Microsoft finally squashed a Windows bug that's been around since last year
After nine months of headaches, the latest Windows 11 update restores proper support for custom setups.
Microsoft's monthly Patch Tuesday updates are meant to fix bugs and close up security holes, but every now and then, they end up breaking things instead. That is exactly what happened last August – and it's taken until now for Microsoft to clean up the mess.
In its latest May 2025 Windows 11 update, Microsoft has finally fixed a nine-month-old bug that made dual-booting with Linux nearly impossible for some users. If you've been wanting to try Linux alongside Windows 11 but kept running into issues, now's your chance.
The bug came from a patch Microsoft released last year that added something called Secure Boot Advanced Targeting (SBAT). It was supposed to stop unsafe or outdated bootloaders from running. But it ended up doing the opposite of what many power users wanted – it broke dual-boot setups by mistakenly applying SBAT even when it wasn't supposed to.
Microsoft says the problem was that the system couldn't correctly detect certain custom dual-boot configurations and ended up applying the SBAT restriction anyway. In its own words:
The result? Many users found their Linux partitions wouldn't boot anymore.
Thankfully, the latest Windows 11 version 24H2 patch fixes that issue, meaning you can now dual-boot Linux and Windows 11 without any weird roadblocks. So, this newest update is a win for users wanting more flexibility with their PC setups.
In other Microsoft news, the company just launched its new 13-inch Surface Laptop with a clear message for Apple: "bring it on." The new 13-inch Surface Laptop is officially the lightest and thinnest one Microsoft’s ever made, weighing just 2.7 lbs. It’s built for portability, powered up for performance and comes packed with powerful AI features.
Microsoft says the problem was that the system couldn't correctly detect certain custom dual-boot configurations and ended up applying the SBAT restriction anyway. In its own words:
The August 2024 Windows security and preview updates apply a Secure Boot Advanced Targeting (SBAT) setting to devices that run Windows to block old, vulnerable boot managers. This SBAT update will not be applied to devices where dual booting is detected. On some devices, the dual-boot detection did not detect some customized methods of dual-booting and applied the SBAT value when it should not have been applied.
– Microsoft, August 2024
Thankfully, the latest Windows 11 version 24H2 patch fixes that issue, meaning you can now dual-boot Linux and Windows 11 without any weird roadblocks. So, this newest update is a win for users wanting more flexibility with their PC setups.
In other Microsoft news, the company just launched its new 13-inch Surface Laptop with a clear message for Apple: "bring it on." The new 13-inch Surface Laptop is officially the lightest and thinnest one Microsoft’s ever made, weighing just 2.7 lbs. It’s built for portability, powered up for performance and comes packed with powerful AI features.
Alongside the latest hardware, Microsoft revealed a bunch of fresh Windows 11 and Copilot+ features it calls the "next wave of Windows experiences."
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