Some Microsoft users are currently dealing with an issue documented by Microsoft, where their Windows 11 file history stopped working right after the security update that was released by Microsoft on September 8th. This is stopping the users from creating and updating new data backups. An error message stating ‘Reconnect your Drive’ may also appear on the affected PCs. However, don’t uninstall the security update just yet. We’ve talked about this bug in detail and how to check if your data is being backed as usual or not.
- Why Did Windows 11 File History Stop Working After September 2026 Update?
- Which Windows Versions are Affected?
- How Do You Know If File History Is Not Working on Windows 11?
- How to Fix the Windows 11 File History Not Working Issue?
- What If the Windows 11 File History doesn’t Work Even After Troubleshooting?
- Prevent Silent Backup Failures in Future: Keep These Tips in Mind
- Final Note
Why Did Windows 11 File History Stop Working After September 2026 Update?
Microsoft released one of the security update on September 8th, 2026, which introduced a bug that broke the File History feature of Windows 11. This left users with a simple Reconnect your Drive message while their File History stopped taking a backup of their files completely. In reality, the Backup Drive was connected, and the message was fake, then why did this happen?
As per Microsoft’s own documentation, this bug was easy to miss because there’s no way of knowing that the backup stopped for users or not. Anyone relying on File History for data backup could’ve gone days without checking it.
Afterwards, Microsoft recognized the bug and documented its solution in the Windows update that was released later on 22nd September 2026, including KB5124010 that was released as an optional update. This later released update contained the fix for Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2. Microsoft strongly advises against uninstalling the previous update that caused this bug or making any drastic changes to the Windows configuration. Rather, it suggests installing the latest update to fix this issue promptly.
Afterwards, Microsoft recognized the bug and documented its solution in the Windows update that was released later on after 22nd September 2026, including KB5124010. This later released update, contained the fix for Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2. Microsoft strongly advises against uninstalling the previous update that caused this bug or making any drastic changes to the Windows configuration. Rather, it suggests installing the latest update to fix this issue promptly.
Which Windows Versions are Affected?
This bug affects a few particular Windows versions. We’ve given the Windows versions and the corresponding September’s security update below:
- Windows 11 26H1: KB5124012
- Windows 11 25H2: KB5124008
- Windows 11 24H2: KB5124008
- Windows 11 23H2: KB5122880
- Windows 10 22H2: KB5122878
How Do You Know If File History Is Not Working on Windows 11?
Since File History runs in the background of a system, the signs aren’t easy to notice if any issue has come up. These are the typical symptoms that suggests that File History is not working in Windows 11:
- ‘Reconnect your Drive’ error message: This error message comes up on screen of affected computers even when the Backup Drive is connected and working normally. You might notice this message in the File History Control Panel or in Settings.
- Outdated ‘Last Backup’ timestamp: If the Last Backup timestamp doesn’t update in the Control Panel, even after clicking on Run Now or trying to edit and save files, then there might be a problem worth checking.
- No previous versions are available: If File History has stopped working in Windows 11, you won’t be able to access a previously saved version of a file that was saved before installing the update. However, be assured that this doesn’t mean that your previous file versions are permanently deleted.
- Automatic backups fail: Scheduled backups will stop running automatically if the File History stops working. Starting them again will require manual intervention.
- Event Viewer shows File History errors: In some affected systems, applications errors involving the FileHistory.exe and KERNELBASE.dll might show up in the Event Viewer. These error entries can help identify a failed backup or File History operation. Although, just this entry doesn’t confirm that File History crashed because of Microsoft’s September security update.
How to Fix the Windows 11 File History Not Working Issue?
First, start with the confirmed cause behind this “File History stopped working in Windows 11” issue. If this started after the security update released by Microsoft on September 8th, 2026, check if your system has the relevant Windows fix installed or not. Don’t uninstall the September 8th update right away as it contains important security patches for other Windows functions.
Method 1. Install the latest Windows 11 update
The very first thing you should do is check if your Windows 11 system is updated to the latest version. Microsoft documented this bug on 22nd, September and subsequently have released updates like KB5124010 to fix this error. Follow these steps to install the latest update:
- Open Settings and go to Windows Update > Check for updates.
- Install all the available updates and restart your system.
- If you’re on Windows 11 24H2 or 25H2 and you can’t find the available updates, try looking for it in Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options > Optional updates.
- Once your PC restarts, open File History and click on Run now. In most cases, the Last Backup date and time changes to the current date and time if the bug is resolved.
However, in some cases, users still report that the timestamp doesn’t get updated after installing the latest updates, even if the File History runs normally.
Method 2. Restart File History Service Again
If File History doesn’t work in Windows 11 even after installing the update, it might be having some other kind of issues. Try restarting it once to see if it starts working again or not. Follow the steps for this:
- Open Windows PowerShell cmdlet as Administrator.
- Input and run the ‘Restart-Service fhsvc’ command in the prompt.
Alternatively, we’ve given some direct steps if you don’t have access to Command Prompt:
- Press Win + R on keyboard and type msc in Run dialogue box.
- Scroll down and locate File History Service in the list.
- Right-click on it and select Restart/Start.
Method 3. Reselect/Reconnect the Backup Drive
Try reselecting the Backup Drive once, if it helps or not. Here are the steps for it:
- First, unplug your external backup drive and plug it back in a different USB port.
- Check if the external backup drive is accessible. If it isn’t, try reselecting it once.
- Open Control Panel and go to System and Security > File History.
- Click on Select drive, reselect your preferred backup drive, and then confirm.
- Finally, click on Run now test once manually.
What If the Windows 11 File History doesn’t Work Even After Troubleshooting?
If File History still doesn’t work in Windows 11 even after installing the relevant updates and checking the backup drive location, you need to find out why exactly the File History is failing. Go through these checks to understand what might be causing this issue:
- Backup drive is inaccessible:
Check whether the backup drive is connected or not, how’s the drive health, the available storage, and if the permissions to access the backup drive are provided or not, depending on what’s your backup location. If the backup drive is unrecognizable or has crashed completely, stop using it and start the process to recover data from the crashed drive safely.
- Reconnect your drive error message: If you still see this error message even after installing the latest Windows 11 update, find out the potential system errors that might be the cause for it.
- Backup process crashes: Check the Event Viewer logs for any errors that are recorded when the backup process crashed. Find out the reason for the backup process crashing with the details present in Event Viewer.
- Existing backup looks like it’s missing: If this happens, don’t immediately try to format your drive, and do not delete the File History folder. Open your backup drive in File Explorer and locate the existing File History folder, you might find some older backups there. If you’re unable to locate the folder, the drive won’t open, or you formatted it by mistake, stop using the drive and don’t save anything new to it. In such situation, a windows data recovery tool can help you scan the drive for deleted or lost files and let you preview them before saving. Recovery isn’t guaranteed, as it depends on if the data has been overwritten.
Prevent Silent Backup Failures in Future: Keep These Tips in Mind
Even though you can’t exactly prevent bugs like these, but you can take certain precautions and notice problems sooner to reduce the likeliness of data loss if this happens.
- Check the Last Backup Timestamp regularly: Since File History doesn’t show any visible signs when it fails, it would benefit you if you check the Last Backup Timestamp on a regular basis. Most importantly, check the timestamp after a major update to verify that everything is working well.
- Keep the backup drive accessible: Make sure your external backup drive is connected at all times. During network backups, make sure that the device that’s hosting the backup is accessible when the backup process runs.
- Check that all important files are included: Check your File History backup scope once to confirm that all your important files and folders are included in it. File History can only restore the previous versions of data that it has backed up in the past.
- Keep a separate copy of important files: Don’t just rely on File History to protect and restore your important files during data loss. Keep a separate copy of all your important files at a safe location for easy restoring during data loss.
Final Note
A backup feature that gives no sign when it fails can’t be trusted that easily, and that’s what made the File History Not Working after September update a tricky issue. Microsoft released a Security update on September 8th, 2026, that gave rise to the File History Not Working bug. Subsequently, Microsoft released an update on September 22nd, 2026, to fix this bug. Make sure that you check the Last backup time on a regular basis.
