Compatibility troubleshooter keeps repeating to point to an executable, but never analyzes the executable.

Question

Hi,

To start with, I'm trying to run several standalone desktop applications in Windows 11 on a Surface Pro, and am getting the error

OS: Workstation, No Service Pack.

The web is confusing on this, so I tried the compatibility troubleshooter.

I right-click on the application

, click on Show more options

Troubleshoot compatibility

It asks if I have consent to run diagnostics, to which I say Yes.

It then asks for which installed applications I want to troubleshoot, even though I ALREADY pointed to the app and right-clicked and selected the troubleshooter.

I select None of the Above

It asks if my app is a Windows Desktop application. I say Yes.

Then we're right back at the beginning, with the following instructions

1. Select Start button
2. Type File Explorer and select the option (It doesn't say which option)
3. Navigate to the .exe file (which I already did)
4. Right click on the .exe file and select Show more Options (which I did before, and do again)
5. Select Troubleshoot Compatibility

, which begins the same cycle again.

Endless loop. What do I do?

Answer 1

Hello, ReluctantUser9.

Welcome to Microsoft Community!

Thank you for your description of the problem.

I noticed that you are encountering the following error content when running some of the apps: OS: Workstation, No Service Pack.

This usually means that the computer's Operating System is a workstation version and does not have any Service Packs installed.

What I would like to confirm with you here is what apps are you currently using on your Surface Pro 11?

It is worth noting that based on the Surface Pro 11's CPU Snapdragon, the device utilizes the Arm system architecture. So we need to make sure that the apps are provided with Arm-capable versions.

Of course, we can't rule out other possibilities for causing compatibility issues. If you wish to further confirm the cause of the problem, we can try to analyze it through the Event Viewer:

1. You can click the "Start" button in the taskbar, type "Event Viewer" in the search box, and then select "Event Viewer" from the search results.
2. In the left panel, you can see several important log categories, such as "Application Logs", "Security Logs", "System Logs", and so on. After you select a log category, the middle pane displays all events in that category. Double-click an event or select an event to view the details in the right pane.

Devices missing critical drivers may also encounter this error, where you can try to manually update the drivers and firmware for Surface Pro 11:

Download Surface Pro 11th Edition Drivers and Firmware from Official Microsoft Download Center

In summary, we can get closer to the truth after confirming more specifics and having more clues.

I look forward to your response and always support you.

Best Regards.

Leo.L - Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Answer 2

Hi, could you please check in task manager -> details whether your apps are arm64 or 64 bit or 32 bit.

Answer 3

All of the modern apps run fine, including the Microsoft Apps. It's only the 32-bit applications that are having problems, even in Windows 8 or 7 compatibility mode.

No, there aren't newer versions. Some of them are no longer developed. Treepad in particular is no longer updated, because the owner passed away.

Answer 4

Thanks,

I downloaded and installed the service and firmware packs, but am still getting the errors on some applications.

You mentioned looking at the logs, but didn't specify which logs to look at. Under

Applications and Services Logs,

there's

Hardware Events

Internet Explorer

Key Management Service

Microsoft

Microsoft Office Alerts

OpenSSH

Qualcomm

Windows PowerShell.

Which of these am I supposed to be looking at?

The applications that come with the Surface Pro Windows 11 are standard, including the Trial Microsoft 365 (which I'm not using).

I also installed Anthropic Claude, Ultra Recall Professional (a PIM), Notepad++, and Superantispyware. Note that the errors were occurring, BEFORE installing these apps, And after. These are working fine.

The apps that are giving me errors are older 32-bit applications. Is that the problem? As I mentioned above, I tried to run the compatibility troubleshooter to no avail. And also went into Properties/Compatibility and selected earlier versions of Windows. The same error occurs.

Thanks and Regards,

DC

Answer 5

Hi, ReluctantUser9.

Thanks for your reply.

In the Event Viewer, we need to focus on Hardware Events, Key Management Service, Microsoft and Qualcomm.

It looks like these older 32-bit apps are the key to this incident.

Are there other system versions of them available? It would be nice if there were versions compatible with ARM processors, such as ARM64.

Are there any errors that occur when you run only the applications that come with your Windows system? For example Microsoft 365.

If it can be confirmed that the problem is caused by other apps, you can find out more with the support for those apps to see if they have any more suggestions for ARM systems.

In the meantime, you can also refer to the following links for more information:

Windows Arm-based PCs FAQ - Microsoft Support

I'm with you.

Best Regards.

Leo.L - Microsoft Community Support Specialist