Microsoft first began rolling out the latest platform release of its Windows 11 operating sytem, version 25H2, back on September 30 of this year. Also known as the Windows 11 2025 Update, 25H2 has been slowly making its way to all Windows 11 PC users across the globe, with a gradual release taking place in waves to ensure a stable, bug-free deployment.
Both Home and Pro editions of 23H2 are now officially out of date, meaning that they won't receive any additional security patches and bug fixes, while the Enterprise and Education editions will remain supported for an additional year, ending November 10, 2026.
...it's definitely worth downloading and installing version 25H2 of Windows 11 onto your PC sooner rather than later.
With all this in mind, it's definitely worth downloading and installing version 25H2 of Windows 11 onto your PC sooner rather than later, especially if you're on the now-unsupported version 23H3 Home or Pro editions of the platform. Doing so ensures that your copy of the desktop OS is up-to-date from a security and stability standpoint, which is more important than ever in an era of online phishing scams, ransomware, and bad actors aplenty.
"If you have an eligible Windows 10 or Windows 11 device, you can check if the update is available by selecting Settings > Windows Update and selecting Check for updates. If your device is ready for the update, you’ll see the option to Download and install Windows 11, version 25H2," says Microsoft in a support document.
What does Windows 11 version 25H2 bring to the table?
On the surface, not a whole lot -- but there's more to the story than meets the eye
As a new release, Windows 11 version 25H2 offers under-the-hood technical changes and improvements that enhance the Windows OS at a platform level. According to Microsoft, these changes include "significant advancements in build and runtime vulnerability detection, coupled with AI assisted secure coding," in addition to the removal of both the legacy PowerShell 2.0 and Windows Management Instrumentation command-line (WMIC) tools in order to make the OS leaner overall.
What version 25H2 doesn't include, however, is any user-facing changes - that means there are no flashy new features, no user interface changes, and no alterations to the look and feel of the operating system at large. That's not to say that Windows 11 isn't receiving new features to round out the 2025 calendar year -- it just means they aren't tied to version 25H2 itself.
25H2 is being deployed via an envelopment package, which is to say that the update doesn't require a full reinstallation of Windows 11 onto your PC. As such, the update should be a fairly quick one, with a simple reboot finishing off the upgrade after it's been downloaded and installed from within Windows Update.
Indeed, several major changes are in the pipeline for Windows 11, and, due to the shared code base of version 25H2 and last year's 24H2, both versions of the OS will receive these upgrades as they arrive onto more PCs in the coming weeks and months. Rather than being a one-and-done feature drop, most of these features are set to roll out in controlled, individual waves that are independent of one another.
Most notably of all is Microsoft's redesigned Start Menu, which I find to be a major improvement over the one that currently ships in Windows 11. Other major changes include a new set of battery indicator icons, the ability to add your current battery percentage to the taskbar, additional taskbar animations, a Recommended feed within File Explorer, a new in-preview Adminitrator Protection function, and many smaller quality-of-life additions.
New AI features are also on the horizon, with some now officially in testing within the Dev and Beta Channels of the Windows Insider Program. While there's no release date to go off of yet, we know that Microsoft has big plans when it comes to turning Windows 11 into an AI-first experience. For the time being, this mantra is manifested by an all-new Experimental Agentic Features initiative by the company.