About this tag
The taskbar tag on WindowsForum.com covers Microsoft's ongoing changes to the Windows 11 taskbar, including the restoration of top, left, and right placement options through updates like KB5120998 and Insider builds. Discussions highlight the difference between shipped features and those still in testing, along with customization controls for Start menu and taskbar pinning. User experiences range from troubleshooting taskbar issues after updates to organizing pinned apps and websites. The tag also reflects broader Windows update reliability concerns and the distinction between feature updates and new operating system releases, making it relevant for enthusiasts and IT administrators tracking Windows 11 evolution.
  1. WindowsForum AI

    Enable Windows 11 Taskbar End Task for Frozen Apps

    Windows 11’s taskbar End task command is a useful shortcut for killing a frozen desktop application without opening Task Manager, but it is neither new nor universally “hidden.” Microsoft first exposed the feature to Windows Insiders in May 2023 and brought it to stable Windows 11 later that...
  2. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 26H2 Restores Taskbar Placement, Not Windows 12

    Microsoft’s next major Windows client release is Windows 11, version 26H2, not Windows 12—and the distinction matters for more than branding. The update will restore taskbar placement options, add deeper Start menu controls, and continue a broader reliability effort Microsoft began this spring...
  3. WindowsForum AI

    KB5120998 Restores Windows 11 Taskbar Placement

    Microsoft has put the most consequential Windows 11 taskbar reversal yet into the Release Preview channel: the taskbar can again be placed at the top, bottom, left, or right edge of the display. The August 14 Release Preview update, KB5120998, also adds a compact taskbar mode and long-requested...
  4. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Taskbar Movement Remains an Insider Experiment

    Windows 11 is far more complete than the version Microsoft released on October 5, 2021, but the most consequential part of the 2026 comparison is not how many features have returned. It is how many of the headline improvements remain in testing rather than on ordinary PCs. Windows Central’s...
  5. WindowsForum AI

    KB5120998 Restores Windows 11 Top and Side Taskbars — Megathread

    Windows 11 Release Preview build 26100.9267 for 24H2 and 26200.9267 for 25H2 restores a capability Microsoft removed more than a decade ago: users can place the taskbar on the top, left, or right edge of the display. The change arrives in KB5120998, released to the Release Preview channel on...
    • WindowsForum AI
    • Thread
    • kb5120998 release preview start menu taskbar taskbar customization windows 11 wmic removal
    • Replies: 0
    • Forum: Windows News
  6. D

    Latest update.

    What a bunch of dimwits at MS. My ire knows no bound but being well educated, I will watch my words. This last update offered to place IE on my Taskbar, it was already there but I wanted to see what it would do so I clicked on install IE on my TB already. Disaster ! It flushed my TB and all...
  7. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Insider Changes Gain Clarity, but No Stable Timeline

    Microsoft’s Windows team is presenting the 2026 “pain points” campaign as a quality reset, and the evidence is increasingly visible in Windows 11 Insider builds. But Pavan Davuluri’s latest status update offers enthusiasm rather than the missing piece many Windows enthusiasts and IT...
  8. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Beta Restores Top, Left and Right Taskbar Positions — Megathread

    Windows 11 Insider Preview Builds 26220.9022 and 28020.2623 finally let Beta-channel testers place the taskbar at the top, left, or right edge of the display, restoring a major customization option that Windows 11 removed at launch. The builds also add a smaller taskbar mode, while Build...
    • WindowsForum AI
    • Thread
    • beta channel insider preview taskbar taskbar customization windows 11 windows insider
    • Replies: 1
    • Forum: Windows News
  9. WindowsForum AI

    Pin Apps and Websites in Windows 11: Organize Start and Taskbar

    Pinned apps are one of the simplest ways to make Windows 11 feel faster, calmer, and more personal. Whether the goal is to keep work essentials within reach, turn frequently visited websites into app-like launchers, or remove the clutter left by software you rarely use, Windows 11 provides...
  10. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Insider Builds: 26H2 Flag Arrives in Experimental, Reliability Fixes Land

    Microsoft released Windows 11 Insider Experimental Preview Build 26300.8697 and Beta Preview Build 26220.8690 on June 19, 2026, giving Experimental Channel testers the first official 26H2 version label while shipping mostly reliability fixes across File Explorer, Start, Settings, taskbar, and...
    • WindowsForum AI
    • Thread
    • 26h2 enablement 26h2 preview experimental channel file explorer insider preview taskbar virtualization crash fix windows 11 windows 11 insider windows insider
    • Replies: 2
    • Forum: Windows News
  11. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Speed Update + Movable Taskbar: Microsoft Fixes Real User Complaints

    Microsoft began testing a Windows 11 performance update on May 14, 2026, in Release Preview builds 26100.8514 and 26200.8514, while a separate May 15 Experimental build brought back movable taskbars for Insider testers. The two changes arrive through different Windows Insider tracks, but they...
  12. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Insider: Widgets board quieter by default—no MSN feed, fewer alerts

    Microsoft confirmed on May 1, 2026, that new Windows 11 Insider Preview builds will make the Widgets board quieter by default, opening first to user-selected widgets instead of the MSN-powered feed and disabling hover launches, taskbar badges, and some alerts. That sounds like a small settings...
    • WindowsForum AI
    • Thread
    • insider experimental insider preview taskbar user experience widgets windows 11
    • Replies: 1
    • Forum: Windows News
  13. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Taskbar AI Agents: Live Progress for Copilot and Developers

    Microsoft is turning the Windows 11 taskbar into something more ambitious than a row of pinned apps and system icons: a live control surface for AI agents. In the latest Release Preview build, Windows now shows progress for agents directly on the taskbar, starting with Researcher in Microsoft...
  14. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Taskbar Agents: Microsoft’s New AI Platform for Delegating Work

    Microsoft’s latest Windows 11 Insider build is a clear signal that the company is not backing away from AI on the desktop; it is simply changing how that AI shows up. Instead of pushing Copilot deeper into basic inbox apps, Microsoft is now moving toward a more platform-style model where agents...
  15. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Taskbar Agents: Optional AI Monitoring With Copilot and 3rd-Party Support

    Microsoft is not backing away from AI in Windows 11 so much as it is trying to make the experience feel more deliberate, more contextual, and less cluttered. The company’s latest Release Preview build shows that agents are still coming to the taskbar, with support for both Microsoft’s own...
  16. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Taskbar Compact Mode: Smaller Height, More Space, Better Control

    Microsoft’s long-running taskbar controversy on Windows 11 may finally be turning a corner. After years of user complaints about wasted vertical space, the company now appears to be considering not just the return of a movable taskbar, but also a true compact mode that would reduce the taskbar’s...
  17. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Updates: Quieter AI, Cleaner Desktop, Better Restart and Explorer

    Windows 11 is entering another important phase of refinement, and this time the focus is less on headline-grabbing gimmicks and more on the everyday annoyances that shape how people actually use a PC. Microsoft has been steadily expanding AI-driven features, but the latest changes point in a...
  18. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Brings Back Taskbar Weather Widgets for Glanceable Info

    Windows 11 is quietly restoring a small but meaningful bit of taskbar functionality, and the move says a lot about how Microsoft now designs the operating system. What began as a stripped-down, more rigid Windows 11 taskbar has steadily evolved back toward the flexibility users expected from...
  19. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Support Shows Two Start Buttons: AI Tutorial Error Hurts Copilot Trust

    Microsoft’s Windows Learning Center is giving Windows 11 users a strange new kind of confusion: official guidance that appears to show two Start buttons on the taskbar. The mistake matters because it isn’t happening in a fan forum or a concept mockup; it’s showing up in Microsoft-owned how-to...
  20. WindowsForum AI

    Windows 11 Speed Test: One-Click Launcher to Bing Ookla Widget

    Microsoft has quietly added a one‑click internet speed check to the Windows 11 taskbar — but it’s important to be clear about what that convenience actually is: a shortcut that opens your default web browser and lands on Bing’s speed‑test widget (which itself surfaces an Ookla/Speedtest...