theme-aware splash screens, and others have been removed temporarily. We look to bring these features back to Insiders in the future. As an important reminder – builds from the FE_RELEASE branch are not matched to a specific Windows 10 release.

Other updates for Insiders

• Starting soon, the preview experience of the Calendar app will be removed in an upcoming update and return to its classic look and feel. Windows Insiders will see a pop-up notifying them of the changes to the preview experience. No action is needed at this time.  We appreciate all your great ideas and are excited to continue building the best Calendar experience.

Updates for developers

The Windows SDK is now flighting continuously with the Dev Channel. Whenever a new OS build is flighted to the Dev Channel, the corresponding SDK will also be flighted. You can always install the latest Insider SDK from aka.ms/InsiderSDK. SDK flights will be archived in Flight Hub along with OS flights.

Changes and Improvements

• We added automatic Linux distro installation to the wsl.exe --install command! This means that users who wish to install the Windows Subsystem for Linux quickly can just type in wsl.exe –install into the command line and then will have a fully set up WSL instance ready to go, including their Linux distro of choice.

Fixes

• We fixed an issue causing some devices experiencing a KMODE_EXCEPTION bugcheck when using certain virtualization technologies.
• We fixed an issue causing devices running Malwarebytes Web Protection to no longer be able to connect to the network.
• We fixed an issue causing some devices to receive a DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL bugcheck on tcpip.sys.
• We fixed an issue that could result in the Pick Time button in the Windows Update dialog not doing anything.
• We fixed an issue where hovering over a thumbnail in Task View would display an unexpected border around the item.
• We fixed an issue where chkdsk could appear to be stuck at 100% due to not printing the message saying it was done.
• We fixed an issue that could result in a crash when disconnecting certain audio devices while playing audio in recent builds.
• We fixed an issue where the Windows Update page in Settings could fail to load if connected to a Wi-Fi network with no internet connection.
• We fixed an issue resulting in Settings crashing sometimes when clicking the Update and Security category.
• We fixed an issue resulting in Storage Settings unexpectedly showing incorrect category sizes (a higher number than what was visible in File Explorer).
• We fixed an issue that could lead to a crash when managing partition size in Storage Settings.
• We fixed an issue that stopped GPU compute scenarios such as CUDA and DirectML not working for some users inside of the Windows Subsystem for Linux.

Known issues

• We’re investigating reports of installing games from the Store to a secondary non-OS drive will result in the secondary drive becoming inaccessible. To prevent this from occurring you must change the default storage for new content to the secondary drive PRIOR to installing the game. This can be done in Settings > Storage > Change where new content is saved.
• We’re looking into reports of the update process hanging for extended periods of time when attempting to install a new build.
• Live previews for pinned sites aren’t enabled for all Insiders yet, so you may see a grey window when hovering over the thumbnail in the taskbar. We’re continuing to work on polishing this experience.
• We’re working on enabling the new taskbar experience for existing pinned sites. In the meantime, you can unpin the site from the taskbar, remove it from the edge://apps page, and then re-pin the site.
• We’re working on a fix for an issue causing some devices to experience a DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION bugcheck.
• We’re investigating an issue reported by some Insiders wherein the taskbar is obscuring the Power button in the Start menu. If this is happening on your PC, you may need to use the Windows key plus X menu to shutdown for the time being.
• Windows Insiders on ARM PCs such as the Surface Pro X will notice that Windows PowerShell will fail to launch on this build. As a workaround, please use “Windows PowerShell (x86)” or “Windows PowerShell ISE (x86)” from the Start menu if you need to use PowerShell. Or download the new and modern PowerShell 7 which takes advantage of ARM by running natively. Plus the icon is prettier.

Celebrating with our 6th anniversary badge

As a thank you for being with us these last six years, last week we released a special anniversary badge to all Windows Insiders. Visit Feedback Hub > Achievements now to check out yours. Thank you so much for helping us improve Windows 10 over that time!

REMINDER: Mark your calendars for the November webcast

Join us on November 18 at 6 PM GMT | 10 AM PST for the next Windows Insider webcast where we’re taking a look at storage and disk management.

Important Insider Links

You can check out our Windows Insider Program documentation here, including a list of all the new features and updates released in builds so far. Not seeing any of the features in this build? Check your Windows Insider Settings to make sure you’re in the Dev Channel. Submit feedback here to let us know if things weren’t working the way you expected.

If you want a complete look at what build is in which Insider ring, head over to Flight Hub. Please note, there will be a slight delay between when a build is flighted and when Flight Hub is updated.

Thanks,
BLB