Before proceeding to the methods, it is recommended to restart your computer. Restarting can eliminate bugs and reduce conflicts that might interfere with and prevent photos from displaying. The issue might be fixed after a restart; however, it may recur after a few hours or days. Therefore, we recommend performing the following steps so you don’t need to worry.
1. Install Microsoft Photo Legacy or Switch to Classic Photo Viewer
Installing Microsoft Photo Legacy or switching to the classic photo viewer offers one of the simplest solutions to this issue. This eliminates the need for the Photos app, directly resolving the issue without requiring further action. To install Microsoft Photo Legacy, simply open the Microsoft Store, search for Microsoft Photo Legacy, and install it.
2. Install Optional Updates
Missing important Windows components required to open photos via the Windows Photo app might be the cause. Additionally, optional updates sometimes include fixes and improvements that can address this issue without needing further action. Therefore, ensure you install optional updates or even the Windows update if available to resolve the problem. If this does not work, you can try uninstalling the recent Windows update from your system, which might have caused this issue.
3. Reinstall Microsoft Photo Viewer
If there are missing or corrupted files for the Photos application, try reinstalling the Microsoft Photos app to refresh its components, ensuring it can properly display images without interference.
4. Use a Workaround to Avoid the Issue
If the issue still persists, you can use an alternative workaround until Microsoft addresses it. The workaround involves right-clicking the image you want to open and selecting Edit with Photos. This will open the image in the Photos app editor. Simply click Cancel, and the image will open normally. While this is not a permanent solution, it will surely help in urgent situations where you need to open an image that is showing the error message.
5. Use a System Restore Utility
If this issue occurred after installing the Windows update and is not resolved by uninstalling that update or following the above methods, you have the option to use the System Restore utility to revert to the previous state of your Windows. However, this requires a restore point created before you encountered this issue. Sometimes, the Windows Update utility creates a restore point before installing updates, so it’s worth checking, as it might have been created either by you or by a Windows update. If you are still facing the issue, there may not be much left to do until Microsoft releases a fix in the next updates. Meanwhile, you can use other photo viewer apps like Microsoft Photo Legacy or the classic photo viewer.
