Windows News
The latest Windows News coverage — news, analysis, and updates from the WindowsNews.AI desk.
The End of Free Ping Tests: How to Prepare for Application Insights' September 2026 Shift
Microsoft has confirmed that the free URL ping tests inside Azure Application Insights will be permanently retired on September 30, 2026. After that date, every existing ping test will be removed...
Apple's Siri AI Requires iPhone 15 Pro or Newer; EU iPhone Users Won't Get It at Launch
Apple’s next-generation Siri, a complete reimagining of its voice assistant powered by on-device AI, will arrive as a beta later in 2026. But even then, it will only run on the iPhone 15 Pro,...
Microsoft Unveils Point-in-Time Restore for Windows 11: A Lifeline for Botched Updates, but Test Before You Trust
Microsoft just gave Windows 11 a built-in rewind button. The new Point-in-Time Restore feature, currently rolling out in preview, automatically captures snapshots of your entire system—including...
Microsoft's Windows Search Makeover Gives You a 'No Web' Toggle—Here's What It Changes
After years of complaints about web results cluttering Windows Search, Microsoft has finally begun testing a simple fix: a toggle that turns them off. The new Search experience, now rolling out to...
Microsoft Just Changed Where You Manage Roaming Settings – Here’s Your Action Plan
On July 1, 2026, Microsoft pulled the plug on managing Enterprise State Roaming (ESR) through the Entra portal. For over a decade, IT admins used that familiar toggle to decide which users could sync...
Microsoft Delivers Long-Awaited Start Menu Pin Controls for Windows 11 24H2
Microsoft has quietly given IT administrators two powerful new levers for taming the Windows 11 Start menu. With preview updates rolled out in July and October 2025, organizations can now decide...
Windows 11’s Official Dev Environment Setup Goes Live—Here’s How to Ditch Your Old Scripts
Microsoft’s Windows Developer Configurations graduated from preview to general availability on June 2, 2026, during the Build developer conference. The open-source project delivers a curated set of...
Last Call for Windows Server 2012 R2 Security Patches: Deadline Is October 13, 2026
Microsoft has drawn a hard line under Extended Security Updates (ESU) for Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2: October 13, 2026 is the final date any new security patches will ship for these platforms....
Microsoft Sets August 2026 Deadline to Replace All Graph Toolkit Web Parts — Here’s How to Get Ready
Microsoft has drawn a line in the sand: August 28, 2026. That’s the date when its Graph Toolkit — a collection of prebuilt web components and authentication providers that thousands of...
Microsoft 365’s Semi-Annual Channel Is Now Monthly: How to Prepare Your Organization Before September 8
Microsoft released version 2606 of Microsoft 365 Apps on July 14, 2026, unifying the Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel with the Monthly Enterprise Channel. Devices on the old semi-annual cadence now...
Microsoft 365 Copilot Adoption Emails Hit Inboxes — Here’s How to Keep Them Useful, Not Annoying
Microsoft has quietly turned on a new channel that lets administrators push Copilot onboarding messages directly into employee inboxes, expanding the Organizational Messages tool beyond Windows...
One Prompt, One Game: How Kimi K3 Built a Playable Super Mario 64 Clone in the Browser
Moonshot AI’s newly released Kimi K3 model generated a playable browser-based 3D platformer reminiscent of Super Mario 64 from a single text prompt, according to demos shared this week. The...