Reason 7: Boost Settings UI compatibility
Microsoft has been on a long, slow track to shift system controls over from Control Panel to the Settings app for a decade or more. This is especially important for newer Copilot+ PCs, where AI-based features are slowly but surely working their way into the Settings environment.
Where upgraded systems may retain Control Panel settings or registry keys that conflict with the Settings app, a clean install helps ensure that Settings serves as a single, authoritative control interface. This eliminates fallback or duplicated facilities from older Windows versions. The net result is a smoother transition from one Settings pane to the next, fewer broken links, and proper, complete access to new categories that include Recall, Copilot, and Privacy Dashboard.
In particular, Copilot-related settingsmay not appear on otherwise compatible and capable systems if they include mismatched or improper provisioning. This includes the Customize Copilot key on the keyboard (Settings > Personalization > Text input) item, automatic pin of Copilot on the taskbar, plus access to Recall, Live Captions, and Settings > System > AI Components. Indeed, the 25H2 version of Windows 11, released on October 1, 2025, adds to Copilot’s capabilities, boosts File Explorer’s AI chops, brings “agentic help” to the Settings app, and much, much more.
This story originally appeared on Computerworld
