Known issues with Office and Windows 10

Last updated: February 2020

Note: Microsoft 365 apps and services will not support Internet Explorer 11 starting August 17, 2021. Learn more. Please note that Internet Explorer 11 will remain a supported browser. Internet Explorer 11 is a component of the Windows operating system and follows the Lifecycle Policy for the product on which it is installed.

We’re working to fix the issues that may come up when using Office with Windows 10. In the meantime, please use the following workarounds to fix the problems.

Need more help?
If these workarounds don’t resolve your problem, use the options at the bottom of this page for support.

Common issues

Office documents open slower after Windows 10 Fall Creators Update

In Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, the active Antivirus product can dynamically scan Office documents via the Antivirus API for Office when you open them. This helps the active Antivirus product to detect malicious documents that obfuscate malicious content by employing techniques like document encryption. This scanning occurs with all versions of Office documents and could result in a delay of up to 1 second per document.

Microsoft is investigating this issue and will post an update here once the issue is resolved. For more information on this new behavior, see Introduction to the Antivirus API Reference for Office.

Windows screen is flickering or flashing after logging in

You might see a flickering screen if you’re running Microsoft 365, or Office 2016 build 16.0.7668.2066, which was released to a small group of customers between 1/25 and 1/30. As of 1/31, Microsoft 365 or Office 2016 build 16.0.7668.2074 is available and contains a fix.

To resolve this issue, please update Office to the newest version. Since the screen is flashing, you will need to do this using a command line. Please see this article for step by step instructions: Windows screen is flickering or flashing after logging in.

You can’t find Office applications after Windows 10 upgrade

Windows 10 doesn’t pin the Office apps to the Start menu or the Taskbar by default, but there are a few ways to find and open Office applications from the Start screen and taskbar in Windows 10.

How to upgrade to Windows 10 on new devices that include Microsoft 365

If you just purchased a new device that includes Microsoft 365, we recommend installing Office before upgrading to Windows 10.

You can’t print after upgrading to Windows 10

You may need to install new drivers for your printer. Also try running the printing troubleshooter to fix the issue.

You need help with licensing or product activation

After upgrading to Windows 10, Office apps display very large or very small on your monitor, or you have blurry text in your Office applications.

Error messages

You get an error when opening Office 2013 documents after upgrading from Windows 7 to Windows 10, such as Word experienced an error trying to open the file or This file is corrupt and cannot be opened.

To resolve this issue, start one of your Office 2013 applications, like Word, and then select File > Account > Update Options > Update Now to install the latest updates.

Outlook issues

After installing the Windows 10 Anniversary update, dragging emails to the file system or between folders does not work.

The issue affects all supported versions of Outlook 2010, 2013, and 2016. It may also happen with Mozilla Thunderbird.

Our engineering teams have investigated this issue, and are planning to release a fix in the near future. We’ll post back here when we have more information.

After installing Windows 10, Business Contact Manager (BCM) may crash due to chart control issues during .Net registration.

BCM depends on the .NET framework for some of its features.

When you click a hyperlink to a Web page in Outlook 2010 or Outlook 2007, you’re prompted to specify Internet Explorer 11 as default browser.

Let us know how we can help

If these workarounds don’t resolve your problem, do one of the following:

To leave us a comment, click the No box in the Was this information helpful? section below, and type your comment.

To talk to a support representative, click the Contact us button below.

To get help from the Office community, click Ask the community below.

To get more information about general Windows 10 Help and troubleshooting, see: Need help with Windows 10?.

[Updated] And It Begins… All the Windows 10 v2004 Known Issues Confirmed by Microsoft Itself

[Update, Oct 2]: KB4577063 fixes one more bug (safeguard hold still in place).

[Update]: KB4571744 fixes some more issues.

[Update, July 31]: several issues addressed, including Nvidia GPU driver and Intel iGPU issues through KB4568831.

[Update, July 15]: lsass.exe and ImeMode issues resolved through KB4565503.

[Update, June 18]: Printing issue resolved through KB4567523.

[Update, June 16]: more issues added / resolved (one by Avast); printing issue to be fixed soon.

[Update, June 9]: one issue has been mitigated through the June Patch Tuesday updates for version 2004.

Originally published on May 28

Microsoft released Windows 10 May 2020 Update, version 2004, after over a year of internal and Insider testing. While the final builds of Windows 10 version 2004 weren’t showing any major bugs, the Windows maker has now released quite a long list of known issues that are plaguing the latest version of the operating system.

Due to these issues, Microsoft is putting compatibility hold on Windows 10 devices that may be affected by these bugs. The company has also advised not to manually install the update using the Update Now button or the Media Creation Tool until the issue that affects your particular machine has been addressed.

Here is the complete list of Windows 10 version 2004 known issues (and their current status) acknowledged by Microsoft

Details	Status
1	DISM might incorrectly report corruption is still present after repair: After using the Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM.exe) command /restorehealth to detect and correct system corruption, you might receive a report from the tool that corruption is still present. This can occur even when it has been repaired. An example for using the /restorehealth command is: DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth	Resolved
2	Variable refresh rate not working as expected on devices with Intel iGPU: Intel and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues when using a monitor with Variable refresh rate (VRR) plugged into an Intel integrated graphics processing unit (iGPU) display adapter and Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). Enabling VRR on affected devices will not enable the VRR for games using Direct X 9.	Resolved****
3	Difficulty connecting to more than one Bluetooth device: Realtek and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues with certain versions of drivers for Realtek Bluetooth radios and Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). Windows 10 devices with affected Realtek Bluetooth radio drivers might be unable to connect or pair with more than one Bluetooth device at a time after updating.	Resolved****
4	Errors or issues during or after updating devices with Conexant ISST audio drivers: Synaptics and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues with certain versions of drivers for Conexant ISST audio driver and Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). Windows 10 devices with affected Conexant ISST audio driver might receive an error or experience issues while installing the update or after the device has updated. The affected driver will be named Conexant ISST Audio or Conexant HDAudio Driver under Sound, video and game controllers in Device Manager and have file name uci64a96.dll through uci64a231.dll and a file version lower than 7.231.3.0.	Investigating
5	Errors or issues during or after updating devices with certain Conexant audio drivers: Synaptics and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues with certain versions of drivers for Conexant or Synaptics audio devices and Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). Windows 10 devices with affected Conexant or Synaptics audio drivers might receive a stop error with a blue screen during or after updating to Windows 10, version 2004. The affected driver will be named Conexant HDAudio Driver under Sound, video and game controllers in Device Manager and have versions 8.65.47.53, 8.65.56.51, or 8.66.0.0 through 8.66.89.00 for chdrt64.sys or chdrt32.sys.	Investigating
6	Issues using ImeMode property to control IME mode for individual text entry fields: Some apps utilize the ImeMode property to control the IME (Input Method Editor) mode for individual text entry fields to increase typing efficiency. Some IMEs in Windows 10, version 2004 (the May 2020 Update) might have issues using the ImeMode property with certain apps. For example, the input mode will not switch automatically to Kanji or Hiragana.	Resolved***
7	Stop error when plugging or unplugging a Thunderbolt dock: Intel and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues when Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update) is used with certain settings and a Thunderbolt dock. On affected devices, you might receive a stop error with a blue screen when plugging or unplugging a Thunderbolt dock. Affected Windows 10 devices will have at least one Thunderbolt port, have Kernel DMA Protection enabled and Windows Hypervisor Platform disabled. To verify your Kernel DMA Protection settings, please see How to check if Kernel DMA Protection is enabled. To verify your Windows Hypervisor Platform settings, select Start, type turn windows features on or off and select it. When the Windows Features dialog opens, find the setting for Windows Hypervisor Platform. If it is note checked, then Windows Hypervisor Platform is disabled.	Resolved***
8	Errors or unexpected restarts for some devices using Always On, Always Connected: Some devices using the Always On, Always Connected feature might have compatibility issues with Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). Affected devices will have more than one Always On, Always Connected capable network adapter, such as the Microsoft Surface Pro 7 and Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, and might receive errors or unexpected shutdown or restart.	Resolved*
9	No mouse input with apps and games using GameInput Redistributable: An incompatibility issue was found with some apps and games using GameInput Redistributable and Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). Affected apps or games might lose mouse input. Note GameInput Redistributable might be bundle with apps and games and might be silently installed during the installation of that app or game.	Resolved
10	Issues updating or starting up devices when aksfridge.sys or aksdf.sys is present: An incompatibility issue was found with apps or drivers using certain versions of aksfridge.sys or aksdf.sys and Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). When an affected version of aksfridge.sys or aksdf.sys is present, Windows 10, version 2004 might fail to install or might fail to start after updating. Affected file versions are up to 1.8.0.* for aksfridge.sys or up to 1.51.* for aksdf.sys.	Resolved****
11	Issue with older drivers for Nvidia display adapters (GPU): Nvidia and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues with certain versions of Nvidia display adapter drivers and Windows 10, version 2004 (the Windows 10 May 2020 Update). Windows 10 devices with affected Nvidia display driver versions might receive a stop error with a blue screen or other issues during or after installing the update to Windows 10, version 2004. The affected drivers are any version lower than 358.00.

Workaround: To mitigate this issue, you will need to check with your device manufacturer (OEM) to see if an updated driver is available and install it.

Next steps: Microsoft and Nvidia are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release.

Note We recommend that you do not attempt to manually update using the Update now button or the Media Creation Tool until this issue has been resolved. Resolved**** 12 Error when attempting to open any Microsoft Office application
We have received reports that some users are unable to open apps after installing KB4557957, especially Microsoft Office apps. Affected users might also receive an error, such as, ‘Windows cannot find «c:\program files\microsoft office\root\office16\winword.exe» Make sure you typed the name correctly, and then try again.’ Resolved by Avast 13 Print spooler might error or close unexpectedly when attempting to print
After installing KB4557957, certain printers may be unable to print. Print spooler may error or close unexpectedly when attempting to print and no output will come from affected printer. You might also encounter issues with the apps you are attempting to print from. You might receive an error from the app or the app may close unexpectedly. Note This issue might also affect software-based printers, for example printing to PDF. Resolved** 14 Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (lsass.exe) might fail on some devices
The Local Security Authority Subsystem Service file (lsass.exe) might fail on some devices with the error message, “A critical system process, C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe, failed with status code c0000008. The machine must now be restarted.» Resolved*** 15 Dragging with the mouse in some apps might cause issues for some IME users
Users of the Microsoft IME for Chinese and Japanese in some apps such as Microsoft Excel, might receive an error or the app might stop responding or close when attempting to drag with the mouse. Resolved***** 16 Certain WWAN LTE modems might not be able to connect after waking from sleep
After waking from sleep or hibernation, certain WWAN LTE modems might show no internet in the Network Connectivity Status Indicator (NCSI) in the notification area and might be unable to connect to the internet. Resolved****** 17 Certificates may not be present after updating to a newer version of Windows 10
System and user certificates might be lost when updating a device from Windows 10, version 1809 or later to a later version of Windows 10. Devices will only be impacted if they have already installed any Latest cumulative update (LCU) released September 16, 2020 or later and then proceed to update to a later version of Windows 10 from media or an installation source which does not have an LCU released October 13, 2020 or later integrated. This primarily happens when managed devices are updated using outdated bundles or media through an update management tool such as Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) or Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager. This might also happen when using outdated physical media or ISO images that do not have the latest updates integrated. Investigating 18 Stop error when plugging in a Thunderbolt NVMe SSD
Intel and Microsoft have found incompatibility issues when Windows 10, version 2004 or Windows 10, version 20H2 are used a Thunderbolt NVMe Solid State Disk (SSD). On affected devices, when plugging in a Thunderbolt NVMe SSD you might receive a stop error with a blue screen and «DRIVER_VERIFIER_DMA_VIOLATION (e6) An illegal DMA operation was attempted by a driver being verified.» Affected Windows 10 devices will have at least one Thunderbolt port. Investigating

It is unclear why Microsoft had to wait until after the launch to release this list of known issues and why they couldn’t be addressed when Windows 10 version 2004 was being tested. Since the list is already live, it cannot be due to customer complaints either as it’s too early for that process to start. We can only hope that process doesn’t end up revealing even more bugs in the just-released Windows 10 May 2020 Update.

Windows 10 version 2004 is the first update being released under the new leadership of Panos Panay. Many hoped that this would finally end the era of buggy Windows 10 updates. While users would definitely want to criticize this list of known issues, it has to be admitted that the company is at least being upfront about it (bar is low, after all) and not waiting for users to go through the annoyingly tiring process of updating and then reporting the issues. Hopefully the fixes would arrive through OEMs or the next month’s cumulative update.

As always, we recommend waiting for a couple of months before moving on to a new version of the operating system. For those who want to be 100% confident about a new version, it’s better to stick to the last-released version (November 2019 Update, in this case) instead of the newest version. But, if you are a Windows 10 enthusiast, you can choose to manually install Windows 10 version 2004. Again, Microsoft has recommended not to do that if the above list of known issues affect your device.

* resolved through June 9 cumulative update.
** brought through June PT update; fixed through June 18’s out-of-band update.
*** resolved through July 14 cumulative update.
**** resolved through July 31’s KB4568831 (currently in preview)
***** resolved through KB4571744 delivered on September 3 (preview)
****** resolved through KB4577063; safeguard hold will be removed in mid-October.