When opening Windows Defender (Windows security) settings in Windows 11 or Windows 10, you get the following error message: “You need a new app to open this windowsdefender link.”
A system file has been corrupted, preventing Windows from opening the Windows Defender system settings. I found it a strange error message since I had not changed anything on my system.
I, therefore, suspect that it is another typical error message that arises due to updates from Microsoft. I am still not sure why.
You need a new app to open this windowsdefender link error message
The solution is simple. Here’s how it works.
Click the Start button and search for PowerShell. Next, right-click on the PowerShell result and click “Run as Administrator”.
In the PowerShell window, paste the following text below. You do this by copying this text and then right-clicking in the PowerShell.
The command below will be pasted automatically. Confirm with the ENTER key.
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
After that, you’ll see many (“deployment”) actions being performed with the occasional red error message in between. This is not a problem at all. The error message you see means that a particular restored component already exists. The action just continues.
Wait until the command is complete. This may take several minutes. When the action is complete, type exit. Or close the window. Then restart your computer.
After restarting your computer, you will see that “Windows security” or “Windows defender” works. The error message “You need a new app to open this windowsdefender” has been resolved.
Also read: everything you need to know about Windows Defender antivirus.
I hope to have helped you with this. Thanks for reading!
