Another Windows 11 feature is now out in the open. In one of the earlier builds, build 25188 to be exact, a hidden live kernel dump option was noticed inside the Task Manager.
Now, this feature has formally taken flight.
Microsoft released Windows 11 build 25197 to the Dev channel not too long ago. And while the main highlight of this new preview version is the return of the (buggy) tablet optimized taskbar, you will also find the abovementioned feature tucked in there too.
Kernel dump files basically create a snapshot of kernel memory that allows their analysis when troubleshooting all manners of errors in the operating system — app crashes, driver issues, those scary old BSODs, you name them!
Live kernel dump files are similar, save for the fact that they are done on the fly without requiring a system reboot in order to create a dump. For this reason, they come in real handy since a system is not disrupted in case of a non-fatal error.
Microsoft may not have officially confirmed this useful new addition, but the community has been on the job.
As you can see in the image above, choosing the live kernel dump option opens a dialog box denoting the location of the dump file created. It is a pretty straightforward operation, and works just as you expect it to.
On the other hand, if you try to use the live kernel dump feature on previous builds, like for instance in build 25193, the following error message would pop up, illustrated in the image below, stating that the operation could not be completed.
A welcome addition this, and will be appreciated by developers and troubleshooters the most.
