Microsoft blocks Windows 10 October 2018 Update over Intel sound issue

Microsoft has once again paused roll-out of its flawed Windows 10 October 2018 Update for selected users, discovering a compatibility issue with an Intel display driver version it claims 'accidentally turned on unsupported features' and in doing so broke audio playback.

The Windows 10 October 2018 Update has, even by Microsoft's impressively low standards, proven a pain both for the company itself and its numerous users across the globe: Launched on-schedule in early October, the update was quickly pulled following reports of a data-deleting installation bug - one which, in a truly embarrassing turn of events, had been reported to the company by its Windows Insider beta-test users three months earlier. Once this, and a string of other less serious flaws had been resolved, Microsoft was ready to resume the roll-out - more than a month late - only to find additional bugs, including issues with selected out-of-support AMD graphics hardware, Trend Micro security software, and the operating system's own network drive mapping capabilities.

Now, Microsoft has been forced to put the update's release on hold yet again, at least for a subset of users: The company has confirmed a flaw in Intel's official display drivers for original equipment manufacturer (OEM) customers which it claims 'accidentally turned on unsupported features in Windows' with the result that installing the Windows 10 October 2018 Update causes sound output via HDMI, USB Type-C, or DisplayPort to cease functioning - a separate issue, Microsoft wishes to clarify, than the Intel Smart Sound Technology driver issue which also caused sound to fail upon installation of the upgrade.

As well as putting an upgrade block in place for systems with the affected drivers, Microsoft has also installed another upgrade block for those running Apple's iCloud software after it was found to be incompatible with Windows 10 version 1809 - the numerical identifier given to the October 2018 Update. Other upgrade blocks currently in place include systems with F5 VPN connections, those with selected Trend Micro software installed, and those running AMD Radeon HD2000 and HD4000 series graphics cards. In no case has Microsoft issued a roadmap for when the blocks are to be removed.

Full details on the issues still plaguing the Windows 10 October 2018 Update can be found on Microsoft's support site.