New information suggests that Windows 11 25H2 will be a minor update. A recent Windows 11 preview build contains indications that version 25H2 will remain based on the Germanium codebase from 24H2, with only a minor increase in the build number.
An X user named @XenoPanther saw the code for Windows 11 build 27842 from the Canary Channel. The AppraiserRes.dll file contains a reference to GE25H2, or Germanium, and the next Windows 11 variant. This file checks whether a PC is compatible with (a version of) Microsoft’s latest operating system. The reference to Germanium shows that Microsoft is continuing with 24H2 with this variant and is not making any fundamental changes.
Enablement package
Where we initially thought that Windows 11 24H2 would perhaps be released as Windows 12, expectations for this year aren’t focused on a new number. In fact, 25H2 would be a similar step to 23H2, which was an evolution of 22H2 but had few significant additions. As “H2” suggests, we can expect the new Windows version in the second half of this year.
The question is whether 25H2 will launch more stably than 24H2. The latter was particularly problematic; for many, the trouble started with the installation. It sometimes refused or failed, after which various other bugs appeared for all kinds of users. Compatibility was also questionable: some hardware was unable to establish a workable relationship with 24H2, making a downgrade sometimes the obvious choice for users. With the end of Windows Mixed Reality, some VR headsets were also no longer usable on the OS from 24H2 onwards.
Hopefully, version 25H2 will be a less problematic update for the millions of people who will be leaving Windows 10 as it nears the end of regular support on October 14, 2025. This is an important date, as many organizations must have migrated to Windows 11 from Windows 10 by then to stay protected. However, it is common for users of older Windows versions to remain on the OS beyond the support date, which becomes more dangerous every day due to unpatched vulnerabilities.
Smaller updates, such as an enablement package, typically carry fewer risks to stability than full system versions. The update activates features that are already present in the system but are still disabled. This is in contrast to version 24H2, which introduced a lot of AI functionality and other large-scale changes. We do not expect Microsoft to change course in this area.
Official confirmation
Of course, none of this has been officially confirmed, and Microsoft has not yet announced Windows 11 version 25H2. Nor is anything known yet about how Microsoft plans to update users from the currently supported versions 23H2 and 24H2. It is therefore wise to approach these discoveries with the necessary scepticism. For example, we started thinking about Windows 12 at the beginning of last year, but it seems that even 2026 is uncertain for that.