Windows 12 release postponed for another year; Microsoft officially announces Windows 11 version 25H2

Earlier, it was assumed that the next version of Windows would be Windows 12, but it seems like we still have to wait for Windows 12 as last week Microsoft released an Insider Preview build of Windows 11 version 25H2.

In the blog post, Jason Leznek, senior manager of the Windows Insider program, said, “Today Windows 11, version 25H2 became available to the Windows Insider community, in advance of broader availability planned for the second half of 2025.” This means that the Windows 12 release is officially postponed for at least another year.

Windows Insiders can download the 25H2 preview build in the Beta and Release Preview channels, with the update to be made widely available to all Windows 11 users in the second half of 2025.

Now, in Windows 11 version 25H2, it is revealed that version 24H2 and version 25H2 use a shared servicing branch. New features developed for Windows 11, version 25H2, are part of the version 24H2 branch in a disabled state and will be enabled when they are ready for release. Version 25H2 is said to use the same update mechanism as the current 24H2, which will allow users to install the update as a regular cumulative update instead of the complete OS re-installation that was required when moving from 23H2 to 24H2.

As mentioned above, the changelog is identical to the 24H2 build in the Beta Channel. With the release of version 25H2, Microsoft will reset the support counter to 36 months for Enterprise and Education editions and 24 months for Pro, Pro Education, and Pro for Workstation editions.