Running WinGet just now on my Flo6 desktop, I got reminded that installer changes sometimes stymie its update facilities. If you look at the lead-in graphic, you’ll see that one upgrade gets blocked because of “different install technology.” Winget goes onto recommend “Uninstall each package, then install the newer version.” Not so fast: IMO, an in-app update beats remove/replace when that’s an option. I’ll explain, and use the Edge browser as an illustration.

You can jump to Edge, click the ellipsis, and get to Help and feedback in 3 clicks. Uninstall/reinstall takes 20+ keystrokes, and might fail.

Why Say: In-app Update Beats Remove/Replace?

My explanation boils down to: less time and effort, fewer keystrokes involved. Jumping to Edge, clicking the ellipsis for Settings, then visiting Help and Feedback to prompt the update process takes 3 mouse clicks (add one more click to restart, and the update is done). Uninstalling, then re-installing edge takes at least 20 keystrokes (“winget uninstall edge”). Worse, it then falls victim to exit code 93. TLDR version: Edge is considered a Windows built-in feature, so it blocks its own uninstall by default.

Sure, you can work around this. And it works for other browsers as directed for Chrome, Firefox, and so forth. But my preferred approach for browsers in particular is: try the built-in update mechanism first, if WinGet steers around an update. It usually does so for a good reason, as is the case here with Edge.

Here in Windows-World, it pays to recognize such cul-de-sacs when they pop up. It saves you the time involved in driving to the end, turning around, and doing something else. Not an unfamiliar experience for Windows warriors, but one best avoided when possible!