Windows 11 Update Unleashes Unexpected Task Manager Glitch
In a curious twist of fate, Microsoft’s latest update for Windows 11 has introduced an unexpected quirk: the proliferation of multiple Task Manager instances. This peculiar phenomenon, observed in the non-security preview update (KB5067036), leads to the spawning of numerous copies of the utility, which ironically consumes the very resources users typically rely on Task Manager to manage.
Upon closing the Task Manager through its familiar close button and reopening it, users may find themselves greeted by yet another instance of the process. Initially, this may evoke a chuckle, but the humor quickly fades as the resource drain becomes apparent, especially for those accustomed to utilizing Task Manager to terminate rogue processes.
In previous iterations, users could effortlessly eliminate background Task Manager instances with a simple click of “End Process.” However, the current scenario presents a disconcerting trend, as the list of active processes seems to multiply each time the utility is accessed.
While the exact cause of this glitch remains elusive, speculation suggests it may be linked to a fix intended to enhance Task Manager’s functionality: “Some apps might unexpectedly not be grouped with their processes.” If indeed someone was fine-tuning the Task Manager, one would hope for a thorough testing phase to follow. Yet, given Microsoft’s historical reputation for quality control, many administrators are left pondering the reliability of their systems, particularly those managing Azure environments.
The Register reached out to Microsoft for clarification on whether this behavior was anticipated or a bug stemming from the recent update. As of now, the company has not provided a response. Their known issues list states, “Microsoft is not currently aware of any issues with this update.”
On social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Dave Plummer, the original architect of Task Manager, humorously remarked, “Code so good, it refuses to die!” The extent to which Plummer’s original code persists in the current version of Task Manager is uncertain, as he hails from an era when software was designed to be efficient rather than laden with bugs.
In a conversation with El Reg, Plummer noted, “You could always run the NT4 task manager; it still works! But it can only display the first 8 CPUs, then it wraps the others into those graphs. So if you have 16 cores, each graph represents TWO CPUs. But that it works at all is kinda neat. Other than that, not sure what they broke or why it went wrong! There’s some code in Task Manager that causes it to hide when you press ESC instead of exiting; maybe they broke that!”
It seems unlikely that Microsoft will issue an out-of-band update to rectify this particular issue, as it only affects a subset of users and is part of a broader set of changes being rolled out gradually. Nevertheless, the emergence of these ‘zombie’ Task Manager processes evokes a certain cinematic parallel reminiscent of a Christopher Nolan film.
Ultimately, releasing an update that features such an obvious oversight is far from ideal, casting a shadow over the company’s commitment to delivering polished software.
