Microsoft's latest Insider build for Windows 11, 22635.4950 (KB5052078), delivers a two-pronged productivity upgrade: a redesigned Start menu with app grouping and a new drag-to-share tray that surfaces sharing targets right at the top of the screen. Released to the Beta Channel, this preview represents a significant shift in how users launch applications and move files, blending mobile-inspired convenience with the muscle of a desktop OS.
The update arrives as a gradual rollout, meaning not every Beta Channel tester will see the changes immediately. But when enabled, the Start menu sheds its static list of apps for something more dynamic, while the drag tray aims to eliminate the clunky right-click-and-hunt sharing ritual. It’s a clear signal that Microsoft is aggressively rethinking the century-old Windows interface for a touch-and-share world.
The Start Menu Overhaul: Bigger, Smarter, More Adaptable
The Start menu in Windows 11 has been a work in progress since launch, but this build takes the most dramatic step yet. Two new views now live on the “All apps” page—Grid and Category—and the entire panel scales dynamically with your screen size.
On large displays, you’ll see up to eight columns of pinned apps, six recommended items, and four columns of app categories. Smaller screens get a condensed layout with six pinned columns, four recommendations, and three category columns. A new mobile device button also appears, letting you expand or collapse the Phone Link sidebar directly from Start.
Microsoft’s official Insider blog describes these as optional layouts that make app discovery faster. “We’re making it easier for you to launch your apps with our updated, scrollable Start menu,” the team notes. This is also where you can finally disable the recommended section entirely—a long-requested freedom.
Grid View: The Familiar Alphabetical Scrolling
Grid view preserves the alphabetical, multi-column list that power users know. It’s essentially a polished classic view, but with improved scanning because apps are laid out in a grid rather than a single long column. Think of it as a “letter jump” list that fits more on screen at once.
Category View: Automatic Grouping by Task
Category view is the true innovation. Apps are automatically sorted into functional buckets—Entertainment, Productivity, Navigation, and so on—and those buckets are ordered by how often you use them. This mirrors the app library on your smartphone, where you don’t need to remember a name; you just head to the right task neighborhood.
Independent reports confirm that Microsoft uses heuristics to form categories, and a minimum number of apps is required before a group appears. Sparsely populated categories fall back to an “Others” bucket, which can feel like a dumping ground on systems with niche software. There’s no manual override yet, though customization rumors persist.
The Drag Tray: File Sharing Reduced to a Flick
Buried in the same KB5052078 release is a feature that has insiders buzzing: the drag tray. When you begin dragging a local file from File Explorer or the desktop, a translucent tray slides down from the top of the screen, showing icons of apps and services that can receive the file. Drop the file onto Outlook, Phone Link, or any other share target, and the app’s share flow opens instantly. A “More…” button still calls up the full Share UI.
This drag-to-share mechanism slashes the number of clicks needed to send a document or photo. Instead of right-clicking, navigating to “Share,” then picking an app from a list, you just grab and drop. Microsoft’s release notes frame it as “a quicker, easier way to share files,” and ask Insiders for feedback via the Feedback Hub under Files, Folders, and Online Storage > File sharing.
Early adopters have documented the feature using third-party tools like ViVeTool to force-enable it, but the official rollout is the only supported path. The drag tray is separate from the Start menu changes and appears to be targeted at reducing context-switching friction—a small tweak that could become a daily time-saver.
Deeper Phone Link Integration
Microsoft continues weaving Phone Link into the Start menu. The mobile device button beside the user icon expands a sidebar showing phone battery, messages, calls, and quick-sharing shortcuts. This builds on earlier Insider previews that streamlined Phone Link setup for both Android and iPhone.
The new layout turns Start into a device hub rather than a simple launcher. A Bluetooth LE-capable PC paired with the latest Phone Link app can now access real-time phone information without leaving the Start menu. It’s a subtle but persistent reminder that your PC and phone are tethered.
Known Issues: A Work in Progress
No Insider build is without rough edges, and 22635.4950 is no exception. Microsoft’s release notes flag a handful of known problems:
- Icons in the new Start views may load with a delay.
- Context menus within Start occasionally flash or misrender.
- The drag tray does not yet support all third-party share targets consistently.
- The category grouping logic is still being tuned; some apps land in unexpected buckets.
Insiders are encouraged to file feedback through the Hub, and Microsoft promises fixes in subsequent flights. For now, treat these features as experimental—they are not yet bound for the stable channel.
Enterprise and IT Concerns
For corporate IT departments, any change to the Start menu raises alarms. Standardized layouts are often baked into device provisioning policies, and automatic groupings could dismantle carefully crafted training scripts.
- There is currently no group policy or administrative template to control category view behavior. Enterprise admins should not deploy this build in production.
- The drag tray introduces a new sharing surface; data loss prevention (DLP) tools may not yet recognize it as a monitored sharing vector. Regulated industries should audit share targets carefully.
- Accessibility testing is essential: screen readers and keyboard navigation must work flawlessly with the new views and drag drop. Known glitches in icon rendering could confuse users who rely on visual consistency.
A pilot phase in a non-production environment is the safest way to evaluate these features. Microsoft has not yet published a timeline for enterprise controls, but history suggests they will arrive before any general availability.
How to Try the New Features
To get hands-on:
1. Join the Windows Insider Program and select the Beta Channel.
2. Install update KB5052078 (build 22635.4950) via Windows Update.
3. Be patient: both the Start views and drag tray are gradual rollouts. You may need to wait several days before the features appear.
4. Once active, toggle between Grid and Category view in Start settings, and test the drag tray by grabbing a file from the desktop.
Avoid unsupported tools like ViVeTool unless you accept the risk of instability and unfinished code. The official rollout ensures you receive the intended experience with the accompanying bug fixes.
What’s Next?
Microsoft has hinted at further personalization down the road. While category view is currently automatic, user-created folders or manual grouping could appear in future builds. The drag tray might expand to support more share targets and contextual actions. And the Start menu’s lock screen sibling is also maturing; this same Dev/Beta cycle introduced lock screen widget customization, a feature that could pair nicely with the new Start’s focus on at-a-glance information.
The broader goal is clear: make Windows 11 feel fast, touch-friendly, and phone-like. Whether you love it or loathe it, the category view and drag tray are tangible steps in that direction. For now, they remain a playground for Beta Channel Insiders—a glimpse of a more fluid, less menu-driven Windows that may arrive on your desktop sooner than you think.