Continue on PC: Windows 11 tests Android app handoff with Spotify

Microsoft is quietly testing a true “Continue on PC” experience for Android apps inside Windows 11 — a handoff-style feature currently available to Windows Insiders that lets you pick up an activity running on an Android phone and resume it on a Windows 11 PC, with Spotify acting as the first live example of the capability. view
Microsoft first introduced Android app support for Windows 11 with the Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA) and an Amazon Appstore integration, which allowed a curated set of Android apps to run locally on Windows 11 using a lightweight AOSP runtime in a Hyper‑V VM. That chapter has shifted: Microsoft announced a deprecation of WSA and the Amazon Appstore pathways earlier in the Windows 11 lifecycle and has since moved to a continuity-first approach that relies on Link to Windows / Phone Link and session metadata rather than running phone apps natively on the desktop.
The current experimbResume** or simply “Resume from your phone” — surfaces a contextual prompt in Windows 11 when a supported activity is active on a paired Android device. In the initial Insider preview, playing music or a podcast in Spotify on an Android phone can produce a small “Resume” alert on a Windows 11 taskbar; clicking it opens Spotify on the PC and continues playback at the exact point you left off on the phone. If the Spotify desktop app is not already installed, Windows will offer a one‑click Microsoft Store install and then resume the session after sign‑in.
This early implementation is being flighted to Windows Insider out as a server‑gated feature, so availability will vary by device and Microsoft account. The builds associated with the preview include Dev Channel build 26200.5761 and Beta Channel build 26120.5761 under KB5064093, with the rollout staged to Insider participants.

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How the Resume experience works​

The user-facing flow​

• Link your Android phone to Windows use Link to Windows companion on Android; enable the necessary background permissions and device pairing.
• Start a supported activity on the phone (Spotify playback in the current test).
• Windows 11 may display a small taskbar toasteled something like “Continue from your phone.”
• Clicking the alert launches the desktop destination — either the native app (if installed) or a one‑click Microsoft Store install — and restores the session state (for Spotify, the track ID and timestamp).

This is not remote screen streaming in the sense of mirroring a phone display; instead, the phone publishes a compact session object and Windows open‑PC destination and restores context there. That design reduces latency and adapts to whether a first‑class desktop app exists for the activity.

Under the hood: AppContext and the Continuity stack​

The system uses a developer-facing model where Android apps publish an AppContext — a small, time‑boxed metadathe activity’s title, a preview, an intent URI or weblink, the app identifier, and a unique contextId. Windows consumes the AppContext through a host process (sometimes referred to as the Cross‑Device Experience Host) and maps the intent to a desktop app, PWA, or web handler. By default the AppContext has a short lifetime (commonly measured in minutes) so prompts remain timely and privacy‑respecting. Developers who want to participate in production integration must request access to the Limited Access feature while the platform matures.

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Why Microsoft started with Spotify​

• Low friction and clear session boundaries: Media playback encodes explicit session metadata (track ID, position, album) making it easy to tra
  **: Spotify users are usually signed into the same account across devices, which simplifies authentication and session restoration.
• Quick user benefit: Resuming playback demonstrates immediate, tangible value to users, helping validate network, authentication, and install flows before opening the capability to more complex scenarios.

Starting with media also minimizes edge cases compared with messaging threads, document editing, or secure authentication prompts — those categories introduce more complex security and synchronization requirements.

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Technical r (what you need to try it)​

• A Windows 11 PC enrolled in the Windows Insider Program and configured on the Dev or Beta channel with recent Insider builds that include the feature ring. The initial flights referenced Dev build 26200.5761 and Beta build 26120.5761 (KB5064093).
• The PC and Android phone linked via Phone Link and Link to Windows, with Link to Windows allowed to run in the background and the same Microsoft account signed in on both devices.
• Bluetooth and Wi‑Fi enabled and the phone within network reach of the ff signaling.
• The desktop destination app (Spotify) installed, or willingness to allow Windows to install it from the Microsoft Store with one click.

Note: This is an Insider pres staged via server‑side gating. Turning on “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available” in Insider help devices be flagged earlier, but access is not guaranteed even on the correct build.

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Where this sits in Microsoft’s larger moicrosoft’s cross‑device approach has evolved through multiple phases:​

• Project Rome and early “shared experiences” explored deep inter‑device intents.
• The Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA) and Amazon Appstore integration attempted to run Android apps locally within W the WSA deprecation, Microsoft is now leaning into continuity and context transfer — moving session metadata rather than full Android runtimes — as a pragmatic way to deliver the same user benefit with less platform maintenance overhead.

The pivot away from local emulation toward a signaling + resume model reduces the engineering and support surface and better aligns with existing Phone Link investments that already manage pairing, notification sync, and selective app streaming.

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Security, privacy, and reliability implications​

Security and authentication​

• The resume flow assumes s crosoft/Spotify account), which simplifies auth but also ties the experience to account security. A malicious actor with access to both endpoints could abuse resume affordances, so account security measures (strong passwords, MFA) remain critical.
• AppContext is intentionally short‑lived to reduce risk of stale or leaked context being used later; the design favors ephemeral session transfer instead of persistent cross‑device state.

Privacy​

• AppContext packets are compact and carry only minimal metadata (title, preview, link), not full content payloads. That helps limit exposure of user data as it flows from phone to PC, but users should what metadata apps choose to publish. App developers bear responsibility for not leaking sensitive data inside AppContext.

Reliability and UX​

• The feature depends on background connecalth. Users on flaky networks, restrictive battery/per-app background settings on Android, or with aggressive OS-level app sleep policies may see intermittent behavior. Ensuring Link to Windows is exempt from aggressive battery restrictions will improve reliability.
• Convenience features that attempt automatic handoff need to be predictable. Microsoft’s stag AppContext lifetimes help avoid stale prompts, but UX refinements will be necessary as the company opens the capability to more app categories.

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Developer perspective and platform controls​

Microsoft has published developer guidance around the Continuity SDK and the Cross‑Device Resume model. Key points for developers:

• Apps integrate the Con to publish AppContext metadata when an activity is ongoing.
• Desktop apps (Win32, UWP, Windows App SDK) register deep link or URI handlers to accept incoming context and open to the right content/state.
• The feature is currently a Limited Access capabiliply to Microsoft for production access while the platform matures and Microsoft monitors privacy, security, and abuse vectors.

For developers, the model is pragmatic: apps that already have deep linkable content or web fallbacks can support resume behavior without shipping a full Android runtime on Windows.

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Limitations and current scope​

• The public Insider preview is deliberately narrow: Spotify is the first supported case, and broad application support is not yet available. Microsoft has not published a full timetable or a roadmap for which app types will be supported next. This means claims about imminent support for mesent editing, or other classes of apps remain speculative until Microsoft announces formal expansion. Treat expansion reports as early signals, not guarantees.
• The experience currently relies on a matched desktop destination. If a desktop app cannot handle the AppContext, Windows may fall back to streaming the Android app session into a window, but the preferred path is to map to a native desktop handler to maximize usability and performance.
• Because the feature is gated server‑side, Insider participants may find it inconsistent across devices and builds. This inconsistent availability makes broad testing and reproducible feedback harder in the short term.

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Competitive com proach differs​

Apple’s Handoff has been a hallmark of the iOS/macOS Continuity suite for years. The high‑level goals are similar — pick up an activity on one device and continue it on another — but implementation constraints lead to different tradeoffs.

• Apple controls both device OSes ion model; Handoff uses tight system integration to move activities between iOS and macOS with deep OS-level hooks.
• Microsoft’s Android + Windows scenario is inherently cross‑vendor and involves third‑party phone OSes. nting a complete runtime (which was the WSA experiment), Microsoft is opting for a context transfer model that preserves UX benefits while minimizing the maintenance burden of running an Android runtime on Windows.
• The result: a pragmatic, hybrid continuity model that leverages Link to Windows for pairing and the Microsoft Store for app installs, instead of an Apple‑style homogeneous stack. This makes cross‑device continuity possible in a fragmented ecosystem, but it also constrains which apps and scenarios are workable in the near term.

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Practical takeaways for Windows users and IT administrators​

• Users who rely on cross‑device workflows should test the feature in a controlled way on Insider builds to understand reliability and permissions behavior before expecting it in production environments.
• IT administraticies governing Phone Link and Link to Windows, and communicate guidance around background permissions and app installation policies, especially in managed device fleets. The one‑click Microsoft Store install path is convenient for consumer devices but may require policy tuning in enterprise contexts.
• For privacy‑sensitive workmetadata apps are publishing via AppContext and whether app partners comply with organizational data protection policies. AppContext is intentionally minimal, but developers ultimately control what gets sent.

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What to watch next (anticipated expansions and open quescategories: Media and reading are natural early targets, followed by messaging, productivity (notes, draft emails), and possibly authentication flows. Microsoft has signaled those categories as likely future candidates but has not published a strict timeline. Expect gradual expansion coordinated with app developers and while Microsoft tigrity guardrails.​

• Developer onboarding: The Limited Access program suggests Microsoft will gate production access until developer guidance and SDKs mature. Watch for Microsoft developer docs and sample integrations to appear publicly as the feature graduattore partnerships: Microsoft previously experimented with multiple store partners (Amazon Appstore, Tencent MyApp in China) when pursuing Android-on-Windows. Future resume/continuity workflows could interact with different store or app distribution partners depending on region, which may affect which apps are available in given geographies.

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Risks and strengths — balanced analysis​

Strengths​

• Low‑friction productivity gains: For users who switch d PC, resume affordances remove repetitive friction and increase session continuity.
• Engineering pragmatism: Microsoft avoids re‑creating a full Android runtime and instead leverages existing pairing and account infrastructure — a sustainauces long‑term maintenance.
• Scalable developer model: The AppContext + deep link pattern works across desktop app types and allows developers to enable continuity without shipping a new runtime.

Risks and challenges​

• Fragmentation and availability: Server‑gated Insider rollouts and per‑app integration mean the experience will be uneven in ery user or app will be supported immediately.
• Privacy surface area: Even minimal metadata can be sensitive depending on context. If developers are careless, AppContext could leak unintended information. Microsoft’s short lifetime for AppContext mitigates this risk but does not eliminate it.
• Enterprise control: One‑click installs and cross‑device connections can clash with enterprise OS and application policies. IT administr and clear policies to manage these flows safely.

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Step‑by‑step: How to try the Spotify resume flow as an Insider​

• Enroll the Windows 11 PC in the Windows Insider), and ensure recent Insider builds have installed.
• On the PC, open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices and enable “Allow this PC to access your mobile devices.”
• Install Phone Link on the PC and Link tod phone; sign into the same Microsoft account and complete the QR pairing flow.
• On Android, grant Link to Windows the required background permissions and exclude it from aggressive battery optimizations.
• Start playing music or a podcast in S phone. Watch the Windows taskbar for a “Resume” alert and click it to continue playback on the PC. If Spotify is not installed, accept the Microsoft Store prompt to install and sign in to resume the session.

--osoft’s Insider preview of a Cross‑Device Resume experience for Android apps in Windows 11 represents a pragmatic and potentially powerful pivot in the company’s mobile‑to‑PC strategy. By beginningh‑value scenario (Spotify playback) and building on the existing Phone Link/Link to Windows plumbing, Microsoft is testing whethcan deliver the seamless, Handoff‑like convenience Windows users have wanted — without the long‑term burden of running a full Android runtime on the limited and staged, and Microsoft has not committed to a public timeline for broader expansion; users and IT teams should treat trly, experimental convenience while monitoring developer guidance and Microsoft’s Insider posts for updates. If the platform and app ecosystem align, resume‑style continuity could become a genuine productivity multiplier — especially for people who move constantly between w, the practical step for enthusiasts and testers is simple: link your Android phone, enroll in the Insider channel if appropriate, try the Spotify flow, and report experiences through the Feedback channels so Microsoft and app developers can refine the feature before any broader rollout.

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Source: VOI.ID Microsoft Trial Features To Continue Using Android Apps In Windows 11