Windows 11 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft that was released in October 2021. Starting with Windows 10, Microsoft described Windows as an "operating system as a service" that would receive ongoing updates to its features and functionality, augmented with the ability for enterprise environments to receive non-critical updates at a slower pace or use long-term support milestones that will only receive critical updates, such as security patches, over their five-year lifespan of mainstream support.
As with Windows 10 (since version 20H2), mainstream builds of Windows 11 are labeled "YYHX", with YY representing the two-digit year and X representing the half-year of planned release (for example, version 21H2 refers to builds which initially released in the second half of 2021).
The original version of Windows 11 (also known as version 21H2 and codenamed "Sun Valley") was released in October 2021. It carries the build number 10.0.22000.The first public preview build was made available to Windows Insiders who opted in to the Dev Channel on June 28, 2021. Notable changes in this version include:
The update has reached end of service on October 10, 2023 for Home, Pro, Pro Education and Pro for Workstations editions. The Enterprise, Enterprise multi-session, IoT Enterprise and Education editions have reached end of service on October 8, 2024.
The Windows 11 2022 Update (also known as version 22H2 and codenamed "Sun Valley 2") is the first major update to Windows 11. It carries the build number 10.0.22621.<section end=ov/> Five component updates were released for this version"Moment 1" with build 22621.675 on October 18, 2022, "Moment 2" with build 22621.1344 on February 28, 2023, "Moment 3" with build 22621.1778 on May 24, 2023, "Moment 4" with build 22621.2361 on September 26, 2023, and "Moment 5" with build 22621.3235 on February 29, 2024.
The first preview was released to Insiders who opted in to the Dev Channel on September 2, 2021. As of build 22567, the version string has been changed from "Dev" to "22H2".
The update began rolling out on September 20, 2022. Notable changes in the 2022 Update include:
The first component update to Windows 11, version 22H2, codenamed "Moment 1", was released on October 18, 2022, with build 22621.675 and several further changes:
The second component update to Windows 11, version 22H2, codenamed "Moment 2", was released on February 28, 2023, with build 22621.1344 and several further changes:
The third component update to Windows 11, version 22H2, codenamed "Moment 3", was released on May 24, 2023, with build 22621.1778 and several further changes:
The fourth component update to Windows 11, version 22H2, codenamed "Moment 4", was released on September 26, 2023, with build 22621.2361 and several further changes:
The fifth component update to Windows 11, version 22H2, codenamed "Moment 5", was released on February 29, 2024, with build 22621.3235.
The update has reached end of service on October 8, 2024 for Home, Pro, Pro Education, Pro for Workstations and SE editions. The Enterprise, Enterprise multi-session, IoT Enterprise and Education editions have reached end of service on October 14, 2025.
The Windows 11 2023 Update (also known as version 23H2 and codenamed "Sun Valley 3") is the second major update to Windows 11. It was shipped as an enablement package for the Windows 11 2022 Update, and carries the build number 10.0.22631.
Major features of Windows 11 2023 Update and system applications included:
Final minor version of Windows to unofficially support processors that don't meet the x86-x64-v2 (i.e., having POPCNT and SSE4.2) or ARMv8.1 specifications.
The first preview was released to Insiders who opted in to the Beta Channel on May 25, 2023. The update began rolling out on October 31, 2023. New features and changes from "Moment 4" were enabled by default in this update. The version string was changed from "22H2" to "23H2" in build 25375.<section end=ov/>
The first component update to Windows 11, version 23H2, codenamed "Moment 5", was released on February 29, 2024, with build 22631.3235 and several further changes:
This is the last version of Windows 11 where the DNS Cache Service is used as an optional service. This behavior was changed on version 24H2 onwards, where the DNS Cache Service is now mandatory to access the Internet thus if disabled, the system will not be able to access the internet anymore.
The update has reach end of service on November 11, 2025 for Home, Pro, Pro Education, Pro for Workstations and SE editions. The Enterprise, Enterprise multi-session, IoT Enterprise and Education editions will reach end of service on November 10, 2026.
The Windows 11 2024 Update (also known as version 24H2 and codenamed "Hudson Valley") is the third major update to Windows 11. It carries the build number 10.0.26100.
The first preview was released to Insiders who opted into the Canary and Dev Channels on February 8, 2024. The update began rolling out for Copilot Plus PCs on June 15, 2024. As of build 26052, the version string has been changed from "23H2" to "24H2". The update began rolling out to all users on October 1, 2024.
The update notably introduces the first Windows 11 based Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) editions, along with new subscription variants of IoT Enterprise editions (both LTSC and non-LTSC).
For the first time since the release of Windows 11, version 24H2 introduces modified system requirements:
Windows 11, version 24H2, notably, has a longer than usual list of known issues; some require updated drivers to fix, while others have yet to be fixed as of February 2025. E.g., broken biometrics and camera support on a limited number of devices, and some older games and applications not functioning properly or not working at all; e.g., (resolved since March 19, 2025), Dirac audio improvement software (if cridspapo.dll is utilized), and AutoCAD 2022.
New features include:
Dropped features include:
The update will reach end of service on October 13, 2026, for Home, Pro, Pro Education and Pro for Workstations editions. The update is also the last to be available to the SE edition, which will reach end of support alongside consumer editions. The Enterprise, Enterprise multi-session, IoT Enterprise and Education editions will reach end of service on October 12, 2027. The Enterprise LTSC and IoT Enterprise LTSC editions will reach end of service on October 9, 2029, and October 10, 2034, respectively.
The Windows 11 2025 Update (also known as version 25H2 and codenamed "Hudson Valley 2") is the fourth and latest major update to Windows 11. It is shipped as an enablement package for the Windows 11 2024 Update, and carries the build number 10.0.26200.
The first preview was released to Insiders who opted in to the Dev Channel on June 27, 2025, along with the version string being changed from "24H2" to "25H2". The update began rolling out on September 30, 2025.
The Windows 11, version 26H1 is the fifth major update to Windows 11. It was released on February 10, 2026.
The first preview was released to Insiders who opted in to the Canary Channel on November 7, 2025, along with the version string being changed from "Dev" to "26H1".
Version 26H1 is a platform-specific support release that only includes changes to support devices with ARM processors, with the Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 being one of the confirmed case as of March 25, 2026. Also version 26H1 added many AI and NPU features.
Windows Insider Preview builds are delivered to Insiders in four different channels. Insiders in the Dev and Canary Channel receive updates prior to those in the Beta Channel but might experience more bugs and other issues. Insiders in the Release Preview Channel do not receive updates until the version is almost available to the public but are comparatively more stable.
On February 3, 2022, Microsoft changed its plans on how they delivered builds for Windows Insiders, with Dev and Beta Channels being "parallel" active development branches, giving an option to switch from Dev to Beta Channel for a limited time. The Dev Channel builds are meant for upcoming and experimental features that may never release to general availability, whereas the Beta Channel builds are the "feature complete" builds that will make its way to the general availability for the specific Windows 11 release.
On March 6, 2023, Microsoft announced that it was restructuring the preview channels in the Windows Insider Program. The Dev Channel would continue to test early versions of new features, and existing insiders were moved to the new Canary Channel that would primarily test changes to the kernel.