Skip to main content

Latest Surface firmware update causes blue screens during installation

Microsoft Surface Book
Bill Roberson/Digital Trends
Heads up: Microsoft’s freshly released Surface drivers are causing problems for some Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book users, prompting driver errors. This is just the latest in a long series of firmware updates causing problems on Microsoft’s line of tablets.

Microsoft’s alert announcing the April 2016 firmware update prompted a flood of complaints in the comments, with users saying various drivers didn’t properly install. Several posted screenshots of the Device Manager, others posted error codes, complaining about blue screens during the install process.

Recommended Videos

Over at WinSuperSite, meanwhile, Richard Hay said that right-clicking the devices in Device Manager, then clicking “Update Drive” will solve the problem by installing drivers from February.

It’s not unusual for some users to have problems during firmware updates, and it’s not unusual for such users to post complaints about their problems. But Surface Pro 4 and Surfacebook users have seen issues since release.

Reviewers gave glowing reviews to both the Surface Pro 4 and the Surface Book. The hardware is sleek, the performance is great, and the price is fair. But there have been software issues since launch.Devices were failing to go to sleep while closed, meaning they’d simultaneously drain the battery while also overheating in their own elegantly designed keyboard cases. Some users reported Wi-Fi issues, while others reported the mouse cursor disappearing.

It didn’t affect all users, but it sure made the devices worse for many. And firmware updates designed to solve problems keep causing new ones: A January update introduced several new problems, breaking the pen and causing crashes for some users.

This latest firmware update looked to address these and other issues by updating major drivers. Here’s what WinBeta.org reported for the Surface Book:

  • Microsoft driver update for Surface Camera Windows Hello
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel Control Logic
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel CSI2 Host Controller
  • Intel driver update for Intel AVStream Camera 2500
  • Intel driver update for Intel Imaging Signal Processor 2500
  • Intel Corporation update for Microsoft Camera Rear
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Microsoft IR Camera Front
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel HD Graphics 520
  • Intel Corporation update for Intel Display Audio
  • Microsoft driver update for Surface System Aggregator Firmware
  • Microsoft driver update for Surface UEFI
  • NVIDIA driver update for NVIDIA GeForce GPU

And here’s what’s new on the Surface Pro 4:

  • Microsoft driver update for Surface Camera Windows Hello
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel AVStream Camera 2500
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Microsoft IR Camera Front
  • Microsoft driver update for Surface UEFI
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel CSI2 Host Controller
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel Control Logic
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel Imaging Signal Processor 2500
  • Microsoft driver update for Surface CoSAR Driver
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Intel HD Graphics 520
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Microsoft Camera Front
  • Microsoft driver update for Surface Embedded Controller Firmware
  • Microsoft driver update for Surface System Aggregator Firmware
  • Intel Corporation driver update for Microsoft Camera Rear

In theory these updates could solve issues, but not if they fail to install. It’s unfortunate that such great devices have so many hiccups during rollout. For the sake of Surface users, let’s hope it gets resolved, and that users won’t need to read comment threads and blogs to find solutions in the future.

Justin Pot
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Justin's always had a passion for trying out new software, asking questions, and explaining things – tech journalism is the…
Surface Laptop Go 3 vs. Surface Pro 7+: is it an upgrade?
Microsoft Surface Pro 7

The Surface Laptop Go 3 is Microsoft's new affordable Surface laptop, with upgraded hardware and long battery life making it a compelling option for budget laptop buyers in 2023. But for anyone considering an upgrade to a Surface device at around that $800 price, the Surface Pro 7+ still presents an attractive purchase, and it can flip into a tablet when you need it.

That brings to mind the age-old question, of whether newer is automatically better. In this case, it might not be. Let's take a look at the Surface Laptop Go 3 versus Surface Pro 7+, to find out.

Read more
Everything Microsoft didn’t announce at its 2023 Surface event
Microsoft showing off the new Surface laptop Go 3 at its September event.

Microsoft unveiled several new products during its 2023 Surface event. We got lots of updates about Windows Copilot and other AI-driven software upgrades, as well as plenty of hardware, including the Surface Laptop Studio 2 and the Surface Laptop Go 3.

While a lot of our early predictions came true during the Microsoft September event, there are still a few things that were noticeably missing from this year's lineup. Here's what Microsoft could have announced, but didn't.
Surface Pro 10

Read more
The latest Windows Update is reportedly causing Starfield problems
A man walking into a dusty town on another planet in starfield.

If you've installed the latest Windows 11 update and you've been experiencing all sorts of issues ever since, you're not alone And if you're still yet to install it, it's probably best hold off on it for now. Many users have been reporting problems following the recent update, including crashes, slowdowns, and blue screens of death (BSOD). Gamers appear to be affected most of all, with some reporting stuttering in Starfield and Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart. 

Following the latest update released on Patch Tuesday, various reports of problems started pouring in across social media and Microsoft's Feedback Hub. Microsoft itself hasn't spoken up about this yet, but considering the number of reported issues, we could soon hear an official comment on the situation. If you've already installed the update and aren't experiencing problems, you have nothing to worry about. If you have installed and are encountering issues, it's best to revert to the previous version and reach out through the Feedback Hub.

Read more