Windows November 2026 Updates Break Activation, Printing
Microsoft confirmed two known issues in its November 2026 Patch Tuesday updates: Windows activation failing with error 0x80041008 when using SLMGR, and printing failures for documents with zero-size images.
⚡ Why it matters
These updates fix serious security flaws, so do not skip them. But IT teams that automate KMS activation or print complex Word documents need to know the issue and the workaround.
Microsoft issued two known-issue alerts this week for its November 2026 security updates.
1) Activation error 0x80041008
Organizations that automate Windows activation or use the SLMGR tool are affected. The error appears when running commands such as slmgr.vbs /skms-domain and slmgr.vbs /ipk to activate Windows, configure KMS or manage product keys.
- Affected: Windows 10 21H2/22H2, Windows 11 23H2, and Windows Server 2019, 2022 and 2025.
- Not affected: Devices that are already activated, and images that already include the KMS client key and do not need SLMGR.
- Fix: Microsoft says a fix is coming in the next few days. Businesses needing immediate help should contact Microsoft Support for business.
2) Printing failures
Printing can fail for documents containing images with zero height or width at the chosen print resolution. Such images are used in complex layouts, for example invisible watermarks or layout anchors. The issue mostly hits Word documents printed through GDI on Windows 10 and later and Windows Server 2016 and later.
Other issues this month
Microsoft also confirmed that November Windows 11 updates may fail to install on PCs with the October preview update, and that updates since October cause SQL Server performance problems.
Our advice
Install the security updates, but pilot them on a small group of devices first and watch the Windows Release Health page.
🔗 Sources
This article is original reporting by the Security World editorial team based on the sources listed above; direct quotes are kept short and marked with quotation marks. Corrections and feedback: info [at] securitywd.net.
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