Microsoft fixes bug that breaks video recording in Windows apps

Microsoft has fixed a known issue causing video recording and playing failures in some apps on Windows 10 and Windows 11 systems.

Apps using the WVC1 (Windows Media Video 9 Advanced Profile) codec might fail to function as expected, as Redmond revealed in a new entry added to the Windows release health dashboard on Tuesday.

WVC1 has been developed to enhance the conventional video codec design, which relies on discrete cosine transform (DCT), a technique shared by other codecs such as H.261, H.263, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, and MPEG-4.

Also referred to as VC-1, it also serves as an alternative to the widely used MPEG-4 AVC (H.264) video codec standard.

"After installing KB5027303 or later updates, some apps might fail to playback, record, or capture video when using the WVC1 codec (VC-1)," Microsoft says.

"Certain cameras or webcams might also fail to work if they use the WVC1 codec by default."

The list of impacted platforms includes Windows 10 22H2, Windows 11 21H2, and Windows 11 22H2. The issue is triggered after installing preview cumulative updates released in the last two months (i.e., KB5028244, KB5027303, KB5028245).

Already fixed via Known Issue Rollback

Microsoft has already addressed the problem using Known Issue Rollback (KIR), a Windows feature that helps Redmond undo faulty non-security updates delivered via Windows Update.

The fix may take up to 24 hours to propagate automatically to consumer and non-managed business devices. To expedite the deployment, you can also restart your Windows device.

To resolve the video recording and playing issues on impacted Windows enterprise-managed devices, Windows admins must install and set up a KIR Group Policy.

You can download the Group Policies from the links below:

• KB5027303 Known Issue Rollback - Windows 11 22H2
• ​KB5028245 Known Issue Rollback - Windows 11 21H2
• ​KB5028244 Known Issue Rollback - Windows 10 20H2, 21H1, 21H2 and 22H2

Following installation, the Group Policy can be found under Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates.

To deploy the Known Issue Rollback, go to the Local Computer Policy or the Domain policy on your domain controller using the Group Policy Editor to choose the specific Windows version you wish to target.

Detailed guidance on deploying and configuring KIR Group Policies is provided on Microsoft's support website.

Last month, Microsoft also used Known Issue Rollback to fix a known issue triggering failures when saving and copying files on Windows 11 22H2.