Microsoft has recently implemented substantial modifications to the security feature known as "Smart App Control" (SAC) in the Windows 11 preview versions for both the Dev and Beta channels. Previously, enabling this feature necessitated a clean installation upgrade to Windows 11. However, this limitation has now been lifted. In the future, users with compatible devices will be able to utilize this feature directly after performing an in - place upgrade to Windows 11 25H2, without the need to reinstall the system. This modification was first introduced in the Build 26220.7070 update rolled out in November.

Users have the flexibility to toggle the feature on or off at their convenience. They can do so by navigating to "Windows Security Center > App and Browser Control > Smart App Control Settings". SAC represents a cloud - based intelligent security service that Microsoft launched in 2022. It is available exclusively on Windows 11 and is engineered to prevent untrusted or potentially hazardous applications from running, thereby offering proactive protection.

In comparison to traditional anti - malware solutions, SAC exerts a less significant impact on system performance and consumes fewer system resources. This helps minimize the disruption caused by background security processes to foreground work or gaming experiences. At present, this change is still undergoing testing and has not been made accessible to all users of the official version. It is anticipated that it will be gradually rolled out to the stable branch early next year, ultimately becoming a standard security option for all supported Windows 11 devices.