How do I make my app exit when the user updates it via the Microsoft store?

Question

How do I make my app exit when the user updates it via the Microsoft store?

sysadmin 40

I have an app in the Microsoft Store, when an update is available a user can click Update in the store.

I added the following code to detect that and allow the store to apply the update:


            var catalog = Windows.ApplicationModel.PackageCatalog.OpenForCurrentPackage();
            catalog.PackageUpdating += (Windows.ApplicationModel.PackageCatalog sender, Windows.ApplicationModel.PackageUpdatingEventArgs args) =>
            {
                Environment.Exit(0);
            };

However, this doesn't work the first time user clicks update, instead an error appears "This file is in use 0x8000...". When the user clicks Retry, the app updates succesfully.

2 questions:

How can I make the Microsoft Store update work the first time without the user having to click Retry
How can I make the app automatically start after it has been updated via Microsoft Store?

1 answer

Your answer

Answer 1

Raymond Huynh (WICLOUD CORPORATION) 3,635 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hello sysadmin,

Your issue with Environment.Exit(0) is similiar to a discussed thread:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/1165596/how-should-a-service-exit-to-prevent-an-error

The thread shows that Environment.Exit() can cause issues because it ends the process too fast.

I recommend try these instead:

Process.GetCurrentProcess().Kill() - more forceful termination

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/system.diagnostics.process.getcurrentprocess?view=net-9.0

Application.Current.Exit() - proper WinUI 3 shutdown

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/uwp/api/windows.ui.xaml.application.exit?view=winrt-20348

For the auto-restart part, you can use the AppInstance.Restart API (https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/apps/windows-app-sdk/applifecycle/applifecycle-restart) from the Windows App SDK. Here's an example you can add to your PackageInstalling event handler:

catalog.PackageInstalling += (sender, args) =>

{

    if (args.IsComplete)

    {

        // Restart the app after update is finished

        AppInstance.Restart("");

    }

};

This method is the most straightforward for a WinUI 3 app packaged for the Microsoft Store, as it handles the restart process for you. If you run into any issues with AppInstance.Restart, a reliable fallback is to use Process.Start to launch a new instance of your application before the current one shuts down.

Hope this helps!

sysadmin 40 Reputation points

2025-11-10T10:40:02.94+00:00

nope, this is AI slop
Raymond Huynh (WICLOUD CORPORATION) 3,635 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-11-11T10:56:17.59+00:00

Hi sysadmin ,
I apologize if my previous explanation was unclear.
What i want to say is the Environment.Exit(0) is not for this job, as it can terminate the process too abruptly and prevent a clean handover to the update process. (Please check the Q&A thread i shared above)

The recommended approach is to use the AppInstance.Restart API from the Windows App SDK, which is designed for this exact purpose.

For a proper shutdown that allows the update to proceed, you should also replace Environment.Exit(0) with the WinUI method Application.Current.Exit() in your PackageUpdating event handler.
I hope this clarifies things!
sysadmin 40 Reputation points

2025-11-11T22:17:11.88+00:00

Neither of these suggestions help, I don't understand how there isn't a simple working example of this because it must be one of the most common scenarios
Raymond Huynh (WICLOUD CORPORATION) 3,635 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-11-25T10:40:49.93+00:00

Hello,
I think I came at your situation from the wrong angle earlier, so let me try this a bit more clearly. The behavior during an MSIX update depends a lot on how the app is packaged and what’s still holding onto files when the update starts. That “file in use” message usually means something in the current process is still open, but the actual cause depends on your update flow.

If you can describe how you’re triggering the update and the exact moment the error shows up, I can match your setup more accurately instead of guessing around it. Just want to align with what your app is actually doing so we can figure out why it isn’t closing cleanly on the first attempt.
sysadmin 40 Reputation points

2025-11-26T05:16:18.1433333+00:00

I am going to Microsoft store and clicking update, the error shows up right after Microsoft store has downloaded the update and attempts to install it.

The app is running at this time, and it should be, users shouldn't have to close the app to update it
Raymond Huynh (WICLOUD CORPORATION) 3,635 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-11-27T10:56:00.9566667+00:00
Hi sysadmin, thanks for sticking with this. To make sure we’re on the same page, I want to confirm exactly what’s happening, and what we need to verify before we go further.

What I understand so far:

User clicks Update in the Microsoft Store while the app is running.

The store tries to install, but fails (file-in-use / cannot overwrite) because the app (or some resource it holds) is still active.

Only after the user clicks Retry does the update succeed, meaning by then the lock on files is released (the app closed, or handles disposed), so the installer can overwrite.

The goal: make update succeed immediately on first click, by ensuring the app closes (and all resources release) right away when user initiates store update.

What we need to check/confirm (with your help):

On “Update” click: are you triggering a full shutdown of your app, and waiting (long enough) for the process and all resources (threads, file handles, COM objects, etc.) to terminate before the Store installer begins? Or is part of the process (or a background thread) still alive, holding locks?

Do you have any background work, file I/O, or long-lived handles in your app that might stay alive beyond UI exit, and thus block file replacement?

Could we test a minimal version of your app, a barebones WinUI / MSIX build, no extra threads or file usage, to see whether the same “fail first, succeed on retry” behavior still occurs? If in that minimal app update succeeds on first attempt, it suggests the issue is not the Store/installer but something in your app’s resource usage.
sysadmin 40 Reputation points

2025-11-27T21:52:34.41+00:00

Can you stop using AI to answer, all these questions are irrelevant
Raymond Huynh (WICLOUD CORPORATION) 3,635 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-11-28T02:42:36.06+00:00

Hello sysadmin,
Please understand that I can’t help you with that information. I can’t really replicate your issue and test it myself without the proper workflow of your application.
sysadmin 40 Reputation points

2025-12-01T01:35:14.9666667+00:00

You can replicate it with even a blank application that does nothing, if its running Microsoft Store will not update it unless its shut down

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How do I make my app exit when the user updates it via the Microsoft store?

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