Windows 10: Microsoft Kinect for Windows V2 is showing up on device manager, on control panel as audio...

Hello! I am currently working on a project with the Microsoft Kinect device. I am having trouble connecting it to my computer. I have purchased an adapter for this device, installed the drivers for Kinect, etc. This is how the Kinect shows on device manager: Other websites have said that this means that everything has been installed properly and that the Kinect should work. On devices and printers, the Kinect appears as an audio device. I am unsure as to why this is the case: No other devices related to the Kinect appear, just these two audio devices.Finally, in the Kinect sdk browser, the Kin

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Disabling Audio input/output (Microphone/Speaker/etc) in Device Manager does not disable device in Sound Control Panel or stop audio...oh my!

In Windows 10 (1803 build 17134.228), I open both "Device Manager" (devmgmt.msc) and the "Sound Control Panel" (mmsys.cpl).

Both Device Manager and the Sound Control Panel show the same audio input/output devices.

ex: "Speakers" and "Microphone".

This is good!

In Device Manager, I disable "Speakers", which continues to show up and has an icon showing it is disabled.

In Sound Control Panel, "Speakers" still shows up and *is not disabled*!

When I play a sound through the [disabled in Device Manager] Speakers, I can still hear the audio!

This is horrible!

In Device Manager, I re-enable "Speakers".

In Sound Control Panel, I disable "Speakers".

In Device Manager, "Speakers" disappears as an Audio output device.

Audio correctly cannot be heard.

This is good!

In summary:

1. Why does disabling "Speakers" in "Device Manager" not stop audio coming out of them?
2. What does disabling "Speakers" in "Device Manager" actually do?
3. Why is disabling Speakers in Device Manager different than disabling Speakers in Sound Control Panel?

Now for the real meat: I am trying to disable/enable the Audio input/output device...

...the way that the Sound Control Panel does...

...but programmatically (PowerShell, C#, C...whatever works).

There are many of examples of how to disable/enable a device that involve "devcon.exe disable/enable", "Get-PnpDevice | Disable/Enable-PnpDevice", and "Get-Device | Disable/Enable-Device".

All of these result in the device being disabled in the Device Manager, and exhibiting the above undesirable behavior; the audio devices still show up in Sound Control Panel and are usable.

I also have tried the Registry hack (HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\MMDevices\Audio\Capture\{GUID} DeviceState=1 or 10000001), but that seems to be a cosmetic hack only and doesn't actually force close any open devices or prevent new opens.

So I'll add another question:

1. How can I programmatically disable/enable and audio device to have the same effect as doing it in Sound Control Panel?

And no; UI automation of the Sound Control Panel is not an acceptable answer.

I am looking for an actual API that can be called in the background, not a horrible UI hack that requires being in the foreground.

Thanks!

Pv

 

Using a Microsoft Kinect on a PC as a Webcam; Is \Stream.sys for Kinect Available?

Microsoft has drivers to let the Kinect do this in a different update channel. Here's how to get those drivers from Windows Update.

Opt-in to receive test distribution drivers

1. Open the Windows Registry Editor (regedit.exe).
   
2. Go to HKLM\Software\Microsoft\
   
3. Create subkeys \DriverFlighting\Partner\
   
4. Under \Partner subkey, create a string named “TargetRing” and key-in “Drivers” as the value.
   

Get the drivers from Device Manager or Windows Update

From Device Manager:

1. Open Device Manager (Windows key + x, then m).
   
2. Expand “Kinect sensor devices”.
   
3. Right-click on "WDF KinectSensor Interface 0".
   
4. Click "Update Driver Software..."
   
5. Click “Search automatically for updated driver software”.
   
6. Allow it to download and install the new driver.
   
7. Reboot.
   

You can now use the Kinect for Xbox One as a webcam and for Windows Hello.

References:

• Windows Hello with the Kinect v2
  
• Test Distribution Drivers
  

 

Microsoft Launches Kinect for Windows Device and SDK

Microsoft today launched Kinect for Windows, a unique gesture-recognizing input device it launched for the Xbox 360. Kinect for Windows enables a whole new kind of interaction with the software that's three dimensional and spatial, compared to the two dimensional input of mice, tablets, and trackballs.

Along with it, version 1.0 of the Kinect for Windows SDK (stable) was launched, enabling organized software developers to start working on applications right away. The new SDK also features several feature additions and improvements over previous beta versions. The general pricing of Kinect for Windows device is US $249, but it is also available at US $149 for qualified educational users.





Source: Kinect for Windows Blog