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Windows 11 drivers

Windows 11 growth slows as millions stick with Windows 10
Winsage
December 3, 2025

Windows 11 growth slows as millions stick with Windows 10

By November 2025, Windows 11 held 53.7 percent of the Windows desktop market, while Windows 10 had 42.7 percent. Statcounter's data is based on a sample of around 1.5 million websites. Many consumers have devices incompatible with upgrades or prefer not to change functioning systems. In the EU, consumers benefit from free Microsoft Extended Security Updates (ESU). Businesses face slow change management processes due to poor planning and resource challenges. Organizations use ESUs to maintain security during transitions, but costs can be burdensome for unprepared businesses. Consumers often retain older Windows 10 machines for secondary tasks, affecting usage statistics. Organizations strategically leverage ESUs for mission-critical systems and budget constraints. The cost of ESUs is often less than the potential disruptions from migration. Windows 11 lacks compelling features to prompt enterprises to upgrade, and adoption is slower than previous operating systems, lagging by 10-12 points according to Dell's COO.
Microsoft shows slow progress on Rust for Windows drivers
Winsage
September 5, 2025

Microsoft shows slow progress on Rust for Windows drivers

Developers can now access enhanced tools and sample code for Rust in Windows driver development, although achieving production readiness remains challenging. Rust crates are available for creating Windows 11 drivers using frameworks like WDM, KMDF, and UMDF, but developers must still use unsafe blocks when interacting with the OS, which limits Rust's safety advantages. The WDF team is working on safe Rust abstractions to reduce unsafe code reliance, and there are efforts to integrate Rust into the Windows kernel, with some progress noted in the Windows 11 24H2 release. A cargo extension called cargo-wdk is being developed to aid Rust driver development, with future updates planned for ARM64 support and automated processes. The current state of the project is not recommended for production use, as indicated by its GitHub repository, but developers can experiment with it while following Microsoft driver signature procedures. Analysis using GitHub's CodeQL tool, which now supports Rust, is required for this process, although the latest validated version for the Windows Hardware Compatibility Program is 2.21.4. Microsoft Research announced plans to use Rust for memory safety in 2019, and in 2022, Azure CTO Mark Russinovich advocated for moving away from C/C++ in favor of Rust for new projects. The deployment of a Windows driver written in Rust is becoming increasingly feasible.
Microsoft to stop pushing older Windows 11 drivers through Windows Update
Winsage
June 22, 2025

Microsoft to stop pushing older Windows 11 drivers through Windows Update

Microsoft is implementing a policy change in Windows Update that will no longer display older legacy drivers when a newer version is available. This update is being rolled out but does not affect the replacement of newer drivers manually installed from Intel, AMD, or Nvidia. The initiative is described as a “periodic cleanup of drivers from Windows Update,” primarily targeting OEMs. When a driver expires and a newer version exists, the older driver will be removed from Windows Update listings. This cleanup focuses on legacy drivers, and while users may not notice significant changes, it aims to streamline the update process. Future expansions may include expired drivers without replacements, but currently, the focus is on legacy drivers with available updates. OEMs can republish expired drivers with justification. The policy will not resolve issues where manually installed drivers are replaced by older versions via Windows Update, as Windows Update drivers may have higher version numbers despite being older. The policy does not affect users on unsupported hardware, as a driver is only marked as “expired” when a new replacement is available.
Windows 11 runs better than ever on a Steam Deck OLED, but it still doesn't matter
Winsage
August 16, 2024

Windows 11 runs better than ever on a Steam Deck OLED, but it still doesn’t matter

Valve released a new suite of Windows 11 drivers for the Steam Deck OLED on August 15, 2024, aimed at improving the performance of the device's AMD processor, wireless connectivity, and audio playback. The Steam Deck, launched in February 2022, is known as the world's most popular gaming handheld and supports the installation of alternative operating systems, including Windows 11. Users can install Windows 11 by wiping the internal storage, but dual-booting with SteamOS is not officially supported, and a dual-boot wizard has not yet been released. The current version of SteamOS is 3.5.19. There is speculation that dual-boot support may be introduced with the anticipated Steam Deck 2. Despite updates to Windows 11, many users prefer the default SteamOS for its convenience and tailored experience.
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