Updated December 12, 2025: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. To ensure continued high-quality performance of the Read Aloud, Transcription, and Dictation features in Microsoft 365 Office apps, we’re upgrading the backend service that powers these capabilities. As a result, these features will no longer function on Office clients running versions earlier than 16.0.18827.20202 after September 2026. We are extending the supporting period for customers to prepare and upgrade to the supported version. Here is the updated timeline: General Availability (Worldwide): End of September 2026 (previously end of January) General Availability (GCC, GCC High, DoD): End of November 2026 (previously end of March) How this affects your organizationIf your organization is using Microsoft 365 Office apps with version numbers lower than 16.0.18827.20202, users will lose access to Rea
If you are an IT admin with questions about managing and updating Windows, we want to help. Every third Thursday of the month, we host a live chat-based event on the Tech Community called Windows Office Hours. Members of the Windows, Microsoft Intune, Windows Autopilot, Windows Autopatch, and Windows 365 engineering teams will be standing by to answer your questions. We also have experts from FastTrack, the Customer Acceleration Team, and Microsoft public sector teams. Want to attend the December 18 session of Office Hours? Add it to your calendar and select Attend on the event page to let us know you’re coming. There is no video or live meeting component. Simply visit the event page, log in to the Tech Community, and leave your questions in the Comments section. You can also bookmark https://aka.ms/Windows/OfficeHours for upcoming dates (and the ability to add this event to your calenda
Starting with the January 2026 security update, the AllowOOBEUpdates CSP policy will be available and disabled by default. It shows up as a new setting on the Windows Autopilot Enrollment Status Page (ESP). This policy allows you to install the latest Windows quality updates during the out-of-box experience (OOBE) on eligible devices. Devices must be Microsoft Entra joined or Microsoft Entra hybrid joined and running Windows 11, version 22H2 or later. The original announcement and documentation are updated to reflect this change and to clarify device targeting. When will this happen: January 2026: The AllowOOBEUpdates CSP policy will be available and disabled by default. August 2025: The original announcement introduced this new capability. How this will affect your organization: With Windows Autopilot and Microsoft Intune (or alternative management solutions), you can maintain seamless
The December 2025 security update is now available for all supported versions of Windows. We recommend that you install these updates promptly. For more information about the contents of this update, see the release notes, which are easily accessible from the Windows 11 update history page. To learn more about the different types of monthly quality updates, see Windows monthly updates explained. Highlights for the Windows 11, version 25H2 update: This security update includes improvements that were a part of update KB5070311 (released December 1, 2025). This update addresses security issues for your Windows operating system. This update addresses an issue where Ask Copilot didn’t activate the Click to Do* window as expected. The window now appears in the foreground when you share data with Copilot. This update addresses an issue where File Explorer briefly flashes white when you navigate
You can now deploy, manage, and monitor Secure Boot certificate updates. This method represents an alternative to setting registry keys and using Group Policy. You can use Intune to deploy on all domain-joined Windows clients, opt out of high-confidence buckets, and opt in to Microsoft managing these updates. When will this happen: The following settings are now available in the Intune settings catalog: Configure Microsoft Update Managed Opt-In Configure High-Confidence Opt-Out Enable SecureBoot Certificate Updates How this will affect your organization: As the 2011 Secure Boot certificates will start expiring in June 2026, it is essential that organizations start planning for and updating to 2023 certificates. You can now use Microsoft Intune, in addition to registry keys and Group Policy, to deploy, manage, and monitor this update process. The three new settings are disabled by default
[Introduction] We’re improving the reliability and performance of Microsoft Edge Workspaces by migrating to a new architecture. Workspaces, introduced in 2022, lets users create durable sets of tabs that can be saved and shared. As part of this update, we will migrate saved Workspace data from OneDrive/SharePoint to the Edge Sync service and remove the collaboration/share functionality. [When this will happen:] General Availability (Production, GCC, GCCH, DoD): Rollout begins mid-February 2026. [How this affects your organization:] Who is affected: All organizations using Microsoft Edge Workspaces. What will happen: Saved Workspace data will migrate from OneDrive/SharePoint to Edge Sync service. Collaboration and sharing functionality will be removed. Organizations that have disabled Workspaces via EdgeWorkspacesEnabled policy will not have data migrated. If Sync is disabled through poli
Join us December 10, 2025, at 8:00 AM PST for a live Ask Microsoft Anything (AMA) session focused on updating Secure Boot certificates on your Windows devices before they expire in June 2026. This event gives IT admins the chance to ask questions and get expert guidance on Secure Boot configuration, update scenarios, inventorying and preparing your environment, and formulating the right deployment plan for your organization. Members of the Windows team will be available to answer your questions, share tips, and provide insights to help you prepare devices for Secure Boot certificate deployment. Visit the AMA: Secure Boot event page, log in to Tech Community, and post your questions in advance or during the live broadcast in the comments section. Save the date and start posting your questions early.
A new Windows Autopatch report empowers your organization to prioritize update deployment, demonstrate compliance, and maintain a robust security posture. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) report joins your other Windows quality update reports right in the Microsoft Intune admin center. Use it to view Windows CVEs addressed by recent quality updates and follow links to remediation documentation and device-level vulnerability status. When will this happen: The new report is already available. How this will affect your organization: This report can help simplify how you track which vulnerabilities have been remediated and which devices remain at risk. It can also help strengthen your vulnerability response strategy by identifying and linking to specific Windows updates that address each vulnerability. What you need to do to prepare: Read Additional information to learn how to
Introduction As part of Microsoft’s Secure Future Initiative, we’re updating our Content Security Policy for the Microsoft Entra ID sign-in experience. This change adds an extra layer of protection by allowing only scripts from trusted Microsoft domains to run during authentication, blocking unauthorized or injected external code. This proactive measure helps safeguard users against threats like cross-site scripting (XSS), further strengthening security for your organization. When this will happen General Availability (Production/Worldwide only): Rollout begins mid-October 2026 Expected completion by late October 2026 Periodic communications will be sent closer to release. How this affects your organization Who is affected: Organizations using browser-based sign-in experiences on URLs starting with login.microsoftonline.com. No impact to Microsoft Entra External ID tenants. What will hap
November’s edition of Windows news you can use recaps the new Windows capabilities announced at Microsoft Ignite so your organization and IT team can catch up and dive deeper into the details. Discover upcoming events to help you keep your deployment and device management projects moving. Find a summary of important lifecycle reminders for Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows Server, and Microsoft Configuration Manager. Learn about new tools and guidance. When will this happen:Some of the features described in this monthly recap are now available, either broadly or in public preview. Others are planned for 2026. Note that some capabilities roll out gradually and may not yet be available for your market. What you need to do to prepare:Read the November 2025 edition of Windows news you can use so you can plan for these new capabilities and utilize them in your organization as they are released.
The November 2025 non-security preview update is now available for Windows 11, versions 25H2 and 24H2. Information about the contents of this update is available from the release notes, which are accessible from the Windows 11 update history page. To learn more about the different types of monthly quality updates, see Windows monthly updates explained. Looking to explore upcoming features and improvements in Windows 11? Check out the Windows roadmap. It includes what’s coming to the Windows Insider Program, what’s gradually rolling out, and what’s generally available. Highlights for the Windows 11, version 25H2 update: The search results menu displays more available results, making it easier to quickly find and modify your settings. A scroll bar lets you view all search results.* You can use Windows Studio Effects, which provides AI-powered camera enhancements, on an additional came
On December 2, Tech Community Live presents three hours of live, Windows-focused Ask Microsoft Anything (AMA) sessions. This is a free online event. Members of the Windows engineering team will be answering questions, offering tips, and providing additional insights on the announcements made at Microsoft Ignite. Topics will include: managing Windows updates, managing AI and agents in Windows, Windows backup and restore options, and Windows accessibility in the enterprise. When will this happen:The live streams will begin at 8:00 AM PST (3:00 PM UTC) and conclude at 11:00 AM PST (6:00 PM UTC). All sessions will be recorded and available on demand. The ability to post questions on the Tech Community will be open until Friday, December 5. Closed captions will be AI-generated during the live event. Human-generated closed captions and text-based transcripts will be available later in the week