Is your Windows 10 Camera App not working or is not recording video? Or are you looking for a new camera app download and install? Well, you are at the right place because here we are discussing about some common issues related to Windows 10 Camera App and steps to fix them.

What is Windows Camera App?

Microsoft offers a camera app for its Windows OS users for taking pictures and video recording. It is available on all the devices running on windows operating system. This free camera application automatically get installed while installing the OS package and it is very popular for its features. Some of the helpful feature of this app is ability to record, pause and resume video and stich it later in one video, user framing grid to take picture, user timer and so on. You can use your OneDrive account to automatically backup your photos and videos recorded through this application.

It is very easy to use Windows 10 Camera/webcam App. Go to Start > select camera and that’s it. In case if you have to use the webcam in some other application, you first have to change the settings. Go to Start > Select Settings > Privacy > Camera and press on “Lets Apps Use my camera”.

Issues that you may face while Using Windows 10 Camera App

Some time, you may face issues like camera is not working, not recording and possibly not responding to any of your command. In most cases, this happens because of missing driver or possibly any third-party programs such as security application is not allowing to run the camera app. Sometime the issue could be with the application with which you are trying to use the camera.

So, if you are also facing any of these issues, it is advised to make basic corrections as mentioned below.

• Look for any current updates for camera driver released by Microsoft team. If available then install and reboot the PC.
• If the camera has stopped working out of a sudden then possible the OS has got freeze. Again, Restarting the PC can fix this problem.
• Use the webcam with third-party applications such as Skype, Zoom that uses webcam. Select “Yes” when you are asked to allow permission.
• Some Laptop has physical button to turn “off or on” the camera. So be sure that such physical button is “ON”.

Allows Access to Camera by Third-Party Apps

Go to START > Settings > Privacy > Camera. If the camera access is turned off then change it to “turn ON”. It is important that all the apps installed in your Windows account have permission to access the camera app. Remember that apps that are present in the Microsoft Store will get the camera access.

Be sure that you are using genuine anti-malware software. If it is blocking the access to you camera then you should possibly communicate with the anti-malware software website. It will be best if you use any other security application.

Windows 10 Camera Software Driver Issue

In maximum cases, Windows 10 Camera App issues occur due to Incompatible drivers. When you update the Windows version or install a new patch, it is possible that compatible driver doesn’t get installed. Sometime it happens that you have an older version of camera which is not supported by the new Windows 10 version.

How to Check Camera Compatibility with the OS?

As mentioned above, the camera or webcam should be compatible with the OS version. To check that, follow the steps

• Go to Device Manager and look for camera details under Camera or Imaging Device section
• Select the camera and right click to see the properties
• Press on Driver tab > driver details and search for the files having stream.sys. If you find this file then this means that the camera installed with your PC is for Windows 7 and is not compatible with the Windows 10 version. In case if this file is not present then the camera In case if this file is not present then Windows 10 Camera App is not working due to OS update.
• In the driver tab, you have to select “Roll Back Driver” option. Once the roll-back gets completed, reboot the work-station and open the camera again.

Uninstall Windows 10 Camera App

Go to Device Manger and press right click on the camera. Select Properties. Go to Driver tab and select uninstall Device. Search for “Delete the driver software for the device” and click on its “checkbox”.

In the Device Manager > go to “Action” menu and select “Scan for hardware changes”. Once the scan gets completed, reinstall the updated driver and reboot the PC.

This step will definitely fix the issues. However, if the problem still persists then you only have the option to change the camera hardware or possible talk to the camera manufacturer to fix the issue.