Windows build number: [run "ver" at a command prompt] 1909 (18363.836)
PowerToys version: 0.18
PowerToy module for which you are reporting the bug (if applicable): settings
Launch Powertoys - right click to bring up settings
See the settings dialog
The dialog area is blank. As it opens on the desktop, it briefly flashes the content but then becomes blank
Same problem hereā¦
I'm wondering if maybe some setting is causing a crash here. Can you see if the event viewer is having anything added?
Also maybe email / including us the setting for PT zipped (C:\Users\YOUR_USER_NAME\AppData\Local\Microsoft\PowerToys)
xref #3447 which looks to be same issue
@laviusmotileng-ms for heads up
@ET3117 @a774500050
did you install PT in the past or is 0.18 the first version you installed?
If you used PT in the past can you try the following steps:
C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Local\Microsoft
C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Local\Microsoft
to your desktopDoes the problem still happen?
I'm having the same exact issue. I installed Powertoys for the first time with 0.18.0 and the issue began then. I've since tried to update to 0.18.1 and that didn't help.
PowerToys.zip
Here's my PowerToys appsettings folder.
Running as administrator fixed this issue for me.
I tried looking for PowerTools related items (or items added as I open settings) in Event Viewer and couldn't find anything as I could see. But I'm not sure of exactly what/were I would be looking for.
Running as administrator fixed this issue for me.
Fixed it for me too -- thank you, arntj
@ET3117 @arntj @michaelphilip Can you let us know the following information?
We still haven't been able to reproduce the error, so we are trying to identify any possible factor which could be causing this.
Hi, Arjun ā see my replies in-line below (in red)
Michael Philip Kaufman
Voice 234 321 9090 / SMS 917 846 9199
From: Arjun Balgovind notifications@github.com
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2020 8:38 PM
To: microsoft/PowerToys PowerToys@noreply.github.com
Cc: Michael Philip Kaufman mpk@computer.org; Mention mention@noreply.github.com
Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
@ET3117 https://github.com/ET3117 @arntj https://github.com/arntj @michaelphilip https://github.com/michaelphilip Can you let us know the following information?
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Thanks for the response @michaelphilip, what about this?
My answers
- Is the account where you are facing the blank dialog issue a standard account or an admin account?
Admin account.
- Are you running PT from the same user account where you installed it?
Yes.
- What are your UAC settings? You can check this by searching UAC in Windows Search, this is a screenshot of mine for example
Never notify.
- If you are able to access Settings when running as admin, can you try disabling each of the PowerToys manually, and then running PowerToys normally (not as admin) and opening Settings and see if that has any effect?
Didn't work.
- What are your display settings on your system? i.e. resolution, scaling % and aspect ratio, multi-monitor or single monitor - Can be checked by searching Display Settings.
I have an external and an internal monitor. I sometime use one and sometime the other, never both at once. I've had the same issue on both monitors.
Internal: 3840 x 2160 pixels, 250 % scaling
External: 2560 x 1440 pixels, 125 % scaling
- Even if the Settings appears blank, are you able to launch PowerToys Run by pressing Alt+Space when PowerToys is not running as admin?
Yes.
- Did you have an earlier version of PowerToys installed before 0.18 or was this the first time you installed PowerToys?
0.18.0 was my first version of PowerToys.
- Did you install PowerToys in C:\Program Files (default location) or another location?
C:\Program Files\PowerToys
I did have an earlier version installed, and I did install to the default location
ā£_______________________________________________________________
Michael Philip Kaufman
234 321 9090
ā
On Jun 9, 2020, 11:42, at 11:42, Arjun Balgovind notifications@github.com wrote:
Thanks for the response @michaelphilip, what about this?
- Did you have an earlier version of PowerToys installed before 0.18 or
was this the first time you installed PowerToys?- Did you install PowerToys in C:\Program Files (default location) or
another location?--
You are receiving this because you were mentioned.
Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub:
https://github.com/microsoft/PowerToys/issues/3384#issuecomment-641388911
The system that had the problem did have an earlier version installed. Unfortunately, that system has been reimaged and is no longer available.
From: Arjun Balgovind notifications@github.com
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2020 17:38
To: microsoft/PowerToys PowerToys@noreply.github.com
Cc: Ermine Todd III et3@toddfamily.com; Mention mention@noreply.github.com
Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
@ET3117https://github.com/ET3117 @arntjhttps://github.com/arntj @michaelphiliphttps://github.com/michaelphilip Can you let us know the following information?
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some more info regarding compatibility mode:
my setup - 1 monitor, resolution 1920X1080, 125%
@ET3117 @michaelphilip @arntj @LiorBanai trying to found out what is the common factor among all your systems that could cause this issue.
Hi Arjun,
Have you every changed any group policy settings or something that affects user/admin access on your system?
I donāt believe so, no
What hardware does your computer use? Processor name/model, graphics card (if your system has one)
ThinkPad W530 (Type 2436), with i&-3920XM CPU, and two video cards ā Intel HD Graphics 4000, and NVIDIA Quadro K1000M ā which are both in use to support 5 monitors (including the internal screen)
Windows 10 edition - Can be checked in Settings->System->About (such as Windows 10 Pro, Home, etc)
Windows 10 Pro
Windows display language and whether this was the language chosen at the time of installation of Windows.
English (and yes, always has been)
A couple of other observations that might be relevant:
I run Windows in Test Mode, because I need to coerce the driver for my 4 Planar PL2010M monitors
I also use Citrix for remoting into my workplace, which adds a āCitrix Indirect Display Adapterā to my list of display adapters
Michael Philip Kaufman
Voice 234 321 9090 / SMS 917 846 9199
From: Arjun Balgovind notifications@github.com
Sent: Wednesday, June 10, 2020 10:00 PM
To: microsoft/PowerToys PowerToys@noreply.github.com
Cc: Michael Philip Kaufman mpk@computer.org; Mention mention@noreply.github.com
Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] WinUI Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
@ET3117 https://github.com/ET3117 @michaelphilip https://github.com/michaelphilip @arntj https://github.com/arntj @LiorBanai https://github.com/LiorBanai trying to found out what is the common factor among all your systems that could cause this issue.
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@michaelphilip @arntj @LiorBanai Can you trying the following if you are comfortable doing it?
While not running as admin/compatibility mode, (i.e. in the situation where it appears blank)
resizing ui:
display driver is temporarily disabled - did not helped.
what did help: using rdp mode. when using remote desktop the ui is visible. also in this mode the display adapter list is showing:
@LiorBanai do you mean when you RDP to the same machine where it shows the blank error it starts working?
Correct.
edit: actually in rdp mode it has no consistency. sometimes is shown and sometimes it does not (with restart between tries)
Remember that, when the window first renders in non-Administrator mode, the entire left pane is populated (with the names of the various PowerToys), as well as the āGeneralā header on the right pane. After a very brief moment (<1 second), the left pane goes blankā¦and then. After considerably longer (more than one additional second), the āGeneralā header on the right pane vanishes too.
This behavior repeats each time you close and then reopen the settings window.
No scrollbars ever appear, no matter how small or large the window is made. But if the window is made taller than 791 pixels, the bottom section (beyond 791 pixels from the top) is full black, across both panes. Same goes for the entire right side of the window if maximized, or otherwise widened beyond 98e pixels.
Iām running both of my display adapters at the same time (for different monitors), and the behavior is the same across both. (And sorry, Iām loth to disable/reenable my drivers because my Planars donāt reliably restore normal driver operation.)
Hereās another interesting observation: Even with the Settings window seemingly blank, Iāve apparently managed (accidentally, at first) to click the ārestart as administratorā button, causing the Settings window to restart and become fully visible. So the controls are still there all along, it seems ā theyāre just not visible.
Michael Philip Kaufman
Voice 234 321 9090 / SMS 917 846 9199
From: Arjun Balgovind notifications@github.com
Sent: Thursday, June 11, 2020 3:24 PM
To: microsoft/PowerToys PowerToys@noreply.github.com
Cc: Michael Philip Kaufman mpk@computer.org; Mention mention@noreply.github.com
Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] WinUI Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
@michaelphilip https://github.com/michaelphilip @arntj https://github.com/arntj @LiorBanai https://github.com/LiorBanai Can you trying the following if you are comfortable doing it?
While not running as admin/compatibility mode, (i.e. in the situation where it appears blank)
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Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/microsoft/PowerToys/issues/3384#issuecomment-642881950 , or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/ACBER3NEGSCHRCXWJZQYLP3RWEVLPANCNFSM4NGNA67Q . https://github.com/notifications/beacon/ACBER3PUDPIY7IXQDNBF2XDRWEVLPA5CNFSM4NGNA672YY3PNVWWK3TUL52HS4DFVREXG43VMVBW63LNMVXHJKTDN5WW2ZLOORPWSZGOEZIZTHQ.gif
It's an interesting observation that you can still click on controls even though they are not visible.
Here's a GIF reproducing the issue and showing the fact that you can click on the "Restart as administrator" button. I'll get back to the other questions later.
Yeah, all ui elements are still functioning (included different left panel items and their views) but just not visible. The Mouse cursor even changes image when hovering on them.
- Have you every changed any group policy settings or something that affects user/admin access on your system?
I can't specifically remember doing so, but I can't exclude ever having done so over the four years I've had this computer.
- What hardware does your computer use? Processor name/model, graphics card (if your system has one)
Intel core i7-6820HQ 2.70GHz
Two graphics cards:
- Windows 10 edition - Can be checked in Settings->System->About (such as Windows 10 Pro, Home, etc)
Windows 10 Enterprise 2004
- Windows display language and whether this was the language chosen at the time of installation of Windows.
OS language is English, but Microsoft Store and other localized UWP apps are in Norwegian.
- Does any part of the scrollbar in the right pane draw (when moving the mouse over it when the Settings UI is resized small enough to need a scrollbar)?
- Does resizing the window cause anything to appear?
No to both questions, see my GIF above.
- If the display driver is temporarily disabled (in Device Manager, expand Display adapters, select the appropriate adapter, right-click "Disable device"), does it render then?
Now this is where things get interesting. I found that disabling the most powerful graphics card (the Nvidia one) _and then rebooting_ fixed this issue! If I re-enabled the Nvidia graphics card and then rebooted, the problem would re-appear. Enabling/disabling the Intel device doesn't seem to do any difference either way.
Note, the "rebooting" part is very important. Just disabling the graphics card doesn't do anything by itself, I had to disable the Nvidia _and then reboot_ to notice any change here.
Interesting, indeed. I also have both an Intel HD Graphics card (mine is 4000), and an NVIDIA Quadro (mine is K1000M ā Iām guessing you have a newer ThinkPad?)
Perhaps weāve found our culprit? (And kudos for rebootingā¦Iād easily have tried toggling the drivers without ever rebooting)
Michael Philip Kaufman
Voice 234 321 9090 / SMS 917 846 9199
From: Arnt Joakim WrƄlsen notifications@github.com
Sent: Friday, June 12, 2020 8:28 AM
To: microsoft/PowerToys PowerToys@noreply.github.com
Cc: Michael Philip Kaufman mpk@computer.org; Mention mention@noreply.github.com
Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] WinUI Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
No to both questions, see my GIF above.
Now this is where things get interesting. I found that disabling the most powerful graphics card (the Nvidia one) and then rebooting fixed this issue! If I re-enabled the Nvidia graphics card and the rebooted, the problem would re-appear. Enabling/disabling the Intel device doesn't seem to do any difference either way.
Note, the "rebooting" part is very important. Disabling Nvidia alone doesn't do the trick, I had to disable the Nvidia and then reboot to notice any change here.
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Can any of you share a heap dump of the Microsoft.PowerToys.Settings.UI.Runner process? Once you reproduce that blank dialog, open Task Manager and you should see a running app like this
Then right-click on that entry and press Create dump file. It will create a .dmp file in UserName\AppData\Local\Temp. That file should contain information that can help us debug more. The file would be fairly large though (like 500MB).
Iām on a remote broadband connection for the next week ā wonāt be able to send a dumpfile ātil after that
Michael Philip Kaufman
Voice 234 321 9090 / SMS 917 846 9199
From: Arjun Balgovind notifications@github.com
Sent: Friday, June 12, 2020 11:28 AM
To: microsoft/PowerToys PowerToys@noreply.github.com
Cc: Michael Philip Kaufman mpk@computer.org; Mention mention@noreply.github.com
Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] WinUI Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
Can any of you share a heap dump of the Microsoft.PowerToys.Settings.UI.Runner process? Once you reproduce that blank dialog, open Task Manager and you should see a running app like this
https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/32061677/84518946-474c4f80-ac86-11ea-8d79-d28ea241339d.png
Then right-click on that entry and press Create dump file. It will create a .dmp file in UserName\AppData\Local\Temp. That file should contain information that can help us debug more info. The file would be fairly large though (like 500MB).
https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/32061677/84519109-78c51b00-ac86-11ea-80b6-e1af9f4a8695.png
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(I shared wrong file at first, fixed now. Sorry about that.)
Update: We noticed an oddity in the heap dumps everyone shared. Extremely useful and is helping track down a possible cause
Good to hear that there's some indications that the problem will get fixed - perhaps in 0.19. I'll just pile on now and say that I am still experiencing the issue with 0.18.2 having just updated (including clearing %appdata%) from 0.18.1 today
@mccrispy we didn't get it solved in .18.2 (why this is still open :))
we know the issue now, and what is causing it, now to figure out how we can work around it.
@crutkas, out of curiosity, what is the cause of the issue?
How we can repro it is with systems running Nvidia's nView Desktop Manager . Here is the issue with the basic WPF Xaml Island Sample (https://github.com/microsoft/Xaml-Islands-Samples - WPF_XAMLIslands_v1).
When nView is disabled
When nView is enabled
Reason why when settings is run as Admin no one hits it is nView runs on the user level. When Settings is elevate, nView can't touch the process.
Under the hood, basically a visibility flag is getting set when it shouldn't. More importantly, we didn't.
@mccrispy we didn't get it solved in .18.2 (why this is still open :))
we know the issue now, and what is causing it, now to figure out how we can work around it.
I know, it's not fixed in 0.18.2. That's why I said "Good to hear that there's some indications that the problem will get fixed - perhaps in 0.19". I was attempting to provide additional information about my configuration, hoping that would be useful to you.
How we can repro it is with systems running Nvidia's nView Desktop Manager .
I can confirm that disabling nView Desktop Manager restores the expected behaviour of the Settings Panel
I think this happen, when you open settings, during PowerToys starting up.
@aaron-junker, we have a fix for this.
Hi Clint,
Is this fix available now?
Michael Philip Kaufman
Voice 234 321 9090 / SMS 917 846 9199
From: Clint Rutkas notifications@github.com
Sent: Thursday, June 25, 2020 4:08 PM
To: microsoft/PowerToys PowerToys@noreply.github.com
Cc: Michael Philip Kaufman mpk@computer.org; Mention mention@noreply.github.com
Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] WinUI Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
@Aaron-Junker https://github.com/Aaron-Junker , we have a fix for this.
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soon, 0.19 will have the fix. targeting end of month (literally writing release notes right now)
Brilliant ā thanks!
Michael Philip Kaufman
Voice 234 321 9090 / SMS 917 846 9199
From: Clint Rutkas notifications@github.com
Sent: Thursday, June 25, 2020 4:17 PM
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Subject: Re: [microsoft/PowerToys] WinUI Settings dialog is blank (#3384)
soon, 0.19 will have the fix. targeting end of month (literally writing release notes right now)
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Fixed in 0.19.0, please visit https://github.com/microsoft/PowerToys/releases/ for the latest release
Most helpful comment
How we can repro it is with systems running Nvidia's nView Desktop Manager . Here is the issue with the basic WPF Xaml Island Sample (https://github.com/microsoft/Xaml-Islands-Samples - WPF_XAMLIslands_v1).
When nView is disabled

When nView is enabled

Reason why when settings is run as Admin no one hits it is nView runs on the user level. When Settings is elevate, nView can't touch the process.
Under the hood, basically a visibility flag is getting set when it shouldn't. More importantly, we didn't.