Repair-WingetPackageManager -force does not force repair

[Surawsome]

Brief description of your issue

Running the command Repair-WingetPackageManager with -force does not force a repair. This prevents updates and repairs from being possible even when the application is not working correctly.

Steps to reproduce

Run the command Repair-WingetPackageManager -force -verbose

Expected behavior

DesktopAppInstaller will reinstall or update

Actual behavior

Currently, even if winget is not in a good state, the command will fail

Environment

Windows 11 24H2
V1.9.25190

[denelon]

Try adding "-Latest" to the command to get the latest stable version of WinGet installed.

[Surawsome]

Try adding "-Latest" to the command to get the latest stable version of WinGet installed.

Same issue unfortunately

[UziKhana]

Step 1:
In powershell run wsreset.exe to reset Microsoft Store cache

Step 2:
Download App Installer from https://learn.microsoft.com/
Downloaded file: Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller_8wekyb3d8bbwe.msixbundle
Right click install wont work.

Step 3:
Goto folder %LocalAppData%\Microsoft\WindowsApps\
Goto folder Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller_8wekyb3d8bbwe or similar
Rename winget.exe to winget.exe.old
Now right click and install on downloaded file from step 2 Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller_8wekyb3d8bbwe.msixbundle should work

Step 4
In powershell run Repair-WingetPackageManager -force -latest -verbose, successful output is WinGet is in a good state.

[Trenly]

I think the issue here is that the version of WinGet that is installed is the correct version, and, it has to be "working" because otherwise it wouldn't report its version. So, the cmdlet is actually doing exactly what it is coded to do - make sure the specified version of WinGet is installed and that the executable runs.

I think the bigger question here is - why were you calling Repair-WingetPackageManager ? What issue were you trying to solve using it? What issue did you expect it to resolve? Knowing this will help determine if improvements need to be made to how the cmdlet behaves

Edit: There is also a feature request in #4947 to have -Force bypass all checks

[Surawsome]

So something I've learned is the winget -v will almost always work if the application is not functioning correctly. One of the most common issues is the sources not working correctly and neither winget source update or reset resolve the issue but since it reports a version, it won't force a reinstall