User can not create Desktop shortcut

[Frank260]

Hello,

i have migrated an application from MSI to MSIX. The application is used by 9000 users and some users created a desktop shortcut for themself. 

Now, i delete the MSI on every PC and deploy the MSIX to the users. The desktop shortcut, which they manually created, doesn't work any more.

Now the users ask me how they can create a new desktop shortcut and i have no answer. The users can pin the app to the taskbar, but i don't know how the can pin the app to the desktop.

I think that Microsoft recommends that user preferences are exclusively chosen by the user. So the user should have the posibility to create an desktop shortcut for an MSIX application. 

Best Regards

Frank

[#2 · Accepted solution]

Hello Frank
Try this command in a cmd box / terminal "explorer.exe shell:AppsFolder". There is a list of Appx applications. With the right mouse button you can then create a shortcut on the desktop.

[#3]

So are you saying that there isn't an option for a user to right click a start menu shortcut provided by MSIX and pinning it to the desktop? I see the next insider release is catering for Desktop shortcuts using a dependency that must extend the functionality. It wasn't clear on the used case as it just said providing shortcuts to desktop which we would discourage being installed by the MSIX deployment in Enterprise environments as it will soon the clutter the desktop if enforced.

[#4]

It seems like the latest release of MSIX Packaging Tool 1.2023.1005.0 caters for creating a desktop shortcut if you include a pre-requisite in your package although i've not tested it yet. That said if that is the intended solution it will need configuration on every application to allow a user to create this for themselves again with the new MSIX package.

[#5]

I can try it next week. I understand the release notes that the new verion of the MSIX Packaging Tool allows the developer/packager to create a desktop shortcut and not the user himself