Summary
- Windows 11 25H2 update may be minor compared to 24H2.
- Evidence of 25H2 update found in system files.
- Microsoft may be adopting a pattern of big, small, big OS updates.
Hopefully, by now, everyone who was scheduled to get the Windows 11 24H2 update has received it. It may sound odd to hear me say that, given how the update was released back in October 2024, but Microsoft encountered a few roadblocks with how people had their PCs set up, and it took them until a month or two ago to finally fix it. So, yeah, some people are just getting around to exploring the 24H2 update long after everyone else got it.
So, now that 24H2 has been rolled out, it’s time to look ahead to the next big update. Naturally, people are wondering if that update will take the form of a 25H2 update, which would come out during October of this year. Sure enough, details of a proposed 25H2 update are beginning to surface and…it’s looking a little sparse.
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Windows 11 25H2 may be a slim, minor update compared to 24H2
As spotted by Windows Latest, references to a 25H2 update have started appearing within the system’s files. In Windows 11 build 27842, the appraiserRes.dll file that appears when you use Windows Update has two new entries added to it. The first is “GE25H2”, which stands for “Greater than or Equal to 25H2″, confirming that Microsoft is planning a 25H2 update.
The second is called “26200=FT_ALL_CompatIndicatorHelper_WritingGE25H2.” This checks to see if the computer is ready for the 25H2 update. However, there’s another nugget of information within this code. See that number at the very start? That’s the build number for 25H2, 26200. Currently, we’re using 26100, so the jump to 26200 is relatively minor. As such, we likely won’t see a huge wave of new features, tweaks, and UI changes with 25H2; instead, it may build upon the foundation laid by 24H2.
Windows Latest noted that we’ve seen this pattern before. The 22H2 update was a big one, and the subsequent 23H2 update was an enablement package for 22H2. This may be Microsoft’s new rhythm with operating system updates: one huge update, followed by a smaller one the following year, before another big one arrives the year after.
It makes a lot of sense; if the company had to knock it out of the park every year, it would quickly amass a pile of broken features and updates without spending some time doing repair work. Remember, some people are only just getting 24H2 now, so having them go through a second revamp so soon would be really disruptive.
At any rate, Microsoft hasn’t even officially confirmed the existence of 25H2, so this is all wild speculation based on two variables in a file we’re not even meant to pry into. We’ll have to wait and see what this 25H2 update will contain, but consider this an early warning not to get too excited.
In the meantime, if you want a reminder of what the last update brought with it, check out our page on the Windows 11 24H2 update and everything it introduced.
