Backups are important to get right, which is why Microsoft is constantly looking to improve them on Windows 11. Whether you’re moving PCs or recovering from disaster, a comprehensive backup can save you time and effort. The OS is now greatly improving the way it backs up and restores apps.
An improved backup and restore system is rolling out for Windows 11 Insiders under build number 23493. Now, the backup and restore feature will not only back up apps downloaded from the Microsoft Store, but users will also see a pin for desktop apps that were downloaded and installed externally as well. The full app won’t be backed up, of course, but clicking on the icon of the app will give you a pop-up window telling you to go download it from the publisher’s website, with a button to quickly go to the download page for the app.
Before this, if you had any apps that you’ve downloaded outside of the Microsoft Store, the way to go would’ve been to manually Google and download each. With Windows 11 linking you to the publisher’s website to download the app you want, it can save you a lot of time.
This feature is live for Insiders on the Dev branch. Unless you want to deal with broken stuff, you should wait until it rolls out to everyone, which should happen sometime over the next few months.
Source: Microsoft
