Desktop App Installer

Question

Hi

If the below policies are disabled through GPO, I suspect that only command-line utilities like winget will be impacted. Could there be any other effects?

Computer Configuration-Policies-Administrative Templates-Windows Components-Desktop App Installer-Enable App Installer

Computer Configuration-Policies-Administrative Templates-Windows Components-Desktop App Installer-Enable App Installer Experimental Features

Computer Configuration-Policies-Administrative Templates-Windows Components-Desktop App Installer-Enable App Installer Hash Override

Computer Configuration-Policies-Administrative Templates-Windows Components-Desktop App Installer-Enable App Installer ms-appinstaller protocol

Answer 1

Hello,

 

Thank you for posting in Q&A forum.

Disabling the following policies set through Group Policy (GPO) may affect more than just command-line tools such as winget, but may also have other effects on application installation and management on Windows systems. Here's the impact each strategy can have:

 

Enable App Installer:

If you disable this policy, users won't be able to use the Windows App Installer to install apps. This means that installations made through the Microsoft Store or other app packages such as .appx or .msix files will be restricted.

 

Enable App Installer Experimental Features:

Disabling this policy may prevent users from accessing certain experimental features that may impact the app's installation experience or provide additional functionality. If a user relies on these experimental features, it may result in the app installation failing or becoming unusable.

 

Enable App Installer Hash Override:

This policy allows users to override hash verification of app packages. If you disable this policy, users won't be able to install app packages that don't pass hash validation, which may limit the installation of some custom or internally developed apps.

 

Enable App Installer ms-appinstaller protocol:

Disabling this policy will prevent the installation of apps that use the ms-appinstaller protocol. This means that some apps may not be able to be installed directly through the link, affecting the user's installation experience.

 

I hope the information above is helpful.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to let us know.

 

Best regards，

Jill Zhou

---

If the Answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and upvote it.