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Microsoft is pleased to announce that a refreshed HLK for Windows 11, version 24H2 and Windows Server 2025 is available starting July 8, 2025.

This release of the HLK contains only infrastructure changes. See below for detailed information on what’s new with this HLK refreshed version. The refreshed version of the HLK will replace the RTM version that is available on the HLK download site. The VHLK version will be available in a week. Partners can submit to WHCP using either the RTM version of the HLK for Windows 11, version 24H2 and Windows Server 2025 or the refreshed HLK so long as passing results can be obtained (waivers acceptable).

What’s new with this refresh?

Upcoming HLKX Packager changes

This HLK refresh will increment the HLKX packager version to a newer version, the data format will not be readable by previous versions of the HLK Studio. Opening an HLKX saved from this version will fail with the message text “Failed to open package. Could not open package: (hlkx filename)” when opened from previous releases of the HLK Studio and will require installation of this version or newer to read it.  HLK Studio in this refresh will continue to be backwards compatible and will be able to read, merge, and add drivers to submission packages that were saved from current and previous releases of the HLK.

Note that the HLK Installer supports installation of the HLK Studio components only to read and write HLKXes if HLK Controller functionality is not needed.

The submission portal will continue to accept HLKXes from older versions of the HLK, but any HLKX submitted after the switchover will return Driver Update Acceptable (DUA) HLKX shells in the new format when requested, while HLKXes submitted prior to the switchover will continue to be in the previous format. Without the refreshed HLK, the update will not be able to read and process DUA HLKX shells in the new format.

Action Required: 

Note that HLKX files created in this release of the HLK will be generated in an updated format version.  The user should be aware of scenarios which will and will not require an update to this version of the HLK or HLK Studio.

• HLKXes generated from this release will be readable by this and future versions of the HLK Studio.


• HLK Studio from previous releases of the HLK will not be able to read the data format of the upcoming version.


• This release of the HLK is backwards compatible and will also be able to read HLKXes and HCKXes from current and past versions of the HLK.

Troubleshooting and Known Issues: 

Issue: “Failed to open package. Could not open package: (hlkx filename)” when opening HLKX generated from this release on separate system.

Submission packages from this release are generated in a new schema and a newer version of the HLK Studio is required to open it. 

Solution: Install/Update to a newer of HLK or HLK Studio

Existing HLK Controller installations may be kept as is and do not need to be reinstalled as it is not supported to update just the HLK Studio on an existing HLK Controller instance. An HLK Studio only instance from the latest HLK may be installed on a separate system to open these HLKXes.

Issue: “Failed to open package. Could not open package: (hlkx filename)” when opening DUA shell downloaded from submission portal.

After the portal switches over to processing submissions in the new format, DUA shells for submission packages submitted to the portal after the switchover will return them in the new format.  These DUA shells will not be readable without an HLK Studio installation that does not have the updated changes and will return the error “Failed to open package. Could not open package: (hlkx filename)”

Solution: HLK/HLK Studio instance should be updated to newer version. 

Existing HLK Controller installations may be kept as is and do not need to be reinstalled as it is not supported to update just the HLK Studio on an existing HLK Controller instance. An HLK Studio only instance from the latest HLK may be installed on a separate system to open these HLKXes.

Issue: Reinstall of HLK Controller fails with “Install did not complete successfully: An error occurred installing ‘Windows Hardware Lab Kit Infrastructure’” 

 This issue is caused by a missing check in the HLK installer to detect whether a newly supported version of SQL is already installed.  When this occurs, the HLK SQL installer fails due to an existing instance with the same instance name.

Workaround: 

After uninstalling the Hardware Lab Kit on the HLK Controller system:

1. Right-click on the “Start” button on the Windows taskbar and select the “Settings” menu option to launch the Windows Settings app.


2. From the Windows Settings app, select the “Apps” option, then select “Installed Apps”


3. Look for the item “Microsoft SQL Server 2022 (64-bit)” and uninstall it.


4. Attempt to install the Hardware Lab Kit again and confirm that it completes without errors.

This issue will be fixed on a future refresh of the 24H2 Hardware Lab Kit.

Issue: HLK Studio may throw InvalidOperationException when selecting targets 

Enabling the Distributed Target Selection feature in HLK Studio may cause HLK Studio to crash with the error: “System.InvalidOperationException: A TwoWay or OneWayToSource binding cannot work on the read-only property ‘RedistributeTests.’”

Workaround: 

If this issue occurs in HLK Studio, disable the Distributed Target Selection feature.

1. From HLK Studio, select the “Configuration” menu option.


2. Select the “Options” item on the left side of the user interface


3. Under the “Distributed Testing” group box, look for the “Show Distributed Target Selection dialog when multiple matching targets are found” checkbox and uncheck it.


4. Confirm that the InvalidOperationException is no longer thrown when selecting targets in HLK Studio.

This issue will be fixed on a future refresh of the 24H2 Hardware Lab Kit.

Issue: Wifi tests regressed due to removal of TestNetv2.0 dependencies

The TestNetv2.0 was removed from the HLK test infrastructure, causing some Wifi tests to regress due to not being able to invoke “testnetv2.0/ccrun.exe”. The list of affected tests is:

–          Wi-Fi Direct Basic Discovery Tests – Functional

–          Wi-Fi Direct Basic Pairing Tests – Functional

–          Wi-Fi Direct Basic Reconnect Tests – Functional

–          Wi-Fi Direct Legacy Pairing Tests – Functional

–          Wi-Fi Direct Service Discovery Tests – Functional

–          Wi-Fi Direct Service Pairing and Reconnect Tests – Functional

This issue will be fixed on a future refresh of the 24H2 Hardware Lab Kit

Frequently Asked Questions

• What HLK version is being refreshed?




• The May refresh HLK is being refreshed, this HLK helps support certifying drivers for Windows 11, version 24H2 and Windows Server 2025. For the following FAQ’s, the May 2024 release will be referenced to as RTM HLK and the upcoming release in July 2025 will be referenced as refresh HLK.




• How can I tell what version of the HLK I have?




• The distinction between RTM HLK and refreshed HLK will be in the last digits of the HLK studio version, 10.1.26100.X




• The RTM HLK Studio version is 10.1.26100.1


• The refresh HLK Studio version is 10.1.26100.X

The HLK Studio version information can be located by clicking ‘About’ in the upper right corner of studio

• How do I install the refreshed version of the HLK?




1. Visit the HLK download page: Windows Hardware Lab Kit | Microsoft Learn


2. Download the refreshed HLK


3. Run HLKSetup.exe

Notes

• Ensure your current HLK projects are finished before attempting to use the same system for the HLK refresh.


• The refreshed HLK cannot be installed on a system that already has the RTM HLK, this goes for both Controller and Client. It is highly recommended to start with a clean install of the OS for both.

• How can I tell if the errata I use was fixed in the refreshed HLK?




• The list of errata fixed is available below




• What do I do if the errata I use doesn’t appear to be fixed in the refreshed HLK?




• If the errata is not on the fixed list the waiver can be used on both the RTM HLK as well as the refreshed HLK

• What do I do if the errata I use is listed as fixed, but failures are still being seen in the test?




• Triage the failure first. There have been cases where a test issue is fixed, and the failure is still present, but it is due to a driver issue that has the same failure message


• Next Open a CSS case: Get support for Partner Center dashboard and HLK issues – Windows drivers | Microsoft Learn

• How should I address a test that was passing on the RTM HLK but now failing on the refreshed HLK?




• Triage the failure first. There have been cases where a test issue is fixed, and the failure is still present, but it is due to a driver issue that has the same failure message


• Next Open a CSS case: Get support for Partner Center dashboard and HLK issues – Windows drivers | Microsoft Learn




• Going forward, will Microsoft be updating the HLK regularly?




• Yes, Microsoft is transitioning into this servicing model for the HLK, which maintains overall test quality and reduces dependency on errata.




• How often are these refresh releases expected?​




• Current plan is to evaluate releasing a refreshed HLK each quarter. ​




• Does this update apply to client and server?




• Yes




• Can results from an RTM test run and a Refreshed test run be merged and used for submission?




• No, submission should be completed with either the RTM or refreshed HLK.




• Will the refreshed HLK continue to support merged packages for multiple-OS submissions?




• Yes




• Is the VHLK also going to be updated?




• Yes