Microsoft's November Patch Tuesday squashes several bugs in Windows 11 24H2

Those of you who’ve run into hiccups with Windows 11 24H2 should get some much-needed relief via this month’s Patch Tuesday lineup. Released yesterday, the latest updates are designed to repair many, though not all, of the outstanding bugs.

KB5046617 is aimed specifically at the Windows 11 2024 edition. It repairs several known issues that have annoyed and vexed Windows users.

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First up is a fix for a bug that prevented a small number of devices from connecting to the Internet. This glitch popped up when a DHCP server failed to respond properly, preventing people from getting a valid IP address to connect to a network.

Another patch resolves an inaccurate count in the Task Manager. With this bug, the Processes tab always showed zero when you tried to group open processes by type.

Also on the fixed list is an issue in which pressing Alt+Tab to switch windows triggered a black screen. Though this problem was supposed to have been repaired by an earlier patch, some people reported that it persisted. Hopefully, it’s fixed for good this time.

Another glitch that supposedly had already been patched displayed the wrong amount of free storage after running the Windows Disk Cleanup tool to remove leftover cache files. This issue may need further patching for a complete and final repair.

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One more patch fixes an issue with the Windows Subsystem for Linux in which users were unable to access their Dev Drives. Designed mostly for developers and IT pros, WSL lets you run Linux within Windows via a virtual environment. The Dev Drive is dedicated storage that can be used to house databases, code, and other content.

Other problems now show up as fixed on Microsoft’s Windows 11 24H2 known issues and notifications page. One resolved a conflict in which an app called Voicemeeter crashed, causing a blue screen. Another repaired a glitch in which fingerprint sensors might not work after your computer has been locked.

Though that sounds like a fair number of bug fixes, Microsoft still has other issues on its to-do list for Windows 24H2.

Some Asus PCs fail to install the latest update, instead triggering a blue screen during the update. Use of the camera may cause some applications to become unresponsive. A program called Safe Exam Browser fails to open. Using an application named Easy Anti-Cheat can result in a blue screen. Compatibility issues can occur with certain Intel Smart Sound Technology drivers. And the Asphalt 8 driving game may periodically stop responding.

Though each issue affects only a small number of people, according to Microsoft, the sheer number has proven to be an obstacle in the rollout of the 2024 update. The company was even forced to block the update for affected computers until fixes could be or can be applied. Hopefully, the remaining bugs will be resolved soon or through the next major Patch Tuesday rollout.

Aside from the fixes for Windows 11 24H2, November’s update resolves almost 100 security vulnerabilities and adds such features as a customizable Copilot keyboard key. The update should automatically present itself for installation. If not, head to Settings, select Windows Update, and click the button to check for updates.