Windows Camera (popularly known as Camera) is one of the default apps that ship with Windows 10. The Camera app, although is not as feature-rich as third-party apps, supports high-quality video recording and photo capturing.
If, at any point in time, the Camera app fails to record video or capture photos, you can easily fix the app by resetting it. Most of the common issues get fixed when you reset the Camera app.
If an issue persists even after resetting the Camera app, you can go ahead and reinstall the Camera app. Reinstalling the Camera app is simple. You just need to uninstall the Camera app and then install a new copy from Windows Store.
In this guide, we will see how to reset and reinstall the Camera app in Windows 10.
IMPORTANT: If you are having issues with the camera on your PC, we recommend you update camera’s device driver or reinstall the driver before trying out resetting or reinstalling the Camera app. If the built-in camera is not working, check if you have disabled the camera in Windows 10.
Method 1 of 2
Resetting the Camera app
To reinstall, refer to instructions in Method 2 given below.
Step 1: Open the Settings app. Navigate to Apps > Apps & features.
Step 2: Look for the Camera app entry and click on the same to select it. You should now see Advanced options link.
Step 3: Click Advanced options link to open Storage usage and app reset page.
Step 4: Finally, click the Reset button. When you see the confirmation flyout, click the Reset button to reset the Camera app.
You may now launch the Camera app.
Method 2 of 2
Reinstalling the Camera app
Reinstall the Camera app only if the issue persists even after resetting the Camera app.
Unlike some other default apps, Camera app cannot be uninstalled via the Settings app. We need to use the Windows PowerShell or CCleaner to uninstall the Camera app and then install a fresh copy of the same from Windows Store. Here is how to do just that.
Step 1: Run Windows PowerShell as administrator. To do so, right-click on the Start button on the taskbar and then click Windows PowerShell (Admin) option. Alternatively, type PowerShell in Start/taskbar search field, right-click on Windows PowerShell entry and then click Run as administrator option.
Step 2: At the PowerShell window, copy and paste the following command. Press Enter key to execute the command.
Get-AppxPackage –AllUsers
Step 3: Now, look for Microsoft.WindowsCamera entry. Select the PackageFullName of Camera app and use Ctrl + C hotkey to copy it to the clipboard.
Step 4: Execute the following command to uninstall the Camera app.
Remove-AppxPackage PackageFullName
In the above command, replace PackageFullName with the actual PackageFullName that you copied in the previous step.
You may close the PowerShell window now.
Alternatively, you can use the popular CCleaner to uninstall default Windows 10 apps. Open CCleaner, click Tools and click Apps. Right-click on Camera app and then click Uninstall option. Click OK button when you see the confirmation dialog.
Step 5: Finally, open the Store app, search for Windows Camera app and then install the same.
Hope you find this guide helpful!