Windows 11 preview adds right-click menu customization and Cloud Rebuild recovery

Microsoft has begun rolling out a Windows 11 preview update that finally gives users control over the operating system's much-criticized right-click context menu. According to Ars Technica, the update, numbered KB5127936, is a cumulative release for Windows 11 versions 26H2 and 25H2, and it will ship gradually before expanding to a normal rollout for all devices once it reaches general availability.

Fixing the context menu

When Windows 11 launched, its redesigned context menu drew immediate criticism from experienced users. The new layout placed a row of icons at the top of the menu and pushed familiar commands into a secondary "Show more options" submenu, disrupting years of built-up muscle memory around where commands lived. As Ars Technica notes, many users ended up relying on custom scripts and third-party services to bend the menu back into a shape they could work with.

The preview update adds a "customize menu" button that controls what appears when you right-click. Built-in commands such as Send To and Create Shortcut can be toggled on or off, entries on the main menu can be rearranged, and third-party extensions can be assigned to either the main menu or a submenu. In practice, users can now rebuild the menu around their own habits instead of working around Microsoft's defaults, and the collection of scripts and utilities many have maintained for years can finally be retired.

Cloud Rebuild

The same update introduces a new recovery capability called Cloud Rebuild. It can reinstall Windows 11 directly from the cloud even when the existing installation no longer boots, pulling both the Windows image and the required system drivers from Windows Update. That removes the need for a custom recovery image or external installation media to get a dead machine running again.

There is a significant caveat, though. Ars Technica observes that although Microsoft classifies Cloud Rebuild as a recovery option, it functions more like a fresh installation: existing applications and files are not carried over. For users worried about sensitive data sitting on a failing machine, the feature can sanitize entire system drives before reinstalling.

The preview also bundles other changes, including updates to Xbox mode and Settings, which Ars Technica points readers toward Microsoft's official release announcement to review in full.

Why it matters

The context menu is a small piece of interface, but it became one of Windows 11's loudest points of friction, precisely because right-clicking is something experienced users do constantly throughout the day. Native customization means the workaround culture that grew up around this complaint becomes optional rather than necessary, and it signals that Microsoft is willing to act on sustained power-user feedback rather than simply waiting for the criticism to fade.

Cloud Rebuild matters for a different reason. Unbootable Windows machines have traditionally required installation media or a prepared recovery drive to repair, which many users never have on hand when they need one. A cloud-based reinstall lowers that barrier considerably, provided users understand going in that their applications and files will not survive the process.

The timing also draws attention. As Ars Technica reports, the update's announcement arrived alongside Microsoft's quarterly financial results, which showed a continued decline in the business of selling Windows licenses for new PCs. A release focused on long-requested quality-of-life improvements lands against a backdrop of softening PC demand, a juxtaposition the report itself flags as notable.