Microsoft, wanting to anticipate the events surrounding the Microsoft Store, is warning users not to uninstall the application from their operating system.
The Microsoft Store is part of Windows, allowing users to install apps from the Store and additionally offering a set of options, such as automatic updates and improved security, thanks to this controlled environment.
Originally introduced in Windows 8, the Microsoft Store has since evolved to include more than just apps and games and is now home to more content, such as music, movies, and browser extensions.
But despite these improvements, the Microsoft Store has so far not become the cutting edge that Microsoft hoped for as many users simply forget it exists and stick to Win32 software, just like on traditional Windows.
In fact, instructions have recently appeared for uninstalling the Microsoft Store completely from Windows 10, although this is not an easy process. However, it is something that can be done, and for this reason, in a recent Microsoft technical support document, the company recommends against such an action.
In other words, Microsoft does not recommend removing or uninstalling the Microsoft Store app. And it cites two main reasons.
First of all, Microsoft says that the option to uninstall the Microsoft Store app is not supported. The phrase seems a bit odd, considering that the method to uninstall the Microsoft Store was actually implemented in Windows 10, so most likely, Microsoft means that uninstalling the Microsoft Store app is not recommended rather than supported.
Secondly, Microsoft says there is no solution to reinstalling the Microsoft Store, other than resetting or reinstalling the operating system. In other words, if you remove the Microsoft Store app from your device and at some point in the future you want it back, the only way to get it back is to reinstall Windows 10 or reset your device.
This may be a concern for some users, but for the most part, it is possible to reset the Microsoft Store with a simple PowerShell command. To do this, launch PowerShell with administrator privileges and then type the following command:
Get-AppXPackage *WindowsStore* -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”}After a system restart, you should see the Microsoft Store app again on your Windows 10 device.
Continuing the advice, Microsoft suggests that those who want to completely remove the Microsoft Store app should not do so and instead recommends that users restrict access to the app, although these are usually methods aimed at companies and not home users.
Of course, removing the Microsoft Store comes with a number of side effects, such as not receiving updates for your modern apps on your Windows 10 device (since they run through the Microsoft Store in the first place). On the other hand, if you don't use modern apps and just want to stick to the traditional side of Windows and rely solely on Win32, removing the Microsoft Store shouldn't cause you any stability issues on Windows 10.
If for some reason you want to refresh or reset Windows 10, you can do so from the Setup option by following this path:
Settings > Update & Security > Recovery > Reset this PC
According to Microsoft, the aforementioned recommendations apply to all versions of Windows 10, including the recent version 1909 (also called the “Windows 10 November 2019 Update” and currently available by manually checking for updates in Windows Update).
If you are convinced and want to disable (not uninstall) the Microsoft Store from Windows 10, you can do it through the registry. Go to:
KEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\WindowsStore
and there create a new D-WORD (32-bit) value named RemoveWindowsStore. Then double-click on it and set it equal to 1.
If you later want to restore it, set the value to 0 or simply delete the RemoveWindowsStore key.
