Fingerprint Reader with Windows 10

[JLBH1]

Hello.

I have a HP Envy dv7 - 7338EA which I bought new in late 2013 with Windows 8 installed. Shortly after getting the notebook, I upgraded to Windows 8.1 and then, later still, Windows 10. At each upgrade of OS there were some features that appeared to be incompatible with both 8.1 nad Win 10. Conversations with HP Support agents got the response that neither 8.1 nor Win 10 are supported OS's on this machine. The incompatibilities were not having dramatic effects and I was keen to ensure that I kept bang up to date with Windows to avoid security problems. The main problems were experienced with HP SimplePass and as I really only wanted to use Windows Hello, I uninstalled SimplePass and Win Hello worked fine.

I recently had  great difficulty upgrading my machine to Windows 10 Build 1703 (the Creator's Edition). I eventually managed it with help from Microsoft Support but when the (fresh) install had completed, I was not able to use Windows Hello and the fingerprint reader did not appear to be working. I have ensured that I have a login PIN but when I try to setup Windows Hello, I get the message that it is not available on this machine. I am wondering if I need to install some elements of SimplePass - or perhaps a later version of SimplePass. Perhaps I need to get a separate driver for the fingerprint reader.

Can one of you seriously competent specialists out there give me a hand with this please?

Thanks for reading this,

John

[Huffer · Accepted solution]

We are not quite so organized that there are competent specialists but we do have marginally useful Experts sometimes. In any event, you need the driver for the fingerprint reader. Windows Hello provides the user interface but you still need a device driver for the fingerprint reader. My guess is you would find that it appears as a problem device in device manager and Windows Update will not give you a driver. 

Here is the Windows 8.1 driver supplied by HP:

http://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp58501-59000/sp58900.exe

You will have to install this in compatibility mode or perhaps even "force install" it which means you do need to go into device manager and find the fingerprint reader device so you can proceed to direct the driver installer to where the above driver has unzipped unto your hard drive. 

Post back with any more questions. 

If this is "the Answer" please click "Accept as Solution" to help others find it. 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi, @JLBH1

If you want to update the simplepass software, here is the latest W10 version of the HP Simplepass software that I could find...

This package contains the HP SimplePass Identity Protection Software for the supported notebook models and operating systems. This software protects identity information and account access using the computer owner's fingerprint.

8.01.62 Rev.A   Aug 5, 2016

http://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp76501-77000/sp76923.exe

[Huffer]

@Paul_Tikkanen

correct me if I am wrong but even if you reinstall the HP "Simplepass" front end for the fingerprint security you still need to install the driver or does the Simplepass provide the driver? 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi, @Huffer

You need the fingerprint driver under any circumstance.

The simplepass software only allows you to enroll your fingerprint to log in.

[JLBH1]

Very many thanks for your help. Despite the Device Manager showing that the biometric device was working correctly, I used your link to download the driver again and then forced its installation via the Properties/Update Driver .... and it worked!!

I suspect that the original driver download may have been corrupted. Thanks to you, I now have Windows Hello working again.

Many thanks to you and to everyone else who responded to my question. I'll be back!

John

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.

[JLBH1]

Paul.

Thank you for your clear response to my problems with the fingerprint reader on my Envy dv7.

I had decided some time ago to stop using the SimplePass software. I found it to be fairly awkward to use - although once set up, it seemed to work well in launching websites. I never could get it to work launching programs or apps on my notebook though. When I began to use Windows Hello, there were regular failures, either in Hello or in SimplePass and I concluded that there may be some incompatibility with Windows 10 (subsequently confirmed by an HP Support agent when helping me to sort out a different issue. 

After I removed the SimplePass software, retaining the fingerprint reader driver, Windows Hello worked seamlessly ..... until I did the fresh install of Windows 10 to resolve the Updates failures. When that had completed, Windows Hello reported that it was not available. I worked out that the fingerprint reader was the root of the problem (the reader lamp never lit). I checked that the driver was present and working via Properties and added a PIN as Hello seemed to want that and at that point I was stumped. I then posted the issue on this Forum .... and it's now working fine again!

Thanks for your helpful link.

John