Hello, We have been testing Windows 11 for our company and have several major issues / problems that will prevent us from upgrading / rolling out Windows 11. So far it would seem the UI is a major step backwards for productivity and usability. Until these issues are resolved we will not be using Windows 11 and need instructions on how to remove it in case someone accidentally upgrades to it.
1. Unable to prevent grouping of applications and programs. This adds additional clicks, and makes it difficult to manage multiple instances of programs while not utilizing taskbar real estate.
2. Unable to resize Start Menu for additional programs.
3. Cannot remove "Recommended" from Start Menu. As of yet, not sure what this is for besides taking up space. We have not had one user find this useful, and am not really sure what it is for.
4. Cannot open recent files for a specific program on the Start Menu. The Start Menu only shows a short list of all recent files, but not files that are commonly used from a specific application. The only way to open a file that is used monthly, quarterly, or yearly is to open the program first and then open the file from within the program. This adds multiple clicks and makes it unnecessarily inefficient for users to work on files they don't open every day.
5. Unable to open Task Manager outside of the Start Button.
6. Most/All system tray icons are hidden by default. This is a pain for administrators as every program installed then needs to be set to show in the system tray or the user doesn't know it is there. A lot of programs we use have status, presence, or additional functionality from their icon in the system tray and generally speaking if the user doesn't see it, it isn't there. If we don't go around and turn on the system tray over flow every time we install a program or add a user, almost always the user doesn't see it or use it which has led to countless problems. This is compounded if the application doesn't integrate with the notification center. This is a minor problem, but a major nuisance.
7. Taskbar wasted space. Because of grouping of windows in the taskbar there is generally 2/3 of the taskbar that is blank and unusable. There is no option to customize this.
8. Taskbar placement. Some of our users prefer to have the taskbar on the side or top of the screen. This is not possible.
9. (BUG) File Explorer. Whenever a user has a long list of sorted files they are working on in File Explorer (and has the slide show enabled for their desktop background), every time the background changes the list of files reverts to the top of the list. This is frustrating for users managing large folders with many files (for example we have some users that are traversing folders with thousands of files and copying/moving them to other folders and every time the background changes all their folder lists go to the top).
10. Unable to change sounds devices from the System Tray. In order to change sound devices in Windows 11 you have to open Settings and then change the device. This is difficult for users changing audio devices frequently or quickly when taking calls.
11. (BUG) Scheduled Night Light feature does not work on many portable devices. I have tried several mobile devices (laptops, tables, etc.) and even though Night Light is scheduled to change during defined hours, it does not happen.
12. Connecting to WiFi. Even after training, our users find it difficult to connect to wireless networks as it is not labeled how to do so in the system tray and requires additional clicks.
13. (BUG) Bluetooth Audio. We are finding many Bluetooth audio devices have poor audio quality until the Bluetooth microphone is disabled from the Control Panel whether or not the microphone needs to be used.
14. Context Menus. We have found a work around for this, but many of our users find Windows Explorer context menus slow, limited, and confusing. Because there are no labels for common tasks only icons (rename for example) a lot of are users don't know what they mean and need to be trained. Also all additional programs with context menus are missing. This appears to have changed since the original release, but still requires yet another click to see them.
15. Stability and Reliability. I am sure this will get better in time, but are finding many machines are slower (booting, using, rebooting, etc.) than previous versions of Windows. Also we are finding users are having to reboot or forcibly restart their machines to solve issues regularly. This is not good for any machine that is supposed to be reliable. We have confirmed these are not hardware, driver, or user issues. We have confirmed this with identical machines one with Windows 11 and one with Windows 10, and even machines that where working perfectly now crash frequently using Windows 11.
16. Bloatware. We are finding on average there are about an additional 50 processes running on Windows 11 machines over identically configured Windows 10 machines. We as of yet not identified why this is, but seem to be related to Windows processes (svchost.exe) and Microsoft Edge processes. There does not seem to be a clear reason or information as to why so many more processes are on each machine and what they do. Also it looks like they cannot be removed.
17. Performance. We are finding users state that their machines load, reboot, and run slower than before after upgrading to Windows 11.
19. Power Management. There is no easy way (or a way at all we have found so far) to adjust power profiles on the fly. Our mobile users generally adjust their power profiles throughout the day based on what they are doing to optimize battery usage. It may that power management is no longer required in Windows 11, our test users using Windows 11 have a lot less battery runtime that our Windows 10 users, and the only reason we can come up with is their power profile is always "Balanced".
20. (BUG) Windows Update. Every time Windows Updates audio customization's, among other customization's are lost. This is not new to Windows 11, but thought it would be addressed in Windows 11.
21. Settings. As an administrator, the new version of Settings for Windows 11 appears to be reduced functionality version of Windows 10, and still requires most administrator functions done from traditional Control Panel.
Conclusion, it would appear Windows 11 was designed solely in an attempt to make the computer easier to use for the average user. What we have found is that it has made it much more difficult for the average user, and a major headache for advanced users. I am sure it is easier for someone who has never used a computer before, but for the rest of the world Windows 11 appears to be the biggest step backwards since Windows Vista. Why the intentional removal of key features and functions would be seen as an upgrade is beyond me. It is very disappointing to those who manage, administer, and use Windows PCs in the workplace. Hopefully these items will be addressed, but am not optimistic. For now, we have no plans on upgrading our infrastructure to use Windows 11 mainly for the reasons above, but to not give the user (customer) the choice of how easy or advanced their computer is and to take away the ability to customize one experience will remain a mystery.
I wrote this in the hopes that others will voice their concerns as well as we have enough struggles to deal with in the world, and Windows 11 does not make it any easier.
If you are aware of addressing any above issues without the use of a 3rd party software or know when/if any of them will be addressed please let me know. For now, we will wait until either this mess is fixed, or switch to another plat form.
Thank you.
