Troubleshooting packaging, deployment, and query of Windows apps

Use these suggestions to troubleshoot problems you experience when packaging, deploying, or querying a Windows app package (.msix/.appx) as a developer.

Note

This article is intended for developers. If you are not a developer and you are looking for help with a Windows app installation error, see Windows support.

Get diagnostic information

When an API fails, it returns an error code that describes the problem. If the error code doesn't provide enough information, you find more diagnostic information in the detailed event logs.

To access the packaging and deployment event logs by using Event Viewer, follow these steps:

  1. Perform one of the following steps:

    • Click Start on the Windows menu, type Event Viewer, and press Enter.
    • Run eventvwr.msc.
  2. In the left page, expand Event Viewer (Local) > Applications and Services Logs > Microsoft > Windows.

  3. Check for available logs under these categories:

    • AppxPackagingOM > Microsoft-Windows-AppxPackaging/Operational
    • AppXDeployment-Server > Microsoft-Windows-AppXDeploymentServer/Operational

Start by looking at the logs under AppXDeployment-Server. If the error was caused by 0x80073CF0 or ERROR_INSTALL_OPEN_PACKAGE_FAILED, additional details may be present in the AppxpackagingOM logs.

You can also use the Get-AppxLog command in PowerShell to get the first few logged events. The following example displays the logs associated with the most recent deployment operation.

Get-Appxlog

The following example displays the logs associated with the most recent deployment operation in an interactive table in a separate window.

Get-Appxlog | Out-GridView

Common error codes

This table lists some of the most common error codes. If you need further help with one of these errors, or if you're encountering an error code not in this list, see additional help options.

Error code Value Description and possible causes
E_FILENOTFOUND 0x80070002 File or path is not found. This can occur during a COM typelib validation requires that the path for the directory actually exist within your MSIX package.
ERROR_BAD_FORMAT 0x8007000B The package isn't correctly formatted and needs to be re-built or re-signed.
You may get this error if there is a mismatch between the signing certificate subject name and the AppxManifest.xml publisher name.
See How to sign an app package using SignTool.
E_INVALIDARG 0x80070057 One or more arguments are not valid. If you check the AppXDeployment-Server event log and see the following event: "While installing the package, the system failed to register the windows.repositoryExtension extension due to the following error: The parameter is incorrect."
You may get this error if the manifest elements DisplayName or Description contain characters disallowed by Windows firewall such as |, due to which Windows fails to create the AppContainer profile for the package. Please remove these characters from the manifest and try installing the package.
ERROR_INSTALL_OPEN_
PACKAGE_FAILED
0x80073CF0 The package couldn't be opened.
Possible causes:
  • The package is unsigned.
  • The publisher name doesn't match the signing certificate subject.
  • The file:// prefix is missing or the package couldn't be found at the specified location.
For more information, check the AppxPackagingOM event log.
ERROR_INSTALL_PACKAGE_
NOT_FOUND
0x80073CF1 The package couldn't be found.
You may get this error while removing a package that isn't installed for the current user.
ERROR_INSTALL_INVALID_
PACKAGE
0x80073CF2 The package data isn't valid.
ERROR_INSTALL_RESOLVE_
DEPENDENCY_FAILED
0x80073CF3 The package failed update, dependency, or conflict validation.
Possible causes:
  • The incoming package conflicts with an installed package.
  • A specified package dependency can't be found.
  • The package doesn't support the correct processor architecture.
For more informtion, check the AppXDeployment-Server event log.
ERROR_INSTALL_OUT_
OF_DISK_SPACE
0x80073CF4 There isn't enough disk space on your computer. Free some space and try again.
ERROR_INSTALL_NETWORK_
FAILURE
0x80073CF5 The package can't be downloaded.
ERROR_INSTALL_
REGISTRATION_FAILURE
0x80073CF6 The package can't be registered.
For more information, check the AppXDeployment-Server event log.
ERROR_INSTALL_
DEREGISTRATION_EFAILURE
0x80073CF7 The package can't be unregistered.
You may get this error while removing a package.
For more information, check the AppXDeployment-Server event log.
ERROR_INSTALL_CANCEL 0x80073CF8 The user canceled the install request.
ERROR_INSTALL_FAILED 0x80073CF9 Package install failed. Contact the software vendor.
For more information, check the AppXDeployment-Server event log.
ERROR_REMOVE_FAILED 0x80073CFA Package removal failed.
You may get this error for failures that occur during package uninstall.
For more information, see RemovePackageAsync.
ERROR_PACKAGE_
ALREADY_EXISTS
0x80073CFB The provided package is already installed, and reinstallation of the package is blocked.
You may get this error if installing a package that is not bitwise identical to the package that is already installed. Note that the digital signature is also part of the package. Hence if a package is rebuilt or resigned, it is no longer bitwise identical to the previously installed package. Two possible options to fix this error are: (1) Increment the version number of the app, then rebuild and resign the package (2) Remove the old package for every user on the system before installing the new package.
ERROR_NEEDS_REMEDIATION 0x80073CFC The app can't be started. Try reinstalling the app.
ERROR_INSTALL_
PREREQUISITE_FAILED
0x80073CFD A specified install prerequisite couldn't be satisfied.
ERROR_PACKAGE_
REPOSITORY_CORRUPTED
0x80073CFE The package repository is corrupted.
You may get this error if the folder referenced by this registry key doesn't exist or is corrupted:
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows</strong>
CurrentVersion\Appx\PackageRepositoryRoot
To recover from this state, refresh your PC.
ERROR_INSTALL_
POLICY_FAILURE
0x80073CFF To install this app, you need a developer license or a sideloading-enabled system.
You may get this error if the package doesn't meet one of the following requirements:
  • The app is deployed using F5 in Visual Studio on a computer with a Windows developer license.
  • The package is signed with a Microsoft signature and deployed as part of Windows or from the Microsoft Store.
  • The package is signed with a trusted signature and installed on a computer with a developer license, a domain-joined computer with the AllowAllTrustedApps policy enabled, or a computer with a Windows Sideloading license with the AllowAllTrustedApps policy enabled.
ERROR_PACKAGE_UPDATING 0x80073D00 The app can't be started because it's currently updating.
ERROR_DEPLOYMENT_
BLOCKED_BY_POLICY
0x80073D01 The package deployment operation is blocked by policy. Contact your system administrator.
Possible causes:
  • Package deployment is blocked by Application Control Policies.
  • Package deployment is blocked by the "Allow deployment operations in special profiles" policy.
One of the possible reasons is a need for a roaming profile. For information about setting up Roaming User Profiles on user accounts, see Deploy Roaming User Profiles. If there are no policies configured on your system and you still see this error, perhaps you are logged in with a temporary profile. Log out and log in again, then try the operation again.
ERROR_PACKAGES_IN_USE 0x80073D02 The package couldn't be installed because resources it modifies are currently in use.
ERROR_RECOVERY_
FILE_CORRUPT
0x80073D03 The package couldn't be recovered because data that's necessary for recovery is corrupted.
ERROR_INVALID_
STAGED_SIGNATURE
0x80073D04 The signature isn't valid. To register in developer mode, AppxSignature.p7x and AppxBlockMap.xml must be valid or shouldn't be present.
If you are a developer using F5 with Visual Studio, ensure that your built project directory doesn't contain signature or block map files from previous versions of the package.
ERROR_DELETING_EXISTING_
APPLICATIONDATA_STORE_FAILED
0x80073D05 An error occurred while deleting the package's previously existing application data.
You can get this error if the simulator is running. Close the simulator. You can also get this error if there are files open in the app data (for example, if you have a log file open in a text editor).
ERROR_INSTALL_
PACKAGE_DOWNGRADE
0x80073D06 The package couldn't be installed because a higher version of this package is already installed.
ERROR_SYSTEM_
NEEDS_REMEDIATION
0x80073D07 An error in a system binary was detected. To fix the problem, try refreshing the PC.
ERROR_APPX_INTEGRITY_
FAILURE_EXTERNAL
0x80073D08 A corrupted non-Windows binary was detected on the system.
ERROR_RESILIENCY_
FILE_CORRUPT
0x80073D09 The operation couldn't be resumed because data that's necessary for recovery is corrupted.
ERROR_INSTALL_FIREWALL_
SERVICE_NOT_RUNNING
0x80073D0A The package couldn't be installed because the Windows Firewall service isn't running. Enable the Windows Firewall service and try again.
ERROR_PACKAGE_MOVE_FAILED 0x80073D0B The package move operation failed.
ERROR_INSTALL_VOLUME_
NOT_EMPTY
0x80073D0C The deployment operation failed because the volume is not empty.
ERROR_INSTALL_VOLUME_
OFFLINE
0x80073D0D The deployment operation failed because the volume is offline. For a package update, the volume refers to the installed volume of all package versions.
ERROR_INSTALL_VOLUME_
CORRUPT
0x80073D0E The deployment operation failed because the specified volume is corrupt.
ERROR_NEEDS_REGISTRATION

0x80073D0F The deployment operation failed because the specified application needs to be registered first.
ERROR_INSTALL_WRONG_
PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE
0x80073D10 The deployment operation failed because the package targets the wrong processor architecture.
ERROR_DEV_SIDELOAD_
LIMIT_EXCEEDED
0x80073D11 You have reached the maximum number of developer sideloaded packages allowed on this device. Please uninstall a sideloaded package and try again.
ERROR_INSTALL_OPTIONAL_
PACKAGE_REQUIRES_
MAIN_PACKAGE
0x80073D12 A main app package is required to install this optional package. Install the main package first and try again.
ERROR_PACKAGE_NOT_
SUPPORTED_ON_FILESYSTEM
0x80073D13 This app package type is not supported on this filesystem.
ERROR_PACKAGE_MOVE_
BLOCKED_BY_STREAMING
0x80073D14 Package move operation is blocked until the application has finished streaming.
ERROR_INSTALL_OPTIONAL_
PACKAGE_APPLICATIONID_
NOT_UNIQUE
0x80073D15 A main or another optional app package has the same application ID as this optional package. Change the application ID for the optional package to avoid conflicts.
ERROR_PACKAGE_STAGING_
ONHOLD
0x80073D16 This staging session has been held to allow another staging operation to be prioritized.
ERROR_INSTALL_INVALID_
RELATED_SET_UPDATE
0x80073D17 A related set cannot be updated because the updated set is invalid. All packages in the related set must be updated at the same time.
ERROR_INSTALL_OPTIONAL_
PACKAGE_REQUIRES_MAIN_
PACKAGE_FULLTRUST_CAPABILITY
0x80073D18 An optional package with a FullTrust entry point requires the main package to have the runFullTrust capability.
ERROR_DEPLOYMENT_BLOCKED_
BY_USER_LOG_OFF
0x80073D19 An error occurred because a user was logged off.
ERROR_PROVISION_OPTIONAL_
PACKAGE_REQUIRES_MAIN_
PACKAGE_PROVISIONED
0x80073D1A An optional package provision requires the dependency main package to also be provisioned.
ERROR_PACKAGES_REPUTATION_
CHECK_FAILED
0x80073D1B The packages failed the SmartScreen reputation check.
ERROR_PACKAGES_REPUTATION_
CHECK_TIMEDOUT
0x80073D1C The SmartScreen reputation check operation timed out.
ERROR_DEPLOYMENT_OPTION_
NOT_SUPPORTED
0x80073D1D The current deployment option is not supported.
ERROR_APPINSTALLER_
ACTIVATION_BLOCKED
0x80073D1E Activation is blocked due to the .appinstaller update settings for this app.
ERROR_REGISTRATION_FROM_
REMOTE_DRIVE_NOT_SUPPORTED
0x80073D1F Remote drives are not supported. Use \server\share to register a remote package.
ERROR_APPX_RAW_
DATA_WRITE_FAILED
0x80073D20 Failed to process and write downloaded package data to disk.
ERROR_DEPLOYMENT_BLOCKED_
BY_VOLUME_POLICY_PACKAGE
0x80073D21 The deployment operation was blocked due to a per-package-family policy restricting deployments on a non-system volume. Per policy, this app must be installed to the system drive, but that's not set as the default. In Storage settings, make the system drive the default location to save new content, then retry the install.
ERROR_DEPLOYMENT_BLOCKED_
BY_VOLUME_POLICY_MACHINE
0x80073D22 The deployment operation was blocked due to a machine-wide policy restricting deployments on a non-system volume. Per policy, this app must be installed to the system drive, but that's not set as the default. In Storage settings, make the system drive the default location to save new content, then retry the install.
ERROR_DEPLOYMENT_BLOCKED_
BY_PROFILE_POLICY
0x80073D23 The deployment operation was blocked because special profile deployment is not allowed (special profiles are user profiles where changes are discarded after the user signs out). Try logging into an account that is not a special profile. You can try logging out and logging back into the current account, or try logging into a different account.
ERROR_DEPLOYMENT_FAILED_
CONFLICTING_MUTABLE_PACKAGE_
DIRECTORY
0x80073D24 The deployment operation failed due to a conflicting package's mutable package directory. To install this package, remove the existing package with the conflicting mutable package directory.
ERROR_SINGLETON_RESOURCE_
INSTALLED_IN_ACTIVE_USER
0x80073D25 The package installation failed because a singleton resource was specified and another user with that package installed is logged in. Make sure that all active users with the package installed are logged out and retry installation.
ERROR_DIFFERENT_VERSION_
OF_PACKAGED_SERVICE_INSTALLED
0x80073D26 The package installation failed because a different version of the service is installed. Try installing a newer version of the package.
ERROR_SERVICE_EXISTS_
AS_NON_PACKAGED_SERVICE
0x80073D27 The package installation failed because a version of the service exists outside of an .msix/.appx package. Contact your software vendor.
ERROR_PACKAGED_SERVICE_
REQUIRES_ADMIN_PRIVILEGES
0x80073D28 The package installation failed because administrator privileges are required. Contact an administrator to install this package.
ERROR_REDIRECTION_TO_
DEFAULT_ACCOUNT_NOT_ALLOWED
0x80073D29 The package deployment failed because the operation would have redirected to default account, when the caller said not to do so.
ERROR_PACKAGE_LACKS_
CAPABILITY_TO_DEPLOY_ON_HOST
0x80073D2A The package deployment failed because the package requires a capability to natively target this host.
ERROR_UNSIGNED_PACKAGE_
INVALID_CONTENT
0x80073D2B The package deployment failed because its content is not valid for an unsigned package.
ERROR_UNSIGNED_PACKAGE_
INVALID_PUBLISHER_NAMESPACE
0x80073D2C The package deployment failed because its publisher is not in the unsigned namespace.
ERROR_SIGNED_PACKAGE_
INVALID_PUBLISHER_NAMESPACE
0x80073D2D The package deployment failed because its publisher is not in the signed namespace.
ERROR_PACKAGE_EXTERNAL_
LOCATION_NOT_ALLOWED
0x80073D2E The package deployment failed because its publisher is not in the signed namespace.
ERROR_INSTALL_FULLTRUST_
HOSTRUNTIME_REQUIRES_MAIN_
PACKAGE_FULLTRUST_CAPABILITY
0x80073D2F A host runtime dependency resolving to a package with full trust content requires the main package to have the runFullTrust capability.
APPX_E_PACKAGING_INTERNAL 0x80080200 The packaging API has encountered an internal error.
APPX_E_INTERLEAVING_
NOT_ALLOWED
0x80080201 The package isn't valid because its contents are interleaved.
APPX_E_RELATIONSHIPS_
NOT_ALLOWED
0x80080202 The package isn't valid because it contains OPC relationships.
APPX_E_MISSING_
REQUIRED_FILE
0x80080203 The package isn't valid because it's missing a manifest or block map, or a code integrity file is present but a signature file is missing.
Ensure that the package isn't missing one or more of these required files:
  • \AppxManifest.xml
  • \AppxBlockMap.xml
If the package contains \AppxMetadata\CodeIntegrity.cat, it must also contain \AppxSignature.p7x.
APPX_E_INVALID_MANIFEST 0x80080204 The package's AppxManifest.xml file isn't valid.
APPX_E_INVALID_BLOCKMAP 0x80080205 The package's AppxBlockMap.xml file isn't valid.
APPX_E_CORRUPT_CONTENT 0x80080206 The package contents can't be read because it's corrupted.
APPX_E_BLOCK_
HASH_INVALID
0x80080207 The computed hash value of the block doesn't match the has value stored in the block map.
APPX_E_REQUESTED_
RANGE_TOO_LARGE
0x80080208 The requested byte range is over 4 GB when translated to a byte range of blocks.
TRUST_E_NOSIGNATURE 0x800B0100 No signature is present in the subject.
You may get this error if the package is unsigned or the signature isn't valid. The package must be signed to be deployed.
CERT_E_UNTRUSTEDROOT 0x800B0109 A certificate chain processed, but terminated in a root certificate which isn't trusted by the trust provider.
See Signing a package.
CERT_E_CHAINING 0x800B010A A certificate chain couldn't be built to a trusted root certification authority.
See Signing a package.
APPX_E_INVALID_
SIP_CLIENT_DATA
0x80080209 The SIP_SUBJECTINFOstructure used to sign the package didn't contain the required data
APPX_E_INVALID_
KEY_INFO
0x8008020A The APPX_KEY_INFO structure used to encrypt or decrypt the package contains invalid data.
APPX_E_INVALID_
CONTENTGROUPMAP
0x8008020B The .msix/.appx package's content group map is invalid.
APPX_E_INVALID_
APPINSTALLER
0x8008020C The .appinstaller file for the package is invalid.
APPX_E_DELTA_BASELINE_
VERSION_MISMATCH
0x8008020D The baseline package version in delta package does not match the version in the baseline package to be updated.
APPX_E_DELTA_PACKAGE_
MISSING_FILE
0x8008020E The delta package is missing a file from the updated package.
APPX_E_INVALID_
DELTA_PACKAGE
0x8008020F The delta package is invalid.
APPX_E_DELTA_APPENDED_
PACKAGE_NOT_ALLOWED
0x80080210 The delta appended package is not allowed for the current operation.
APPX_E_INVALID_
PACKAGING_LAYOUT
0x80080211 The packaging layout file is invalid.
APPX_E_INVALID_
PACKAGESIGNCONFIG
0x80080212 The packageSignConfig file is invalid.
APPX_E_RESOURCESPRI_
NOT_ALLOWED
0x80080213 The resources.pri file is not allowed when there are no resource elements in the package manifest.
APPX_E_FILE_
COMPRESSION_MISMATCH
0x80080214 The compression state of file in baseline and updated package does not match.
APPX_E_INVALID_
PAYLOAD_PACKAGE_EXTENSION
0x80080215 Non .appx extensions are not allowed for payload packages targeting older platforms.
APPX_E_INVALID_
ENCRYPTION_EXCLUSION_FILE_LIST
0x80080216 The encryptionExclusionFileList file is invalid.

Applications don't start and their names are dimmed

On a computer running Windows 10 or later, you can't start some applications, and the application names appear dimmed.

Some application names appear dimmed in the Start menu

When you try to open an application by selecting the dimmed name, you may receive one of the following error messages:

There's a problem with <application name>. Contact your system administrator about repairing or reinstalling it
Error: This app can't open

Additionally, the following event entries are logged in the "Microsoft-Windows-TWinUI/Operational" log under Applications and Services\Microsoft\Windows\Apps:

Log Name: Microsoft-Windows-TWinUI/Operational
Source: Microsoft-Windows-Immersive-Shell
Date: <date>
Event ID: 5960
Task Category: (5960)
Level: Error
Keywords:
Description:
Activation of the app Microsoft.BingNews_8wekyb3d8bbwe!AppexNews for the Windows. Launch contract was blocked with error 0x80073CFC because its package is in state: Modified.

Cause

This issue occurs because the registry entry for the status value of application's corresponding package was modified.

Resolution

Warning

Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require that you reinstall the operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved. Modify the registry at your own risk.

To fix this issue:

  1. Start Registry Editor, and then locate the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModel\StateChange\PackageList subkey.
  2. To back up the subkey data, right-click PackageList, select Export, and then save the data as a registry file.
  3. For each of the applications that are listed in the Event ID 5960 log entries, follow these steps:
    1. Locate the PackageStatus entry.
    2. Set the value of PackageStatus to zero (0).

    Note

    If there are no entries for the application under PackageList, then the issue has some other cause. In the case of the example event in this article, the full subkey is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModel\StateChange\PackageList\Microsoft.BingNews_8wekyb3d8bbwe!AppexNews\PackageStatus

  4. Restart the computer.

Get additional help

If you need further help with resolving a problem you are experience when packaging, deploying, or querying a Windows app package (.msix/.appx) as a developer, refer to these additional developer support resources.

  • Microsoft Q&A offers relevant and timely answers to your technical problems from a community of experts and Microsoft engineers.
  • For community assistance with development questions, there are our forums, and StackOverflow.
  • The Windows developer support site explains other support options.