Microsoft Issues Revised Windows 11 Version 23H2 Installation Media

Microsoft quietly revealed this week that it updated the Windows 11 version 23H2 installation media to address a Narrator bug in earlier versions that only impacted clean installs.

The firm first acknowledged the bug in November on its Windows 11 version 23H2 known issues page when it reported that users who had clean installed Windows 11 version 23H2 could not run the Narrator accessibility feature while during Windows Setup. This issue did not impact those who had upgraded to 23H2 with Windows Update, and Narrator would work fine for those doing a clean install once Windows Setup was complete.

But this issue has now been resolved, Microsoft says.

“Starting December 19, 2023, a new file is available to create an installation media to update to Windows 11, version 23H2,” an update to the original document reads. “The new media does not encounter this issue and contains the December 2023 security update. It is available for download at the Software Download page for Windows 11 in the section ‘Download Windows 11 Disk Image (ISO) for x64 devices’.”

Even if you don’t use Narrator, it may be worth downloading the new Windows 11 version 23H2 ISO file and/or using Microsoft’s Media Creation Tool (MCT) to create updated Windows 11 installation media (it’s available on the same page linked above) because they’ve both been updated to the December 2023 security update. And it doesn’t appear that Microsoft will be updating the ISO/MCT to address other recently resolved issues related to Wi-Fi and printing, though it arguably should do so.