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The report highlights that however, take caution before installing it—some users are reporting that this patch can cause serious damage. Microsoft just dropped optional patch KB5120998 for Windows 11, an important one that brings back a long-missed capability in the operating system.

In a fresh development, according to Windows Current, this patch removes custom settings for the cursor and wallpaper: “The most common complaint is the mouse pointer resetting to a bigger, white, Windows 98-style cursor that refuses to change back.” And later, they continue: “The second major complaint is a desktop background wiped out and replaced with a flat black color.”.

According to the latest update, and yes, some people are being hit with both issues, as one user described on Reddit: “This patch set my desktop wallpaper to single-color (black) and I am pretty sure it changed my mouse cursor to be slightly larger in its normal state.”.

In a fresh development, however, the source of the issue is currently unknown, so it’s probably best to refrain from installing KB5120998 for now. It’s a shame because the patch introduces several fresh customization options for Windows 11, which would be worth installing otherwise. Note: These issues aren’t occurring on all Windows 11 PCs, and many users have said they haven’t noticed any problems after installing this optional patch.

As part of the ongoing story, learn more about reverting a problematic Windows patch. If you’ve already installed KB5120998 and you’re hit by one or both of these issues, the only current fix is to uninstall the patch altogether, as reported by some users who noticed the problem disappear post-uninstallation.

In a fresh development, this article originally appeared on our sister publication PC-WELT and was translated and localized from German.

As part of the ongoing story, he has been writing on almost all IT topics for around 25 years, covering everything from news to reviews and buying guides. Hans-Christian Dirscherl began his IT life with Autoexec.bat and config.sys, Turbo-Pascal and C, Sinix and Wordperfect.