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The report highlights that the most significant improvement in this patch is a performance boost for Windows 11’s Start menu and taskbar, but how much of a difference you’ll actually notice will depend on the age and devices of your PC. Microsoft has dropped the optional July 2026 preview patch KB5101684 for Windows 11 24H2 and 25H2.
As part of the ongoing story, windows Search is also improved, with better performance and results when finding the files you’re looking for—even with search terms containing typos. Revision KB5101684 also introduces usability improvements to File Explorer, like displaying file sizes in MBs and GBs instead of just KBs, which better reflects file sizes at a glance.
In a fresh development, the long-running issue of the Secure Boot certificate rollout is not overlooked by this optional patch either: KB5101684 finally provides revised certificates for more computers.
As part of the ongoing story, microsoft will eventually roll it out to all users on Patch Tuesday in August. If you want it now, you’ll have to get it manually. Revision KB5101684 is a preview patch, so it’s entirely optional for Windows 11 users.
Industry observers note that toggle the setting called “Get the most recent updates as soon as they’re available” to “On.” Then, click on “Check for updates” and wait for the patch check to complete. Navigate to “Advanced options” → “Optional updates,” where you should now see KB5101684. Install it there. Alternatively, you can download the patch via the Microsoft Revision Catalog. To do that, navigate to the Settings apps → Windows Revision.
The report highlights that you can find the full changelog for this patch here. After installing KB5101684, Windows 11 25H2 will have build number 26200.8973 and Windows 11 24H2 will have build number 26100.8973.
Industry observers note that to learn more, see our comparison of Windows 11 Home and Pro. If you want to upgrade, snag it for cheap in the PCWorld Applications Store: now just $59 instead of $99. By the way: If you’re using Windows 11 Home, you’re missing out on the many benefits of Windows 11 Pro.
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.