WinGet v1.29.250

v1.29.250Pre-release

Windows Package Manager 1.29.250

Added 9
  • Added source priority feature to assign numerical priority to sources, affecting search result ordering and package selection preference
  • Added --no-progress flag to disable all progress reporting across all commands
  • Added preservation of installer arguments (--override and --custom) across winget export and import operations
  • Added upgradeable parameter to MCP find-winget-packages tool to list only installed packages with available upgrades
  • Added upgradeOnly parameter to MCP install-winget-package tool to upgrade only already-installed packages
  • Added support for GH_TOKEN and GITHUB_TOKEN environment variables in PowerShell module for authenticated GitHub API requests
Changed 4
  • Changed REST source results to correctly set match criteria to prevent automatic sorting to the top of results
  • Changed installer type selection to prioritize MSIX, then MSI/Wix/Burn, then Nullsoft/Inno/EXE, then Portable regardless of manifest order
  • Changed winget list output to no longer truncate columns when stdout is redirected to a file or variable
  • Changed spinner and progress bar output to be suppressed when no console is attached for cleaner redirected output

This is a release candidate of Windows Package Manager v1.29. If you find any bugs or problems, please help us out by filing an issue.

New in v1.29

New Feature: Source Priority

[!NOTE] Experimental under sourcePriority; defaulted to disabled.

With this feature, one can assign a numerical priority to sources when added or later through the source edit command. Sources with higher priority are sorted first in the list of sources, which results in them getting put first in the results if other things are equal.

[!TIP] Search result ordering in winget is currently based on these values in this order:

  1. Match quality (how well a valid field matches the search request)
  2. Match field (which field was matched against the search request)
  3. Source order (was always relevant, but with priority you can more easily affect this)

Beyond the ability to slightly affect the result ordering, commands that primarily target available packages (largely install) will now prefer to use a single result from a source with higher priority rather than prompting for disambiguation from the user. Said another way, if multiple sources return results but only one of those sources has the highest priority value (and it returned only one result) then that package will be used rather than giving a "multiple packages were found" error. This has been applied to both winget CLI and PowerShell module commands.

REST result match criteria update

Along with the source priority change, the results from REST sources (like msstore) now attempt to correctly set the match criteria that factor into the result ordering. This will prevent them from being sorted to the top automatically.

Minor Features
Preserve installer arguments across export and import

winget export now captures the --override and --custom arguments that were used when a package was originally installed and saves them into the export file. When subsequently running winget import, those values are automatically re-applied during installation — --override replaces all installer arguments and --custom appends extra switches — so packages can be reinstalled with the same customizations without any manual intervention. Both fields are optional and independent of each other; packages without stored installer arguments are unaffected.

--no-progress flag

Added a new --no-progress command-line flag that disables all progress reporting (progress bars and spinners). This flag is universally available on all commands and takes precedence over the visual.progressBar setting. Useful for automation scenarios or when running WinGet in environments where progress output is undesirable.

MCP upgrade support

The WinGet MCP server's existing tools have been extended with new parameters to support upgrade scenarios:

  • find-winget-packages now accepts an upgradeable parameter (default: false). When set to true, it lists only installed packages that have available upgrades — equivalent to winget upgrade. The query parameter becomes optional in this mode, allowing it to filter results or be omitted to list all upgradeable packages. AI agents can use this to answer requests like "What apps can I update with WinGet?"
  • install-winget-package now accepts an upgradeOnly parameter (default: false). When set to true, it only upgrades an already-installed package and returns a clear error if the package is not installed (pointing to install-winget-package without upgradeOnly instead). AI agents can use this to answer requests like "Update WinGetCreate" or, in combination with find-winget-packages with upgradeable=true, "Update all my apps."
Authenticated GitHub API requests in PowerShell module

The PowerShell module now automatically uses GH_TOKEN or GITHUB_TOKEN environment variables to authenticate GitHub API requests. This significantly increases the GitHub API rate limit, preventing failures in CI/CD pipelines. Use -Verbose to see which token is being used.

Default priority of installer types

Installer type selection no longer depends on the order defined on the manifest. Instead, preference is given in this order:

  • MSIX
  • MSI / Wix / Burn
  • Nullsoft / Inno / EXE
  • Portable

When a user configures installer type requirements or preferences, the order in which they are listed is now respected during installer selection.

Improved list output when redirected
  • winget list (and similar table commands) no longer truncates output when stdout is redirected to a file or variable — column widths are now computed from the full result set.
  • Spinner and progress bar output are suppressed when no console is attached, keeping redirected output clean.
Log file naming strategy

Added a user setting (logging.fileNameStrategy) for controlling the default naming strategy for installer log files. Supported values are manifest (default), timestamp, guid, and shortguid. Only applies to logs generated by installers if the installer itself supports the logging switch / parameter.

SettingDescription
manifestUses the name of the manifest and a timestamp. Has the same behavior as WinGet 1.28
timestampThe log name is just a timestamp
guidThe log name is a GUID
shortguidThe log name is the first 8 characters of a GUID
Sortable list output

winget list now supports sorting results via --sort <field> (repeatable for multi-field sorting), --ascending/--descending direction flags, and a persistent output.sortOrder setting. Available sort fields: name, id, version, source, available, relevance. By default, results are sorted alphabetically by name when no query is present; use --sort relevance to preserve the previous source-determined ordering.

Bug Fixes
  • winget export now works when the destination path is a hidden file
  • Fixed the useLatest property in the DSC v3 Microsoft.WinGet/Package resource schema to emit a boolean default (false) instead of the incorrect string "false".
  • SignFile in WinGetSourceCreator now supports an optional RFC 3161 timestamp server via the new TimestampServer property on the Signature model. When set, signtool.exe is called with /tr <url> /td sha256, embedding a countersignature timestamp so that signed packages remain valid after the signing certificate expires.
  • File and directory paths passed to signtool.exe and makeappx.exe are now quoted, fixing failures when paths contain spaces.
  • DSC export now correctly exports WinGet Admin Settings
  • winget validate now performs case-insensitive comparison for file extensions where applicable
  • winget source reset now properly resets default sources instead of removing them
  • DSC v3 Microsoft.WinGet/Package resource now honors the installMode property to use silent or interactive installer switches as specified
What's Changed
New Contributors

Full Changelog: https://github.com/microsoft/winget-cli/compare/v1.28.240...v1.29.250

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