What’s New in Windows 11 Sun Valley 2 (22H2) – Key UI and Security Updates
Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 11 Sun Valley 2 (22H2) update, codenamed SV2, brings a series of refined UI changes such as a revamped Alt+Tab, File Explorer tabs, new personalization options, plus security enhancements like Smart App Control, all rolled out gradually through the Insider preview builds.
Sun Valley 2 (SV2) – Windows 11 22H2 Codename
Microsoft confirmed via Feedback Hub that the next major Windows 11 22H2 release is codenamed Sun Valley 2 (SV2) . The codename signals an incremental update rather than a feature‑heavy release, similar to Windows 10 anniversary updates.
Design Philosophy
SV2 focuses on refining core design principles, polishing existing functionality, and adding a limited set of small new capabilities.
Key UI Changes
New Settings experience : a handful of pages are redesigned; the Time & Language page now displays the current time in its title bar. All SV2 builds distributed after 15 March enable these changes by default.
Alt+Tab redesign : the blur effect is applied only to the switcher menu, resulting in a cleaner visual layout.
File Explorer tabs : Explorer now supports tabbed browsing, allowing multiple folders to be managed within a single window.
Taskbar drag‑and‑drop : drag‑and‑drop of files onto taskbar icons is restored.
Security Feature – Smart App Control
SV2 introduces Smart App Control , which blocks the download or installation of untrusted or potentially unwanted applications, helping to mitigate viruses, phishing, and ransomware.
Personalization Enhancements
Spotlight support for the desktop background.
Automatic wallpaper rotation.
Built‑in sticker app for adding custom stickers to the desktop.
Microsoft Paint Revamp
The Paint app receives a visual overhaul that aligns dialogs such as Edit Colors and Resize & Skew with the Windows 11 design language (rounded corners, Mica effect). Legacy dialogs (e.g., the color picker) remain unchanged. New shortcuts include holding Shift to pick a secondary color, and screen‑reader accessibility has been improved.
Insider Build 22579 (Nickel) – Feature Highlights
Start menu : ability to rename Start‑menu folders, refreshed layout, and a new group‑policy to exclude USB drives from BitLocker encryption.
Print experience : modernized print dialogs using Fluent and WinUI designs; Win32 applications that use CPrintDialog now show the new UI.
Windows Terminal fallback : if Windows Terminal is missing, the Win+X menu redirects to PowerShell.
Three‑finger gestures : new gestures for switching between recent windows.
Task manager : added a "Run new task" button.
Emoji picker : highlighted emojis with a accent‑color dot for easier discovery.
Icons : new Fluent‑style icons for Magnifier and On‑Screen Keyboard.
Media Player (v11.2202.42.0): improved theme adaptation and drag‑and‑drop of media files.
Additional System Improvements
Group‑policy to prevent automatic BitLocker encryption of removable USB drives (requires hardware ID or Intune configuration).
Enhanced Windows 11 gestures with smoother animations for multi‑finger interactions.
Updated "Enter” app to allow pinning websites to the taskbar.
Installation Instructions for Build 22579
Open Settings .
Navigate to Windows Update > Windows Insider Program and switch to the Dev channel if you are on the Stable channel.
Click Check for updates .
Select Download and install when the build appears (e.g., "Windows 11 Insider Preview 22579 (NI_RELEASE)").
Click Restart now to apply the update.
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