Media Feature Pack for Windows 10 N (November 2019)

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Summary

This update provides support for media features in Windows 10 N. These include media-related technologies, such as Windows Media Player, and certain preinstalled media apps, such as Groove Music, Movies & TV, Voice Recorder, and Skype. You must install additional software from Microsoft to have this communication functionality and to play or to create audio CDs, media files, and video DVDs; to stream music; or to take and store pictures.

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How to get this update

Microsoft Optional Features

The Media Feature Pack for N versions of Windows 10 is available for download as an Optional Feature. To install the Media Feature Pack, navigate to Settings > Apps > Apps and Features > Optional Features > Add a Feature, and then locate the Media Feature Pack in the list of available Optional Features.

Note Although you are not prompted to restart your computer, you must restart in order to successfully complete installation of the Media Feature Pack.

Additional steps

After you install the Media Feature Pack, there are additional apps that you can install from the Microsoft Store to help you regain additional Windows 10 functionality. These apps include, but are not limited to:

Media codecs for playback of media in apps and in the browser:

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Update information

Prerequisites

To install this update, you must have Windows 10 N installed.

Registry information

To apply this update, you don't have to make any changes to the registry.

Restart requirement

You must restart the computer after you apply this update.

Update replacement information

This update doesn’t replace a previously released update.

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More information

Excluded features

Windows 10 N includes the same functionality as other Windows 10 editions, except for Windows Media Player and related technologies. You can restore the functionality of these technologies by installing the Media Feature Pack for N versions of Windows 10. These technologies include, but are not limited to, the following features:

Windows Media Player user experience: Enables Windows Media Player features, such as the ability to play media files and audio CDs, manage media in a library, create a playlist, provide metadata (including album art) for media, create an audio CD, transfer music to a portable music player, and play streaming content from a website.

Windows Media Player ActiveX control: Exposes methods and properties to manipulate multimedia playback from a webpage or an application.

Windows Media Format: Provides support for the Advanced Systems Format (ASF) file container, the Windows Media audio and video codecs, basic network streaming capability, and digital rights management (DRM).

Windows Media DRM: Enables the secure delivery of protected content for playback on a computer, portable device, or network device.

Media sharing and Play To: Enables music, pictures, and videos on a networked computer to be shared with other computers and devices on the same network. Also enables computers to find those kinds of files on the network.

Media Foundation: Provides support for content protection, audio and video quality, and interoperability for DRM.

Windows Portable Devices (WPD) infrastructure: Communicates with attached media and storage devices that include devices that support the Media Transfer Protocol.

MPEG, WMA, AAC, FLAC, ALAC, AMR, and Dolby Digital audio codecs: Enable the playback of digital audio content, such as MP3, WMA, MPEG-2 audio, AAC audio, FLAC and ALAC audio, and AC-3 audio.

VC-1, MPEG-4, and H.264, H.265, and H.263 codecs: Collectively known as "Standards-based codec components." Enable Windows 10 program such as Windows Media Player to support activities that include the playback and recording of multimedia files that are encoded with standards-based codecs.

Groove Music: A preinstalled app that's used to play digital music.

Video: A preinstalled app that's used to play digital video.

Voice Recorder: A preinstalled app that's used to record sounds.

Skype: A preinstalled app that's used for messaging and communications.

Effects on other features

Some features aren't excluded directly from Windows 10 N edition. But they are affected by the media technology exclusions, and they don't work even with the installation of the Media Feature Pack. These features include the following:

Alarms and clock: Alarm and timer sounds don't play.

Application Sync: This feature doesn't work.

Cortana Personal Assistant: Cortana with Voice (speech interaction with Cortana) doesn't work.

Group Policy for removable disks: This feature is not available in the N edition of Windows 10 Pro.

HomeGroup: Integrated media sharing through streaming features doesn't work.

OneDrive and Photos: These applications cannot play videos.

PDF Viewing in Edge: This feature doesn't work.

Sound Recorder: Recordings are limited to WAV format.

Webcam: This feature doesn't work.

Windows 10 camera devices: Cameras that use the picture transfer protocol (PTP) don't work.

Windows Hello: This feature doesn't work.

Windows Mixed Reality: N versions of Windows 10 isn't compatible with Windows Mixed Reality.

Windows Portable Devices: There is no support for media synchronization, image acquisition, or file browsing.

Windows Store Media Content: Audio and video content that was obtained through the Store cannot be played. Also, the preview of audio or video content in the Store doesn't work.

Wireless Display: This feature doesn't work.

Xbox: Some functionality that's associated with this application, such as Game DVR, doesn't work.

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