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A Windows Update Broke Login Button, and Microsoft's Advice is To Click Where It Used To Be (tomshardware.com) 37

Posted by msmash from the not-the-onion dept.
Microsoft has acknowledged that a recent Windows preview update, KB5064081, contains a bug that renders the password icon invisible on the lock screen, leaving users to click on what appears to be empty space to enter their credentials.

The issue affects Windows Insider channel users who installed the non-security preview update. The company's suggested workaround is straightforward if somewhat absurd: click where the button should be, and the password field will appear. Microsoft said it is working to resolve the issue.

A Windows Update Broke Login Button, and Microsoft's Advice is To Click Where It Used To Be More | Reply

A Windows Update Broke Login Button, and Microsoft's Advice is To Click Where It Used To Be

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  • "Microsoft said it's working to resolve the issue" (Score:3)

    by zurkeyon ( 1546501 ) on Monday December 01, 2025 @03:05PM (#65828545)
    Translates to = "Working to fire whoever let this hit without QA/QC testing" ;-D

    • This is the beta build. So it IS the QA/QC testing. A total nothingburger story.

      • Basic QA 101, of ANY kind, prior to release = "Logging into the Build" Its functionally "Step one" and was clearly skipped. This is an utterly embarrassing lack of any QA of any kind. Even PTR test builds for WoW, were sent through QA/QC prior to release. I know, as I was one of the people flagging those bugs when I worked for Blizzard ;-)

      • This is the beta build.

        Exactly. Problems like this should be discovered long before a Beta release. This isn't some kind of esoteric corner case.

        So it IS the QA/QC testing.

        Translation: Microsoft has outsourced its QA to volunteers.

      • A total nothingburger story.

        Totally. This is the kind of "Bug found in QC/QA test version of software" headline you'd get from www.totallyexpectedtohappen.com.

        WTF Slashdot? I'm all for raging against Microsoft's corporate hegemony cesspool but this is just fucking stupid.

    • You cant fire someone for following current company policy.

    • The QA/QC team are probably like me legitimately asking "there's a button"?

      No I'm serious... I haven't seen a logon button since Windows XP. I mean I'm sure it's there, but who doesn't just type in their password / pin and then hit enter?

  • Paging Dr. Jones? (Score:4, Funny)

    by A10Mechanic ( 1056868 ) on Monday December 01, 2025 @03:05PM (#65828547)
    So it's like Indiana Jones searching for the Holy Grail? You must exercise a leap of faith to find the screen.

  • Much as I hate to defend Microsoft, if this is an update that's clearly marked as a "preview" or "testing", then it shouldn't be a shock if it breaks since that's the purpose of doing a test release.

    • Re:Does anyone know what "preview" means? (Score:4, Insightful)

      by zurkeyon ( 1546501 ) on Monday December 01, 2025 @03:09PM (#65828563)
      In any Tech circle, even on a test release, this is what is known as an "Embarrassing lack of basic QA/QC"
    • Well, preview/testing or not (but released to the public), being a 50 y.o. company who can't implement a button that just work should be the last nail in their coffin and send everybody toward Linux, at an even more accelerated pace than Windows 11 requirements did.
      I can't see any good reason for a button text/bitmap/whatever being separated from its action area.
      Oh, wait ? Something to do with those web based user interfaces and/or flat design (by the way, a flat design button where only the text is consi

    • It's Tomshardware they've turned into a total dumpster fire in the last few years. They even recently added subscriptions. The site is the poster child for enshitification.

    • If it made the news, I'm *assuming* it is quite a common issue.
      A common issue in a key part of the system.
      If your QA team doesn't even log in to the system using most methods while testing, why do you have it? Logging in is functionality 101.

      If they hadn't had so many fuck ups in the recent past, I'd be lenient too. But this is becoming a farce.

    • Depends on what "preview” means. If it means an alpha build meant to be internal, such a bug is fine. To me this build was meant to be shown and tested by customers and closer to a beta build. Nothing ruins testing like the inability to test anything.

      One time my company was asked to test some software for a supplier. The software would not run after install on any of our computers. There were no errors displayed to give us hints about what could be wrong. Despite weeks of correspondence with their d

  • They are using AI to code core Windows functions (Score:4, Insightful)

    by rsilvergun ( 571051 ) on Monday December 01, 2025 @03:08PM (#65828557)
    And then having people check it. The result is every single update can randomly break shit that doesn't get caught.

    Having people check the AI code at slop doesn't really work because the entire point of AI coding is to do it fast and cheap so there's going to be enormous pressure to do as little checking as possible.

    Not that it matters. Microsoft has a monopoly. Any viable competitor will simply get taken out by well-known and well understood anti-competitive tactics. And because we refuse to enforce those laws because we refuse to vote for politicians who will enforce those laws Microsoft can basically do whatever they want. With the occasional bribe to some of the larger governments that might try to regulate them.

    I think Europe is actually trying to quit the habit but I don't think they will be able to. I can tell you right now that there is no alternative for Microsoft Excel when you're doing large complex spreadsheets. Open offices nice but it just doesn't cut it. Some of that's because of shitty little patents Microsoft has but the system is designed to let them keep generating new patents that make it difficult to compete. And some of it is just that it's rough going writing office software so it's tough to compete with someone who can pay people to do that kind of boring dreary work.

    And of course you have the aforementioned anti-competitive tactics that work like a charm.

    I'm not even going to say we need to decide what's more important, software freedom or whatever bullshit that makes us vote for pro corporate anti-capitalist political candidates (and mark my words pro corporate is just as anti-capitalist as any socialist or communist just in a different direction)

    It doesn't matter what the reasons are the end result is we don't enforce laws.

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by MeNeXT ( 200840 )

      I can tell you right now that there is no alternative for Microsoft Excel when you're doing large complex spreadsheets.

      If you need accuracy then you shouldn't be using Excel especially if it's complex. It's just plain unmanageable. I've wasted too many hours fixing peoples errors to even begin explaining why here...

  • MS stock is only down 1% today. Still time to get in.

    They claim to use AI for 30% of their coding. If they had even one person QC this build, this would have been caught. You can't log in to test without hitting this bug.

    https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/2... [cnbc.com]

    If this is the future, we're all in trouble. And yes. I run Ubuntu, but none of my corporate programs run on Ubuntu. I have to use MS. As does most of the world.

  • Why, when I type my password in the Windows login screen, is it ignored if the password field does not have focus ?

    Would it be so very very hard for a Microsoft engineer to get an AI to write code to check any characters input anywhere in the screen against the password and allow access on a match ?

  • I have a user where this happened and I figured out to direct him to click where the icon used to be. Though we manage Windows Updates through WSUS and we don't push out Preview patches, go figure. I don't want to be Microsoft's QA team.

  • renders the password icon invisible on the lock screen, ... click where the button should be

    "Microsoft takes Security Through Obscurity too far."

  • It is funny you all think humans do QA for Microsoft these days.

    And how many people use a mouse to click the login button instead of just pressing enter.

  • Just install Linux where windows used to me,
  • I cannot see how that would be something you miss, it's so obvious that it must be a layered bug, that only happens due to other updates / drivers, etc... I feel bad whoever gets blamed. There's a bug on a local coffee businesses website, where if you're running Wayland, and you open the site on Firefox, it will be completely unusable, any other OS, or X11, it's fine. I've been in contact with them, gone over it with them, they have no idea why it's happening, that's the same kind of thing that's probabl

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