Windows Spotlight STILL won't work

Question

Windows Spotlight STILL won't work

Erin C 10

I have tried every suggested option to get Windows Spotlight (with the info icon) back on my computer - which is mostly telling me to take it off of Spotlight and select either Picture or Slideshow, then log off or restart. Go back to settings and set it back to spotlight and log off or restart and it should work. This never works. Someone suggested to toggle the "fun facts" option while on Picture of Slideshow or toggle the "lock screen background picture on the sign-in screen". This still does not work. I don't want Bing, I want Spotlight back. Does anyone have any other methods that have worked for them. I am not super savvy with computers but I feel like this is a very simple fix that isn't working. I really miss finding out about each daily picture just by hoovering over the icon, or, if I want more details, I can click on the icon (I think it said "learn about this picture".

I don't know which Parent, Child or Child Item to select to get this answered by the correct people. None of the options seem fitting to me so I ended up choosing Microsoft 365 Insider and then Other.

Felix T 0 Reputation points

2026-03-09T22:00:29.5366667+00:00

I was having trouble with this, and after downloading Dynamic Theme as Marcelo suggested, the program notified me that I was on a "limited connection." Sure enough when I switched off my wifi to my hotspot, spotlight started working. In my case I am using my university's wifi which migh be the issue, though I'm not sure. Maybe someone knows how to permamnently get around this.

3 answers

Your answer

Felix T 0 Reputation points

2026-03-09T22:00:29.5366667+00:00

I was having trouble with this, and after downloading Dynamic Theme as Marcelo suggested, the program notified me that I was on a "limited connection." Sure enough when I switched off my wifi to my hotspot, spotlight started working. In my case I am using my university's wifi which migh be the issue, though I'm not sure. Maybe someone knows how to permamnently get around this.

Answer 1

Marcelo Tadeu 5

Hi, I'd like to help. Use this free app found in the Microsoft Store; it's exactly the same as Windows Spotlight, just configure it for Spotlight. This is a real solution. Spotlight on Windows 11 is being broken by updates; install this and the problem is solved. Link below.

https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9nblggh1zbkw?hl=en-US&gl=US

It's free.

Erin C 10 Reputation points

2026-02-27T23:04:14.6733333+00:00

Thank you, Marcelo. I will definitely try this. What do you mean by "configure it for Spotlight"? I downloaded the app but will wait to hear back on this question.
Marcelo Tadeu 5 Reputation points

2026-02-28T14:25:35.02+00:00

Hi, in the dynamic theme under "customize your background" you can choose images from Bing, Spotlight, and more, and the same applies to the lock screen.
Erin C 10 Reputation points

2026-03-09T17:07:24.7433333+00:00

I downloaded the app but it keeps removing this option from the drop down so I can't actually utilize it.
Marcelo Tadeu 5 Reputation points

2026-03-09T17:43:02.49+00:00
Marcelo Tadeu 5 Reputation points

2026-03-09T17:45:20.6966667+00:00

This program is very good, it has no errors. See if the image helps.
Erin C 10 Reputation points

2026-03-09T18:19:52.29+00:00

Thank you, Marcello. It did work and I was able to select One Windows Spotlight picture right after I downloaded the app but the next day, One Windows Spotlight picture was no longer an option in the drop down. I downloaded the app again but the next day it was gone again. Not sure why it does this.
Marcelo Tadeu 5 Reputation points

2026-03-09T18:40:07.6833333+00:00

I understand. I installed this app on many computers and they all worked perfectly. 23H2, 24H2, and 25H2 are the best options to replace the original until Microsoft fixes it someday. The graphical interface is the same as the original Windows 11.
Marcelo Tadeu 5 Reputation points

2026-03-09T18:43:26.9666667+00:00

Perhaps you should try using sfc /scannow to check for Windows errors.

Answer 2

Hello,

Please try the following steps:

Run Windows Update and make sure your PC is fully up to date.
Delete the Windows Spotlight cache (temporary files). Open Settings > Personalization > Lock screen, and change the background from “Windows Spotlight” to “Picture” (or “Slideshow”), then close the Settings window. Press Windows + E to open File Explorer. At the top of File Explorer, select the “View” tab and enable “Hidden files” to show hidden items. Then open the following folders in order: Windows (C:) > Users > your user folder > AppData > Local > Packages > Microsoft.Windows.ContentDeliveryManager_cw5n1h2txyewy > Settings In the “Settings” folder, right‑click and delete the files inside (there may be only one file). After that, return to Settings > Personalization > Lock screen and set the background back to “Windows Spotlight”. Restart your PC from the Start menu’s power icon and check whether the issue has improved.

Please note that it may take several days for these steps to take full effect on Windows Spotlight.

If the same situation continues after restarting, please monitor it for up to about one week.

Erin C 10 Reputation points

2026-03-09T17:08:17.5333333+00:00

Thank you. I followed the steps up until my user folder. After that, there is no AppData within my user folder.
Felix T 0 Reputation points

2026-03-09T22:06:57.8733333+00:00

If you don't see AppData you might not have enabled hidden files. In File Explorer you need to go to the View dropdown, then Show and check Hidden Items. Anyway, the issue for me turned out to be a limited wifi connection.

Answer 3

Q&A Assist

AI generated content. This question contains an answer created with AI from Q&A Assist. Learn more

It sounds like you're experiencing persistent issues with Windows Spotlight not functioning as expected. Here are some additional troubleshooting steps that may help you restore Windows Spotlight:

Check for Windows Updates: Ensure that your system is fully updated. Sometimes, updates can resolve underlying issues.
- Go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update and check for updates.
Reset Windows Spotlight: You can reset the Windows Spotlight feature by deleting its cache. Here’s how:
- Press Win + R to open the Run dialog.
- Type shell:appdata and press Enter.
- Navigate to the Microsoft folder, then to Windows > Themes > CachedFiles.
- Delete all files in this folder.
- Restart your computer and try enabling Windows Spotlight again.
Group Policy Settings: If you are using Windows 10 or 11 Pro, check the Group Policy settings:
- Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter.
- Navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Personalization.
- Ensure that the setting for Prevent changing desktop background is set to Not Configured or Disabled.
Registry Edit: If you're comfortable with editing the registry, you can try this:
- Press Win + R, type regedit, and press Enter.
- Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Personalization\Desktop.
- Look for a value named NoLockScreen and set it to 0 if it exists.
Check Privacy Settings: Ensure that your privacy settings allow Windows to show personalized content:
- Go to Settings > Privacy > Activity history and make sure that options are enabled for your account.

After trying these steps, restart your computer and check if Windows Spotlight is working again. If the issue persists, consider reaching out to Microsoft Support for further assistance.

References:

Sathyme 25 Reputation points

2026-03-09T17:02:25.2266667+00:00

Q&A assist does not work or has not been updated to work - the options it gives when this problem arises - Never work. Also - when this happens, and it happens often, you'll find that the Asset Folder is EMPTY - which leads us to believe it's a Microsoft issue not with our computers.

Then as for the steps the Q&A Assist listed:

Most of us have tried Steps 1 and 2 - That DOES NOT work - and has never worked for most of us.

Second: The Q&A Assist options listed - in STEPS 3, 4, & 5 - DO NOT exist on Windows 11 for me, and I bet for most others: gpedit.msc does not exist.jpg

Personalization doesn't exist.jpg

Activity History does not exist.jpg

ALSO - you probably did't see "gpedit.msc" - Most of us have Windows HOME edition - not PRO - So - Q&A Assist should have said you need PRO to see that - You will not see it on Win 11 Home.
Erin C 10 Reputation points

2026-03-09T18:33:59.44+00:00

Yes! I found this to be true as well. I am still unable to get this to work.
Sathyme 25 Reputation points

2026-03-09T20:42:59.06+00:00
As we all know by now – MEANING - those of us who use and like the pictures have probably done some research that - Windows Spotlight images come from the Bing / Microsoft Start content pipeline, not directly from Windows itself.

The chain:

Bing image/content servers - to - Spotlight content feed - to - Windows lock screen service - to -Assets folder on your PC

When Microsoft updates the content feed or authentication endpoints, sometimes Windows clients temporarily stop receiving the images.

Those updates tend to happen when Microsoft rolls out things like:

Seasonal image sets

Bing content service updates

Windows Spotlight backend changes

regional content rotations

And those often occur around: late February – early March, because Microsoft historically refreshes the spring content cycle then.

So all the things we’ve tried would NOT work because - it’s server-side - meaning

The Blue fallback screen

Assets folder empty

Resetting Spotlight didn’t fix it

Windows is asking for images – but the Server isn’t delivering them.

If it were a local corruption issue, you would still see files being downloaded.

When Microsoft repairs the feed, the system usually resumes:

Spotlight reconnects - Images start downloading again - Assets folder fills with files -Lock screen resumes rotating

Usually, no Windows update is required.

And if you did the many fixes offered, you probably saw somewhere along the line, depending on how deep you went:

403 Forbidden (nginx)

That indicates the Spotlight feed endpoint rejected the request, which again points to server-side configuration.

SO – all of this is to say – It’s a Microsoft issue – NOT us (the Users) and

When Microsoft fixes it, we’ll see the normal 6 or 12 new files appear in the Assets folder again – and Spotlight pix will return.
Marcelo Tadeu 5 Reputation points

2026-03-10T09:26:05.2466667+00:00

Okay, that was a great explanation, but this is an old problem inherited from Windows 10. The same problem happened with Windows 10 21H2, and Spotlight never worked again, except for the Education and Enterprise versions, which didn't have this problem. The others never went back to normal. Everything works fine until updates arrive that completely paralyze Spotlight. It's not a hardware issue; it's an operating system flaw caused by updates, and Microsoft never fixed it. In the case of Windows 11, there are two major flaws: Spotlight and the super slow File Explorer, which still hasn't been fixed to this day.
Erin C 10 Reputation points

2026-03-11T18:37:24.3566667+00:00

I seems to have enabled the Spotlight option but without the "Like what you see?" icon. The strange thing is I have co-workers that have everything working just fine. At this point, I give up and can't be bothered anymore. Thank you Marcelo and Sathyme for your help.

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Windows Spotlight STILL won't work

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