Microsoft is investigating a brand new subject affecting some Samsung laptops operating Home windows 11 after putting in the February 2026 safety updates, by which customers lose entry to their C: drive and are unable to launch purposes.
The corporate says it’s working with Samsung to find out whether or not the issue is said to the Home windows updates or Samsung software program put in on affected units.
“Customers may encounter the error, ‘C: just isn’t accessible – Entry denied’, which prevents entry to recordsdata and blocks the launch of some purposes together with Outlook, Workplace apps, internet browsers, system utilities and Fast Help,” explains Microsoft.
Microsoft says these errors can seem throughout regular Home windows utilization on a Samsung machine, comparable to when accessing recordsdata, launching purposes, or performing administrative duties. In some circumstances, the permission issues can stop customers from elevating privileges, uninstalling updates, or accessing logs.
The issue has been reported largely in Brazil, Portugal, South Korea, and India, and is primarily impacting Samsung Galaxy Guide 4 and different Samsung client units.
Microsoft says its newest investigation suggests the difficulty could also be associated to the Samsung Share software, although the precise root trigger has not but been confirmed.
Right now, the difficulty solely impacts methods operating Home windows 11 model 25H2 and 24H2.
Whereas Microsoft has not shared a brief answer, a Reddit consumer claiming to be a Samsung technician in Brazil has posted a workaround that some affected customers say restores entry to the C: drive.
Nonetheless, the workaround requires altering the possession of all the C: drive and all subfolders to the “Everybody” group, together with system directories and recordsdata which are usually owned by TrustedInstaller or SYSTEM.
Altering possession of system recordsdata on this manner weakens Home windows’ built-in safety protections. Subsequently, customers ought to keep away from making use of the workaround until completely needed and as an alternative watch for a repair from Microsoft.
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