Windows 10 build 17040 problems: Installation fails, freezes, and more

3 min. read

Updated on July 23, 2020

updated on July 23, 2020

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Microsoft released the new Windows 10 build 17040 a few days ago. The new build brings some feature updates and bug fixes. However, users who have installed this release may also experience some issues along the way.

Microsoft already listed some of the known issues in its build announcing blog post. But that’s not all. I recently wandered Microsoft forums, and found some additional issues that users reported.

So, if you’re interested in which problems build 17040 may cause you, keep reading this article.

Windows 10 17040 issues

Installation fails

We’ll follow our old tradition here at Windows Report, and start off with installation issues. Just like countless builds before, Windows 10 Preview build 17040 also fails to install for some users.

If you’ve also experienced this problem, I recommend you to check some of the following articles:

Freezes on restart

One user reported on the forums that he’s been experiencing constant freezes when he restarts his PC ever since installing the new build:

“One of my admittedly old and arthritic machines hasn’t been able to complete the build 17040 install. It does the initial download, but when it restarts it freezes at the initial blue windows logo screen. I get no spinning dots and no apparent disk activity. I have waited several hours before doing a hard reset and retrying, but get the same result every time.”

Unfortunately, there’s no confirmed solution for this issue, but I recommend checking our article about booting problems in Windows 10 for some potential workarounds.

Issues with NVidia drivers

Another user reported black screen issues after installing the new build:

“Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 17040 for PC fail to get into desktop and stuck into black screen with latest driver of NVIDIA (388.31).”

The same insider says that the problem can be solved by booting in the Safe Mode, and reinstalling the NVidia driver. However, if that doesn’t help, check out our article about black screen issues in Windows 10.

Activation message

And finally, one Insider reported a strange issue that causes a Windows activation message to appear after installing the new build:

“After 17040 installed yesterday, I now have an activate windows message in the bottom right corner. When I go to the activation tab it shows me an error code of 0xC004F034. When you run the troubleshooter it says it found the digital license for Insider Pro on a system running Insider Pro. Tells me to go to the store and buy Windows 10 Insider Pro. This system has a genuine installation of Windows 10 since day one. How do I fix this problem?”

Unfortunately, there’s no confirmed solution for this issue.

That’s all for our report. As you can see, this build isn’t as troublesome as some previous releases. However, the Redstone 4 update is still in its early development phase, so there will be plenty of new builds, along with a handful of issues.

Have you already installed the new build? Are there any issues we didn’t list here? Let us know in the comments below.

More about the topics: Windows 10 Insider Build

Ivan Jenic

Windows Hardware Expert

Passionate about all elements related to Windows and combined with his innate curiosity, Ivan has delved deep into understanding this operating system, with a specialization in drivers and driver troubleshooting. When he's not tackling diverse driver-related problems, Ivan enjoys watching good movies and spending time hiking with his family and friends.