December 10, 2024—KB5048654 (OS Build 20348.2966)

Following the installation of the October 2024 security update, some customers report that the OpenSSH (Open Secure Shell) service fails to start, preventing SSH connections. The service fails with no detailed logging, and manual intervention is required to run the sshd.exe process.

This issue is affecting both enterprise, IOT, and education customers, with a limited number of devices impacted. Microsoft is investigating whether consumer customers using Home or Pro editions of Windows are affected. 

Customers can temporarily resolve the issue by updating permissions (ACLs) on the affected directories. Follow these steps:

1. Open PowerShell as an Administrator.

2. Update the permissions for C:\ProgramData\ssh and C:\ProgramData\ssh\logs to allow full control for SYSTEM and the Administrators group, while allowing read access for Authenticated Users. You can restrict read access to specific users or groups by modifying the permissions string if needed.

   Use the following commands to update the permissions:

   $directoryPath = "C:\ProgramData\ssh" $acl = Get-Acl -Path $directoryPath $sddlString = "O:BAD:PAI(A;OICI;FA;;;SY)(A;OICI;FA;;;BA)(A;OICI;0x1200a9;;;AU)" $securityDescriptor = New-Object System.Security.AccessControl.RawSecurityDescriptor $sddlString $acl.SetSecurityDescriptorSddlForm($securityDescriptor.GetSddlForm("All")) Set-Acl -Path $directoryPath -AclObject $acl

3. Repeat the above steps for C:\ProgramData\ssh\logs.

Microsoft is actively investigating the issue and will provide a resolution in an upcoming Windows update. Further communications will be provided when a resolution or additional workarounds are available.