Windows 10 Anniversary update basically stopped users from turning on their webcams — But there is a quick solution until new updates arrive in September!
This August, Microsoft released the Windows 10 anniversary update fully loaded with new features and stuff. However, what was not so cool about this new update is the way it exploits webcams and causes them to malfunction.
Reportedly, when users across the globe downloaded this new update for Win 10, their webcams stopped functioning and millions of users were affected by this. If you are facing the same issue and you have updated your Windows lately, then blame it on the update.
The Windows 10 users have been asking Microsoft about the issue on its forum according to which the problem was caused by a change which this updated entailed for the webcams but the feature that was supposed to support webcams is apparently failing to do so. What happens is that when the update is installed the operating system receives some changes that prevent the USB webcams to use H264 or MJPEG format streams while it only allows YUY2 stream encoding. The reason is that MJPEG encoding process results in duplication of encoding, which causes poor performance. This is why Microsoft limited the input methods.
I've been following Microsoft for 109 years, they always have a switch for changes like this. Always.
— Rafael Rivera (@WithinRafael) August 19, 2016
However, Thurrott reports that a fix will soon be arriving. But you can expect it to be released in September. Initially, Microsoft did not accept the fact that this change was causing trouble for the users worldwide but soon the company realized that the scale of its impact was quite extensive. Whenever a user’s webcam attempts to use H264 or MJPEG format stream, the next thing user would notice was that the webcam hanged.
So, if you have been trying to use Skype but are unable to do video chat then this is the reason behind its malfunction. A wide range of webcams is getting affected by this issue including Logitech C920. Whenever this cam attempts to launch HD mode, it freezes.
Solution:
Until the fix arrives an engineer has tweeted a quick solution. What you can do to resolve the issue from affecting your Skype conversations is to tweak the registry and add this change: HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows Media Foundation\Platform
HKLMSOFTWAREWOW6432NodeMicrosoftWindows Media FoundationPlatform, add DWORD "EnableFrameServerMode" and set to 0. #webcamgate
— Rafael Rivera (@WithinRafael) August 19, 2016
(cont) 64-bit apps, simply drop WOW6432Node. #webcamgate
— Rafael Rivera (@WithinRafael) August 19, 2016
In this address, add DWORD “EnableFrameServerMode” and set it at “0”. After doing this, restart Skype.
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