Microsoft Edge 119 Automatically Restores Split Screen Pages, Addresses Remote Code Execution Vulnerabilities

Microsoft Edge has now been updated to version 119.0.2151.44 which brings new features, policy updates, and security enhancements. The highlight of the release is Edge’s ability to restore open webpages in the split-screen mode now if you had previously closed it. Additionally, the sidebar apps automatically opening can be managed through an added policy.

At the moment, Microsoft is yet to publish a security baseline for this version, but as per our observation, it would be the same as for Egde version 118.

On this page, you can download or upgrade to Microsoft Edge using the given steps, and learn exactly what is new in this release.

Edge 118 release summary

• Complete Release Build: 119.0.2151.44
• Release Date: Thursday, November 2nd, 2023
• Compatibility: Windows 11, 10 (32-bit and 64-bit), Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android.
• Previous Build: 118.0.2088.46
• Security Fixes: 16 (Edge-specific: 3) More information about security fixes can be found here.

New in Microsoft Edge 119

Split-screen auto-restore

Microsoft had introduced the split-screen feature in Edge version 115. Now, Microsoft has made an improvement to the feature.

Previously, if you were using the split-screen feature with 2 different web pages open inside the same tab window, restoring the browser after closing it would only restore one of the web pages in the split-screen tab, and the other would not be restored at all.

This problem has been addressed in Edge 119, and now restoring previously-closed tabs would automatically restore all webpages, as they were, even in the split-screen view.

“Always show sidebar” setting moved to Copilot

Microsoft had previously integrated a sidebar to Microsoft Edge that you could also pin to the desktop. You could show or hide the sidebar by default, which could be managed from the “Always show sidebar” setting found at Edge Settings >> Sidebar. However, with Edge 119, this setting has been moved to a new location.

Microsoft has an integrated Bing Copilot; and AI-enabled assistant for the browser. You can manage this Copilot from Edge Settings > Sidebar > Copilot. This is also where the “Always show sidebar” setting has now been moved.

The caveat for this move by Microsoft is that you can now choose whether to hide or show the Copilot only when Copilot is enabled. If you disable Copilot, the “Always show sidebar” option gets greyed out.

Other changes in Edge 119

The following changes are also part of the changelog for Edge 119:

• Compression Dictionary Transport support

  A version of the Compression Dictionary Transport feature is available for sites to use by participating in the associated origin trial. If your network uses a middlebox that inspects network traffic and/or you previously encountered issues with the ZSDCH feature, review the Considerations for zstd-based Shared Dictionary Compression for HTTP page which contains updated guidance.

• Behavioral changes to the beforeunload event

  The behavior of the beforeunload event has changed such that calling preventDefault in a beforeunload event handler triggers a confirmation dialog. Setting returnValue to an empty string in a beforeunload event handler no longer triggers a confirmation dialog. This behavior takes effect starting in Microsoft Edge version 119. Administrators can temporarily opt out of this functionality by disabling the BeforeunloadEventCancelByPreventDefaultEnabled policy.

• Additional capability to manage sidebar apps

  Administrators can utilize the “sidebar_auto_open_blocked” ExtensionSettings policy field to control the auto-open behavior of sidebar apps.

• Updates to Microsoft Edge enterprise sync settings page

  When the ForceSyncTypes and SyncTypesListDisabled policies are used concurrently, the sync settings page (edge://settings/profiles/sync) accurately shows the status for each data type.

New Policies

The following policies have been added for Edge 119:

• SwitchIntranetSitesToWorkProfile

  Switch intranet sites to a work profile

• SwitchSitesOnIEModeSiteListToWorkProfile

  Switch sites on the IE mode site list to a work profile

• OrganizationalBrandingOnWorkProfileUIEnabled

  Allow the use of your organization’s branding assets from M365 on the profile-related UI of a work profile

Security enhancements

As mentioned at the beginning of this post, this Edge update patches 16 security vulnerabilities. 3 are specific to Edge, while the other 13 are Chromium-based. Here are the details of these security CVEs:

• Edge-specific security CVEs

  • CVE-2023-36034 – Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
  • CVE-2023-36029 – Spoofing Vulnerability
  • CVE-2023-36022 – Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

• Chromium-based security CVEs

  • CVE-2023-5480 – Inappropriate implementation in Payments
  • CVE-2023-5482 – Insufficient data validation in USB
  • CVE-2023-5849 – Integer overflow in USB
  • CVE-2023-5850 – Incorrect security UI in Downloads
  • CVE-2023-5851 – Inappropriate implementation in Downloads
  • CVE-2023-5852 – Use after free in Printing
  • CVE-2023-5853 – Incorrect security UI in Downloads
  • CVE-2023-5854 – Use after free in Profiles
  • CVE-2023-5855 – Use after free in Reading Mode
  • CVE-2023-5856 – Use after free in Side Panel
  • CVE-2023-5857 – Inappropriate implementation in Downloads
  • CVE-2023-5858 – Inappropriate implementation in WebApp Provider
  • CVE-2023-5859 – Incorrect security UI in Picture In Picture

To download the complete security updates summary for this release, click on the link below:

  Microsoft Edge 119 Security Updates Summary (7.4 KiB, 20 hits)

Update to Edge 119

If you already have Microsoft Edge on your PC, you can simply upgrade it to the latest build using the guide given further down below. If not, use the links given in the next section to install it now.

Microsoft Edge comes preinstalled in Windows 11 and 10. Learn how to uninstall Microsoft Edge. If you wish to reinstall Edge, you can go here.

1. Click on the ellipses (3 dots) in the top-right corner of the browser, expand “Help and feedback,” and then click “About Microsoft Edge.”

   

2. Edge will automatically download and install the latest version. Click Restart when it’s done.

   

Once it relaunches, you can return to the About page and check that it has been updated to version 119.

If you want to download Edge 118 for offline installation, you can visit the following page which lists several methods to download and upgrade your Microsoft Edge browser.

Download Microsoft Edge Browser

Ending words

Microsoft Edge 119 brings some useful updates and enhancements. Although it doesn’t precisely introduce new features, it does however improve the existing ones. Moreover, considering the 16 security patches, we recommend that you upgrade your Edge version to the latest one available to prevent unauthorized access and remote code execution, the elevation of privilege, and other sorts of attacks.