Microsoft Launcher update causes chaos and frustration for some users

News
By Dan Rice
published

Microsoft Launcher users on Reddit and Twitter reporting major issues after latest update

Surface Duo (original)
(Image credit: Future)

What you need to know

  • The latest update for the Microsoft Launcher is providing major problems for some users.
  • Users are reporting having uninstall/reinstall to get it working.
  • This seems to be more of an issue for Surface Duo users, timed unfortunately alongside a recent system update. 

Reports on Reddit and Twitter started coming in this morning from users of the Microsoft Launcher after their app was updated to the latest version. It's not clear right now as to how many are affected by this, but it does seem to be happening to a range of devices and not just the Surface Duo. 

Twitter user tkuenneth received the June update for his Surface Duo and this immediately caused Microsoft Launcher to stop working. 

This next image is from Reddit user yugabe, with the same issue as above but with the error code in English, which shows the option to reset the launcher once the error code pops up.

Error code in Microsoft launcher with the option to reset

Something went wrong alright.  (Image credit: Reddit user /yugabe)

Of course, if you're on a Surface Duo with Microsoft launcher as your only launcher this could be more of an irritation, but for those on other phones with a different default launcher it should automatically switch to that so you will still be able to use your phone just fine.

It seems for those that have updated there's no real solution other than to reset the launcher to get it working again. However, some users are also reporting that resetting the launcher doesn't work either. Hopefully Microsoft can get an update pushed out quickly to fix these issues. Having to reset the launcher is bad enough but when you end up having to customize all of your settings again that certainly gets tiring quick.

We'll keep an eye out to see if this problem is more widespread than we believe it to be right now. Hopefully it's limited to a small number of users.

Dan Rice
Dan Rice
Contributor

Dan is a tech contributor on Windows Central. A long time Xbox gamer and former partner on Microsoft's retired streaming platform Mixer, he can often be found crying into a cup of tea whilst thinking about Windows Phone. You can follow Dan on Twitter where you will find him talking about tech, Formula 1 and his latest victories in Battle Royale games.

5 Comments Comment from the forums
  • pwgc
    Happened to me on two S22s. No option but to reinstall. Also, there is no auto back up on Laucher and I found that I hadn't backed up manually for a year, so recovering the backup didn't fix without further work. Real pain.
    Reply
  • augustaville
    MY SD2 had the error yesterday afternoon. The system update did not happen until this morning.

    My wife's Motorola phone had Microsoft Launcher error out this morning. At least on her phone, Launcher can be backed up and she had one from about 6 months ago.

    Does anyone know how to create a backup on a Surface Duo 2?
    Reply
  • lmoritz
    It's not the June update causing the problem. Mine crashed this morning. I'm installing the June update right now, hoping it will help, but from what I'm reading here that probably won't help. 😢
    Reply
  • TroySchuster
    I run Microsoft Launcher on my Samsung S23 Ultra and after waking up yesterday the version I use (Launcher Beta), just gave a 'Something's gone wrong try to restart your phone or you may have to reset'. I tried both nothing worked so I deleted Launcher and reinstalled it fresh. Restored my backup and I was good to go again.

    So it isn't just Surface Duo having issues.
    Reply
  • finbaar
    MY SD1 had this issue after the latest update.. So how could I get a working launcher again as I only have the default Microsoft Launcher installed?
    Pull down the notification shade and go into settings.
    Go into apps and scroll down to the Google Play Store and launch it.
    Search for Microsoft Launcher.
    I had an update available so I just installed that and all was good. If you don't have the update you could install another launcher from the Play Store to fix it. Anyway, no need for a factory reset.
    Reply