Windows apps missing for some users on domain joined Computers

Question

I am deploying Windows 10 to our network and have been having this issue for over a year with still no permanent fix.

The problem:
After joining the PC to the domain and logging in with a domain user (using roaming profiles) most Windows built in apps are not available. They do not appear in the start menu, they do not appear in Settings>Apps and features and if I try to open a files requiring the app it appears that the app is not installed on the system. The apps with this issue include Windows Store, Calculator and Photos (lots more but these are the main ones we need.)

If I log in to the same PC as a local admin they all work fine appearing in all the places they should.

For some domain users it now also works. I say now because there are some users that it did not work for but now does. It seems quite random and I have not managed to find a reason.

I have tried a lot of on line fixes, I don't want to make the post too long by listing everything in detail but the following have not worked:

sfc scannow
dism restore
Windows store troubshooting (only suggests logging in with an MS account)
For the store I tried wsreset but it just comes up saying it needs windows store to run it!
Get-AppXPackage
Clean boot
Check computer time
Windows update to 1909 (Having issues installing 20H2, could be related but not sure)
There will be more but these are the ones I can remember at the moment.

Then today I found something that actually fixes it.... sort of!

I reinstalled the apps as described here:
After this the app reinstalled work and appear where they should for the currently logged in user. However only for that user and only on that PC. If I log out and back in to a different PC it doesn't work and if I log in to the same PC with another non-working account it doesn't work. However it still works on that specific account-computer combo.

I'm hoping this behavior might point towards the cause of the problem for someone out there. Maybe I've been trying to fix this so long I've become blind to something obvious!

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Issue : Windows 10 21H2 - joining a domain causes all Windows Apps / Modern Apps / Universal Apps to disappear (e.g., missing from the menu, missing from Default Apps, missing from Background Apps).

Solution :

1. Run Powershell as Administrator
2. Run these commands one at a time (note -AllUsers in the commands):

   Get-AppxPackage -allusers Microsoft.WindowsStore | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}  
   Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers| Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”}
   

Answer 2

I have decided I can't spend any more time on this for now. The windows apps aren't crucial for most users and I have a sort of fix even though it is not particularly stable for users who need it. Perhaps when we complete the upgrade of the servers the issue will resolve itself. Thanks for your replies!

It's frustrating how many similar issue like this I am having with Windows 10. It seems strange that there's no definitive answer for what causes these issues. Someone out there must know how these systems work and therefore be able to determine what is causing the problem logically. The fact that I can fix it every time in the way stated in my original post must surely narrow down the possible causes.

Something must remain on the local PC must after a user has logged in then been deleted which allows the apps to display when that user logs in again. But my understanding was that when you delete the user it removes both registry entries and the local copy of their profile so should be like the user has never logged in there. But there must be something else in the registry.

Answer 3

in my case, the issue started after an update.
before I used to be able to run apps from different domains with no problem.
Now, only sometimes Windows cannot find the Apps from the administrator domain even though the folders exist.
I always have to reboot the computer multiple times to finally be able to run the apps under a different domain.

Answer 4

Hey everyone,

I was wondering if anyone allready found a fix on this situation?
We're currently having this situation on 3 workstations with Windows 10 build 21H2.

I've been looking around on google but don't find many others stating they're in the same boat.
For as we have found out it seems to be something with the Rights on the folders where those apps are situated. though it's not really clear how to resolve this issue.
The problem is, 2 of those 3 units are factory build systems and the 3 systems together are from 2 different manufacturers. So it's not a certain Windows image that's having the problem.

Reinstalling Windows 10 21H2 seems to resolve the problem, but since we're on the edge of replacing a lot of workstations internally, we're not looking forward on checking every workstation if the calculator app is functioning for all users....

I've tried a different powershell script then the one in OP's post, which reïnstalled all default apps. though that didn't work out.
And i'm unable to try the steps in the tutorial OP is refering to since the PS script that's been linked to is no longer available.

Please let me know if someone else managed to resolve this propperly.

Answer 5

I've come to the conclusion that I can't work on this any longer. For the majority of users, the Windows apps are not essential, and while my solution isn't very stable, it can be used by those who require it. Maybe after the servers are upgraded to their final state, the problem will go away on its own. I appreciate your responses.