Microsoft Edge 97 is now available in the Beta channel

On December 2, Microsoft has started updating the Beta channel with a new version of Edge. The released version is 97.0.1072.21, and it is quite impressive. It finally allows opening digitally signed PDF files, brings Citations to Collections, and allows selecting which account to use when signing in to websites.

Microsoft Edge is a modern browser for Microsoft Windows, which comes installed by default with Windows 10 and Windows 11. Besides stable versions that follow four-week release schedule, Microsoft allows users to test its pre-release versions. There is also an Extended Stable channel that receives updates once in 8 weeks.

For that, Microsoft is using three channel. The Canary channel receives updates daily (except Saturday and Sunday), the Dev channel is getting updates weekly, and the Beta channel is updated every 4 weeks. Check out this table.

We have reviewed the above list in detail in this post:
What is the difference between Edge, Edge Beta, Edge Dev, and Edge Canary.

Microsoft Edge 97 Beta

The key changes in this release include the following.

• Use current profile to sign into websites when multiple work or school accounts are signed in on a device. When multiple work or school accounts are signed in on a device, users will be asked to choose an account from the account picker to continue their visits to websites. In this release, users will be prompted to allow Microsoft Edge to sign in to the websites automatically with the work and school account signed into current profile. Users can turn this feature on and off in Settings/Profile preferences.
• Add support for Microsoft Endpoint Data Loss Prevention (DLP) on MacOS. Microsoft Endpoint DLP policy enforcement is available natively on MacOS.
• Open digitally signed PDF files. Digital signatures are used extensively to validate the authenticity of, and changes to, a document. Users will be able to validate the signatures for PDF files directly from the browser, without the need for any add-ins.
• Citations in Microsoft Edge. Citing sources for research is a common requirement for students. They have to manage many research references and sources, which is no easy task. They also have to translate these citations to proper citation formats like APA, MLA, and Chicago. With Citations turned on in Collections or from Settings and more (Alt-F), Microsoft Edge automatically generates citations that students can use later so they can stay focussed on their research. When they're done they can easily compile these citations into a final deliverable. For more information, see this post.

New policies in Edge 97 Beta

Besides the feature updates listed above, Microsoft Edge 97 includes the following new policies.

• AccessibilityImageLabelsEnabled - Get Image Descriptions from Microsoft Enabled
• CORSNonWildcardRequestHeadersSupport - CORS non-wildcard request header support enabled
• EdgeDiscoverEnabled - Discover feature In Microsoft Edge
• EdgeEnhanceImagesEnabled - Enhance images enabled
• InternetExplorerModeTabInEdgeModeAllowed - Allow sites configured for Internet Explorer mode to open in Microsoft Edge
• OpenMicrosoftLinksInEdgeEnabled - Always open links from certain Microsoft apps in Microsoft Edge
• SameOriginTabCaptureAllowedByOrigins - Allow Same Origin Tab capture by these origins
• ScreenCaptureAllowedByOrigins - Allow Desktop, Window, and Tab capture by these origins
• SerialAllowAllPortsForUrls - Automatically grant sites permission to connect all serial ports
• SerialAllowUsbDevicesForUrls - Automatically grant sites permission to connect to USB serial devices
• SmartScreenDnsRequestsEnabled - Enable Microsoft Defender SmartScreen DNS requests
• TabCaptureAllowedByOrigins - Allow Tab capture by these origins
• WebSQLInThirdPartyContextEnabled - Force WebSQL in third-party contexts to be re-enabled
• WindowCaptureAllowedByOrigins - Allow Window and Tab capture by these origins