microsoft / microsoft/winget-cli

winget install . unexpectedly installs an unrelated Microsoft Store app

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#6,297 1 comment 1 reaction 0 assignees View on GitHub

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Command-Install Issue-Bug
Dominant language
C++
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Description

Relevant area(s)

WinGet CLI

Relevant command(s)

winget install

Brief description of your issue

winget install resolves a query consisting only of a single punctuation
character (e.g. .) to a single, seemingly confident match from the
msstore source, and proceeds directly to the license-agreement prompt —
with no disambiguation list and no indication that the match is essentially
arbitrary.

Steps to reproduce
  1. Open a terminal in any folder (does not need to contain a manifest).
  2. Run: winget install .
Expected behavior

Either:

  • No results are returned (a punctuation-only string is not meaningful
    search input), or
  • If a low-confidence match exists, winget shows it as part of a
    disambiguation list ("Multiple/weak packages found, please refine the
    input") rather than proceeding straight to the package-agreement /
    install flow.
Actual behavior

winget install . immediately resolves to a single package from the
Microsoft Store (in my case: WhatsApp, 9NKSQGP7F2NH) and shows the
license agreement prompt, ready to install on a single Enter/Y.

Environment
Windows-Paket-Manager v1.29.20-preview
Windows.Desktop v10.0.26200.8655
Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller v1.30.20.0

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 by reproducing winget install . in the WinGet CLI and trace how the command resolves a punctuation-only query against the msstore source. Done means the command either returns no result or presents the match for disambiguation instead of proceeding directly to the license-agreement and install flow; add coverage for this behavior.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
cpp
Domain
cli
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
3/5
Estimated time
1-2 days
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
55/100

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