I'm curious if anyone else is having trouble with the Start Menu search feature after upgrading a fleet of approximately 2,000 machines from 23H2 E to 24H2/25H2 E. A few computers, including some with fresh images, seem to have the search functionality break. It appears to be specific to certain user profiles because I've tried removing those profiles and adding them back, but that hasn't resolved the issue. Interestingly, none of the machines running 23H2 E have shown this problem. I'm looking for any possible solutions, as re-imaging is not ideal without a guarantee it won't happen again.
5 Answers
My Start Menu search acts up randomly too. Sometimes it just fixes itself after a few minutes with no interaction. It's like there are gremlins messing with it!
I've dealt with this before by re-registering all the appx packages. It's super frustrating, but it seems like a lot of folks have just accepted that it either works or it doesn't these days without reporting issues. Maybe it's time to share a fun fact about the fall of the Roman Empire next time this comes up!
We stopped deploying 24H2 because it was acting up too much. I've been testing 25H2 and it seems more stable, at least so far. Just a heads-up!
Is AppLocker set up for these users? If it is, you might be missing rules for packaged apps, which could be causing the search issues. Check out this Microsoft guide on configuring AppLocker: [AppLocker Documentation](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/application-security/application-control/app-control-for-business/applocker/packaged-apps-and-packaged-app-installer-rules-in-applocker)
Nope, we're not using AppLocker at all. It's just so random—it's like a lottery whether a user's profile will work after an image!
If you're using Citrix, this is a known issue, and there’s a registry fix available. You can check out this link for more details: [Citrix Community Forum](https://community.citrix.com/forums/topic/253484-start-menu-of-windows11-not-work-after-installing-citrix-vda/)
Yeah, I hear you. I'm starting to deploy it too since 23H2 E will reach end-of-life later this year. 23H2 has been so reliable for us! I just hope the upcoming 26H2 doesn’t have boot issues like we've heard rumors about.