- Windows 11 22H2 receives builds 22621.703 and 22623.703 (KB5017385) in the Beta Channel.
- This rollout enables the new Taskbar for touch-enabled devices again.
- The update also brings fixes for both flights.
Microsoft begins the rollout of build 22623.703 (KB5017385) with new features enabled by default and build 22621.703 (KB5017385) with features turned off by default in the Beta Channel.
In this release, build 22623.703 includes the new Taskbar designed for touch-enabled devices. The System Tray receives a new styling update that will affect all icons and improvements for File Explorer. Also, this flight and build 22621.703 also ship with a bunch of fixes.
Windows 11 build 22623.703
Starting on build 22623.703, Windows 11 re-introduces the new Taskbar designed for touch-enabled devices. The updated version of the Taskbar will automatically transition to tablet mode when disconnecting or folding the keyboard on a convertible device. (The feature won’t be available on laptops or desktops.)
The Taskbar offers two modes: “collapsed” and “expanded.” The “collapsed” state hides all the icons except those essential ones from the system tray, giving you more space and preventing you from accidentally invoking the Taskbar when holding your tablet.
In the “expanded” state, the Taskbar is optimized for touch with bigger icons. You can easily switch between the two states by swiping up and down on the bottom of your device.
You can always control these experiences on Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Taskbar behaviors with the “Automatically hide the taskbar when using your device as a tablet” setting.
Taskbar
In this update, you will also find updates to the System Tray that brings a rounded focus and hover treatment on all icons in the lower right.
Also, the taskbar should no longer flash because of changes in the system tray in non-table-optimized scenarios. Microsoft fixed an issue causing parts of the taskbar or its icons like search to get stuck in the wrong theme’s colors when switching between light and dark themes. And date and time should no longer get stuck cutting off on the side of the screen from system tray changes.
Start menu
The Start menu isn’t getting significant changes, but the Windows team has fixed an issue causing Start menu crashes and addressed an issue where the Start menu recommended section might unexpectedly show one column instead of two. Also, if you change the app associated with a particular file type, the icon for any of those file type displayed should now update in the recommended section.
File Explorer
As part of the File Explorer changes, the Home page now searches more recently opened Microsoft 365 cloud files, shows recent file activity for cloud files when in the details view, and you can now search cloud files using additional file properties such as file location, extension, and activity.
In addition, the File Explorer search will now show results as you type. The full search results page will update live without needing to press enter.
Windows 11 fixes for builds 22623.703 and 22621.703
These are the fixes that the Windows team is shipping with builds 22623.703 and 22621.703.
- Fixed an issue that affects some processors. This issue occurs when you turn on Hyper-V and kernel Direct Memory Access (DMA) protections.
- Fixed an issue that affects the Microsoft Japanese input method editor (IME). Text reconversion fails when you use some third-party virtual desktops.
- Fixed an issue that might cause an application to stop responding. This might occur when the input queue overflows.
- Fixed an issue that stops you from signing in to various Microsoft Office 365 apps. This affects Outlook, Word, Teams, and so on.
- Fixed an issue that affects graphics drivers that use d3d9on12.dll.
- Fixed issues that cause updates to the Microsoft Store to fail.
- Fixed an issue that affects the LanmanWorkstation service. It leaks memory when you mount a network drive.
- Fixed an issue that affects the Miracast UI. Sometimes it closes too soon when you cast to devices that use the DeviceObjectType:Aep.
- Fixed an issue that affects Task Manager. It stops working when you switch between light and dark mode or change the accent color.
- Fixed an issue that affects the font of three Chinese characters. When you format these characters as bold, the width size is wrong.
- Fixed an issue that affects input method editors (IME) from Microsoft and third parties. They stop working when you close the IME window. This occurs if the IME uses Windows Text Services Framework (TSF) 1.0.
- Fixed an issue that affects Microsoft Edge IE mode. It stops you from opening webpages. This occurs when you enable Windows Defender Application Guard (WDAG) and you do not configure Network Isolation policies.
- Fixed an issue that affects Microsoft Edge when it is in IE Mode. The titles of pop-up windows and tabs are wrong.
- Fixed an issue that stops the credential UI from displaying in IE mode.
- Fixed an issue that affects certificate mapping. When it fails, lsass.exe might stop working in schannel.dll.
As part of the known issues, Microsoft is looking into issues with the tablet-optimized Taskbar and audio problems.
Install build 22623.703
If you want to download and install the Windows 11 build 22623.703, you need to enroll your device in the Beta Channel using the “Windows Insider Program” settings from the “Update & Security” section.
Once you enroll the computer in the program, you can download build 22623.703 from the “Windows Update” settings by clicking the Check for Updates button. However, you will need a device that meets the minimum system requirements to receive the update if you are new to the Windows Insider Program. If the device receives build 22621.703, you can check again for updates to download build 22623.703.
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 15 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 21 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].