Windows default apps are much larger than reported size

Microsoft’s Windows 11 operating system includes dozens of default apps that are available by default right after installation on first run. Some of these apps provide basic functions, such as photo viewing, media playback, or plain text editing. Others have a narrow focus that is useful only to a small subset of Windows users.

Many of the pre-installed apps can be removed from the Windows machine, either through Settings > Apps, PowerShell commands, or by using a program like winet, the Windows Package Manager. Applications take up disk space and some administrators may want to remove them to free up space on a drive.

When it comes to determining the actual size of these applications, administrators will run into obstacles. The Settings > Apps list is useless for this, as many of the default Windows apps are listed as only a few kilobytes in size.

Storage readings are not correct. The reason for the low number reported for pre-installed Windows apps is that these apps can be installed in multiple folders. The Microsoft Settings app returns the size of one of the folders, since it ignores any other folders that store app files.

The same thing happens when you run regular PowerShell commands to return app listings.

Michael Niehaus analyzed the behavior on Windows 11. He published his findings in a blog post on his website and created a PowerShell script that returns the full size of default apps on Windows systems.

The PowerShell script is available as a download. Simply download the zip file to your local system and extract it to get started.

Use the Start menu to launch an elevated PowerShell prompt, navigate to the folder where the script is stored, and run .Get-AppSizes.ps1 -online | Out-GridView to get the output.

Note that you need to allow third-party scripts to run and select “run once” when prompted to run it. Cautious users can look at the code before running the script to make sure it is safe to run.

Get-AppxProvisionedPackage -online | % {
# Get the main app package location using the manifest
$loc = Split-Path ( [Environment]::ExpandEnvironmentVariables($_.InstallLocation) ) -Parent
If ((Split-Path $loc -Leaf) -ieq 'AppxMetadata') {
$loc = Split-Path $loc -Parent
}
# Get a pattern for finding related folders
$matching = Join-Path -Path (Split-Path $loc -Parent) -ChildPath "$($_.DisplayName)*"
$size = (Get-ChildItem $matching -Recurse -ErrorAction Ignore | Measure-Object -Property Length -Sum).Sum
# Add the results to the output
$_ | Add-Member -NotePropertyName Size -NotePropertyValue $size
$_ | Add-Member -NotePropertyName InstallFolder -NotePropertyValue $loc
$_
} | Select DisplayName, PackageName, Version, InstallFolder, Size

The PowerShell script opens a new window that lists each app in its own row. Each app is listed with its name, package name, installation folder, version, and size. The size is displayed in bytes. Most applications are ten Megabytes in size and more. Some – YourPhone, Windows Store, Windows Communication Apps or Microsoft Teams – are much bigger than that.

closing words

Microsoft should readjust the size readings in the Settings app’s list of apps, as small sizes of installed apps give users and administrators the wrong impression.

Now you: do you remove the pre-installed apps on your machines? (via Desktop Modifier)

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