Windows Server 2025 AD CS certsrv.msc displays random Unicode characters in empty rows after Refresh

Sebastian 0 Reputation points
2026-08-07T19:24:10.44+00:00

Zrzut ekranu 2026-08-07 112803

Environment:

  • Windows Server 2025 (24H2) updated July 2026 ISO image
  • Active Directory Certificate Services installed
  • Certification Authority MMC snap-in (certsrv.msc)

Issue:

After adding a certificate request (Pending Requests / Issued Certificates contains at least one record), the CA MMC console starts displaying random Unicode characters (for example Asian-looking glyphs) in empty rows below the real records after refresh.

The certificate/request record itself is correct:

  • certutil output is correct
  • certificate data is correct
  • request is processed correctly

The issue is purely visual. The CA database and certificate data remain correct.

The issue only affects the graphical view.

Steps to reproduce:

  1. Open certsrv.msc
  2. Add or receive a certificate request
  3. Open Pending Requests or Issued Certificates
  4. Press Refresh (F5)
  5. Random Unicode characters appear in empty rows and are repeated across all columns

Additional observations:

  • Switching between CA tabs causes the character to flash briefly.
  • Refresh makes the artifact persist in the list view.
  • Closing/reopening MMC does not remove the issue permanently.
  • The displayed character may change after refresh.
  • No CA database errors or CertSvc errors are logged.

Question:

Has anyone seen similar MMC/certsrv.msc rendering issues on Windows Server 2025?

Could this be a known bug in the MMC snap-in/list view rendering layer?

Windows for business | Windows Server | Directory services | Certificates and public key infrastructure (PKI)
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  1. Allan Solomon Mejia 2,595 Reputation points
    2026-08-07T21:44:52.86+00:00

    Hello @Sebastian

    From what I can see, the Certification Authority (certsrv.msc) MMC snap-in is displaying garbled characters ("松Ü") across multiple columns instead of the expected request status and operation text.

    Since the corruption appears consistently throughout the console rather than in individual certificate requests, this looks more like a UI rendering or character encoding issue within the MMC snap-in than a problem with the AD CS database itself.

    To help narrow this down, could you confirm the following?

    • Does certificate enrollment and issuance continue to work normally despite the garbled text?
    • Does the same behavior occur when opening certsrv.msc from another Windows Server 2025 machine or from a Windows 11 computer with the latest RSAT tools?
    • Is the issue present only in Certification Authority, or do other MMC snap-ins (such as Event Viewer, Group Policy Management, or DNS Manager) display correctly?
    • Does the problem persist if you create a fresh MMC console and add only the Certification Authority snap-in?
    • Are you running the latest cumulative update for Windows Server 2025?

    If certificate services continue to function correctly and the issue is isolated to the MMC display, this may indicate a regression in the Windows Server 2025 AD CS management tools rather than a configuration issue.

    Given the screenshot and the apparent UI corruption, a Microsoft moderator may be able to review the thread and, if appropriate, engage the Windows Server / AD CS product team to determine whether this is a known issue with the Windows Server 2025 Certification Authority MMC snap-in.

    Please "Accept the Answer" if this information helped you. This will help us and others in the community as well.

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