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Surface Pro 10 built-in cameras not working

Nikki Bisschop 0 Reputation points
2025-08-21T14:27:22.6033333+00:00

A couple of months ago I've bought a second hand Surface Pro 10 with Windows 11 Pro. I've never needed the camera before, but now I did and I can't get it to work. I've tried many things, but nothing seems to help.

In Device Manager I see Intel(R) MTL AVStream Camera under the camera section, and Surface Camera Front and Surface Camera Rear under System devices. All these I have disabled, enabled, uninstalled and reinstalled drivers. I've also restarted the device multiple times in the process. In device manager everything seems to be OK, but in Settings>Bluetooth & devices>Cameras, under the heading Connected cameras, I only see my Pixel 5 (Virtual Camera) which is connected via Phone Link, and does work. There is no front nor rear camera there and also in the Camera app it goes directly to the virtual camera.

Is there anyone who recognizes this issue or who has some ideas on how to fix this?

Surface | Surface Pro | Sound and camera
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  1. Harold Milan 1,315 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2025-08-22T19:18:27.9733333+00:00

    Hi Nikki,

     

    Thanks for reaching out! I totally get how frustrating it can be when your camera doesn’t work, especially when you finally need it. You've already done a lot of the right things, and I appreciate the effort you've put in so far.

     

    Let’s walk through a few more steps together to see if we can get your Surface Pro 10’s camera up and running.

     

     

     

    First, Try the Surface App:

    This app can help detect hardware issues or missing firmware.

    Open the Microsoft Store, search for Surface, and install the app if needed

    Surface app and Surface Diagnostic Toolkit

    Launch it and go to Help & support > Check for updates

    Follow any suggestions it gives

     

    Run the built-in troubleshooter:

    Open the Get Help app and search for Camera not working

    It’ll guide you through some quick diagnostics

     Then let’s check your privacy settings:

    Sometimes Windows just needs permission to use the camera.

    Go to Settings Privacy & security  and go to Camera

    Make sure Camera access and Let apps access your camera are both turned ON

    Scroll down and confirm that the Camera app is also allowed to use the camera

     

    Next, check if the camera is disabled in UEFI:

    It might be turned off at the firmware level.

    Shut down your Surface completely.

    Press and hold Volume Up, then press and release the Power button.

    Keep holding Volume Up until the UEFI screen appears.

    Look for a setting related to Camera and make sure it’s enabled

    Save and exit

     

    Update or roll back the camera drivers:

    Since the camera shows up in Device Manager, try this:

    Right-click Intel(R) MTL AVStream Camera  Properties and go to Driver

    If available, click Roll Back Driver

    If not, choose Update Driver > Search automatically

    Do the same for Surface Camera Front and Rear under System Devices

    If your Surface Pro 10 is running on an ARM processor like the SQ3, avoid uninstalling drivers manually those can only be restored with a full reset.

     

    Try a force restart:

    This can help reinitialize the camera hardware.

    Shut down your Surface

    Press and hold the Power button for 20 seconds until the logo appears and disappears again

     

    If none of these steps work, it might be a hardware issue especially since it’s a second-hand device. You can check your warranty or service options at Surface help & learning.

     

    Let me know if you’d like help checking whether your device is ARM- or Intel-based . I’m here to help!

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