Need to reinstall Phone Link, but can't uninstall existing, but it won't open either.

Brett Gregory 115 Reputation points
2026-06-08T01:12:33.7466667+00:00

Under sufferance, I am using Phone Link to communicate between my Laptop and Samsung S24 Ultra phone. When it works it is good, but too often it doesn't work properly. I tried Samsung Flow, but didn't like it (too finicky), and went back to Phone Link.

The latest glich with PL is that it will not open. When I click the icon in the task bar a small keylined window opens, I get the hour glass "waiting" for a few seconds, and then the keyline disappears. So, I want to uninstall it, and re-install.

The problem is that it cannot be find in the apps list, and so cannot be uninstalled. I tried going to the Microsoft Store to download it again, but instead of saying "Download" or "Install", it just says "Open", so obviously the website can see that it is still in the system somewhere, even though Settings can't! That's pretty damn bizarre.

I did a Laptop restart after I noticed that the Task Manager had a Phone Link task still running (which I terminated before the restart). I also notice that there is a task called Mobile Devices (2) running, and they are:

Microsoft Cross Device Service

and

Runtime Broker.

So, what to do please? Is this a Registry issue perhaps?

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Connect Phone and PC
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Answer accepted by question author
BryceSor 5,510 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
2026-06-08T01:50:43.2933333+00:00

Hi Brett Gregory ,

Go to settings, apps, system components, phone link and use either reset or repair.

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Those two processors are on my computer and that is normal.

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  1. Brett Gregory 115 Reputation points
    2026-06-08T01:22:57.53+00:00

    That supplied Ai answer is useless: Phone Link cannot be found on any of the those lists to do any kind of reset.

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  2. AI answer

    2026-06-08T01:13:11.5266667+00:00

    Phone Link is a system component in Windows 10/11 and cannot be uninstalled, which is why it does not appear in Apps & features and Microsoft Store only offers “Open”. The issue needs to be fixed by resetting and relinking rather than removing it.

    Use the following steps to repair Phone Link and get it working again:

    1. Reset Phone Link on the PC
      1. Select Start > Settings > Apps > Apps & features.
      2. Find Phone Link in the list.
      3. Select it, then choose Advanced options.
      4. Select Reset.
      5. After the reset completes, launch Phone Link again from Start.
      If Phone Link still won’t open or remains blank, perform the deeper reset below.
    2. Soft reset the connection (PC and Android) On the PC:
      1. Select Start > Settings > Bluetooth & devices.
      2. Select Phone Link from the list.
      3. Toggle Phone Link Off, then On.
      4. Select Open Phone Link and try again.
      On the Android phone:
      1. Open Settings > Apps (or Apps & Notifications) > Link to Windows.
      2. Tap Force stop and confirm.
      Then try opening Phone Link on the PC and relinking the phone.
    3. Fully unlink and reconfigure if issues persist If the app still fails to open or connect properly: On the Android phone:
      1. Open Link to Windows.
      2. Tap the Microsoft account name under Linked account.
      3. Go to Account settings > Sign out and unlink account.
      4. Confirm Unlink.
      On the PC:
      1. Open a browser and go to https://accounts.microsoft.com/devices/android-ios and sign in.
      2. For each listed Android device, select Show details > More actions > Unlink this phone.
      3. Select Start > Settings > Phone > Unlink this PC.
      4. Go back to Settings > Apps > Apps & features.
      5. Select Phone Link > Advanced options > Reset again.
      After this, open Phone Link on the PC and follow the setup flow to pair with the Samsung phone as if it were new.
    4. Check basic connectivity and background permissions If Phone Link opens but still behaves unreliably: On the PC:
      1. Ensure Phone Link can run in the background:
        • Start > Settings > Privacy > Background apps.
        • In Choose which apps can run in the background, make sure Phone Link is enabled.
      2. Ensure Shared experiences is not blocked:
        • Start > Settings > System > Shared experiences.
        • If Fix now appears under Accounts, select it and complete the steps.
      On the Android phone:
      1. Turn off battery optimization for Link to Windows so it is not killed in the background:
        • Settings > Apps & notifications > App info > Link to Windows > Advanced > Battery > Manage Battery Usage > Battery optimization.
        • Scroll to Link to Windows and select Don’t optimize.
        • (On some devices: Settings > Apps > Link to Windows > Battery > Optimize battery usage, choose All, then turn the toggle Off for Link to Windows.)
      2. Confirm notifications and Do not disturb are configured so the app can stay connected.
    5. If the app window is still blank or crashes immediately If, after all resets and relinking, Phone Link still only shows a blank or non-responsive window, this can indicate a deeper Windows issue. In similar cases, a Windows repair install (in-place upgrade) has resolved Phone Link UI problems when all other app-level fixes failed.

    References:

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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