[ltsb, 1607] Enable Store in LTSB

[Koldov]

My Headmaster has just appeared with his laptop asking for 'Powerapps' to be installed. He tried already of course...

 

Unfortunately we are LTSB throughout the school and therefore have no Store app.

 

I have seen that it may be possible to enable it.

 

Anyone have any luck with this?

[free780]

I think you'd have to reimage to SAC. The UWP components are stripped out of LTSC as it's meant for use in hospitals, power stations etc.

[Arthur]

I have managed to add the Store back, so it is possible.

 

You might not need to add the Store to install PowerApps however. Try downloading one of the .appxbundle's below and install through PowerShell.

 

• Microsoft.MSApps_2019.513.1500.2584_neutral_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe.appxbundle
  
• Microsoft.MSApps_4.0.0.0_neutral_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe.appxbundle
  

I can find out which one you need tomorrow if that helps?

[Koldov]

I can find out which one you need tomorrow if that helps?

 

Yes please @Arthur that would be good, thank you!

 

I'd seen that it was possible, but it looked like it involved a big chunk of code (that I didn't know what it was doing) and lots of files to be downloaded from the internet (and who knows what they'd contain)... thought I would check here first to be on the safe side!

[Koldov]

Well, I'm a bit stuck on this one now....

 

Tried to get the Store to work, but the only ISO available for "Windows 10 Inbox Apps" on VLSC are the ones updated Sept '17, Mar '18, Sept '18 and one that states it is for Version 1903 32/64 bit - none of which I believe are for 1607 (I tried with Sept '17).

 

Although it appears that I can install the 'Store' app (and I also tried 'Sticky Notes') when I click on the icon, nothing happens...

 

Anyway, I tried the second option and installed the "Microsoft.MSApps_2019.513.1500.2584_neutral_~_8wek yb3d8bbwe.appxbundle" this does indeed give me 'PowerApps' but then asks me to sign-in or 'start a trial'...

 

Is this the same PowerApps app?

 

Here is what he needs to have downloaded/installed:

 

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/p/powerapps/9nblggh5z8f3#activetab=pivot:overviewtab

 

Would you need a license for a free app?

 

I'm not entirely sure what he needs it for (and to be fair neither is he) but he has been told to download it by Ofsted (as he does some work for them). It can't be to develop or create apps, more likely he just needs to view something.

Edited June 18, 2019 by Koldov

[Primus]

And this is why we don't use LTSB/LTSC outside of its usage case as stated by the manufacturer - you should never have been on LTSB in the first place - it's not designed for general purpose computers.

[Duke5A]

And this is why we don't use LTSB/LTSC outside of its usage case as stated by the manufacturer - you should never have been on LTSB in the first place - it's not designed for general purpose computers.

 

I've used it for years in a school environment with near 2,000 clients. MS tells you not to use it because it cuts against them moving to Windows as a service. Just know going in you're not going to have the MS Store and the other bits that go along with it. Pick one for your environment and stick with it. Pros and cons to each path. For us the pros far outweighed the cons in favor of LTSB.

 

As far as sticky notes are concerned, you can grab it from a Windows 10 LTSB 2015 ISO. This is right before they ported it to Modern App. It's built into my LTSC 2019 image.

[Primus]

Nope MS tells you not to use it as it's not suited for general purpose computers - they're the manufacturer and they know the roadmap beyond what is public. If you go against a manufacturer recommendation then you can expect headaches and issues when you try to bend it to your will.

 

MS aren't making money off windows as a service over LTSB/C - you're paying the same licensing whichever you choose. LTSB/C was deliberately created for systems that need to stay static in functionality - from this discussion it is clear that it is being used on a system that is not staying static in its functionality...

[free780]

LTSC vs SAC is the Brexit of edugeek. SAC is a change but if your invested in Office 365 it makes sense to be SAC.

[Duke5A]

Nope MS tells you not to use it as it's not suited for general purpose computers - they're the manufacturer and they know the roadmap beyond what is public. If you go against a manufacturer recommendation then you can expect headaches and issues when you try to bend it to your will.

 

MS aren't making money off windows as a service over LTSB/C - you're paying the same licensing whichever you choose. LTSB/C was deliberately created for systems that need to stay static in functionality - from this discussion it is clear that it is being used on a system that is not staying static in its functionality...

 

It has nothing to do about the licensing costs LTSC users pay and everything to do about cultivating an ecosystem. The warnings regarding LTSC as being extremely limited in use comes from their marketing department. The actual road map that I concern myself with is the one that tells me what the product life cycle is, in this case 2024 as opposed to 2020 for their regular channel. Besides, if something truly life altering were coming over the horizon plenty of warning come through press releases. Building another image is not that big of a task.

 

...and yes, static is exactly how I want my machines to be. You don't get that with bi-annual forced feature/UI updates. Will the defer work? Will the upgrade fail halfway through and brick the user's device? Need to remove candy crush again? Who knows! A good number of users get lost if icons are even so much as out of place. Consistence is exactly what I want and I get that with LTSC.

 

Like I said in my original post: know the limitations and pros of each edition and choose accordingly. There is nothing wrong with using LTSB/C for regular usage in an organization - been doing it since 2015. The major drawback is not having supported access to their cloud offerings - none of which we use.