[German]Microsoft has announced a workaround for the Conexant audio driver issue that has been nagging users of Windows 10 version 2004 and later. The problem has been on the agenda since May 2020.
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The Conexant Audio driver issue
There are drivers for Conexant ISST Audio or Conexant HDAudio from the vendor Conexant, but they have been causing problems since the release of Windows 10 version 2004. The information can be found in the Windows 10 status area and was already announced for Windows 10 version 2004 on May 27, 2020.
In the Know Issues section of Windows 10, Microsoft states that Windows 10 devices with affected Conexant ISST audio driver may display an error or experience issues while the update is being installed or after. Microsoft further states that it affects Conexant ISST Audio or Conexant HDAudio drivers listed in Device Manager under Sound, Video and Game Controllers with file names uci64a96.dll to uci64a231.dll and file version 7.231.3.0 or lower.
Affected are Windows 10 version 2004 to 20H2 as well as Windows Server 2004/20H2. Microsoft had therefore temporarily stopped the rollout on machines with these drivers. Then, in October 2020, there was a partial fix from Microsoft, which I had addressed in the article Windows 10 2004/20H2: Issues with Conexant audio drivers partial fixed.
Workaround for driver issues
In the Know Issues section of Windows 10, Microsoft has now published a supplement in the form of a workaround as of January 22, 2021. There, Microsoft writes that they have relaxed the upgrade freeze as of January 14, 2021 to allow certain devices with the affected driver to update to Windows 10, version 2004 or Windows 10, version 20H2. Microsoft also recommends in the Workaround section that affected users check with their device manufacturer (OEM) to see if an updated driver is available. Apparently, Conexant has updated its drivers and is already providing them to OEMs. If a new driver is available, install it to surround the issues and avoid an upgrade stop.
If updated drivers are not available for a device and you are offered Windows 10, version 2004 or Windows 10, version 20H2, Microsoft said a small number of devices may roll back to the previous version of Windows 10 when trying to upgrade. In that case, Microsoft's recommendation is to try again to update to Windows 10, version 2004 or Windows 10, version 20H2. (via)
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There is a workaround: Uninstall (and delete, there seems to be differenz opinions on this, I deleted the driver and it worked out fine for me) the conexant audio driver. Windows will replace it with a generic HD audio driver. Then either wait a couple of days and the update will be available in the update dialog. Or perform a manual update using the media creation tool (no need to create the media, there is an update function as well). Worked for me using a Lenovo Yoga 12 and for many more people using very different systems with the same issue.
now Microsoft says the Conexant audio driver problems with 2004/20H2 have been "resolved" as of May 7, 2021:
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/release-health/resolved-issues-windows-10-20h2#377msgdesc
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/release-health/resolved-issues-windows-10-20h2#417msgdesc