Microsoft 'fixes' language bar problems caused by KB5014666 update

It has not gone unnoticed that Microsoft's quality control for updates for Windows has been found somewhat wanting of late, particularly when it comes to Windows 11. We have reported numerous times about problems caused by updates, and then the subsequent fixes -- and, sometimes, additional issues they cause -- that Microsoft releases.

Windows 10 users are also affected by problematic updates, and the recently released KB5014666 update caused issues with printing. But this was not the only problem caused by this devilish update; it was also found to lead to problems with the Input Indicator and Language Bar. Now Microsoft has issued a fix -- of sorts.

See also:

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• Microsoft releases PowerToys v0.61.0 with numerous 'quality of life improvements'

As has become increasingly common for Microsoft, rather than properly addressing the problem caused by an update, the company has taken the step of simply recalling the KB5014666 update. Yet again, Microsoft is using a Known Issue Rollback (KIR) to roll back the problematic update.

In an update to the Windows 10 release health page, Microsoft talks about the problem in an entry entitled "Input Indicator and Language Bar might not appear in the notification area":

After installing updates released on June 28, 2022 (KB5014666) or later updates, the Input Indicator and Language Bar might not appear in the notification area. The notification area is normally located on the right end of the taskbar. Affected devices have more than one language installed. The Input Indicator and Language Bar is used to switch between input or keyboard languages on Windows devices and is used especially with languages that use Input Method Editors (IME).

The company goes on to provide details of the resolution it has come up with:

This issue is resolved using Known Issue Rollback (KIR). Please note that it might take up to 24 hours for the resolution to propagate automatically to consumer devices and non-managed business devices. Restarting your Windows device might help the resolution apply to your device faster. For enterprise-managed devices that have installed an affected update and encountered this issue can resolve it by installing and configuring a special Group Policy. The special Group Policy can be found in Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> <Group Policy name listed below>. For information on deploying and configuring these special Group Policy, please see How to use Group Policy to deploy a Known Issue Rollback.

There is also a special group policy that can be downloaded for systems that need it:

• ​Download for Windows 10, version 21H2; Windows10, version 21H1; Windows 10, version 20H2 - KB5014666 220706_033027 Known Issue Rollback

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