Symptoms:  A Trimble device or similar rugged handheld device that was working fine with Windows 10 may suddenly stop working and no longer be able to connect to the computer. This is a known issue associated with the Windows 10 version 1703 (Creators Update) Build 15063.  On an attempt to sync the device the software will state that its unable to connect or just fail.

The credit here goes to Junipersys.com for identifying the fix for this frustrating error, the original can be found here: http://www.junipersys.com/Juniper-Systems-Rugged-Handheld-Computers/support/Knowledge-Base/Support-Knowledge-Base-Topics/Desktop-Connection-ActiveSync-or-Windows-Mobile-Device-Center/WMDC-in-Windows-10

The solution is a multi-step process:

1. Ensure that .NET Framework 3.5 is fully installed under Control Panel > Programs > “Turn Windows features on or off”. Sometimes before being successful at installing WMDC, you must first manually enable the required .NET Framework 3.5 under “Turn Windows features on or off” and/or by using the previous dotNetFx35setup.exe installer from Microsoft. You may need to check the http and non-http additions to complete the install.
2. Run the 64-bit drvupdate-amd64.exe or 32-bit drvupdate-x86.exe installer as an Admin and in “Compatibility Mode” for Windows Vista if WMDC and the required drivers do not successfully install automatically through the Windows Update service when you connect USB.  You can access compatibility mode by right clicking on the file, go to properties, and click the compatibility tab, “Run as Windows Vista”.  Also make sure that you run it as Administrator.   If you do not feel comfortable downloading the files from Junipersys.com you can obtain the files from Microsoft’s website by searching Windows WMDC.
3. After install and once “Windows Mobile Device Center” appears in the list under the Start menu on the desktop PC, similar to as is automatically applied by our “WMDC-Helper.exe” utility referenced above, you WILL need to run command-prompt as an administrator to apply the following registry commands, and then perform a Restart.
   1. REG ADD HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\RapiMgr /v SvcHostSplitDisable /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f
   2. REG ADD HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\WcesComm /v SvcHostSplitDisable /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f
4. Reboot the machine and you should be able to connect your device and sync with the computer again!