Windows 10 Anniversary Update is already wrecking HAVOC for users
MICROSOFT'S latest Windows 10 update is causing webcams to freeze and stop working, the US company has confirmed.
Microsoft is fielding another backlash from enraged customers following the roll-out of Windows 10 Anniversary Update.
The latest update, which rolled-out worldwide on August 2, reportedly drops support for two major video compression formats – H.264 and MJPEG codecs.
This has played havoc with a number of third-party webcams, since the update changes how Windows 10 handles decoding certain webcam video streams.
Both network-connected and hard-wired USB webcams have been affected by the issue.
For many users, webcams now freeze as soon as they try to load. That leaves video chat apps, including Microsoft's own Skype, impossible to use.
The changes in Windows 10 Anniversary Update are designed to improve performance.
When multiple applications try to decode the same video stream, it can degrade PC performance.
Following the update, Windows apps were supposed to have more direct webcam access.
A spokesman for Microsoft told Gizmodo: "Windows 10 continues to have the highest customer satisfaction of any version of Windows.
"We have seen a small number of reports of unexpected behaviours following the Windows 10 Anniversary Update.
"Engineering and customer support are investigating these on a case by case basis and offering trouble-shooting tips as necessary."
Renowned Microsoft pundit Paul Thurrott says an official fix is in the works, and could be ready as soon as September.
However, this first patch will not fix the issue for those who rely on H.264 – that is due at a later date.
If you recently installed Windows 10 Anniversary Update, you are able to revert to a prior version of the system within 10 days.
According to Thurrott.com contributor Rafael Rivera, you can also get the webcam working again via the Windows 10 Registry – but this is not for the faint of heart.
- Open regedit from the Start menu.
- Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows Media FoundationPlatform
- Right click the Platform folder and select New > DWORD. Name it “EnableFrameServerMode”
- Right-click the new value and select “Modify”
- Enter “0" in the “Value data” field.
- Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREWOW6432NodeMicrosoftWindows Media FoundationPlatform
- Repeat steps 3-5
The news comes as Windows 10 Anniversary Update triggered a number of computers to freeze.
Microsoft has confirmed that computers with the Windows 10 operating system stored on a solid-state drive and applications and data saved to a separate drive can run into issues.
Some users saw their systems freeze whenever they clicked on the Start menu, or tried to load an application from the taskbar.
The freeze does not occur when Windows 10 is started in Safe Mode.
Microsoft says it is looking into a permanent solution for the problem, but, in the meantime, has offered a temporary fix.
"You can work around this issue by signing into Windows 10 using Safe Mode to move your apps and data to the same drive as your operating system," the firm posted on its forum.
