- Windows 11’s Microsoft Store will soon update third-party apps, not just those hosted on Microsoft’s servers
- The update system will soon show third-party app updates alongside Microsoft apps, activated by clicking the 'Get updates' button
- This change makes it easier to manage all app updates in one place, saving time and reducing manual checks
Microsoft is working on improving Windows 11’s Microsoft Store by making it able to update apps that aren’t hosted on its own servers. Until now, this wasn’t the case and Windows 11 users could only update apps via the Microsoft Store that were downloaded from the company’s own servers. However, many app developers hosted their own apps, which meant that while they could be discovered and downloaded from the Microsoft Store, you could not easily update them.
Thankfully, in this update, the Microsoft Store will be able to show updates for third-party apps published and maintained by companies and developers other than Microsoft itself. The store’s update system will now feature these and they will appear in your Microsoft Store update list, which is generated when you click on ‘Get updates’ on the Downloads page in the Microsoft Store.
The new feature is currently being tested in all channels of the Windows Insider Program, with the Microsoft Store listing app updates provided by publishers and developers other than Microsoft as ‘provided and updated’ apps.
A little much-needed TLC for the Microsoft Store
This change seems pretty useful to me, making it easier to keep track of all of your app updates in one place whether they’re store-hosted or not. Now, clicking on ‘Get updates’ in the store will make updates for both types of apps appear, but only apps hosted by Microsoft will be updated automatically. Still, it’ll save you the time and trouble of having to seek out updates for different tools across different websites for each third-party app you’ve installed.
I’m always pleased to see Microsoft make Windows 11 more convenient to use and improve the oft-neglected Microsoft Store to become, as Windows Central calls it, a ‘one-stop shop’ for all the updates you might need and want. Of course, this only applies to apps you can get from the Microsoft Store in the first place, but this could encourage more third party app makers to bring their products to the Microsoft Store, confident in the knowledge that they can keep control over their app updates while still making it easy for their users to keep their software updated with new features and security fixes.
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