Troubleshooting

Encountering an issue? This guide covers the most common problems and their solutions.

Reverting Winhance Changes

If you want to undo changes made by Winhance, follow these steps. Note that Winhance creates a System Restore point on its first launch.

1. Open System Restore: Search for "Create a restore point" in the Start Menu, then click the "System Restore" button.
2. Select Restore Point: Choose the restore point named Winhance initial restore point.
3. Confirm: Follow the prompts to restore your system. This will revert registry changes, settings, and restore apps like Edge and OneDrive.

Windows Edition Selection Issues

Problem: When installing Windows, the setup skips the edition selection screen (e.g., Home vs. Pro) and automatically installs the Home edition.

Cause: This happens because the Windows installer detects an OEM product key embedded in your computer's BIOS/UEFI and uses it automatically.

Solutions:

• With Winhance autounattend.xml on Windows 11: Click "I don't have a product key" when the product key screen appears to see all editions.
• With Winhance autounattend.xml on Windows 10: If you only see your OEM edition, click Back, then Next, then "I don't have a product key" to see all editions.
• To force a specific edition: Edit your XML file to use a Generic Installation Key instead of the blank key.

For detailed instructions, video tutorial, and a complete list of Generic Installation Keys, see the Windows Edition Selection & Forcing Specific Editions section in the Autounattend Guide.

Application Won't Start

• Run as Administrator: Winhance requires administrative privileges to modify system settings. Ensure you select "Yes" on the UAC prompt.
• .NET Runtime: Ensure you have the .NET 9 Desktop Runtime installed. The Winhance Installer bundles this and will install it automatically during a standard installation.
• Check Logs: View the startup log at:
  %ProgramData%\Winhance\Logs\WinhanceStartupLog.txt

WIMUtil Errors

• "Invalid Directory": Ensure you have extracted your Windows ISO contents to a writable folder. You cannot run WIMUtil directly on a mounted ISO or a DVD drive.
• "Insufficient Space": Creating a custom ISO requires approximately 15-20GB of free space for the temporary files and the final output.
• "oscdimg.exe Required": This tool is part of the Windows ADK. If Winhance fails to download it automatically, you can install the "Deployment Tools" from the official Windows ADK.

WinGet / Software Installation Failures

• No Internet Connection: WinGet requires an active internet connection to download application manifests and installers.
• "Package Not Found": This can happen due to regional restrictions. If a Windows App fails to install, Winhance may offer an Alternative Download Method using Microsoft's direct CDN.
• Conflicting Installers: Ensure no other installations are running in the background (check Task Manager for msiexec.exe or setup.exe).

Settings Not Applying

• Restart Required: Many registry changes (like Taskbar or Explorer tweaks) require a restart of explorer.exe or a full system reboot to take effect.
• Group Policy Overrides: If your PC is joined to a Domain (Work/School), some settings may be enforced by Group Policy and cannot be changed by Winhance.