Edge 154 Raises Unload Event Phase-Out to 80% of Page Loads

Edge 154.0.4258.37 lands as the Stable main release for version 154​

Microsoft's Stable-channel release notes list 154.0.4258.37 as the "Main Release" of Edge 154. Microsoft sorts the changes into three groups: announcements about the unload event and the WIP/MDAG retirement, feature updates for profile setup, third-party sign-in and password details, and policy updates. Neowin covered the build on September 25, the day after Microsoft's date, so the update had already started rolling out by then. Microsoft says Stable updates roll out gradually over one or more days, so some machines won't see it right away.

Microsoft's Edge WebDriver download page also lists 154.0.4258.37 as the current Stable build, which confirms the version number. That page shows four earlier 154 builds (.12, .18, .24 and .32) that came before this Stable release. It also shows the pipeline behind it: Beta is on 155.0.4283.13, and Dev and Canary are on 156 builds. The Extended Stable channel, which enterprises use to update less often, stays on version 152. Its latest update, 152.0.4191.96, is dated September 21.

Microsoft's release notes include the usual Stable-channel security section. The notes reviewed here don't tie specific CVEs to this build, though, so this article doesn't treat 154.0.4258.37 as a security patch. If you need CVE-level detail for compliance, check Microsoft's separate Edge security release notes.

Why the unload event change in Edge 154 is the developer headline​

The change most likely to break real software is the unload rollout. Edge is changing how the unload event works by default: as the rollout expands, pages stop running unload handlers unless the site explicitly allows them. Microsoft's schedule has three stages:

These numbers are shares of page loads, not shares of users. During the rollout, the same site can behave one way on one load and differently on the next. A bug that shows up only sometimes, such as a session-end ping that arrives on some visits and not others, fits this staged pattern. Neowin's summary matches Microsoft's schedule: Edge 154 raises the rollout to 80% of page loads, with unload handlers no longer firing by default unless explicitly permitted. The rollout reaches 100% in Edge 155.

Microsoft is blunt about why. It says the unload event isn't a reliable way to save data, clean up or report that a session ended, because browsers and operating systems can suspend or close pages without firing it. The event can also stop a page from using the back/forward cache, the browser feature that restores a page instantly when you press Back or Forward. Pages with unload handlers can make that navigation slower. Microsoft says the web platform's long-term plan is to drop unload support entirely.

For now, the opt-out is Permissions Policy. Microsoft says a site can still enable unload handlers through it during the rollout. That buys time, but Microsoft's advice is to move to the lifecycle events and APIs built for saving state and reporting session ends. The release notes don't name one replacement for every case, so pick the right tool for each job, whether that's autosaving a form, sending analytics or releasing a lock, rather than making one blanket swap.

Edge 154 removes WIP and MDAG code, and the affected group is small​

The second announcement is mainly for enterprises. Microsoft is removing the Windows Information Protection (WIP) and Microsoft Defender Application Guard (MDAG) code paths from Edge. It frames this as bringing the browser in line with Windows, which deprecated both technologies and removed them in Windows 11, version 24H2.

Microsoft limits the impact clearly. Only tenants that set up WIP or MDAG in Edge are affected. Both features were off by default and needed an administrator to turn them on, so organizations that never enabled them see no change. Microsoft calls the remaining group a small Windows 10 population and notes that both features were committed only for Windows 10 and are already unavailable on Windows 11 24H2. Microsoft said the change would reach general availability with Edge Stable 154 around September 24, 2026, which matches this build's date.

Microsoft recommends different replacements for each feature:

• Organizations that used WIP are pointed to Microsoft Purview Information Protection, Microsoft Purview endpoint DLP, Data Loss Prevention, and Intune app protection policies.
• Organizations that used MDAG are pointed to Edge for Business's built-in security features and Edge's native hardware isolation, plus Microsoft Defender SmartScreen, Enhanced Security Mode, Data Loss Prevention and website typo protection.

Microsoft presents these as recommended directions, not guaranteed one-for-one replacements. An organization that used MDAG to open untrusted sites in an isolated container, or WIP to keep corporate data inside approved apps, will need to redesign that control rather than just flip a new switch. If a Windows 10 fleet still depends on either feature, Edge 154 is when that dependency stops working in the browser, whatever the rest of the Windows 10 plan is.

Google sign-in, the key icon and profile cleanup change everyday Edge 154 use​

For consumers, the most visible change is sign-in. Microsoft says users can now sign in to Edge with a Google account as well as a Microsoft account, from the profile menu or the Edge sign-in screen. It's available on Windows and macOS. Neowin reports the same scope, noting that users can now sign in to Edge with a Google account on Windows and macOS, alongside Microsoft accounts. Microsoft doesn't say this reaches Edge on other platforms, so mobile users shouldn't expect it yet.

This builds on an earlier step. In the Edge 152 notes, Microsoft added Apple-account sign-in on Windows and macOS as a controlled feature rollout, controlled by the same NonMicrosoftAccountSignInEnabled policy. With Google added in 154, one policy now controls whether users can sign in to Edge with non-Microsoft accounts. That makes it the setting to check if your organization wants browser profiles tied only to managed identities.

The password change is small but useful. The key icon in the address bar now opens a detailed panel for a saved credential. From there, users can copy the username, reveal and copy the password, and add personal notes such as the account's purpose, security questions or recovery details, without opening Settings or the full password manager. The Edge 152 notes described the same feature as a controlled feature rollout. The 154 entry has no rollout caveat, which suggests it is now available more widely (that's an inference from the wording, not something Microsoft states). Microsoft's notes describe a new panel, not a change to how Edge stores or protects credentials. Keep in mind that anything typed into the notes field sits alongside the password.

The third change fixes a first-run annoyance. New-profile setup during first run now has a close (X) button in the upper-right corner. Canceling setup makes Edge delete the unfinished profile, so abandoned setups no longer leave unused profiles behind.

AutofillSettings gives admins site-level control in Edge 154​

Edge 154 adds one new policy, AutofillSettings, which Microsoft describes as blocking AutoFill data types for specific sites. That's finer-grained than turning AutoFill on or off across the whole browser. An administrator could, for example, keep AutoFill on in general but stop certain kinds of saved data from filling on particular sites.

The release notes don't list every data category the policy covers, and they don't give its configuration syntax. Check the Edge policy reference before deploying it through Group Policy or Intune rather than guessing at the format.

Several items in circulating Edge 154 changelogs don't appear in Microsoft's 154 notes​

Neowin's changelog summary for this build also lists InPrivate tracking-prevention changes, changes to local IP address detection, removal of the experimental fading-tabs feature, a YouTube video-summary toggle, and an updated WebView2 DowngradeVersion policy. None of these appear in Microsoft's Edge 154 Stable release-note entry. Some belong to earlier releases.

The WebView2 item shows the problem. Microsoft's clarification of the DowngradeVersion policy appears in the Edge 152 notes, not the 154 notes. The policy lets admins temporarily roll specific apps back to an earlier WebView2 Evergreen Runtime version (N-1 or N-2). It requires an exact four-part version number, such as 151.0.2178.0, and doesn't accept major-version-only values. If no exactly matching runtime folder is found, the policy does nothing and the runtime falls back to the BrowserExecutableFolder policy or the default Evergreen runtime. That's useful for WebView2 admins, but it isn't new in 154.

Treat those five items as outside this release unless Microsoft adds them to the 154 notes. Admins writing change-control tickets should work from Microsoft's list.

Microsoft's two-week release cadence makes Edge 155 arrive soon​

Timing matters here. Microsoft's Edge 152 notes say Edge finished moving to a two-week cycle for major versions. So the gap between 154 at 80% unload enforcement and 155 at 100% is short, and Edge 155 is already in Beta as 155.0.4283.13. A site that only mostly works on Edge 154 won't have long before every page load behaves the new way.

The faster cadence also affects test automation. Microsoft's WebDriver guidance says to match the Microsoft Edge WebDriver version to the installed Edge build, and every Stable bump can break automated tests that pin the old driver. You can find the installed build under Settings and more (…) > Help and feedback > About Microsoft Edge.

For admins who deploy with the Windows Package Manager, this exact build can be pinned. The Wingetly package index lists 154.0.4258.37 as the latest version and gives the command winget install --id Microsoft.Edge --exact --version 154.0.4258.37, noting a requirement of Windows 10 (1809+) or Windows 11. For unattended deployment, the same index suggests adding --silent --accept-package-agreements --accept-source-agreements. For the enterprise MSI, it lists the switches msiexec.exe /i MicrosoftEdgeEnterpriseX64.msi /quiet /norestart.

What this means for you​

What you need to do depends on your role: developers and WIP/MDAG shops need to act, and most other people can let Edge update itself. Home users get Google sign-in, the key-icon panel and cleaner profile setup without doing anything, and can wait for the gradual rollout to reach them. Web developers should check for unload dependencies now, while 20% of page loads still behave the old way and are easy to compare. Windows 10 organizations that turned on WIP or MDAG in Edge have lost that protection in the browser and need to move to the Purview, DLP, Intune or Edge for Business controls Microsoft recommends.

• Check your installed version under Settings and more (…) > Help and feedback > About Microsoft Edge. Stable 154 is 154.0.4258.37, and it may take a day or more to arrive because of Microsoft's gradual rollout.
• Search your web apps for unload handlers that save data, send analytics or clean up, and move them to lifecycle events before Edge 155 disables them on 100% of page loads.
• Use Permissions Policy only as a stopgap to keep unload working, because Microsoft says the web platform plans to remove the event entirely.
• If your tenant ever enabled WIP or MDAG in Edge, audit which protections they provided and put Microsoft's recommended replacements in place. Tenants that never enabled them aren't affected.
• Review the NonMicrosoftAccountSignInEnabled policy if managed browsers shouldn't allow Google or Apple account sign-in, and test AutofillSettings for site-level AutoFill restrictions.
• Update pinned Microsoft Edge WebDriver versions in test pipelines to match 154.0.4258.37, and expect to repeat this every two weeks.

Edge 154.0.4258.37 is a bigger step than its feature list suggests. For most people it's a routine update with a few conveniences. It also finishes removing two Windows 10-era enterprise protections from Edge and takes unload most of the way to being switched off. The next milestone is Edge 155, already in Beta, when unload handlers stop firing by default on every page load.