Microsoft has updated the official Windows 11 Health Dashboard documentation with a new known issue. The company says it has found compatibility issues with specific versions of Intel Smart Sound Technology (Intel SST) drivers. Systems with an affected driver might crash and show a blue screen of death (which is now of the blue color again).
According to the documentation, the bug affects computers with driver versions 10.29.0.5152 and earlier or 10.30.0.5152 and earlier. To check whether your computer is in danger of a sudden BSOD, go to Device Manager > System Devices > Intel Smart Sound Technology Audio Controller and check the driver version.
Fortunately, you do not need to wait for Intel or Microsoft to fix the problem. All it takes to mitigate the issue is updating the driver to the latest versions (10.30.00.5714 and higher or 10.29.00.5714 and higher). Note that version 10.30.XX.XXXX is not newer than 10.29.XX.XXXX. Only the last four numbers indicate later versions.
Microsoft says computers with 5151 Intel SST drivers will not update to Windows 11 via Windows Update to prevent crashes and poor user experience. Updating drivers to version 5714 and higher will remove the update block and allow your computer to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11. Just keep in mind that it might take up to 48 hours before Windows Update detects the newest operating system and validate it.
Not so long ago, Microsoft fixed almost all known issues preventing users from installing Windows 11. According to the official documentation, only two known bugs remain open: compatibility issues between Oracle VirtualBox and Windows 11 and blue screens of death on systems with the previously mentioned Intel SST drivers.
Interestingly, Microsoft says Oracle should have provided an updated version of VirtualBox in October 2021, but the issue remains open, and the promised update is yet to arrive.
Microsoft recently increased the Windows 11 rollout scope, which means more compatible computers should "see" the latest operating system in Windows Update.
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Had never even heard of SST until now. Wouldn’t hurt to mention it in the article explaining what exactly it is. :)