Latest Windows 11 update fixes some nasty bugs – but don't grab it yet (especially if you use dark mode)

• Windows 11's latest update fixes a bunch of bugs
• It includes the cure for a glitch causing central parts of Windows 11, like the taskbar and Start menu, to fall over
• There are also resolutions for issues with monitors and GPUs, and more – but this is a preview patch, and you're best off waiting for the full release

Windows 11 is getting some important bug fixes for problems with the central elements of the operating system crashing, and more besides.

In fact you can benefit from this right now via an optional update, but I'd advise holding off, if you can, for the full release (I'll come back to why in a moment).

As Windows Latest reports, these fixes are part of the preview update that arrived earlier this week (it was slightly late, as these optional deployments are normally rolled out at the end of the month, so it should have been late November).

At any rate, the main fix is for a bug that causes Explorer.exe to crash, which is the fundamental process that's behind the main parts of the Windows 11 interface.

That includes the Start menu and taskbar, both of which are crashing when certain Windows 11 notifications come through. Windows Latest has encountered the problem and observes that the taskbar crashed in their case, disappearing entirely, before reloading.

It's an odd issue and Microsoft hasn't explained what caused it, or exactly what notifications are at fault, but if you've had central bits of the Windows 11 interface glitching out in this way, this optional update should fix it.

Microsoft has also fixed a bug that caused a toolbar to "appear unexpectedly in File Explorer", and a problem where taskbar icons shrink to a smaller size when there's no need for this to happen. (Normally, these scaling changes are applied automatically when needed, but in these scenarios they aren't needed, and so Windows is just making the taskbar icons tinier for no good reason).

So there's a fair bit of work on smoothing over weirdness with the interface in general here, and a few important fixes for monitors and graphics cards, too.

That includes instances of "momentary stutter" when loading some PC games with a very high-resolution monitor, which is caused by the game querying the monitor for a list of supported modes (resolutions, refresh rates), we're told. It doesn't affect actual gameplay, just the initial startup of the affected game, but it's still nice to be rid of the stutter.

Alongside this, Microsoft has remedied a glitch where certain games produced an 'unsupported graphics card detected' error, when using a GPU that was fully supported.

Furthermore, Microsoft notes it has fixed the following bug: "All-in-one PCs might experience issues with their brightness slider, where it unexpectedly reverts to the original brightness when interacting with it."

Analysis: flashy update

There are other bug fixes in this preview update, too, so it's a fair old dollop of troubleshooting work from Microsoft.

However, as I've already said, I wouldn't grab an optional update as a rule, just because it can introduce new problems – this is still beta software, technically, after all – and in this case, there's a confirmed bug affecting those who use dark mode. This is causing flashes of white light on the screen sometimes when opening a folder (or performing certain actions with folders), which as I already observed is going to get pretty old, pretty fast.

That said, if you don't use dark mode, obviously this bug isn't going to bother you – although that still doesn't rule out potential glitches elsewhere for your particular system.

So, all in all, it's best to wait for the full release of a patch, rather than the optional preview, especially as in this case, that finished version is coming in less than a week (on Tuesday December 9). My hope is that by this time, Microsoft will have resolved the white flashes which are plaguing dark mode. Indeed, I think it's a must for that to happen, considering dark mode is used by many, and the white flashes are pretty nasty and irritating.

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