Windows 11 22H2: Leak confirms big desktop widget upgrade

Windows 11 version 22H2, also known as Sun Valley 2, will be completed in a few months for launch in late summer. Codenamed Sun Valley 2, this will be an anniversary update for Windows 11 that will focus on quality improvements to complement the existing user interface.

As you probably know, Windows 11 comes with a redesigned Start menu and taskbar experience and is missing some basic features. For example, you can't easily turn off Recommendations in the new start menu. There is also no way to increase the number of app icons in the Start menu.

Similarly, Windows 11’s flagship feature “Widgets” board feels incomplete, with no support for third-party widgets at this time. You can only manage widgets like Microsoft Calendar, Movies & TV, and Microsoft To-Do, but that will change later in the year with Windows 11 Sun Valley 2.

A new developer tutorial that has appeared on Microsoft's website has confirmed that a future Windows 11 update will significantly improve the Widgets panel by adding support for third-party widgets. .

Support documentation indicates that these third-party widgets will be web-based, and Microsoft does not currently plan to offer Win32 or UWP widgets through the widget board, but this may change in the future.

Interestingly, it looks like third-party widgets can be installed without a store. According to the documentation, publishing a web widget to the Microsoft Store will provide enhanced discovery in the Microsoft Store or widget board. Developers can publish Windows app widgets through the Store and the process is the same.

• The application extension manifest is used to register widgets with the widget board.
• MSI installation code performs COM registration and calls the Widget registration API during installation.
• Supports web widgets, more will be provided later.

Additionally, the documentation mentions "adaptive cards," which are "platform-agnostic UI snippets" designed to be integrated into the host experience like widgets. Adaptive cards automatically style themselves to match the console experience, ensure low memory and CPU usage, and more.

Microsoft may already be working on the new widget with a small group of developers, and public testing should begin within a few weeks as Microsoft hopes the feature will be ready for Windows 11 Sun Valley 2.

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