Artificial intelligence is transforming everyday computing, and Windows 11 is evolving to meet this change. Windows is a widely used endpoint platform that enables organizations to integrate productivity tools and line-of-business applications with generative AI. The introduction of Copilot+ PCs has marked a new era in productivity, bringing AI capabilities directly to people’s desktops to improve everyday experiences and enhance efficiency in the digital workplace.
Read on as we share new AI-powered enhancements to Windows search, updates on Recall and its IT controls, and Click to Do for commercial organizations. (Note: This content applies to managed Windows Pro and Enterprise organizations with Copilot+ PCs.*)
Improved Windows Search
We've all been there: staring at our screens, trying to remember what we named that important document last week. Finding files without remembering their exact names is a common and time-consuming challenge, especially when managing numerous files across multiple folders.
To address this, we are excited to announce that improved Windows Search experiences, powered by AI models that take advantage of the on-board neural processing unit (NPU) on Copilot+ PCs, are coming soon to File Explorer, Windows Search, and Settings. With improved Windows Search, people will be able to find the right files using associated words and phrases, without needing to remember exact file names or content. This is currently applicable for local files and active OneDrive files. And, thanks to the power of the 40+ TOPS NPU onboard Copilot+ PCs, it works even if you’re not connected to the internet.
With improved Windows Search, a search for “red barn” returns documents and images featuring a red barn, even if “red barn” is not mentioned in the file name.
You can search for documents and photos by describing their contents. For example, a document about cars, buses, and airplanes can be found by searching for “modes of transport.” For images, you can search by image content, including any text found in an image. Removing the need for keyword matching in file names or content makes it more intuitive and efficient for everyone to find the files, information, or settings that they need.
Improved Windows Search will be available through the Windows Insider Program in early 2025. There will be no new IT controls; instead, existing controls that govern Windows Search will continue to be honored. These controls include policies that manage which folders and file extensions are searchable or indexable.
Recall (preview)
Following our announcement of the Recall feature back in May, we’ve listened to your feedback and made adjustments to the Recall experience. As highlighted in the Update on Recall security and privacy architecture blog, we’ve taken additional steps to ensure Recall is secure, private, and manageable. Today, we’d like to share that Recall is off by default for managed commercial devices, and snapshots for Recall are also disabled. Unless IT chooses to enable Recall and the saving of snapshots, employees will not be able to enable the feature.
Recall (preview) is an AI-powered Windows feature that allows you to search across time using natural language to find and reengage with content you remember having seen on your Copilot+ PC. When enabled, this feature takes frequent snapshots of your active screen, which are locally stored and encrypted, so that you have an explorable timeline of your past on your PC.
New enterprise-grade IT controls for Recall
In prioritizing security, privacy, and manageability, additional IT controls for Recall will be available for managed Windows 11 Pro and Enterprise organizations in the Windows Insider Program.
The following controls will be available to fine-tune the Recall experience in your organization:
- Enable Recall: A new policy setting will be available to turn the Recall feature on or off. This policy setting allows IT to determine whether the Recall component is available for end users to enable on their device.
- Turn off saving snapshots for Recall: IT will also have a new policy setting to turn on or off saving snapshots in Recall. This policy setting allows IT to determine whether employees’ snapshots of the screen can be saved for use with Recall. For snapshots to be saved, the employee must also opt in to saving snapshots.
- Maximum storage for snapshots used by Recall: IT can set a policy to set the maximum storage or disk space that can be used for snapshots used by Recall.
- Maximum storage duration for snapshots used by Recall: IT can set a policy to specify the maximum duration for which a snapshot will be stored in support of data retention policies. If maximum duration is set by IT, users won't be able to change it.
- Set apps to filter for snapshots used by Recall: IT can use mobile device management (MDM) policies to set a list of apps to be filtered (not snapshotted) from Recall. Users are able to add to these filter lists from the Recall & snapshots settings page.
- Set websites to filter for snapshots used by Recall: This policy allows IT to define a list of websites that won't be included in snapshots for Recall when a supported browser is used.
We will continue prioritizing customer choice and control over the Recall experience so that you can adopt Recall in your organization at your own pace. These controls will first be available in preview through the Windows Insider Program. To learn more, please visit: Manage Recall for Windows clients
Click to Do (preview)
Click to Do (preview) is an AI-enhanced Windows experience designed to simplify your workflow. Originally part of the Recall experience, this feature will also be coming to all Copilot+ PC screens. By making text and images selectable, Click to Do provides relevant action suggestions that integrate seamlessly into people’s workflows. For example, for an image, Click to Do might suggest actions like visual search with Bing, erasing objects, or removing the background. People can then choose which action they would like to take.
The image on screen has become selectable and Click to Do provides choices such as visual search in Bing or editing the image in Photos or Paint.
Click to Do will be available in preview through the Windows Insider Program soon and will be off by default for commercial organizations. Organizations will need to enable Recall in order to use Click to Do. Separate IT policies and controls for stand-alone Click to Do are not yet available but will be coming in 2025. Stay tuned!
Next steps
To learn more about the exciting innovations coming to Windows 11 Copilot+ PCs, we invite you to watch the following Windows-related sessions at Ignite 2024:
- Get ready for End of Support (EOS) and the future of AI at work with Windows 11 and Copilot+ PCs
- Integrate AI in enterprise apps using Windows Copilot Runtime
- Transform end-user computing experiences with Windows, Windows 365, and Intune
If you are attending Ignite in person, we invite you to visit us for a Copilot+ PC demo on the expo floor.
You can read more about Windows 11, Windows 365, and Copilot+ PC innovations on the Windows Experience blog, Your guide to Windows at Microsoft Ignite 2024 blog, and the Windows Insider Blog. We look forward to hearing your feedback as you adopt Copilot+ PCs and evaluate these features in your organization!
Hear more about what's new with Windows and Windows 365
Bookmark our guide to Windows at Microsoft Ignite 2024, then dive into the Microsoft Ignite announcements that reinforce our commitment to getting you and your organization future-ready:
- Windows 365 Link—the first Cloud PC device for Windows 365
- Hotpatch for client comes to Windows 11 Enterprise
- Elevate security in Windows 365 and Azure Virtual Desktop
- Streamlined, AI-powered update management: Windows Autopatch
- Windows 365 Frontline shared mode now in public preview
- Two new features make Universal Print truly "universal"
- Administrator protection on Windows 11
Continue the conversation. Find best practices. Bookmark the Windows Tech Community, then follow us @MSWindowsITPro on X and on LinkedIn. Looking for support? Visit Windows on Microsoft Q&A.
*New features will first be available on Snapdragon X Series (Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon X Plus) Copilot+ PCs.
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