Windows 11's November update lets you rebuild the right-click menu

The update landed on November 10, 2026, the eleventh Patch Tuesday of the year. Patch Tuesday is the second Tuesday of each month, when Microsoft ships its regular batch of fixes.

• KB5132061: for Windows 11 versions 26H2 and 25H2, and for 24H2 on the same core.
• KB5131087: for version 23H2.
• Build numbers: 26300.9974 on 26H2 and 26200.9974 on 25H2.

Versions 25H2 and 26H2 are built on 24H2, so they get the same update with no exclusive changes. The update is mandatory, because it carries the November security patches for hundreds of vulnerabilities found in earlier months. A vulnerability is a flaw in software that attackers can abuse.

Windows Update downloads it on its own when updates are on. To do it by hand, open Start, then Settings, then Windows Update, and click Check for updates. The update also appears in the Microsoft Update Catalog, a website with offline installers.

Size matters here. Through Windows Update the download is about 1 to 1.5 GB, but the Update Catalog file is around 5 GB. Windows 11 updates are bigger than old Windows 10 ones partly because they now come bundled with AI models for supported PCs.

By the numbers: for comparison, Windows 10 updates used to be under 300 MB through Windows Update.

Microsoft also shipped fresh .NET security updates (the toolkit many apps are built on), plus a new version of its malicious software removal tool.

This is the headline. The updated context menu, the box that opens when you right-click, is faster, simpler and more customizable. It opens more quickly and has less clutter.

At the bottom you will see a new Customize menu option. It opens a settings page where you can:

• Turn built-in commands on or off: for example Send to and Create shortcut.
• Add commands: such as Print.
• Sort app extensions: extensions are the extra entries that apps add, like "Edit in Notepad". You can keep them in the main menu, tuck them into a submenu or hide that submenu.
• Show actions as words: Cut, Copy, Paste, Rename, Delete and Share can appear as text rather than a row of icons.
• Move Properties: you can push it to the bottom.

In real life You right-click a photo and get a long list of things you never use. Now you can switch off the ones you ignore and keep only Photos, Rotate and Print.

If you want the old long list, hold Shift while you right-click on the desktop to see more options.

The more apps you install, the longer the old menu got, and this update finally lets you take charge of it.

Microsoft is slowly replacing old dialog boxes, the small pop-up windows that still look like Windows 95. This update modernizes two of them.

• AutoPlay: the box that appears when you plug in a phone, camera or USB drive now supports dark mode and text scaling. Its notifications also stay in the notification center.
• Folder Options: this dialog now supports dark mode.
• File Explorer search: results show the file name, location and date in the same layout, so they are easier to scan.
• The tilde shortcut: type ~ in the address bar to jump to your user folder, so ~\AppData opens AppData directly.

Other small changes include a refreshed Gaming Task View in Xbox mode, with quick buttons for Exit to Desktop and Power Options, and smoother taskbar preview animations. You can also hover over a recent message in the Recent section of Start to preview it.

The Privacy and security page now groups Camera, Microphone and Location controls together. The main page also shows which apps used them, a detail that used to hide behind links.

The Device Info card on the Settings home page is expanding to more markets. It shows key PC specs and usage at a glance. It needs a Microsoft account, and the full details stay under Settings, System, About.

Microsoft also changed how the PC sleeps. The adaptive hibernate policy hibernates less when the battery is above 80% and hibernates sooner when it drops below 10%. The goal is quicker wake-ups from Modern Standby, a low-power sleep state, while saving battery.

Imagine your PC will not start. Until now you usually needed a USB drive with Windows on it. Cloud rebuild changes that.

It reinstalls Windows 11 using a Windows image and drivers downloaded from Windows Update, even when Windows cannot start. No USB media or custom image is needed.

• Where to find it: Settings, System, Recovery, then Rebuild PC. If Windows will not start, the PC enters the Windows Recovery Environment after repeated boot failures.
• What you choose: remove your files, or securely erase the drive with its own erase feature before Windows goes back on. Sanitizing cannot be undone.
• What you need: a wired Ethernet or Wi-Fi connection.
• For companies: IT admins can start a rebuild remotely through the Recovery CSP, a management tool for Windows settings.

Windows asks you to review the target build, edition and language and to confirm a data loss warning before it begins.

Why it matters: a clean reinstall without a USB stick makes recovery far less scary for people who do not run an IT department.

A rebuild needs the internet. The update lets the Windows Recovery Environment, a small repair mode that runs outside normal Windows, reuse Wi-Fi profiles already saved on the PC. That includes supported certificate-based networks.

So the PC can connect on its own during recovery, with no Wi-Fi password typed in. This is on by default, and IT admins can turn it off. Microsoft had announced the feature last month, and it is now starting to roll out.

Windows also adds a Restore Summary. After you restore a backup to a new device, it lists what came back, including Windows settings and Microsoft Store apps.

Besides the patches, the update expands memory integrity, also known as HVCI. It is a protection that makes drivers and other critical code pass through an isolated safe area of memory, so malware has a harder time reaching the core of the system.

Supported PCs may now have it turned on during updates. Microsoft says it respects choices already made by users or IT admins.

For networks, Windows now supports IPv6 CLAT. IPv6 is the newer internet address system. CLAT lets older IPv4-only apps keep working on networks that use only IPv6, which helps companies move to IPv6-only setups.

Several accessibility tools got upgrades:

• Magnifier contrast theme: a toggle that reduces glare while keeping the original colors in photos, videos and charts.
• Per-monitor zoom: on by default, so each screen can have its own zoom level.
• Viewport locking: press Ctrl + Windows key + K to freeze a magnified view on one display while you work on another.
• Narrator math: Narrator can read and navigate equations in Word, PowerPoint, Edge and Chrome. Press Narrator key + Alt + N, then use the arrow keys. It supports English (US and UK), Traditional Chinese, Finnish, German and Spanish.
• Live Captions: a new setting, off by default, decides whether screen reader audio is transcribed.

No. Microsoft rolls most of these features out gradually, so you can install the update and still not see the new menu. They arrive in waves.

Support also matters. Support for the Home and Pro editions of Windows 11 24H2 ended in October 2026. Only 25H2 and 26H2 are supported on x64 PCs, while newer Arm PCs depend on version 26H1.

• Install it soon: it is a security update, and waiting more than a few days leaves known holes open.
• Use Windows Update: it is smaller and faster than the offline installer.
• Tidy your right-click menu: once Customize menu appears, switch off what you never use.
• Know your safety net: Cloud rebuild is under Settings, System, Recovery if a PC ever fails to boot.