At times, Windows Store Apps in Windows 11 and Windows 10 can create issues. Sometimes, the apps refuse to start or crash! In some other scenarios, you may receive This app can’t open error. In yet other cases, users are not able to update existing apps to solve the issues they’re experiencing with the current version. In all such cases, there is one thing you can try, and that is to re-register or reinstall the Microsoft Store apps.
This app can’t open
If the system apps are unable to start due to issues with the user account, the problem can be solved by creating a new admin account, because Windows automatically sets apps to factory defaults for new accounts. Re-registering apps is an offline operation, and you don’t need to stay connected to the Internet for that. It can be done via executing a simple command in Windows PowerShell. If you’re facing issues with multiple issues with apps on your system, try to re-register the apps and get rid of the issues.
Re-register or Reinstall Microsoft Store Apps
Let us see how to re-register or reinstall the Microsoft Store & Windows Store apps in Windows 11/10. This can help fix This app can’t open and other problems. You have three ways to do this:
- Run a PowerShell command
- Use Windows Settings
- Use 10AppsManager.
Now let us see the procedures in detail.
1] Re-register Microsoft Store apps using PowerShell command
Create a System Restore Point first.
Then press WinKey+Q, type powershell and select Windows PowerShell from the results, right-click on it and choose Run as administrator.
In the administrative Windows PowerShell window, type the following command and hit Enter key then:
Get-AppxPackage -allusers Microsoft.WindowsStore | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
Once the command is successfully executed, you can close Windows PowerShell and reboot the machine.
This will reinstall all the apps. This is also useful if you find that your Microsoft Store is missing.
After restarting the system, problems with apps on your Windows should be fixed.
TIP: This post will show you how to reinstall all your default preinstalled Windows Store apps in Windows 11/10, using a PowerShell script.
2] Use Windows Settings
You can Reset or Repair Microsoft Store apps via Windows Settings.
Open the Start Menu and click on the Settings icon. Next, go to Apps > Apps & features. Identify the app which is not working properly and click on it. You will see Advanced options.
Finally, click on the Reset button to initiate the process to reset the app. When you do this, the app data will be deleted, and the app will be reinstalled with default settings. This is useful if you want to reinstall a particular app.
3] Use 10AppsManager
10AppsManager is a freeware that will allow you to easily uninstall and reinstall any of the default, built-in, preinstalled Windows Store apps in Windows 10.
How do I restore the missing Microsoft Store app in Windows 11/10?
If Microsoft Store is totally gone or missing on your Windows 11/10 PC, then use the Windows Store Apps troubleshooter and see if it helps to bring it back. If not, reset and repair the Microsoft Store app from the Settings app of Windows 11/10. If this also doesn’t work, then open Windows PowerShell as administrator and execute the following command:
Get-AppXPackage *WindowsStore* -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}Why does Microsoft Store not work on Windows 11?
Microsoft Store may not work if you are using a proxy server or VPN as that may interfere with it. If you haven’t updated your Windows 11 system for a while, then that may cause issues with Microsoft Store. To fix this problem, make sure your system is updated and disable any proxy server or VPN (if you are using any). You may also need to correct the date & time settings of your system, clear the Microsoft Store cache, etc.
All the best.
