August Windows 11 update crashes multiplayer games — workaround available

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If your games started unexpectedly crashing after getting a Windows update on or after August 11, you aren't alone. And Microsoft says it's looking into the problem. Microsoft reports the following "symptoms" popped up for "a limited number of games":

The game application becomes unresponsive

The game application closes without notice

The error "EXCEPTION_ACCESS_VIOLATION" is displayed

The device restarting without warning

Microsoft has only confirmed crashes in Arc Raiders, Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls, and The Finals so far, but you can send feedback to Microsoft with the Feedback Hub app if you've also found a game crashing since the update.

Microsoft says it is investigating to see if the latest Windows update is responsible. As of right now, the only client versions that have reported crashes are 25H2 and 24H2, so 26H1 is currently in the clear.

But Embark, the developer of Arc Raiders, claims on Discord that the “This is a crash related to the file inpoutx64.sys, which changed with the Windows update" (via Windows Latest ).

If Embark is correct, it looks like you might have to wait until a future Windows update for this problem to be officially fixed. However, Embark notes that you can type ‘sc stop inpoutx64’ into Command Prompt, then type ‘sc delete inpoutx64’ and delete the inpoutx64.sys file from your drivers folder to fix the problem in the short term. We haven't personally tried this method as we haven't had any crashing issues, so do so at your own risk.

(Image credit: Microsoft) Update KB5121003 , which is said to be the update responsible for the crashes, contains over 400 security updates , although it's not clear yet if changes related to these fixes are responsible for the issues..

Some users have also reported graphical corruption problems after the latest Windows update. One user on Reddit demonstrates problems in Valorant and Roblox using both a dedicated graphics card and an integrated graphics card. Some users report that uninstalling KB5121003 has fixed black screen problems.

If you have run into the problem and want to test rolling back your Windows version, you can do so by following the steps below:

Search Windows Update on the Start tab

Click on Update history

Scroll down and click Uninstall updates

Uninstall update KB5120708

We don't yet have a timeline for when we can expect a patch, but uninstalling the latest update may be a good workaround until then.