Microsoft Adds Ability to Block Non-Windows Store Apps in Win10

Is Windows 10 on full device-style lockdown, requiring you to use apps from the Windows Store? Beta News reports, this is only an option which can be enabled should you so desire, and while it is in the current preview version of the Creators Update coming this year, there is no indication if it will be in the final version or any future version at all.

Microsoft will add a feature to Windows 10 that will only allow applications from the Windows Store , similar how Apple only allows apps from its App Store. The functionality should increase the security of the operating system by blocking the installation of software from unknown sources. The feature will be introduced with the Creators Update that is scheduled for later this spring. According to MSPoweruser the OS will get a ‘Apps & Feature’ menu from where users can choose whether they want to allow installation of all applications or only apps from the Windows Store. There will also a be third option that prefers apps from Microsoft’s store but still allows installing software from other sources after the user decides to install the app anyway. A warning that is shown when an user tries to install an application from outside the Windows Store states that ‘Limiting installations from app from the Store helps to keep your PC safe and reliable’. At the same time it’s also a way for Microsoft to boost the usage of Windows Store. The company takes a percentage from the price users pay for software in the store.

The company also wants as much software to be based on its Universal Windows Platform (UWP). UWP applications can run on e.g. desktops, mobile phones and game consoles from the same code base. Developers can use a special tool to convert regular Windows (win32) applications to Universal Windows Platform apps that can be made available in the Windows Store. The feature is in build 15024 for Windows Insiders which Microsoft released last week and the feature is disabled by default. However, Microsoft appears to be working on a version of Windows that only allows installing apps from the Windows Store.

Before you jump into this, there is something you need to keep in mind. At the moment, this option is only available in build 15042 of Windows 10 (also known as Creators Update); it may well remain in future builds, but it's not guaranteed, and there's no way to backport the option to pre-15042 builds.

With that in mind, follow these steps:

    1.Open up Settings and head to Apps.
    2.In the Apps & features section click the drop down menu beneath the Installing apps heading.
    3.Select the option labeled Allow apps from the Store only.
    4.Close Settings.

That's all there is to it. You can also opt to display a warning about non-Store apps if a user tries to install a classic Win32 app (but the installation will not be blocked) -- just select the Prefer apps from the Store, but allow apps from anywhere option.

While the concept of a locked down Windows where you, the user, do not have the freedom to install the software of your choice does sound like a grim dystopian future, and it may actually happen on the future Cloud version of the operating system, Microsoft's alternative to ChromeOS, it is also not without its merits.