--- title: Windows 11 arm64 VS2026 image generally available description: GitHub-hosted runners now offer a generally available Windows 11 arm64 image bundled with Visual Studio 2026, accessible via runs-on: windows-11-vs2026-arm.... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/windows-11-arm64-vs2026-image-generally-available-jojeihyms twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Windows 11 arm64 VS2026 image generally available | daily.dev og:description: GitHub-hosted runners now offer a generally available Windows 11 arm64 image bundled with Visual Studio 2026, accessible via runs-on: windows-11-vs2026-arm.... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/windows-11-arm64-vs2026-image-generally-available-jojeihyms og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/JojeiHYMs.png og:image:alt: Windows 11 arm64 VS2026 image generally available og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Windows 11 arm64 VS2026 image generally available **[GitHub Changelog](https://daily.dev/sources/github_updates)** · 1 min read · 4 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary GitHub-hosted runners now offer a generally available Windows 11 arm64 image bundled with Visual Studio 2026, accessible via runs-on: windows-11-vs2026-arm. Starting September 21, 2026, the default windows-11-arm image will gradually switch to Visual Studio 2026, with full rollout completed by September 30, 2026. This may break workflows relying on Visual Studio 2022, so teams should test the new image or redirect workflows to a different runner or image if needed. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### When will GitHub Actions windows-11-arm runners switch from Visual Studio 2022 to Visual Studio 2026 by default? GitHub will gradually update the windows-11-arm image to default to Visual Studio 2026 starting September 21, 2026, completing the rollout by September 30, 2026. Workflows will move to the new image gradually during this window, and this may break jobs that depend on Visual Studio 2022 toolchains. _Teams relying on VS2022 in CI can track rollout timelines like this one on daily.dev before workflows break._ ### How do I use the Visual Studio 2026 Windows 11 arm64 image in GitHub Actions before the default migration happens? Update the runs-on field in the workflow file to windows-11-vs2026-arm to opt into the Visual Studio 2026 Windows 11 arm64 image ahead of the automatic migration. This image is now generally available on both standard and larger GitHub-hosted runners, letting teams test compatibility early. _Developers testing CI runner upgrades early follow release notes like this on daily.dev._ ### What should I do if I want to keep using Visual Studio 2022 on GitHub Actions Windows runners after the migration? To avoid the automatic move to Visual Studio 2026, edit the workflow to target a different runner for standard runners, or change the assigned image for larger runners. No action is needed to accept the migration to Visual Studio 2026; action is only required to stay on Visual Studio 2022. _Anyone pinning CI toolchains to avoid breaking changes can follow runner updates on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [GitHub Actions: Upcoming image migrations](https://daily.dev/posts/github-actions-upcoming-image-migrations-mmerwdhnd) · GitHub Changelog · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [arm64 standard runners are now available in private repositories](https://daily.dev/posts/arm64-standard-runners-are-now-available-in-private-repositories-txgrccvew) · GitHub Changelog · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [August 14, 2026](https://daily.dev/posts/august-14-2026-ygs9ndaps) · The Old New Thing · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Announcing new Release Preview builds for 14 August 2026](https://daily.dev/posts/announcing-new-release-preview-builds-for-14-august-2026-lv87mwdy7) · Windows Blogs · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [MSVC Build Tools Versions 14.30 – 14.43 Now Available in Visual Studio 2026](https://daily.dev/posts/msvc-build-tools-versions-14-30-14-43-now-available-in-visual-studio-2026-dns6yyzfo) · DevBlogs · 1 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#hardware](https://daily.dev/tags/hardware), [#windows](https://daily.dev/tags/windows), [#cicd](https://daily.dev/tags/cicd), [#github-actions](https://daily.dev/tags/github-actions), [#visual-studio](https://daily.dev/tags/visual-studio) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/windows-11-arm64-vs2026-image-generally-available-jojeihyms) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Windows 11 arm64 VS2026 image generally available","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/windows-11-arm64-vs2026-image-generally-available-jojeihyms","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/windows-11-arm64-vs2026-image-generally-available-jojeihyms"},"datePublished":"2026-08-20T18:20:00.365Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T09:21:08.421Z","description":"GitHub-hosted runners now offer a generally available Windows 11 arm64 image bundled with Visual Studio 2026, accessible via runs-on: windows-11-vs2026-arm....","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/be224bb435b336552295453dde6b0d63?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/be224bb435b336552295453dde6b0d63?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"GitHub Changelog","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"GitHub Changelog","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/15004b7835da4d89b02b115871f0f6dc","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/github_updates"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/windows-11-arm64-vs2026-image-generally-available-jojeihyms","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":4},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"hardware,windows,cicd,github-actions,visual-studio","timeRequired":"PT1M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"GitHub Changelog","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/github_updates"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Windows 11 arm64 VS2026 image generally available"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/windows-11-arm64-vs2026-image-generally-available-jojeihyms#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"When will GitHub Actions windows-11-arm runners switch from Visual Studio 2022 to Visual Studio 2026 by default?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"GitHub will gradually update the windows-11-arm image to default to Visual Studio 2026 starting September 21, 2026, completing the rollout by September 30, 2026. 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