microsoft / microsoft/winget-cli

`winget settings --enable LocalManifestFiles` does not work when admin is separate user

Open
#3,191 7 comments 4 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub

Nobody has claimed this yet.

Issue-Bug
Dominant language
C++
Stars
26.4k
Forks
1.8k
Avg merge
1d 11h
Merged PRs (30d)
15

Description

Brief description of your issue

In order to use local manifests, functionality first has to be enabled with winget settings --enable LocalManifestFiles. If the user is not an admin, winget will return This command requires administrator privileges to execute. which is expected. But when running the command in an administrator context, it has no effect on the non-admin user. Probably due to separated installations for admin and non-admin?

Steps to reproduce
  • have two (2) users, admin A and non-admin B
  • Run terminal as A and execute winget settings --enable LocalManifestFiles
  • Run terminal as B and attempt to install a local manifest file winget install --manifest C:\Path\To\Manifest
Expected behavior

This setting should either be shared across users or winget starting a dynamic elevation so the user can proof he has admin access to the machine.

Actual behavior

It is not possible to enable local manifest files for a non-admin user.

Environment
Windows Package Manager v1.4.10173
Windows: Windows.Desktop v10.0.22621.1555
System Architecture: X64
Package: Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller v1.19.10173.0

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start with the winget settings --enable LocalManifestFiles command and the winget install --manifest path, then trace how the setting behaves across administrator and non-administrator contexts. Done means a non-admin user can install a local manifest after the setting is enabled with the administrator account, or receives a documented supported workflow.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
cpp
Domain
cli
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
35/100

Get new issues in your inbox

A short digest of beginner-friendly GitHub issues.