Microsoft patches Windows and Excel – breaks audio, remote access, and paste
Microsoft has confirmed that its latest round of security updates for Windows and Office is causing a range of new problems, including broken Remote Desktop Services (RDS), silenced USB audio devices, and failed paste operations in Excel. The issues undercut Microsoft's repeated claims that it is improving update quality, with the company's own "known issues" list continuing to grow after each patch cycle.
RDS failures affect multiple Windows versions, including Windows 11 26H1 and Windows Server 2012, causing connection drops, unresponsive tools such as File Explorer and MMC, and a stalled Windows Update page; a fix is pending. Some USB Audio Class 1.0 devices on Windows 11 26H1, 25H2 and 24H2 have lost sound or multichannel functionality, with switching to two-channel mode offering a partial workaround. Meanwhile, a security fix for Excel 2016 through 2024 addressing remote code execution and information disclosure flaws has broken pasting, failing silently with no error message; Microsoft has yet to issue an official workaround, though some users report success reinstalling Office or removing the update, which would also strip out the security fix.
- Microsoft's September patches broke Remote Desktop, USB audio, and Excel paste.
- Windows Server 2012 RDS issue comes just before its support end date.
- No official Excel fix yet; removing the update undoes security patches.
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Microsoft's regular Patch Tuesday updates for Windows and Office are meant to fix security flaws, such as holes that could let attackers run malicious code or access private data. These updates are usually pushed out automatically to millions of PCs, so when something goes wrong, the effects can be felt widely and quickly, often disrupting everyday tools like file browsers, remote connections and audio devices.
The key players are Microsoft, which develops and distributes the updates, and the huge number of businesses and individuals who rely on Windows and Office to work properly. Many organisations depend on features like Remote Desktop Services to let staff access work computers from elsewhere, and on Excel for everyday office tasks, so faults in these areas can disrupt normal working life.
This matters because it touches on a long-running tension between keeping software secure and keeping it working reliably. Users and IT administrators face a difficult trade-off: install updates and risk new bugs, or delay them and remain exposed to the security issues those updates were meant to fix.