We all know that Settings app is the heart of Windows 10. Without Settings app, it would be quite difficult or seems impossible to manage your Windows 10 operating system. So what if suddenly you realize that Settings app is no longer opening? Or if Settings app opens, but it doesn’t displays the particular setting section you want to configure. In some cases, you might observe Settings app opens and crashes or minimizes itself.

Recommended:How to hide or display sections in Settings app via Group Policy.

Well, to answer above mentioned problems, this article is for you. See, if other apps are not working, you can easily reset them via Settings app. But in this case, the problem is itself with the Settings app and thus the repair method can’t be applied.

Here are couple of fixes that you can try, when Settings app is not working on your Windows 10:

FIX: Settings App Not Working In Windows 10

FIX 1 – Re-register Settings App Via PowerShell

1. Open administrative Windows PowerShell. For this, simply right click Start Button or press + X keys and select Windows PowerShell (Admin). You can also search for Windows PowerShell using Cortana and right click the same from results and select Run as administrator.

Once installed Administrator account has no issues. When you log using another account and try to open Settings, the window opens but hangs. You can't click on anything. If you wait a while it will eventually let you click on the categories etc. Eventually, it will correct itself and loads fine. I rolled back to 1809. Every time I clicked on “Apps” in Settings, the Settings app would just crash and disappear. Homegroups are still mentioned in menus, despite the feature being removed from Windows 10 over a year ago. Windows 10 settings crash fix with System File Checker tool System File Checker is a utility tool for Windows that allows users to scan for corruptions in Windows system files and restore corrupted files. Click command prompt (Run as administrator).

2. Next, in the PowerShell window, type/paste following cmdlet and press Enter key.

3. Let the command complete. Close Windows PowerShell and reboot the machine. After restarting your system, see if you can launch the Settings app now.

FIX 2 – By Creating New User Account Via LUSRMGR

Yet another possibility for this problem is that your account is having issues in opening Settings app. So you can create another user account via LUSRMGR snap-in. Here’s how:

1. Press + R and type lusrmgr.msc in Run dialog box to open Local Users and Groups snap-in. Click OK.

2. In the lusrmgr window, right click Users and select New user.

3. Moving on, fill the new user required information and click Create.

4. One the new user account is created, sign-out from your account and sign-in to new user account. If Settings app working fine on your newly created account, move your content to new user account and start using it now.

Else, if you still have issue, simply repair Windows 10 via in-place upgrade and problem should be solved by that.

See illustration of FIX 1 in this video:

Hope something helps!

Summary :

Are you bothered by the issue – Windows 10 Settings not opening? If the Settings app won’t open and you can’t access all the Windows settings, don’t panic. It can be easily solved. Just read this post from MiniTool and you can know how to get rid of trouble.

Settings Not Opening Windows 10

In Windows 10, the Settings feature is introduced and it is simple to work and very user-friendly when comparing to its predecessor - Control Panel. It offers you an easy way to personalize and control many critical operations and features, such as Windows updates, user accounts, privacy, networks, etc.

However, Settings sometimes stops working, for example, Windows 10 can’t open Settings or Settings menu freezes/hangs after opening. The issue of Windows 10 Settings not working is reported by many users and it always occurs because of corrupted system files, corrupted user account files, an update bug, etc.

So, this problem indicates that you may be blocked from installing updates via the Windows Update feature and doing some operations related to Settings if Windows 10 can’t access Settings, so terrible! But don’t worry, we will provide some simple methods to fix this problem and just choose what suits your need.

How to Fix Windows 10 Settings Not Opening

How do you fix Windows 10 Settings not opening? If Windows 10 can’t open Settings, you can try to reboot your computer to check if the issue is solved. If this fails, you can try other methods below.

Solution 1: Alternative Ways to Open Settings

Usually, you open the app by clicking the Windows logo and choosing Settings. If this doesn’t work, you can open it in other ways. Then, you ask - how do I open Settings in Windows 10? It is easy by following the guide.

Have received the message “critical error start menu isn’t working”? This post will walk you through some effective fixes for the start menu error.

1. Input settings in the search box and click the result.
2. Press the Win + I keys to launch Windows 10 Settings.
3. Go to the Action Center and click All settings.
4. Press Win + R, input ms-settings: in the Run window and press Enter.

If Windows 10 Settings won’t open all the time after you try these ways, now it’s time to try something else.

Solution 2: Check If the Settings App Is Enabled

Due to some reasons, you may have disabled Windows Settings via Windows Registry Editor or Group Policy, so the issue of Windows 10 Settings not opening happens. Having a check is a good idea.

Registry Editor

1. Input regedit.exe in the search box and click the result to open Registry Editor.
2. Head to HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoft WindowsCurrentVersionPoliciesExplorer. If Explorer doesn’t exist, right-click on Policies and choose New > key to create it.
3. Right-click on the right empty area, choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value and name it NoControlPanel.
4. Double-click the key and ensure its value is 0 (enable Settings).

Group Policy

1. Type gpedit.msc to the search box and click the result to open Local Group Policy Editor.
2. Head to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel.
3. Double-click Prohibit access to Control Panel and PC Settings from the right panel and change its setting to Disabled.
4. Click Apply and OK.

After trying this way, if the Windows 10 Settings not working issue persists, continue using other methods to fix it so as to let it open and work properly.

Solution 3: Run System File Checker

If there are some corrupted system files, perhaps Windows 10 can’t open Settings, so running a SFC scan could be helpful. SFC, short for System File Checker, is a tool that comes with Windows operating system. It can be used to scan for system and restore corruptions in Windows system files.

Here is how to do it:

1. Open Command Prompt in admin mode via Search.
2. Input SFC /scannow and hit Enter. This will take some time, so wait patiently.

After finishing the scan, check if the issue of Windows Settings not opening is resolved. If not, try another solution.

Solution 4: Run the Windows Update Troubleshooter

As mentioned above, a Windows update could give rise to Windows Settings not working. To let the app open and work normally, you can try the Windows Update Troubleshooter.

Via Control Panel

1. Open Control Panel, view all items by large icons and choose Troubleshoot.
2. In the new window, click the Fix problems with Windows Update link under the System and Security Then, follow the on-screen guide to finish fix.

Via the downloaded file

1. Go to the Microsoft website and download Update Troubleshooter for Windows 10.
2. Double-click the downloaded file and click Next. Then, continue the operations by following the on-screen instructions.

Check if the Settings app is working correctly after reboot. If not, try reinstalling it.

Solution 5: Reinstall the Settings App

How to reinstall the app if Windows 10 Settings won’t open? Do as the following guide:

1. Launch Command Prompt with the rights of administrator by searching for cmd, right-clicking the result and choosing Run as Administrator.

2. Copy and paste the following command to the open the CMD window and press Enter.

Get-AppXPackage | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)AppXManifest.xml”}

If this couldn’t work, you should log on to the system as another valid user with admin rights.

Solution 6: Create a New Windows User

Because of the Windows 10 Settings app not working, you can’t create a new account via the app. If you are running Windows 10 Pro, use Command Prompt instead.

1. Open the Command Prompt window with admin privileges.

2. Run the command: net user newusername newpassword /add and hit Enter. Then, you will get a message saying the command completed successfully.

3. Next, type the command: net localgroup administrators newusername /add and hit Enter to make the new user be an administrator.

4. Sign out of your current account and log into the new account.

Solution 7: Reinstall Windows 10

If Windows 10 can’t access Settings after you try all of the above methods, maybe you need to reinstall the operating system, which is the last resort.

Next, start reinstalling the OS. This post - How to Reinstall Windows 10 without CD/USB Easily (3 Skills) gives you many methods and just choose one based on your actual situations.

Extra Tip: Create a System Image for Windows 10

After trying these solutions, your Settings app should work properly and you can access it to perform some operations regarding user account, Windows updates, privacy, Internet, etc.

In fact, computer problems – in addition to Windows 10 Settings not working, other issues like Task Manager not responding, File Explorer not opening, blue screen of death, and more always happen due to certain reasons.

Thus, we suggest creating an image for your Windows operating system to ensure that your PC can restore to its normal state when one of the issues occur. How can you back up Windows 10?

MiniTool ShadowMaker, an all-in-one backup software is compatible with Windows 10/8/7, etc. With it, you can easily create a backup for your files & folders, disks, partitions, and Windows operating system on a USB flash drive, external hard disk, a shared folder, etc.

Importantly, it offers you a tool to create a bootable disc, USB hard drive or USB flash drive so that you can boot the unbootable PC and easily and quickly perform a restore. What’s more, it supports Universal Restore so you can restore the system to a computer with different hardware.

Now, get its Trial Edition by hitting the following button and then start to create a system image. Note that this edition only gives you 30-day free use, so upgrade to a full edition if you have a need.

1. Double-click on the icon of MiniTool ShadowMaker you have installed on your PC to open it.

2. Choose Backup from the tool bar.

3. By default, MiniTool ShadowMaker selects system partitions from the Source section, for example, system reserved partition and C drive. Your aim is to back up your system after fixing the issue of Windows 10 Settings not opening, so you can skip this step.

4. Sometimes, the destination path is also selected by this software. If not or the path is not the one you want, you can specify a place for the system image.

5. Finally, click Back up Now at once.

Here are all the steps on backing up Windows 10 operating system with MiniTool ShadowMaker. When Windows 10 won’t open next time or you have any other PC issues regarding Windows system, the system image can be used to restore the PC to the time point where the backup is created. This can save much time of the issue troubleshooting.

Related article: Perform System Image Recovery Windows 10 to Quick Restore PC

Right now, get MiniTool ShadowMaker to back up your operating system. Additionally, you can clone disk, back up files, partitions or disk and sync files. Have a try after fixing the issue of Windows 10 Settings app not working. Of course, you can share this program with your friends if you like it.

Bottom Line

Are you having the issue – Windows 10 Settings not opening? After reading this post, you clearly know this issue and how to fix it if Settings doesn’t launch. Just try them according to your actual cases. Furthermore, it is best to create a system image to perform a quick disaster restore.

While you have any other methods to fix the Settings problem or you have any questions related to MiniTool software, leave your idea to the Comment part or send an email to our team – [email protected]. We will reply to you as soon as possible.

Windows 10 Settings Not Opening FAQ

1. Go to Start > Settings.
2. Enter settings to the Windows 10’s search box to open Settings.
3. Open Run by pressing Win + R, input ms-settings: and click OK.
4. In Action Center, click All settings.
5. Alternatively, press Win + I to go to the Settings window.

1. Restart your computer
2. Re-launch Windows Explorer
3. Run SFC command
4. Delete a registry entry

To use Startup Repair to fix Windows 10 problems, you should follow the guide:

Win 10 Settings Crashing

1. Go to Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) by using Restart + Shift or a bootable drive.
2. Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Repair.
3. Choose your account and enter the password.
4. Finish the repair by following the guide on the screen.

Windows 10 Settings App Keeps Crashing

1. Relog into your account
2. Create a new user account
3. Run Microsoft Start Menu Troubleshooter
4. Check and repair Windows files
5. Reinstall Windows apps
6. Enable Tablet Mode and start screen
7. To get more solutions and details, refer to this article - How Do I Fix Windows 10 Start Menu Not Working Quickly.