By Alexey Spasskiy · Published August 13, 2026 · Updated August 13, 2026 · 9 min read
Quick answer: On an ARM-based Surface or Copilot+ PC, Windows Fax and Scan is not an option — it cannot be installed on ARM64, and USB fax modems have no ARM64 drivers. Install mFax for Windows from the Microsoft Store instead: it ships a native ARM64 build alongside x64, sends over your internet connection, and needs no modem and no phone line. Prefer not to install anything? The same service runs in any browser at mFax.to.
Every other "fax from Windows" guide ends with the same fallback: if the modern methods don't appeal, install Windows Fax and Scan. On an ARM-based Surface, that fallback does not exist. The feature is not hidden, disabled, or waiting on an update — it is simply not offered on ARM64. And the hardware workaround that rescues older PCs, a $30 USB fax modem, is equally dead here.
That leaves ARM Windows users in a strange position: the most modern Windows machines on sale are the ones with no built-in path to a fax at all. This guide explains exactly why, and covers what does work — including the part that changed in August 2026, when a fax app with a native ARM64 build finally arrived on the Microsoft Store.
First, Confirm You Are Actually on ARM
Not every Surface is an ARM device, and the answer changes what you can install. Check it before you troubleshoot anything:
- Open Settings (Win + I)
- Go to System → About
- Read the System type line under Device specifications
- "ARM-based processor" — you are on ARM64. Windows Fax and Scan is unavailable to you. Skip to the methods below.
- "x64-based processor" — you have an Intel or AMD machine. Windows Fax and Scan can be installed as an optional feature, though it still requires a USB fax modem and an analog landline. Our Windows Fax and Scan guide for Windows 11 walks through that setup.
ARM64 covers the Snapdragon-based Copilot+ machines — Surface Pro 11, Surface Laptop 7, Surface Pro X and the equivalent ARM models from other manufacturers. Because Windows PCs ship under similar names on both architectures, the model name alone is not a reliable answer. Trust the System type line.
Why Windows Fax and Scan Is Missing on ARM64
Windows Fax and Scan has never been an internet fax client. It is a front end for a dial-up fax modem: it hands your document to a hardware driver, the driver dials a number over an analog phone line, and the two modems negotiate a fax transmission. Everything about it assumes physical hardware.
That is the root of the ARM problem. Drivers are architecture-specific, and the x86/x64 emulation layer on ARM Windows applies to applications, not to kernel-mode drivers. A driver compiled for x64 cannot be loaded on an ARM64 system, emulated or otherwise. Microsoft does not support fax modem drivers on ARM, so the optional feature that depends on them is not offered on ARM64 at all.
Nothing you type will install it
On an ARM device, searching fax in Settings → Apps → Optional Features → View features returns no result. The Control Panel path (Programs → Turn Windows features on or off → Print and Document Services) does not list it either, and the DISM capability print.Fax.Scan~~~~0.0.1.0 is not available to add. This is by design, not a bug in your installation — no cumulative update will bring it back.
The modem workaround does not apply either
On an x64 PC, the standard advice is to buy an external USB fax modem for $25–$50. On ARM that advice fails for the same driver reason: modem vendors ship x86/x64 driver packages, and there is no ARM64 equivalent to install.
Even x64 users are having a harder time here: Microsoft removed the Agere/Lucent fax modem driver (ltmdm64.sys) in the October 2025 and January 2026 cumulative updates to patch a security vulnerability (CVE-2025-24990), killing a large share of the cheap USB modems on the market. The line matters too — VoIP service from a cable or fiber provider digitizes the signal and produces failed or corrupted transmissions.
Do not buy a fax modem for an ARM Surface
This is the one purchase to skip. There is no driver to install, so the modem will not appear in Device Manager as a usable fax device no matter which port you plug it into. Send over the internet instead — it is faster to set up and costs nothing in hardware.
Method 1: mFax for Windows — Native ARM64 App
What you need: an ARM64 (or x64) PC running Windows 10 version 17763.0 or higher, or Windows 11, plus an internet connection. No modem. No phone line. No drivers.
mFax for Windows is a native desktop app published by Octagon Lab on the Microsoft Store, listed there as mFax - Send and Receive FAX. It shipped on 10 August 2026, which is why most Windows faxing articles — including ones written this year — still send ARM users to a browser by default.
The reason it matters specifically here is narrow and verifiable: the listing supports x64 and ARM64. It installs and runs natively on the exact machines the built-in tool cannot touch, and it does so as a real Windows app — native Windows 11 design, light and dark themes, drag and drop, clipboard paste, keyboard shortcuts and a resizable navigation pane, rather than a website in a frame. The download is about 46 MB. The app is free to install; sending faxes and getting your own fax number require a paid subscription.
The steps below are the Surface-specific path. If you want the app itself documented in full — every supported file type, the receiving and organization features, the complete list of limits — that lives in our mFax for Windows guide.
Install from the Microsoft Store
Open the Microsoft Store on your Surface and search for mFax, or go straight to apps.microsoft.com/detail/9p78gx5h9prv and click Get. The Store serves the ARM64 build automatically — there is nothing to choose and no architecture to get wrong.
Sign in with your email, or start as a guest
Sign-in is email-only, so there is no password to create. You can also start as a guest and add an email later. The same account works in the browser and on your phone, so fax history follows you across devices.
Add your document
Drag the file onto the window, paste an image from the clipboard, or pick it from disk. The app accepts PDF, Word (.doc/.docx), Excel (.xls/.xlsx), PowerPoint (.ppt/.pptx), OpenDocument (.odt/.ods/.odp), RTF, TXT, CSV, HTML and images (PNG, JPG, BMP, GIF, WebP), converting each to fax-ready pages automatically. The limits are 60 pages per fax and 20 MB per file.
Fix and sign the pages before sending
Reorder, rotate, duplicate, delete or extract pages, draw in seven ink colors, and add text captions, with undo and redo throughout. You can also sign with a mouse, trackpad or pen and drag the signature into place — on a Surface that means signing with the pen instead of printing, signing and rescanning.
Type the number and send
Enter the recipient's fax number — there is a country picker with live formatting for international numbers — and send. A live progress indicator shows the transmission with a time estimate, and the delivery receipt downloads as a shareable PDF. If a fax fails, the app says why in plain language (busy line, no answer, no fax signal, number out of service) instead of showing an error code.
Inbound works on ARM too
Receiving is the half people assume needs hardware, and on a Surface it does not: get your own fax number inside the app, and arriving faxes open in a desktop PDF viewer with zoom, fit-to-width and page thumbnails — readable on the tablet screen without exporting anywhere. Windows Fax and Scan could never have done this on your machine at any price, because it answers calls through a modem. The full picture on numbers, org workspaces and receiving is in the mFax for Windows guide.
What the app does not do
mFax for Windows sends over the internet, so it needs a connection and an account. There is no offline mode, no fax-modem or landline mode, and no Print-to-fax driver or Office add-in. On ARM that is not much of a loss — the modem path was never available to you in the first place.
Method 2: Send from the Browser
If you cannot install Store apps — a locked-down work Surface, a shared machine, or a single fax you never want to think about again — the browser route needs nothing at all. Open mFax in your browser — Edge, Chrome and Firefox all work — upload your document, enter the fax number, and send. Architecture is irrelevant to a web page, so this has always worked on ARM.
It is the same account and fax history as the desktop app, so you can start in the browser today and install the app later. For the broader set of no-hardware options, see our guide to faxing without a phone line.
Method 3: A Multifunction Printer (Only If You Already Own One)
If your office already has an MFP with a built-in fax module, you can print to its fax driver from any application — but ARM adds a second gate on top of the usual analog-line requirement. Printer drivers are drivers, so the manufacturer has to publish an ARM64 print driver for that exact model, which is far from universal in 2026; on many models the ARM64 package is print-only and omits the fax queue even when the x64 package includes it. Check the vendor's download page for your model and architecture before counting on this. The general setup, for x64 machines and ARM alike, is in how to pick a fax app for Windows.
What Changes Between x64 and ARM Windows
| Method | x64 Windows PC | ARM Windows PC (Surface Pro 11, Copilot+) |
|---|---|---|
| Windows Fax and Scan | Available as an optional feature | Not available — cannot be installed |
| USB fax modem | Works (check the chipset first) | No ARM64 drivers |
| mFax for Windows (Store app) | Yes | Yes — native ARM64 build |
| Browser faxing | Yes | Yes |
| Email-to-fax | Yes | Yes |
| MFP printer fax | Yes, with a landline | Only if an ARM64 driver exists |
| Hardware cost | $25–$50 modem + $15–$40/mo line | None — internet only |
The summary: ARM users lose the two legacy methods and keep every modern one — and since August 2026 the modern list includes a native app, not just a browser tab.
What It Costs on ARM
On an x64 machine the built-in route looks free and isn't: a $25–$50 modem plus a $15–$40 monthly line comes to $180–$480 a year. On an ARM Surface that spending buys nothing, because the driver will not load. Internet faxing inverts the arithmetic — the app is free to install, and you pay for sending rather than for hardware. For a team, mFax Business lets you build your own plan with a live calculator, from about $9/mo billed annually with a virtual fax number and HIPAA compliance features.
More Questions About Faxing on ARM Windows
Can you fax from a Surface Pro?
Yes — over the internet. Install mFax for Windows from the Microsoft Store (it has a native ARM64 build) or use mFax.to in a browser. What you cannot do on an ARM Surface is use Windows Fax and Scan, because that feature is not available on ARM64.
Why does my Surface not have Windows Fax and Scan?
Because it is an ARM device. The feature drives a dial-up fax modem through a hardware driver, and there are no ARM64 fax modem drivers — so Microsoft does not offer the optional feature on that architecture. On an Intel or AMD Surface it installs normally.
Is there a fax app for Copilot+ PCs?
Yes. mFax for Windows lists x64 and ARM64 on the Microsoft Store, with a minimum requirement of Windows 10 version 17763.0, so it installs on Snapdragon-based Copilot+ machines. It is free to install and about 46 MB; sending faxes and getting your own fax number require a paid subscription.
Can I run Windows Fax and Scan through x64 emulation on ARM?
No. Emulation on ARM Windows covers user-mode applications, not kernel-mode drivers, and Windows Fax and Scan is useless without a modem driver. There is no supported way to force it onto an ARM64 installation.
Do I need a phone line to fax from a Surface?
No. Both the mFax Windows app and the browser send over your existing internet connection. A phone line is only relevant to the modem-based methods, which are unavailable on ARM anyway.
Send Your Fax from the Surface You Already Have
The ARM gap is real, but it is narrow: you lose the two oldest methods and nothing else. Install mFax for Windows from the Microsoft Store — free, about 46 MB, native ARM64 — then drag your document in, type the fax number, and send. No modem, no landline, no drivers to hunt for.
Not able to install apps on your machine? Open mFax in your browser and send the same fax in under two minutes.
For the full method-by-method walkthrough on x64 machines, see how to fax from Windows 11. If your machine turned out to be Intel or AMD after all and the built-in tool still failed, Windows Fax and Scan alternatives sorts the other failure modes. And if you are comparing tools rather than architectures, our roundup of the best fax software for Windows ranks the options, while how to fax from a laptop covers Windows and Mac side by side.