Following Windows 11 RAR support, Microsoft Winget gets ZIP install, native PowerShell

Microsoft logo on a colorful mozaic background

Microsoft recently turned a lot of heads when it announced support for opening RAR files on Windows 11. WinRAR, which has often been a staple on people's PCs for such archive file formats seems to have mixed feelings about the matter as it also appreciates what Microsoft has done.

In related news, Microsoft has now added support for installing ZIP files on its Windows Package Manager CLI or winget with the latest version. Aside from that, it has also received native PowerShell support, and many more changes and bugfixes. These two major features were requested back in 2020.

The full changelog is given below:

Features

Support installing .zip files #140

Add Native PowerShell Support #221

Support --no-upgrade option for install flow #2655

Bugs

Fix issue that only 1 dependency package is installed #2761

Crash in list command #2273

Add SYSTEM to explicit ACLs #2370

What's Changed

Add refreshed Store source certs by @yao-msft in #3149

Block msix provisioning api calls where known OS bugs exist by @yao-msft in #2855

Add rest interface 1.4 to supported list by @yao-msft in #2853

Return localization independent string for help links by @AmelBawa-msft in #2786

Don't treat the COM subcommands as distinct for telemetry by @JohnMcPMS in #2792

Update PowerShell Module Dependency Docs by @ryfu-msft in #2797

Adjust spacing and punctuation for manifest validation messages by @Trenly in #2805

Apply latest localized strings patch by @ryfu-msft in #2816

UpdateBinVer script support for updating build version only by @yao-msft in #2818

Stop using m_summary in the global globals for telemetry by @florelis in #2820

Enable long aliases by @Trenly in #2107

Check symlink target before removal by @ryfu-msft in #2242

Bump version to 1.4 by @ryfu-msft in #2263

Apply latest localization patch by @ryfu-msft in #2264

Feat: Show package tags by @Trenly in #2235

Add support for UnsupportedArguments by @ryfu-msft in #2216

Validate manifest installers (MSIX) by @AmelBawa-msft in #2215

Improve index dependency consistency check by @yao-msft in #2247

Fix spacing in 1.2 singleton schema by @ryfu-msft in #2276

Fix unsupported args unit tests by @ryfu-msft in #2277

Mitigate crash that can occur when installed version is null by @JohnMcPMS in #2278

Create WinGetUtil functionality for running installed package correlation by @JohnMcPMS in #2221

Addition of Initial 1.3 Schema by @ryfu-msft in #2189

Add extra compilation flags for debug info by @florelis in #2281

Migrate FabricBot Tasks to Config-as-Code by @msftbot in #2285

Update fabricbot.json by @vedantmgoyal2009 in #2293

Fix WinGetUtil WinGetCreateManifest result by @yao-msft in #2296

Add alternate name to Usage String by @Trenly in #2268

Prevent null characters from getting into SQLite by @JohnMcPMS in #2289

Schema additions for Zip support by @ryfu-msft in #2288

Feat: Wait upon command completion by @Trenly in #2236

Move Release Notes to new line and indent by @Trenly in #2312

Remove /Zi compilation flag by @florelis in #2325

Update VCLibs file hash in correlation test script by @florelis in #2326

Add UndockedRegFreeWinRT by @jontab in #2333

Implementation for Zip Install (Non-Portable) by @ryfu-msft in #2320

Don't fail fast by @JohnMcPMS in #2335

Fix WinGetUtil index operations for manifest dependencies without min version by @yao-msft in #2337

Explicit ACLs by @JohnMcPMS in #2324

Prevent access to parent directories from relativeFilePath for archive install by @ryfu-msft in #2342

Make zip install an experimental feature by @ryfu-msft in #2351

Add InstallationMetadata to manifests for future deep installation detection by @yao-msft in #2350

Expand WinMD discovery by @jontab in #2348

Move to using sqlite3_errmsg to extract a contextual error for SQLite failures by @JohnMcPMS in #2352

Add in-process and out-of-process E2E tests by @AmelBawa-msft in #2315

Implement FolderFileWatcher by @msftrubengu in #2336

Update CsWinRTWindowsMetadata value by @AmelBawa-msft in #2357

Remove correlation blocker for remote->local in some cases by @JohnMcPMS in #2362

Update documentation with 1.3 settings by @ryfu-msft in #2363

Add Microsoft.WinGet.Client PowerShell Module files by @jontab in #2314

Fix file overwrite warning displayed on clean first install by @ryfu-msft in #2375

Logging improvements by @JohnMcPMS in #2378

Add SYSTEM to explicit ACLs by @JohnMcPMS in #2370

Remove tests that no longer serve a purpose by @JohnMcPMS in #2379

Check for symlink creation privilege for portable install by @ryfu-msft in #2369

Server certificate pinning for Store source by @JohnMcPMS in #2347

Remove scope filter from being applied to portables by @ryfu-msft in #2383

Validate SignatureSha256 for MSIX packages during the manifest validation by @AmelBawa-msft in #2384

Enable MSI testing in CI/CD pipeline by @JohnMcPMS in #2386

Standardize 'Show' labels to manifest fields by @Trenly in #2311

fix ms-windows-store link not rendered in md by @iamCristYe in #2403

Add command aliases by @Trenly in #2390

Add support for RequireExplicitUpgrade manifest element by @florelis in #1795

Add the ability to specify "scope or unknown" via COM by @JohnMcPMS in #2402

Collect scope in installer metadata by @JohnMcPMS in #2415

Copy winget unpackaged logs in E2E tests by @florelis in #2441

Ensure default values are passed to nested installers within zip by @ryfu-msft in #2413

Add prompts when installer aborts terminal or needs install location by @florelis in #1814

Update Labels from Hash Command by @Trenly in #2431

Add DisplayName to InstallationMetadata installed files by @yao-msft in #2442

Use UpgradeCode for matching MSI apps by @florelis in #2418

Add support for installing portables without developer mode and running as admin by @ryfu-msft in #2401

Increase manifest schema version to 1.4 by @yao-msft in #2451

Update Documentation for schema 1.2 by @Trenly in #2429

Increase PackageIdentifier segments to max 8 by @yao-msft in #2461

Use check-spelling/[email protected] by @jsoref in #2467

ZIP support spec by @ryfu-msft in #2270

Show PurchaseUrl if present in manifest by @Trenly in #2416

Add PortableIndex for tracking portable files by @ryfu-msft in #2459

Add $schema to cgmanifest.json by @JamieMagee in #2487

Update README link to VS Installer Project extension by @bsivanov in #2488

Removed en-US in links by @ImJoakim in #2494

Add logo to README.md by @vedantmgoyal2009 in #2507

Return error codes for dependencies failure by @hackean-msft in #2410

Add ExpectedReturnCode::ReturnResponse for PackageInUseByApplication by @Trenly in #2492

Suppress reboot by default on msiexec based installers by @gerardog in #2499

Fix installer metadata collection by @yao-msft in #2517

Add Aliases to allow for quick upgrade of all and unknown by @Trenly in #2518

Expose deeper installation detection through Com by @yao-msft in #2420

Add PureLib subtree by @ryfu-msft in #2511

Suppress reboot by default on Inno Setup based installers by @SpecterShell in #2536

Add client support for parsing rest schema v1.4 by @yao-msft in #2473

Add experimental argument to open logs folder by @Trenly in #2510

Add support for installing portables from a zip by @ryfu-msft in #2500

Map operation return code for msstore type installation failure as well by @yao-msft in #2540

Fix installer renaming failure from encoded url by @yao-msft in #2555

Add Pure to component governance manifest by @ryfu-msft in #2556

Added WinGetUtil E2E tests by @AmelBawa-msft in #2542

Add space before path when files remain on uninstall by @Trenly in #2560

Additional logging when validating portable file fails by @Trenly in #2562

Make Symlink Target Canonical by @Trenly in #2563

Implement archive malware scan for local manifests by @ryfu-msft in #2566

Improve installer selection during upgrade by @yao-msft in #2570

Add zip installation to experimental features section of Settings.md by @infinitepower18 in #2584

Make Install flow aware of package installed status by @yao-msft in #2539

Enable mechanism for some control over correlation by @JohnMcPMS in #2577

Mini spec on upcoming install and upgrade flow improvements by @yao-msft in #2535

Download MSIX installer during manifest validation (if necessary) by @AmelBawa-msft in #2587

Always fall back on msix streaming failure by @yao-msft in #2590

Remove MSIX installers after validation is done by @AmelBawa-msft in #2591

Fix error when everything fails by @JohnMcPMS in #2593

Fix PowerShell module for release configuration by @ryfu-msft in #2599

Treat little numbers as big numbers by @JohnMcPMS in #2606

Fix compliance issues by setting Newtonsoft.Json to recommended version by @yao-msft in #2609

Fix internal build by @yao-msft in #2610

Added info about reinstalling App Installer to troubleshooting README.md by @AdmiralSnyder in #2616

Update protocols max items to 64 by @ryfu-msft in #2620

Print command aliases added on portable install by @Trenly in #2621

Add Expected Return Code for InvalidParameter by @Trenly in #2635

Add an issue option to guide users to winget-pkgs for package issues by @SpecterShell in #2658

Get arguments when using archive type package by @Trenly in #2660

Revert "Get arguments when using archive type package" by @Trenly in #2663

Disable toast notification for silent mode for MSStore type installation by @yao-msft in #2652

Support --no-upgrade option for install flow by @yao-msft in #2655

Group policy control for BypassCertificatePinningForMicrosoftStore by @AmelBawa-msft in #2637

Update localized strings by @ryfu-msft in #2684

Manifest (Msix) installer validation - Try parsing package version by @AmelBawa-msft in #2692

Update NuGet Packages by @Trenly in #2690

Don't enable/disable admin settings if group policy prevents it by @AmelBawa-msft in #2683

Add spectre configuration for PureLib by @ryfu-msft in #2704

Fix renaming issue with invalid file character url by @yao-msft in #2708

Remove and Add UndockedRegFreeWinRT library by @ryfu-msft in #2713

Clean build from winget-cli by @msftrubengu in #2698

Upgrade check-spelling to v0.0.21 by @jsoref in #2728

Add source ls alias for source list by @florelis in #2736

Standardize how arguments are used in resource strings by @florelis in #2737

Support for PowerShell cmdlets in admin mode by @ryfu-msft in #2642

Add PowerShell cmdlet help text and examples by @ryfu-msft in #2732

Miscellaneous project cleanup by @yao-msft in #2738

spelling: installation by @jsoref in #2739

Update powershell module target framework to 4.8 by @ryfu-msft in #2741

Allow upgrade for unknown version packages by @ryfu-msft in #2747

Add ARM and ARM64 build configuration for powershell module by @ryfu-msft in #2744

Bump Newtonsoft.Json from 13.0.1 to 13.0.2 in /src/AppInstallerCLIE2ETests by @dependabot in #2754

Bump Newtonsoft.Json from 13.0.1 to 13.0.2 in /src/WinGetUtilInterop.UnitTests by @dependabot in #2753

Infra changes for Microsoft.WinGet.Client and AppInstallerCLIE2ETests by @msftrubengu in #2746

Remove nuget config file by @ryfu-msft in #2756

Add empty pin command by @florelis in #2733

Update DesktopAppInstaller.adml by @AmelBawa-msft in #2759

Fix issue that only 1 dependency package is installed by @yao-msft in #2761

Export command for winget settings. by @msftrubengu in #2719

Suppress warnings for CA1416 in PowerShell module by @ryfu-msft in #2762

Restore nuget.config file for public dependencies by @ryfu-msft in #2763

Separate Archive Scan argument related to security from --force by @Trenly in #2622

Fix winget after a call to winget settings export by @msftrubengu in #2767

Add additional admin setting to match security related group policies by @yao-msft in #2772

Prepare PowerShell Module for Release Build by @ryfu-msft in #2768

More localization friendly source strings and context commenting by @AmelBawa-msft in #2454

Make zip feature stable by @ryfu-msft in #2774

Add scope support to more commands and add provisioning support for msix and msstore types by @yao-msft in #2766

Split tests in Workflow.cpp into multiple files by @florelis in #2773

Update localized strings by @ryfu-msft in #2783

Suppress CA1416 warning #2 by @ryfu-msft in #2784