Windows 11 Insider Preview users in the Dev and Beta channels were greeted by a surprising blast from the past: the classic Windows Vista startup sound. Rather than the newer Windows 11 chime, build 26200.5651 featured a line in the .WAV boot file that triggered the Vista melody instead.
🔊 What Happened
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On June 13, 2025, a Windows 11 Insider build rolled out with the Vista boot sound in place of the modern chime .
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Users on platforms like Reddit and Twitter quickly noticed the nostalgic change
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Microsoft added a playful comment in the release notes:
“This week’s flight comes with a delightful blast from the past and will play the Windows Vista boot sound…
🧩 A Bug, Not a Feature
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Brandon LeBlanc, Senior Program Manager for the Windows Insider team, initially joked on X (formerly Twitter) that he had “some fun with the sound files,” then quickly confirmed it was actually an “actual bug”.
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Microsoft has confirmed this is a known issue and assured users a fix is coming in the next Insider flight.
😄 Why It’s Funny (and Nostalgic)
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The Vista chime, introduced back in 2006, is a melodic two-tone fanfare created alongside the Aero interface.
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Its sudden return—paired with recent discussions about Apple’s “Liquid Glass” visuals echoing Vista’s Aero—has made the moment all the more ironic.
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For long-time Windows users, hearing the chime again sparked both nostalgia and amusement. One comment on Windows Central noted it as “a surprise blast from the past lol”.
🕰️ What’s Next?
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Microsoft is expected to revert the boot sound to the proper Windows 11 chime in an upcoming Insider release.
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Meanwhile, this bug highlights how deeply legacy components (like
imageres.dll) remain stitched into the Windows shell—even after nearly 20 years of updates.
