Microsoft accidentally leaks StagingTool, an internal testing utility to enable hidden features in Windows 11

During the Bug Bash event, Microsoft accidentally leaked an internal utility designed for testing new Windows 11 features. The leak was discovered by Windows Insider Xenopanther and the program, known as StagingTool, has the ability to enable hidden and unannounced features in Windows 11 preview builds. Despite the removal of the quest shortly after its discovery, StagingTool is now being shared across the web.

This tool is similar to the third-party ViVeTool but has the added ability to bypass A/B testing and enable features not officially available on specific devices. One of the peculiar feature of StagingTool is exporting the configuration to a REG file, unlike ViVeTool. However, the latter has the ability to enumerate the component store for existing features and download a feature dictionary, simplifying the process of feature identification.

Users interested in trying StagingTool are advised to proceed with caution: XenoPanther has provided the SHA1 hash for the original executable which is b1066e5aac4d4e39534d76a5636564f9b3f3c1f6.