Make WinGet available on Windows Server Core / without desktop experience

[chadlwilson]

Relevant area(s)

WinGet CLI

Description of the new feature / enhancement

As already raised/discussed at #4319 currently WinGet is not available for install on Windows Server Core (2022 or 2025).

This earlier issue already captured the requirement and conversation along the way (as well as people's workarounds), and was closed as having been completed in the 1.11 Client by @denelon , but this is simply not the case - or it was never properly released to users.

Multiple folks have attempted across containers and real hosts

• WinGet on Windows Server Core #4319 (comment)
• WinGet on Windows Server Core #4319 (comment)

Request is to

• ensure this actually works (via both containers and real hosts) and is available to users
• do so either via this issue or by reopening the original issue (preferred)

Proposed technical implementation details

Should be able to install successfully via either

• an optional feature
• some powershell bootstrap scripting

onto

• Windows Server Core
• Windows Server Datacenter edition without desktop experience
• Windows Server Standard edition without desktop experience
• Windows Server Datacenter Azure edition without desktop experience

Versions

• versions 2025 onwards would probably satisfy most folks given WinGet is only available on full Desktop Experience Windows Server 2025 thus far

[Karl-WE]

Many thanks @chadlwilson for bringing the pieces together. I have also linked to winget-install PR as the community in the repo are in the works to identify the root cause of which missing parts /binary is causing the limitation.

For your otherwise excellent PR, please add:

• Windows Server Standard edition without desktop experience
• Windows Server Datacenter Azure edition without desktop experience

Much appreciate your efforts!

[chadlwilson]

Done - thanks. Really only opened a new issue since the comments seemed a bit buried on the original one.