[tomek@vz]

In November last year, we reported on the removal of an unofficial KMS-related Windows activation, something which the company was planning to do for a while. The method worked by helping to activate Windows without an internet connection.
If you are wondering about official ways, offline Windows activation has been possible to do using the phone. However, it looks like Microsoft has quietly killed off that method as users online have found that they are no longer able to activate the OS using it.

> Report: Microsoft quietly kills official way to activate Windows 11/10 without internet

Windows 11 has plenty of ads. Although we are not at the "hot singles in your area" stage, at least not yet, the operating system is full of all sorts of nudges and "recommendations" that promote various apps, services, and AI stuff. It is especially apparent during the initial setup, where nearly half of all pages are ads. While Microsoft is unlikely to take notable steps in the right direction, there is one section of the operating system where you will soon be able to get rid of all ads.
@phantomofeart reports that Microsoft is changing the Nearby sharing settings page in Windows 11, an AirDrop-like feature for Windows PCs. The updated version is simply called "Share" (Nearby sharing remains a thing), and besides a new name, a much-needed toggle is coming to it as well.

> Microsoft will soon let you see fewer ads in Windows 11

A lot of different things happened to Windows 10 and 11 in 2025. Microsoft discontinued Windows 10, released a new feature update for Windows 11, announced all sorts of stuff, and dealt with multiple bugs. As usual, some stuff was discontinued or deprecated. Like in 2024, here is a recap of every feature that was deprecated or discontinued in Windows during the last 12 months.
As a reminder, feature deprecation means Microsoft is no longer actively developing something. Deprecated features may continue working for some time until Microsoft removes them for good.

> Every Windows feature Microsoft removed or deprecated in 2025