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Windows Central
Windows Central
Technology
Sean Endicott

"What happened to my Start menu?" — why Windows 11 users are waking up to a desktop they don't recognize

Windows 11.

When you booted up your PC recently, you may have been met with an unfamiliar Start menu. There's a good chance that some of your apps have moved and the Start menu itself has a different size and layout than before.

The good news is that this is not a bug. A new Start menu is rolling out to Windows 11. Since the rollout is happening in waves, some people just received it despite the redesign initially shipping in October 2025.

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