In the latest Canary build for Windows 11 Insider preview testers, Microsoft added a new section for system components within the settings app without mentioning it whatsoever.
Even the release notes of Windows 11 build 25926 fail to mention the new feature, as Betanews reports. That’s no doubt by design, as you need to use external tools to find and enable the feature.
New Windows 11 Canary build: Meet System Components
The hidden section for system components, which Microsoft has added within the Settings app, can be activated with ViVeTool or Microsoft’s own leaked internal Staging Tool and offers a list of the applications and tools integrated in Windows 11 and additionally allows uninstalling many of them.
Microsoft probably hasn’t yet talked about this new Settings page itself because it is still in a very early testing stage. That said, this is quite a welcome innovation for Windows 11. By grouping system applications and providing easy access to them, Microsoft simplifies the process for anyone who wants to remove unwanted elements from Windows 11.
The move is in line with Microsoft’s recent overhaul of the Start menu, which introduced a system label for shortcuts to built-in applications. The company also recently made a similar change to the Microsoft Store.
The new feature was not announced by Microsoft. Instead, it was spotted by PhantomOfEarth, a Twitter account with a strong track record of spotting new features in Windows Insider builds..
Install test builds: How to test the new features
Microsoft is currently testing new features in the only recently introduced Canary channel of the Windows Insider Program. Canary builds receive new features very early on, so users can test them, but can also be very unstable accordingly. To participate in the Windows Insider Program, you need to register on the website and then follow the instructions to select the channel and install the preview version on your PC.
Be aware that these Windows builds often contain bugs and can lead to serious problems, however. So do not install a Windows Insider preview build on a critical computer.
Once you’re on the latest Windows 11 Insider Canary build, you’ll need to enable the System Components feature via the ViVeTool or Microsoft Staging Tool apps. Proceed as follows:
- Download the latest ViVeTool from GitHub and unzip it on your computer.
- Open the command prompt with administrator rights.
- Navigate to the directory where you unpacked the ViVeTool by entering the command “cd <path>” (replace <path> with the actual path to the ViVeTool).
- Enter the following command and press Enter: vivetool /enable /id:44702824
- Restart the PC.
You should now be able to activate the new feature in the settings in the Updates section.
It works similarly with the Microsoft’s leaked internal Staging Tool. If you prefer to use this app, enter the following command:
- /stagingtool.exe /enable 44702824
This article was translated from German to English and originally appeared on pcwelt.de.
Author: René Resch, Autor
René ist seit 2013 im Team der PC-WELT und Macwelt. Anfangs noch in Ausbildung im Development-Team, weiter als Trainee und freier Mitarbeiter im Bereich des Portal-Managements und seit 2017 als freier Autor.