When it was launched, Windows Vista was not highly thought of amongst long-time users. Many found it bloated and confusing, since the design was a major departure from what had come before. However, time has softened opinions, and some users felt a warm glow of nostalgia upon realizing that Microsoft had accidentally replaced the Windows 11 boot sound with the startup chime of the Vista era.

The issue was first noticed by testers using the Dev Channel build of Windows 11. For reasons yet to be determined, the .wav sound file for the boot-up noise had been replaced with the Windows Vista startup sound. This seemed to affect all users of preview build 26200.5651.

The Verge writer Tom Warren posted on Twitter/X about this issue, and received several replies from users saying that they preferred to Vista-era sound to the current Windows 11 startup sound. Warren agreed with the sentiment and later expressed curiosity as to why there wasn’t an option to customize the startup sound.

Microsoft acknowledged the bug

Microsoft has recognised the bug and added a line to release notes on the latest Dev Channel build addressing the error: “This week’s flight comes with a delightful blast from the past and will play the Windows Vista boot sound instead of the Windows 11 boot sound. We’re working on a fix.”

It is not known how this error occurred. Though the comments were mostly in jest, some say that perhaps it was a light-hearted jab at Apple, since its new ‘LiquidGlass’ design bears more than a passing resemblance to the ‘Aero Glass’ used in Windows Vista and Windows 7.

Whatever the reason for the bug, it seems some users will be perfectly happy to let this one hang around for a while longer.

About the Author

Rebecca Hills-Duty

Writing and journalism experience at VRFocus, UploadVR, The Escapist, HTC, PC Gamer, Tech Radar+ and Dexerto. Can sometimes be found playing with retro tech.