Microsoft adds Gamepad keyboard layout to Windows 11 with Build 22631.5116

Recently, Microsoft released Windows 11 Build 22631.5116 (KB5053657) to Insiders in the Release Preview Channel on Windows 11, version 23H2 (Build 22631). The build documentation, which has now been updated, contains multiple features that will be split into a Gradual and Normal rollout.

The gradual rollout features won’t be available to everyone

Because these features are part of the gradual rollout, they won’t end up on everybody’s PC. It is worth noting that a good amount of these changes focus on accessibility. Also, the Gamepad keyboard layout is part of the same gradual rollout, as Microsoft wants to properly test and tweak the feature before releasing it to everyone.

• [File Explorer]
  • New! As part of our ongoing commitment to improving File Explorer accessibility, this release includes increased support for the text scaling (Settings > Accessibility > Text size) across File Explorer, File Open/Save dialogs, and the copy dialogs.
  • New! Context menu labels. [UPDATED] We’re no longer going to roll this change out in this release to address a few more issues.
• [Settings]
  • • New! With this update, we will gradually make available the Settings homepage for commercial customers on PCs managed by an IT administrator. The feature will show some existing cards relevant to enterprise-managed PCs like “Recommended settings” and “Bluetooth devices” as well as two new enterprise-specific device info and accessibility preferences cards
    • New! We are rolling out “top cards” under Settings > System > About. These top cards provide an easy way to view your PC’s key specifications—processor, RAM, storage, and GPU—helping you understand your PC’s capabilities at-a-glance.
  • Fixed: For Japanese users, the name displaying at the top of Settings > Accounts shows “First Name” “Last Name” instead of “Last Name” “First Name”.
• [Input]
  • New! We have enabled the Gamepad keyboard layout for the touch keyboard in Windows 11. This change introduces the ability to use your Xbox controller to navigate and type. This includes button accelerators (example: X button for backspace, Y button for spacebar) additionally the keyboard keys have been vertically aligned for better controller navigation patterns.
  • New! New experience to improve the discoverability of?the emoji and more panel in Windows 11?with the introduction of a new system tray icon on the taskbar.
  • Fixed: ctfmon.exe may restart when copying data from certain applications.
• [Voice access] [ADDED] New! We are introducing Chinse support for voice access. You can now use Voice access to navigate, dictate, and interact with Windows using voice commands in Simplified Chinese (zh-cn) and Traditional Chinese (zh-tw).

Normal rollout improvements include a fix for the printer issue

The standard rollout fixes and improvements aren’t as big as those from the gradual rollout, but interestingly enough, one of those fixes refers to the printer problem we reported last week.

• [File Systems (Filters)]?This update adds support for?a new function in Filter Manager that enhances the system’s ability to notify applications of directory changes while minimizing I/O operations.
• [Noto Fonts]?This update enhances text quality and customer experience in web browsing for Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages by introducing the Noto font family. This provides modern, comprehensive font support for these languages.
• [Remote Desktop]?Fixed: Certain?Get-Help troubleshooters?might not run in a Remote Desktop session.
• [COSA]?Updated: This update addresses an issue affecting mobile connectivity configurations for Connected PCs. It resolves incorrect Internet of Things (IOT) Access Point Name (APN) settings that were previously applied.
• [Printers]?Fixed: Printers using Independent Hardware Vendor (IHV) drivers might unexpectedly output incorrect or unwanted text.
• [File System Fixed: This update resolves an issue for users with profiles redirected to a network Virtual Hard Disk (VHD or VHDX), where a specific failure could lead to a system crash.
• [File System Filter] Fixed: Addresses an issue where a stop error may occur during?normal usage with a user profile redirected to a network VHD(X).
• [Deprecation] Suggested actions that appear when you copy a phone number or future date in Windows 11 are now deprecated and being removed.
• [ADDED] Improved support for web search providers in Windows Search for the EEA, including with increased discoverability.