Government computer will not read the CAC after the lock screen

windows

Symptoms

Workstation cannot see the CAC after it locks; only a reboot fixes it.

Likely cause

Aero theme or registry permission causes buffer-overflow / write errors on resume.

Fix

1. Turn off Windows Aero theme (right-click desktop > Personalize > Basic theme). 2. As a stopgap, unplug and replug the reader (or USB keyboard with built-in reader) when the lock screen does not see the card.

Sourced from militarycac.com. Rewritten for clarity.

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