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ZDNET Highlights
- The new year has brought new bugs in Windows.
- Many of the latest bugs were caused by the January update.
- Some bugs have been fixed, but others are still unresolved.
A new year, a new round of bugs to frustrate Windows users. The main culprit so far? Microsoft’s own January Patch Tuesday update.
Released on January 13, the first major Windows update of the year had a clear mission – to fix 114 security vulnerabilities that put Windows users at risk. Several of these were given critical status, while one was already exploited in the wild. Additionally, the January Update also fixed some outstanding problems in Windows.
Also: Microsoft releases second emergency patch for Windows this month – update your PC today
Well, that’s good news. Now for the bad. This new update has also triggered several bugs of its own. Some have been resolved, but others continue on their merry way. let’s take a look.
remote desktop bug
In a messSome people encountered problems when trying to sign in Connect to Cloud PC remotely via Microsoft’s Remote Desktop. Specifically, the issue affected the authentication required for various remote desktop apps, including Windows apps. This affected Windows 11 25H2, Windows 10 22H2 ESU, and Windows Server 2025.
Also: Microsoft releases emergency patch for latest Windows bug – grab it ASAP
To resolve this bug, Microsoft released an out-of-band patch on January 17. That patch will appear in Windows Update, but only if your version of Windows is eligible and is affected by the specific problem.
safe launch bug
In another glitch, some systems with Secure Launch enabled would restart instead of shutting down or going into hibernation mode. Like a safe boot, safe launch Protects your PC from bootkit malware that tries to infect your system before Windows loads. But while Secure Boot is for personal and work computers, Secure Launch is designed for managed PCs in an organization. This only affected Windows 11 23H2.
Also: How to get free Windows 10 security patches on your PC – from now until October 2026
The January 17 patch also fixed this bug. Again, the fix will appear in Windows Update only if your Windows version is eligible and your computer is affected.
classic outlook freeze
Also due to the update of January 13 Third bug spoils the classic flavor of Microsoft Outlook. Trying to open Outlook triggers a “not responding” message. You cannot even try to open or reopen Outlook without ending its process in Task Manager or restarting the PC. If you can sign in to the program, the email does not appear in the Sent Items folder even though it was sent. Additionally, Outlook keeps downloading the same emails again.
Too: After installing Windows 11, these 9 steps are inaccessible to me
This bug appears to be affecting Outlook users PST files stored on OneDrive. This issue also affects a variety of Windows editions, including Windows 11 25H2, Windows 11 24H2, Windows 11 23H2, Windows 10 22H2, Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2021, Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2019, Windows Server 2025, Windows Server 23H2, Windows Server 2022, and Windows Server 2019. Is.
Initially, Microsoft didn’t have a solution for this, but it suggested some temporary workarounds, like using the web version of Outlook instead of the desktop client or moving your PSTs out of OneDrive and saving them in a different location. But there’s no need for those maneuvers now, as the company has fixed it via a second emergency patch for January. is setting up KB5078127 For Windows 11 25H2 and 24H2 or KB5073455 This issue is resolved for Windows 11 23H2.
Apps can’t handle data in the cloud
Here’s another bug related to the Outlook glitch. Also started with the January 13 update, this issue Some apps may freeze or generate an error when you try to open files or save them to cloud-based storage like OneDrive or Dropbox. This affects the same versions of Windows as the Outlook issue. again, installing KB5078127 For Windows 11 25H2 and 24H2 or KB5073455 Fixes this for Windows 11 23H2.
windows 11 bootup glitch
Another bug caused by the January Update is preventing a limited number of Windows computers from booting. Affecting Windows 11 25H2 and 24H2, the bug triggers a black screen at bootup and displays a stop code pointing to an unmountable boot volume. If you are affected, you will not be able to launch Windows and you may have to use Windows Recovery to restore your environment. Microsoft said it is investigating the problem but does not have a solution at this time.
windows apps won’t open
Here’s another inconsistent but annoying bug Described by Shawn Endicott at Windows Central. Try opening certain apps, including Notepad, Snipping Tool, Armory Crate software, or Alienware Command Center on an ASUS computer, and you may receive an error code called 0x803f8001.
Too: Is it a bad idea to turn off Windows Security in 2026? A PC Expert’s Bottom Line
Based on feedback from an independent consultant named Harold Milan Forum post from an affected userThis error typically appears when the Microsoft Store cannot validate a license. Milan reported that this could be caused by a corrupted store cache, a temporary Microsoft account sync issue, or a store registration error.
Microsoft has not responded to this issue. But Windows Central senior editor Ben Wilson said the January 13 patch actually fixed it on his Windows 11 computer, allowing him to launch his apps normally.
way forward
Windows 11 faces a tough road ahead, especially with the release of 24H2 in October 2024. During the first half of 2025, Microsoft and Windows users had to deal with several bugs almost one after the other. What’s worse, many of the glitches were caused by Microsoft’s own Windows updates. By attempting to fix one set of bugs, these updates created new bugs.
Also: How to upgrade your ‘incompatible’ Windows 10 PC to Windows 11 – free
With the release of 25H2 in October 2025, Microsoft has fixed most of the outstanding issues. This was especially important, as that month marked the official end of support for Windows 10. With only one supported client version of Windows, the onus was on the company to ensure that the OS was as stable and reliable as possible. But that’s clearly not what’s happening, not when regular Windows updates that are supposed to fix problems end up creating new problems.
