PAINT stopped working (today) and will neither uninstall or re-install (Windows 11 up to date)

Kevin Cook 0

I use PAINT daily and today ... while I was using it ... the window closed ... and when I tried to reopen it ... it would not reopen

I searched for solutions and decided to uninstall and reinstall ... as there are no permanent setting that will need to be reset

I chose to UNINSTALL from SETTINGS > INSTALLED APPS ...

When I goto the MS Store to reinstall the app ... it downloads ... and tries to install but eventually says ERROR ... we are aware of the issue and are working to fix it. Try again later

I have tried everything from using DISM to restorehealth and manual install of PAINT ... with no results

Does anyone have any suggestions?

Kevin Cook 0 Reputation points

2026-07-15T13:38:34.5233333+00:00

I installed the 2 security updates that came out today ... I then tried the install again ... same results

I disabled McAfee and ran wsreset -i ... it came back to the prompt with no output

I then ran

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers Microsoft.MSPaint | Remove-AppxPackage -AllUsers

which also came back to the prompt with no output

Next I tried the install from the store ... and it errored again
David-M 126K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-15T13:50:14.25+00:00

Thanks for the update.

Since the store reset and the registration commands didn't bypass the block, it confirms that the Windows application database has a deeper registry conflict. Rather than spending more time troubleshooting complex command-line errors, the most reliable and painless way to resolve this is to proceed with the In-place Upgrade.

This process is completely safe. It reinstalls Windows 11 using the official ISO file while keeping 100% of your personal files, settings, and installed programs. Crucially, since Paint is a default Windows application, the upgrade will automatically rebuild the Microsoft Store framework and reinstall a fresh, working copy of Paint for you. You won't even need to run any commands afterward.

Please let me know how it goes.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have.
Kevin Cook 0 Reputation points

2026-07-16T14:33:47.94+00:00

Just on a side note for future readers ...

As a workaround until I can restore W11 Paint.ext

I installed and am using CLASSIC PAINT by Winareo ... it is 32 bit so is a bit clunky and has trouble with large photos ... otherwise it works well enough to get me by
Chris Knapp 0 Reputation points

2026-07-31T20:19:21.2133333+00:00
None of this worked for me, turned out after running procmon it was an access denied in registry for heic image. Ran the below to resolve.

$key = 'Registry::HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes.heic'

$currentUser = [System.Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity]::GetCurrent().Name

$acl = Get-Acl -LiteralPath $key

$rule = New-Object System.Security.AccessControl.RegistryAccessRule(

$currentUser, [System.Security.AccessControl.RegistryRights]::FullControl, [System.Security.AccessControl.InheritanceFlags]::ContainerInherit, [System.Security.AccessControl.PropagationFlags]::None, [System.Security.AccessControl.AccessControlType]::Allow

)

$acl.SetAccessRule($rule)

Set-Acl -LiteralPath $key -AclObject $acl

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Kevin Cook 0

I was able to reinstall MSPaint

Ran the install from MS Store
Looked in event viewer Windows Logs -> SYSTEM for the error

Installation Failure: Windows failed to install the following update with error 0x80073CF6: 9PCFS5B6T72H-Microsoft.Paint.

Looked up the error

Per the Google AI

a) wsreset (again)

b) dism /Online /Remove-Capability /CapabilityName:Microsoft.Windows.MSPaint~~~~0.0.1.0

c) tried dism /Online /Add-Capability /CapabilityName:Microsoft.Windows.MSPaint~~~~0.0.1.0

This command failed even after trying several different ways

d) ran Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.MSPaint | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

e) restarted machine (this may be what I have missed in the past)

f) Once it was up ... I searched for MSPAINT ... and it was there and would run

It is still disturbing that I cannot do an in-place install ... but I think that will have to wait for another time as I am getting behind on the things I need to edit

Thank you David and Bryce for all the help

Now to reinstall McAfee ... I will let you know if this somehow disables Paint

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6 additional answers

David-M 126K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-19T14:00:17.4766667+00:00

Thanks for the details.

Great work on getting MS Paint back up and running. Using those built-in deployment tools was a smart move, and it is great that the current required features are working for now so you can catch up on your work.

However, since the in-place upgrade still fails even with Spybot and McAfee remnants cleared out, this points to a deeper underlying issue. The SSD driver conflict you noticed under Memory Integrity is very likely the culprit blocking the Windows setup from migrating your storage environment during the upgrade process. By the way, the Google Drive link provided appeared to be empty or inaccessible, so those specific logs could not be reviewed.

Since the system is stable enough for your immediate tasks, there is no need to rush, but a clean install using installation media is ultimately the best long-term solution to ensure a healthy baseline.

A few tips for whenever that step is taken:

Modern Windows Security includes all necessary real-time protection, firewall, and behavioral analysis features out of the box. Third-party security suites often hook deeply into the system kernel, which frequently triggers these exact upgrade blockages and app deployment errors.

For context, relying solely on native Windows security features for nearly a decade has proven to prevent these complex registry and migration conflicts entirely.

For more details on how the native system keeps everything safe, the official article can be reviewed here:

https://support.microsoft.com/windows/stay-protected-with-windows-security-2ae0363d-0ada-c064-8b56-6a39afb6a963

If you don't know how to perform a clean install and need steps, let me know.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have.
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Kevin Cook 0 Reputation points

2026-07-19T15:21:37.65+00:00

The SSD driver conflict you noticed under Memory Integrity is very likely the culprit blocking the Windows setup from migrating your storage environment during the upgrade process.

It is strange that the upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 succeeded without incident as this machine has a TPM 2.0 chip ... I had to bypass that on 2 other machines

By the way, the Google Drive link provided appeared to be empty or inaccessible, so those specific logs could not be reviewed.

Correct ... I am over 90% full on my Google drive so I tend to be aggressive with deletions

If you don't know how to perform a clean install and need steps, let me know.

I sure will ... I will create another thread and if I can still update this thread ... I will point you to it

BTW ... Should you ever need Oracle database advice ... please feel free to ping me via my website (DiceCollector dot com) ... I retired from Oracle RDBMS Suppor 5 years ago ... but I still remember a lot and still maintain my own databases

David-M 126K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-20T11:57:58.17+00:00

Thanks for the update.

Correct ... I am over 90% full on my Google drive so I tend to be aggressive with deletions

Completely understand the aggressive deletions for Google Drive storage management; no worries at all about the logs being unavailable.

It is strange that the upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 succeeded without incident as this machine has a TPM 2.0 chip ... I had to bypass that on 2 other machines

Regarding the upgrade history, Windows 11 feature updates often introduce much stricter driver verification and security baselines compared to the initial upgrade from Windows 10. That is likely why the SSD driver issue only became a hard blocker during this recent attempt.

I sure will ... I will create another thread and if I can still update this thread ... I will point you to it

That sounds like a solid plan. Keeping the system running smoothly for the current editing workload is what matters most right now.

BTW ... Should you ever need Oracle database advice ... please feel free to ping me via my website

Thank you so very much for the incredibly generous offer.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have.
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Horace Wiggins 530 Reputation points

2026-07-17T18:49:31.9466667+00:00

Try this link, unless you already have. Check for Paint.

https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9pcfs5b6t72h?hl=en-US&gl=US

My current version is, see image below.

I have Windows 11 Pro 25H2 and use Paint often. I haven't had any problems.
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PAINT stopped working (today) and will neither uninstall or re-install (Windows 11 up to date)

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