Microsoft Weekly: More layoffs, another no-build week, Windows updates, and more

In this episode of Microsoft Weekly, we look at another no-build week, new executives at Microsoft, another round of layoffs in the company's gaming division, Patch Tuesday updates, more tools for PowerToys, some game reviews, and more.

Table of contents:

1. Windows 10 and 11 news
2. Windows Insider Program
3. Updates are available
4. Gaming news
5. Great deals to check

This week's Microsoft Weekly kicks off with a new COO (Chief Operations Officer) at Microsoft. That position, vacant (or absent) since 2016 and Kevin Turner's departure, is now occupied by Carolina Dybeck Happe, a former Chief Financial Officer of GE. When commenting on Carolina's assignment, Satya Nadella said that she's "recognized for her ability to drive transformational change at scale while delivering improved customer experiences and faster time to value."

Windows 11 and 10

Here we talk about everything happening around Microsoft's latest operating system in the Stable channel and preview builds: new features, removed features, controversies, bugs, interesting findings, and more. And of course, you may find a word or two about older but still supported versions.

This month's Patch Tuesday updates are now available. Windows 11 users can download KB5043076 for versions 23H2 and 22H2, while those on Windows 11 version 21H2 can download KB5043067. As for Copilot+ PCs with Windows 11 24H2, KB5043080 and KB5043939 await them in Windows Update (or probably already installed). Windows 10 received KB5043064.

In addition to releasing new Patch Tuesday updates, Microsoft issued a reminder that computers with Windows 11 version 21H2 and 22H2 will be force-updated to version 23H2 in less than one month. That is because Windows 11 versions 21H2 and 22H2 are about to reach their end of support.

The company confirmed that it fixed problems with degrading performance and high CPU usage on Windows Server 2019. It also acknowledged the "Operation is not supported" bug with Windows 11 24H2 MSU updates (there is a workaround).

Moving away from cumulative updates, we come to a new deprecated feature in Windows client versions. Microsoft announced that legacy DRM support in Windows 7 and 8 is now deprecated. That includes Windows Media Player and Silverlight clients.

Finally, Microsoft held its Windows Endpoint Security Ecosystem Summit, where it revealed some ideas for improving Windows security updates and preventing future incidents like the one caused by Crowdstike this Summer.

Windows Insider Program

Here is what Microsoft Released this week for testing in the Windows Insider Program:

Despite another no-build week, Windows Insiders still received some small bits to try. The Clock app has been updated with two new widgets: you can now pin timers and countdowns to the widget board. By the way, you can get this update in the Stable Channel as well, so be sure to check out that article for more details.

If you are running the latest build from the Dev Channel, beware of some Windows Update bugs, which can cause lags, stutters, and other annoyances.

Updates are available

This section covers software, firmware, and other notable updates (released and coming soon) delivering new features, security fixes, improvements, patches, and more from Microsoft and third parties.

PowerToys received a small update that fixed several issues with the recently introduced Workspaces feature. However, even more tools are coming soon. Microsoft confirmed that a future PowerToys update will bring a part of the Sysinternals suite.

Clipchamp, a Microsoft-owned web-based video editor, has been updated with some gaming-themed content. Users can now access templates, stickers, and other bits from Minecraft and Sea of Thieves franchises.

Microsoft Edge Insiders got a new preview update. Version 130.0.2821.1 arrived this week with an improved Appearance settings section and fixes for various browser crashes. As for the Stable Channel, Microsoft delivered version 128.0.2739.0 with fixes for duplicated taskbar shortcuts and crashes when launching custom protocols on managed devices.

Moving to third parties, Mozilla revealed that Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 users will have at least seven more years of Firefox 115 support. According to Mozilla engineers, Firefox still has quite a few users on unsupported systems, so the company decided to stick around with Firefox 115 ESR for over a half-year extra.

Other notable updates include the following:

• Microsoft Ignite 2024 registration is now open for the event in Chicago on November 18-22.

• Microsoft Teams Preview now supports bidirectional translation.

• Microsoft and Oracle announced new partnerships for cloud and AI businesses.
• Microsoft released TypeScript 5.6 with multiple improvements.
• Microsoft launched a public preview of UWP support in .NET 9.
• Microsoft released .NET 9 RC 1 with enhanced WebSocket APIs and more.

• Microsoft launched a preview of the Office Add-ins Development Kit for Visual Studio Code.

• Microsoft Loop now supports uploading Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and PDF files.

• Microsoft gears up for iOS 18 launch with Intune updates and many new features.

• Microsoft will launch the web version of the new Planner app in the coming weeks.

• SharePoint received a new start screen with a more streamlined UI.

And here are the newest drivers released this week:

• Nvidia 561.09 WHQL with Final Fantasy XVI, God of War Ragnarök support and more.
• AMD released a new preview driver with AFMF 2 and VGM support for Ryzen AI 300 CPUs.
• Surface Pro X received fixes for camera crashes and broken keyboard input in WinRE.
• Surface Pro 8 received fixes for flickering taskbar, display freezes, and more.
• Surface Laptop 6 for Business received fixes for always-spinning fans.

As usual, the update section finishes with the latest Microsoft 365 Roadmap Weekly and new features coming soon to Teams, Outlook, and more.

On the gaming side

Learn about upcoming game releases, Xbox rumors, new hardware, software updates, freebies, deals, discounts and more.

This week was a pretty tough one for employees of Microsoft's gaming division. The company announced yet another round of layoffs affecting 650 people from corporate and support functions (reportedly from teams behind Call of Duty Warzone Mobile and more). The latest wave of layoffs is part of Microsoft's optimization of its gaming division following the purchase of Activision-Blizzard for $69 billion.

Pulasthi Ariyasinghe reviewed Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, a brutal game with enemy hordes, fantastic visuals, engaging combat, good cooperative capabilities, and more. While the game has some audio and performance issues, it still delivers a great experience. Many tend to agree with our score, considering that developers already sold over 2 million copies at launch.

Besides Warhammer, Pulasthi reviewed Towerborne, a new game published by Xbox currently in early access. This game offers fun combat with wild combos, a solid focus on cooperative play, a fantastic art style and gorgeous animations, and steadily increasing difficulty. There are several rough surfaces here and there, so check out the complete review here.

Turn 10 Studios released a new Forza Motorsport update. Update 12 is now available on Xbox and PC and brings a new Spectate Mode, Challenge Hub, new cars, and more. The update also introduces improvements to Forza Racing Regulations, fixes small issues, and further polishes the racing experience.

Mojang, another Microsoft-owned studio, announced plans for future Minecraft updates. Gamers can expect more frequent content drops, better multiplayer features, and some unknown "long-term initiatives." Besides, Minecraft Live will be held twice a year, and the mob vote is finally gone.

After spending five years in Early Access, Satisfactory 1.0 is finally out on Steam and the Epic Games Store. Besides leaving Early Access, version 1.0 brings multiple changes and improvements, Phase 5 of Project Assembly, and more.

CD Projekt Red released Patch 2.13 for Cyberpunk 2077 on PC. It is a pretty important update as it finally delivers the long-awaited AMD Fidelity FX Super Resolution 3 with Frame Generation, Intel XeSS 1.3, and the ability to Nvidia DLAA with DLSS Ray Reconstruction. If you want to try AMD's latest performance-improving technologies in Cyberpunk 2077, check out this article, as it contains some important prerequisites.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor also has some neat updates for its audience. The latest update removed Denuvo, which resulted in notable FPS improvements across "various hardware configurations", better ray tracing, and other positive changes.

Microsoft announced a new Insider update for Xbox owners. It is a pretty big release that brings back friend requests and adds new privacy and notification settings for friend requests and followers.

Valve also released a significant update for its platform. With the latest Steam release, Steam Families has reworked family controls. Gamers can invite up to five other people from the same household, and everyone can play simultaneously. While the existing Steam Family Sharing option will remain for some time, Valve plans to discontinue it in the near future.

Following the announcement of offline mode for its The Crew racing games, Ubisoft put The Crew 2 on sale, allowing everyone to score the game for just $1. As a result, the game climbed Steam's chart and became the fifth best-selling game.

Finally, Nvidia announced nine new games for GeForce NOW members. They include Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, Dawn of Defiance, Fort Solis, XIII, and more.

Deals and freebies

This week's Weekend PC Game Deals issue covers various bundles, big discounts on Sony hits, cheap racing titles of different sizes and from different developers, two freebies from the Epic Games Store, and a lot more.

Here are other noteworthy gaming stories from this week:

• Towerborne received the first Early Access patch.

• Age of Mythology: Retold got a new patch with lots of balance changes and more.

• Sonic Generations returned to the Xbox Store with a new Legacy Bundle.

• Until Dawn's remake specs are revealed with support from Nvidia DLSS 3 and AMD FSR 3.

• Embracer Group revealed that it would not sell Zen Studios and 4A Games.

• Planet Coaster 2 is coming to PC and consoles in November 2024.

• Tony Hawk says he has been "talking to Activision again" for something Pro Skater-related.

• Pocketpar confirmed that Palworld is not going to be free-to-play.

Great deals to check

Every week, we cover many deals on different hardware and software. The following discounts are still available, so check them out. You might find something you want or need.

Phones and tablets:

• Amazon Fire HD 8 with and without ads - up to 54% off
• Lenovo Tab M11 - 26% off

PC components and accessories:

• TP-Link Quad-Band Wi-Fi 7 Mesh System - 22% off
• AMD Ryzen 5 8500G processor - 17% off
• 2TB SanDisk Portable SSD - 22% off
• 2TB SanDisk Extreme PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD - 31% off
• 14TB Western Digital Gold Enterprise-class HDD - 11% off
• 960GB Kingston A400 SATA SSD - 23% off
• Logitech G915 Gaming Keyboard - 36% off

Laptops and computers:

• Acer Nitro 16 - 26% off
• 2022 MacBook Air 13 - 20% off
• MSI Codex R2 - 16% off

Monitors, TVs, and more:

• 32-inch Samsung M7 - 25% off
• Marantz SR8015 AV Receiver - 10% off
• 27-inch Asus ROG Swift PG27AQN - 23% off

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