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Microsoft fine-tunes Windows 11 with some practical upgrades, more admin tools, and subtle UI polish in the March 2026 Patch Tuesday release.
On Tuesday, March 10, 2026, Microsoft is expected to begin the rollout of yet another Patch Tuesday update for in the third month of the year, making available some new features, changes, and security improvements.
In this cumulative update, the company introduces a new network speed test feature through the Taskbar. The Start menu gains a new option for those using a Microsoft account. In the Camera's settings, you can now control pan and tilt, Sysmon becomes a native tool, there are interface changes for the Settings, and more.
Windows 11's new features arriving in March
Microsoft uses the Controlled Feature Rollout (CFR) technology to gradually roll out new improvements, so it may take some time before you see them.
1. Taskbar with Speed test "feature"
Microsoft is adding a new network speed test, which you can access from the Taskbar. According to the company, it's accessible by right-clicking the network icon in the System Tray or from the Wi-Fi or Cellular pages in the Quick Settings interface.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
When you select the option, the web browser will open on a Bing page to perform the network test using your internet connection to diagnose connectivity issues and performance.
However, this doesn't qualify as a feature (in my opinion) since it's merely a link to Bing's internet testing tool that uses the Ookla testing tool. So, you can simply open "speedtest.net" to perform the connection test.
Another small change is happening in the overflow menu. Now, when using the uncombined option in the Taskbar, apps with multiple open windows will no longer shift all instances to the overflow menu. Instead, only the windows that overflow will be placed in the secondary menu.
2. Start menu new account option
The Start menu isn't getting another redesign, but it's getting a small tweak with the new link in the account manager menu that points to the benefits associated with your Microsoft account.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
3. Camera new support for pan and tilt
On the "Cameras" settings page, in the properties of a camera under the "Basic settings" section, Microsoft is now adding new controls to manage the pan and tilt settings.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
4. Sysmon native support
On Windows 11, the Sysmon (System Monitor) is a tool that has been used by network administrators to enhance the standard logging capabilities. While default Windows Event Logs might tell you a process started, Sysmon tells you exactly what that process did, where it came from, and who it talked to.
For the longest time, it has been part of the Microsoft Sysinternals suite and is widely considered the "gold standard" for free endpoint telemetry in threat hunting and incident response. However, starting with the March 2026 Security Update, Microsoft is making it a native tool on Windows 11.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
And you can now install it directly from the "Windows Features" page from Settings > System > Optional features > More Windows features.
After installation, you'll need to run the Sysmon -i command in PowerShell or Command Prompt.
The company says that if you have the Sysinternals version of Sysmon, you'll need to uninstall it before installing the new native version.
5. Widgets new settings page
The Widgets dashboard experience remains unchanged, but starting with the March update, Microsoft is rolling out an update that introduces a new settings page to manage the feature. In the past, the experience would pop up an overlay dialog to configure the settings.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
6. WebP image support for wallpapers
If you set your desktop background images manually instead of using the Stoplight feature, you'll be happy to hear that you can now set WebP (.webp) images as wallpapers.
The support is available across the system, whether you use the "Set as background" option in the Taskbar or the "Background" settings page.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
7. Quick Machine Recovery for Windows 11 Pro
Although Quick Machine Recovery has been available for some time, it was only enabled by default in the Home edition of the operating system.
The change is that now Microsoft will turn on the recovery feature by default on Windows 11 Pro, as long as they are not managing devices.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
8. Settings new dialogs
In this update, you'll also find that some dialogs have been updated in the Settings app to match the design language of Windows 11. You'll find some of these changes on the page to manage the storage and printer settings.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
9 File Explorer changes
Finally, in File Explorer, the "Extract All" option will now light up and work with non-ZIP archive folders.
(Image credit: Mauro Huculak)
Other changes
Some additional improvements include the availability of Emoji version 16, which introduces new emojis, such as face with bags under eyes, fingerprint, leafless tree, root vegetable, harp, shovel, and splatter.
In Task Manager, the Windows Search process now includes a magnifier icon instead of a placeholder.
Finally, Microsoft brings Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) support to ARM64 devices.
The components can be installed from Settings > System > Optional features, or through Control Panel > Programs > Turn Windows features on or off.
For network administrators, this update introduces the first sign-in restore experience that integrates with the Windows Backup for Organizations.
Also, Windows 11 now supports Microsoft Entra ID group and role SID resolution. In addition, the operating system can translate Entra cloud group and role security identifiers into readable names.
Finally, with the March release, the company continues the gradual rollout of the Secure Boot certificates expiting in June 2026. If you have a device with original certifications issued in 2011, they will be updated for those released in 2023.
Install now or wait?
At the time of writing, there are no widespread issues affecting this update. However, installation errors and unexpected bugs have become fairly common with cumulative releases. As a result, you should take the necessary precautions before proceeding.
It's also wise to wait at least a couple of weeks before installing the update. This gives Microsoft time to identify, investigate, and fix any problems that may surface after the broader rollout begins.
Are any of these new features something you want in Windows 11?
Windows 11’s March 2026 update is shaping up to be one of the more substantial mid‑cycle refreshes, with nine new features and changes that touch everything from usability to system intelligence. Some of these upgrades feel long overdue, others are genuine quality‑of‑life wins, and a few hint at where Microsoft wants Windows to go next.
Which of the nine features are you actually excited for — and which ones feel like Microsoft still isn’t listening?
Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.
Posted Friday 6 March 2026 at 5:30 am AEST (my time).
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