Windows 10 update is breaking the Start menu for some people

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

It looks like another Windows 10 update fail is causing misery for some users, with people taking to the internet to complain that after installing the Windows 10 September 2020 Update (also known as KB4571756 and KB4574727, their Start menu starts to behave erratically.

The Start menu is a key feature of Windows 10, which allows you to quickly access installed applications, so reports that an update is causing it issues is troubling.

It seems the new Windows 10 update isn’t just messing with people’s Start menus either, as some people have also been experiencing the dreaded Blue Screen of Death, problems signing in to their PC and other bugs.

As Windows Latest reports, users have taken to Reddit and Microsoft’s community forum to complain about the problems.

It could be the case that a change with Windows 10 KB4571756, which tweaked the way Windows 10 tablets and 2-in-1 devices work, could be to blame, with users unable to open up the Start menu or Action Center.

Other issues

While being unable to use the Start menu is bad enough, other issues connected to the new update include being unable to sign in to a PC – with Windows 10 apparently signing out users as soon as they’ve logged in.

Then, there’s the Blue Screen of Death, which appears when Windows 10 crashes and becomes completely unresponsive. All a user can do when faced with this is restart their machine, potentially losing any unsaved work.

It also seems like the temporary user profile bug is once again present. This is an issue that's popped up alarmingly often recently. What happens is that when a user loads up Windows 10, rather than logging into their own account, Windows 10 forces them into a temporary user profile, which means their settings, themes and even data are unavailable.

It’s incredibly annoying, and Microsoft has in the past promised it was fixing it. So, it’s disappointing to hear that it might be back.

How to fix the problems

Until Microsoft comes up with an official fix for these problems – which will probably emerge in the form of yet another Windows 10 update – the best way to fix these issues is to uninstall the problematic updates - KB4571756 and KB4574727. Check out our guide on how to uninstall Windows 10 updates for more information.

You could also try using a restore point to fix the issues – just select a restore point from a time before you installed the update. We also have a guide on using Windows 10’s System Restore feature to help.

We’ve contacted Microsoft for a comment on these new issues. Hopefully, the company will come up with a fix soon.

Matt Hanson
Managing Editor, Core Tech

Matt is TechRadar's Managing Editor for Core Tech, looking after computing and mobile technology. Having written for a number of publications such as PC Plus, PC Format, T3 and Linux Format, there's no aspect of technology that Matt isn't passionate about, especially computing and PC gaming. Ever since he got an Amiga A500+ for Christmas in 1991, he's loved using (and playing on) computers, and will talk endlessly about how The Secret of Monkey Island is the best game ever made.