In April, Microsoft rolled out a Quick Assist application. While there were some changes, including a new logo, the big news with the release was Microsoft revealing the app is moving to the Microsoft Store. The shift to this app was due today (May 16), so Windows admins can no longer get Quick Assist as a native app on Windows 11 or Windows 10.
Quick Assist was launched back in 2016 with the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. The tool was an evolution of the older remote assistance feature, allowing for more seamless remote access.
It is designed for those who may not be sure about the ins and outs of Windows and other services. They can get assistance easily without having to go through a tedious process of relaying information.
Windows admins are annoyed that Microsoft is shifting the app to the Microsoft Store. Many took to Microsoft's announcement post to complain about the decision. Most agree that Quick Assist is a handy tool that has been made worse by the Store app.
For example, installations require local admin permission, while the app also installs alongside the older version. Admins also note they are unable to start with elevated privileges on the app. All these make it seemingly impossible to deploy the app across multiple machines at once.
Microsoft Response
Nathan Pfeifer, the Microsoft employee who wrote the original announcement article has responded to the complaints. He says that it was necessary to place the app in the Microsoft Store:
“Understand the frustration of pushing a user to download the Store app to get a remote assistance app.
The nature of using remote assistance is that one of the parties is stuck and needs help – so it can be frustrating.
There is some underlying functionality, in how we currently have this set up, that needed to be adjusted that led to this.
That being said, this is time sensitive and sometime in mid-May the old version will no longer be usable.
Thanks for the feedback! It is being passed along, rest assured.”
In other words “we hear you but the old app is being removed either way”.
Tip of the day: Did you know that you can assign keyboard shortcuts for starting applications quickly in Windows 11 and Windows 10? This is a great way to have your most used programs always at your fingertips. In our tutorials we show you how to set those hotkeys for your favorite apps.
