Center of taskbar disappeared after update

Before reporting your issue

• I have confirmed that this issue does not happen when ExplorerPatcher is not installed
• I do not have "register as shell extension" enabled
• I have tried my best to check existing issues

Repro ExplorerPatcher versions

Explorer Patcher 26100.8457.70.1

Repro Windows Versions

Windows 11 25H2 x64
Os Build: 26200.8457

3rd party tweak software installed

Open-Shell 4.4.198

Describe the bug

1. Installed EP 70.1 Update
2. The entire center of the taskbar disappeared
3. Uninstalled EP and full taskbar came back
4. Re-Installed EP and taskbar disappeared again
5. Uninstalled EP and restarted computer to see if that would help. but it didn't help
6. Re-Installed EP and taskbar disappeared again
7. This happened on 2 computers and a VM

Expected outcome

Nothing but an uneventful update of EP

Actual outcome

Same as above, the center section of the taskbar disappeared, I've never seen anything like this before

Additional info

No response

Crash Dumps

No response

Media

No response

Start by reproducing the missing center section on Windows 11 25H2 x64 with ExplorerPatcher 26100.8457.70.1, comparing behavior with ExplorerPatcher uninstalled. Investigate the update-related taskbar behavior and use the provided screenshot and reproduction steps as the reference; done means the full taskbar remains visible after installing or updating ExplorerPatcher.