According to Windows Central, Microsoft has released the November Patch Tuesday update for Windows 11, known as KB5068861 and build 26200.7121. The update includes significant changes to the Start menu interface with improved customization options like hiding the recommended feed and changing the all apps list view. It also introduces a larger battery icon on the Taskbar that changes color based on power state and now displays battery percentage directly. Most importantly, the update fixes a critical Task Manager bug where closing the application didn’t fully end the process, leaving background instances that consumed system resources. This particular issue was originally discovered several weeks ago and affected users who installed KB5067036. The update is now rolling out automatically through Windows Update.
Finally, a proper Task Manager fix
Here’s the thing about that Task Manager bug – it was one of those annoyances that didn’t completely break your system but definitely made things feel sluggish over time. Basically, when you’d close Task Manager, it wasn’t actually closing. The process would linger in the background, slowly eating up resources. And the worst part? Most users wouldn’t even know it was happening until they noticed their system slowing down or checked Task Manager to see… another Task Manager running. It’s the kind of bug that makes you question reality. Microsoft identified this as affecting users who installed KB5067036, so if you’ve been experiencing mysterious slowdowns, this update should finally put that to rest.
Meaningful interface upgrades
The Start menu changes are actually pretty substantial for a Patch Tuesday update. Being able to hide the recommended feed entirely? That’s a win for anyone who finds Microsoft’s suggestions more annoying than helpful. And promoting the all apps list to the main page makes so much sense – why bury the thing people actually use? The battery icon improvements are long overdue too. We’ve had battery percentage on phones for years, but Windows users had to hover over the icon to see their exact level. Now it’s right there on the Taskbar. It’s interesting that Microsoft is making these quality-of-life improvements through regular updates rather than waiting for major feature releases.
Beyond the headline features
While everyone will notice the Start menu and battery changes, some of the other fixes are just as important for specific users. The Storage Spaces fix could prevent some pretty catastrophic data accessibility issues for people using that feature. And the HTTP.sys parser fix? That’s the kind of backend technical improvement that system administrators will appreciate, even if regular users never notice it. These updates show Microsoft is paying attention to both the flashy user-facing features and the underlying infrastructure that keeps everything running smoothly. It’s a balanced approach that serves different segments of the Windows user base.
Should you install it?
Look, Patch Tuesday updates are generally safe bets, and this one seems particularly worthwhile given the Task Manager fix alone. The fact that Microsoft identified and resolved that background process issue relatively quickly is encouraging. And the new customization options give users more control over their experience without requiring third-party tools or registry hacks. If you’re running Windows 11, this update should hit your system automatically, but you can always check Windows Update to manually trigger it. Given the mix of critical fixes and genuine quality-of-life improvements, this is one update that’s actually worth getting excited about.
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