Windows 8 build 8220

6.2.8220.0.winmain_win8beta.120127-1925
	Build of Windows 8
OS family	Windows NT
Version number	6.2
Build number	8220
Build revision	0
Architecture	x86, x64, ARM32 (ARMv7)
Build lab	winmain_win8beta
Compiled on	2012-01-27
Expiration date
Timebomb	2013-01-15 (+354 days)
SKUs
	Consumer Preview (Prerelease); Consumer Preview ARM (PrereleaseARM)
About dialog

Windows 8 build 8220 is a Consumer Preview escrow build of Windows 8, distributed to partners enrolled into the Microsoft Technology Adoption Program (TAP) on 2 February 2012. The build was shared online on 6 July 2024.

A subset of screenshots showing off the build's English (United States) and and Simplified Chinese localizations were first uploaded by members of Chinese forum PCBeta two days later,^[1] and another subset of images depicting the build were later released on 6 February 2012 by Canouna, author of Windows beta website Winunleaked.tk.^[2] A video of its ARM compile's boot process was subsequently recorded and uploaded to video sharing site Youku on or around 8 February 2012.^[3] Additional references to the build's ISO image filenames from an employee of an unspecified company participating in the Microsoft Technology Adoption Program were later referenced in a question about distinguishing both the official Consumer Preview build and this build on the StackExchange Superuser forums on 5 March 2012.^[4]

The build includes a subset of minor fit-and-finish changes that continue to reflect the intended vision for the Metro design language introduced as part of the operating system, and is notably one of the last few builds to incorporate the older Windows flag logo introduced in 2001 (as part of Windows XP's release), along with builds 8195 and 8277, as the official Consumer Preview build would eventually introduce the 2012-2021 flag design.

As the build comes from a public release branch intended for the official Consumer Preview release, several anti-leak mechanisms have been relaxed.

New features and changes[edit | edit source]

User interface[edit | edit source]

Metro shell[edit | edit source]

New animations in elements such as the Start screen and Charms bar have been implemented within the Metro shell. Icons in the Charms bar have been updated to utilize the designs observed within the final release, the sole exception being the Windows flag (later reverse-integrated from shell branches into build 8250). Additionally, the Windows flag now utilizes a monochrome color scheme when the Charms bar is not fully focused. The PC settings pinned application tile has been removed from the Start screen and the apps list; the only way to access the application at the time of compilation is through the Settings charm. The Remote Desktop communications application was also pinned to the start screen.

The ability to remove all recent application history has been added to the Settings application.

Windows Aero[edit | edit source]

The Windows Aero visual style has been updated to utilize lighter drop shadow effects for active windows.

Taskbar[edit | edit source]

The Start button has been removed from the taskbar, and was replaced by a hot corner showing the user's current Start screen layout. This design decision would later spark controversy surrounding the removal of the button in the lead-up to Windows 8's release. The icon for the Taskbar Properties dialog has been similarly updated to omit the start button, in light of the aforementioned change.

Branding[edit | edit source]

In preparation for the then-upcoming Consumer Preview release, all references to the term Windows 8 Beta have been replaced with Windows 8 Consumer Preview across various branding resources. The copyright year in the winver application was additionally updated to 2012, and the older Windows flag logo design was dropped from the System Control Panel applet in the Prerelease(ARM) editions; this change would not yet be properly reflected in embedded and server releases of the operating system in the official Consumer Preview build, including leftover editions found in its respective repair content source packages.

Additional changes have been made to the existing end-user license agreement in preparation for the upcoming Consumer Preview release.

Boot Graphics Library (BGFX)[edit | edit source]

The Boot Graphics Library has been updated to accommodate for legacy BIOS machines utilizing a widescreen monitor configuration; the boot screen, system crash screen and the second stage of setup therefore utilize 16:9 aspect ratio variants of the logo bitmap and Segoe Boot font face, with resources designated under the N moniker.

User accounts[edit | edit source]

The default user account profile image has been updated to utilize the final RTM design that depicts a simplified design of an individual, dropping the older complex silhouette design of Bill Gates' mugshot sourced from the Albuquerque, New Mexico police department.

Secure Boot Policy[edit | edit source]

This build uses a preliminary version of the Secure Boot Policy, although the on-disk structure is identical to later builds:

Signature validation is different: the policy must have a hash in or be signed by a certificate in the UEFI Key Exchange Key signature database.
The CanUpdate element is used here; the code using it was removed later but the element remained in the file format. A path to an updated policy can either be set in a UEFI variable; alternatively, for BitLocker where the VMK is sealed by the TPM, an updated policy is read from osdevice:\LatestPolicy.p7b. This policy must have a valid signature.
- The updated policy must have a PolicyPublisher equal to one of the CanUpdate GUIDs in the loaded policy; also, the policy version must be greater than the loaded policy's version. If all conditions pass, the updated policy is installed to UEFI non-volatile storage and used as the active policy.
BCD rules are identical to later builds; that is, BCD elements can be overridden by the policy to either be forcibly ignored, or for deletion to be disallowed from the running OS, or for the element value to be locked to a value or one of several values listed in the policy.
Registry rules are not used for low-level cryptographic settings as in later builds but instead are used to override registry values anywhere in HKLM\SYSTEM. The operating system loader winload.e* and NT kernel both have code implementing this functionality; the former uses the policy to override the registry values it reads from that hive.
Option flag bits are completely different from later builds; only 3 bits are used, all by the operating system loader; bit 0 disables the Edit Options menu, bit 1 disables the Advanced Options menu, bit 2 is unknown but related to the Advanced Options menu.

Miscellaneous[edit | edit source]

The "Install now" button in the Windows Setup autorun dialog now utilizes the correct font face.
The shutdown sound no longer plays when the operating system is brought down by the user.

Bugs and quirks[edit | edit source]

As this build was compiled relatively late into preparations for the upcoming Consumer Preview release, some stability, performance and usability issues are also present in this build.

Filesystem mounting support[edit | edit source]

The shell may attempt to invoke a Windows Explorer window that navigates to an unoccupied drive letter before an ISO image is able to finish mounting, in turn displaying an invalid path error. The ISO image will still have mounted normally, and can be accessed through ordinary means. Virtual hard disk (VHD) images are confirmed to not be impacted by this bug.

Desktop Window Manager[edit | edit source]

Attempting to use the Magnifier accessibility tool will create graphical artifacts across windows composited by the Desktop Window Manager.

Recovery[edit | edit source]

The System Reset tool does not function as the respective modal prompt for removing user data does not display properly.

User interface[edit | edit source]

Internet Explorer[edit | edit source]

Elements of the new Internet Explorer user interface may fail to adequately respond to user inputs, appearing to "hang" at times.

Control Panel[edit | edit source]

Adding a new language (such as Japanese) will cause the Control Panel to hang. The only way to fix this is by restarting the Windows Explorer shell.
Devices are not correctly detected in the PC settings application - as a result, its respective tab will constantly redraw itself when populating devices. Attempting to manually add a device through the Devices tab will consequentially crash the application.