Another hidden trick! Microsoft fired up a new preview build yesterday, and Windows 11 build 25188, it seems, comes packing some extra stuff beyond what the eyes can see.
The company has not outlined these changes in the changelog, but users continue to unearth them.
We have some new animated icons in the Settings app, and the company is also apparently working to make the security of its new OS even more watertight with a new Secure Boot driver. But that’s not all, as some new changes have also been spotted.
Redmond has also added a new option to create live kernel dump files directly from within the Task Manager.
Now, the casual user may be blissfully unaware of this, but it is a very welcome feature for more advanced users who want to analyze a misbehaving program further instead of just ending the task or process.
Kernel dump files create a snapshot of kernel memory that allows analysis when troubleshooting app crashes, driver errors, and BSODs, among other problems. Live kernel dumps are similar, except that they don’t require a system reboot to create a dump file.
This comes in handy, as it does not disrupt the system in case of a non-fatal error.
As the screenshot above shows, this new feature lets you generate a live kernel dump right from the familiar Task Manager window.
Want to turn this feature on? Download ViveTool and enter the following command in the Command Prompt window running as an Administrator.
vivetool /enable /id:40430431
Turning off this feature back is simply by running the above command again, substituting disable.
