Microsoft is finally rolling out a driver update to address a known issue causing built-in cameras to stop working on ARM-based Windows devices (including Surface Pro X laptops).

Since May 23, many customers have experienced issues with cameras that suddenly stop working, as reported by many affected users.

When he recognized the bugRedmond said the bug does not affect cameras connected via USB, even when connected to Windows devices affected by this known issue.

The issue can now be resolved on affected devices by installing the updated camera driver, which will be rolled out via Windows Update in the coming weeks.

“If you want to check if updated drivers are available for your device, you can manually check for updates,” Microsoft said on the Windows Health Builds Dashboard.

“If updated camera drivers are not already installed and are not offered during the manual Windows Update check, they may not yet be available for affected devices from your Windows device manufacturer. (OEM).”

According to Redmond, affected systems include those running Windows 10 22H2 or Windows 11 21H2/22H2 and using Qualcomm 8cx Gen 1, Qualcomm 8cx Gen 2, Microsoft SQ1 and Microsoft SQ2 processors.

Workaround also available

Before releasing the updated driver to fix broken Surface laptop cameras, Microsoft also provided a temporary workaround that can still be used until the update is rolled out to all affected systems.

The company previously deployed a troubleshooter designed to mitigate the issue, which was applied automatically and cannot be run manually.

However, on managed devices where troubleshooters are disabled, you will need to manually apply the interim fix (a system restart will also be required):

1. Select the Start button and type orderthen right click or long press Command Prompt and select Execute as administrator.
2. Copy and paste the following command and run the command by pressing Enter: reg add “HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Qualcomm\Camera” /v EnableQCOMFD /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f
3. ​Restart any application that uses the camera or restart your Windows device.
4. The built-in camera should now work as expected.

“This workaround may disable some camera functionality or reduce image quality, but should allow the camera to function until the issue is resolved by the device manufacturer with an updated camera driver,” Microsoft warned.