How to fix videos that open slowly in Windows 11 Beta

Microsoft released Windows 11 Build 22581 a few days ago to users in the Developer and Beta Channel of the Insider Preview Program. While it did bring some bug fixes, it apparently introduced a new problem.

a reddit user found that videos opened slowly after installing the latest version on his computer. They also found out what was causing these delays. It turns out that the culprit was none other than the operating system’s default antivirus, Windows Security, commonly known as Windows Defender. More specifically, it was the SmartScreen component of the Security app that was causing this problem.

Other users chimed in saying they had a similar issue, i.e. movies weren’t opening right away and it took a while (about 30 seconds) before the media started playing.

How to fix videos that open slowly in Windows 11 Beta

1. Open the Windows Security app, also known as Defender, by clicking its icon in the system tray.

2. Select the “Application & Browser Control” tab in the sidebar.

3. Click on “Reputation Based Protection” in the right panel.

4. Disable the first option on this page, under “Check apps and files”. You will need to login with an administrator account, to allow the UAC prompt, to confirm the change.

5. Play a video and it should open normally.

This option is enabled by default on all builds of Windows. It is not clear why SmartScreen triggers checks with Windows 11 Build 22581. Microsoft has not yet acknowledged the issue.

Why did this happened? SmartScreen provides an additional layer of security that protects users when running unpopular files or programs. When the user tries to run such a file, it marks it for analysis to make sure there is no malware lurking in it. In theory, it’s a nice feature, but the implementation has its drawbacks, eg.

This is not the first time users have had performance issues with Windows 11. There was an issue related to SSDs slowing down, but Microsoft fixed the bug in Windows update KB5008353.

Earlier this month, AMD confirmed that the operating system was malfunctioning on Ryzen-powered computers and that it would be working with Microsoft to fix the problem. An update is expected to be announced in the summer of 2022. The addition of teams and widgets has also been criticized among the tech community, after it was discovered that they were using resources in the background. Neowin reports that Microsoft’s Endpoint for Defender recently flagged Office updates as malware, leaving the Redmond-based company with an egg on its face.

If you’re still on the Dev Channel and want to switch to beta builds, you should update to build 22581 as soon as possible. This limited time window will close soon, with the release of the next build expected to drop this week. You can’t switch to the Release Channel yet, an option to switch to it might become available as we get closer to the release of Windows 11 22H2 Sun Valley Update which is said to be released in the next few months.

Do you use SmartScreen on your computer?

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