{
  "id": 6742220,
  "title": "Windows 11 can now reinstall itself from the cloud — Cloud Rebuild revives dead systems without secondary boot media, wipes broken installation and downloads a fresh copy of the OS",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/windows-11-can-now-reinstall-itself-from-the-cloud-cloud-rebuild",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-09-11T10:30:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Tom's Hardware",
    "slug": "tom-s-hardware",
    "url": "https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/windows-11-can-now-reinstall-itself-from-the-cloud-cloud-rebuild-revives-dead-systems-without-secondary-boot-media-wipes-broken-installation-and-downloads-a-fresh-copy-of-the-os"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Microsoft has introduced a new feature called Cloud Rebuild, which allows Windows 11 users to reinstall their operating system directly from the cloud, even when their existing installation is corrupt or unbootable. This feature is available as a beta through the Windows 11 Insider Beta Preview Build 26220.9343 and is designed to restore a PC to a \"clean, known-good state\" by downloading a fresh image of Windows and the required drivers directly through Windows Update. Unlike traditional methods of creating a Windows installation USB drive, Cloud Rebuild does not depend on the health of the existing Windows installation or require users to have a USB drive or custom recovery image available. The feature can be accessed through the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) and is recommended to be used with caution, as it completely wipes the system drive, removing all data stored on the main installation or C: drive, including locally stored files, accounts, applications, and settings.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "TechSpot",
        "title": "Windows 11 can now reinstall itself from the cloud, no USB stick required",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/windows-11-can-now-reinstall-itself-from-the-cloud-no-usb-stick",
        "published": "2026-09-11T14:38:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}