Microsoft is set to roll out a major Windows 11 update that restores customisation features like taskbar positioning and resize options, responding to user demands and signalling a shift towards more flexible personalisation in the operating system.
Microsoft is preparing to push one of Windows 11’s most significant interface updates to general users, after the refreshed Start menu and Taskbar entered the Windows Release Preview Channel. The move signals that the changes are close to public rollout, with Microsoft’s staged release approach suggesting that early adopters may see them first before a broader release follows.
The update restores a level of control that many users have asked for since Windows 11 launched in 2021. According to Windows Central, it will bring back the ability to move the Taskbar to the top, left or right of the screen, as well as resize it. The Start menu is also being made more flexible, with options to alter its size and hide or rearrange sections such as Pinned, Recommended and All Apps. Microsoft is also adding privacy controls that let users conceal profile information from the Start menu.
That shift matters because much of Windows 11’s early criticism centred on the removal of familiar customisation options from Windows 10. Windows Central reports that Microsoft is now trying to balance a cleaner interface with more practical personalisation, rather than forcing users into a fixed layout. The company appears to be responding to long-standing complaints from people who stayed on Windows 10 partly because of the newer system’s stricter design.
Windows Central says features in the Release Preview Channel are usually only a few weeks away from public release, which points to an initial rollout later this month for users who have enabled the Windows Update toggle for getting the latest updates as soon as possible. A wider deployment would then follow next month. Even so, Microsoft is expected to deliver the changes gradually, so not every eligible device will receive them immediately.
The broader Windows 11 roadmap still points towards further interface work. Windows Central says Microsoft has more quality-of-life improvements planned, including performance and responsiveness gains across apps and core UI elements such as the Start menu, as Windows continues to adopt WinUI across more parts of the operating system. Separate reporting on the 2026 Windows 11 update also indicates that Microsoft is extending the same practical approach to Search, with cleaner results and stronger controls over web suggestions.
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