WIN11 Widgets not working - "Unable to load weather information"

1. I closed the Widgets processes in Task Manager and then ran the Powershell command again and didn't get the error this time. I rebooted and still get the "No Internet Access" message when I hover over the Widgets box in the task bar.
2. When I try to rename the "MicrosoftWindows.Client.WebExperience... " folder to amend its name with a ".old", I got an error message saying it can't be done because "the folder or file is open in another program". I went back into the Task Manager and closed all processes named Widget, or similar. Doing that, then let me successfully amend the name of the "MicrosoftWindows.Client.WebExperience... " folder.Rebooting does not fix the issue. A new MicrosoftWindows.Client.WebExperience_cw5n1h2txyewy folder is created and I still get the "No Internet Access" message when I hover over the Widgets box in the task bar after I reboot.
3. I have no Microsoft Store app installed on my machine. When I search for that name under "Installed Apps", I get a "we couldn't find anything to show here...". I also find no Microsoft Store listed in the list of all installed programs/apps.

Another observation.. even though it says "No Internet Access" when I hover over the Widgets box in my taskbar, if I left click on it, it says "Unable to load weather information. Make sure that the location you have entered is correct. Verify that you are connected to the internet". Under that is a RELOAD option. If I click on that, a weather window for my area pops up with weather conditions for my area, but goes black and again shows the above message after about 1 sec. Same thing happens repeatedly if I press the RELOAD button. It was doing this before, too, so nothing I did today changed this but figured I'd let you know about this in case it helps you determine what is going on with my WIN11 install.

I think I may have solved my issue. I uninstalled ExplorerPatcher which is a program to make the WIN11 GUI look more like that of WIN10. When I uninstalled it, the Widget with weather info re-appeared. I downloaded and re-installed ExplorerPatcher thinking possibly that program was corrupt and a fresh install may work, but the same 'no internet connection' error came back. I uninstalled ExplorerPatcher again so I won't use that anymore as it appears that the most current version has an issue as it pertains to the WIN11 Widget system. The widgets had worked fine until recently so I am thinking that a recent update to ExplorerPatcher 'broke' something in regards to Widgets. I'll monitor for a few days to ensure that Widgets continue to work now. Thank you.

1. I don't see a sign-in or sign-out option. It shows me logged into my computer as the admin, shows me 1,124 Points under Rewards (making me think that I am logged in to my MS account). Also, when I click on Accounts (under Related Settings), it has me already logged into my MS account, too. I don't use OneDrive so that option has a sign-in option. I have my WIN 11 set up so that I don't have to log-in to my computer every time I reboot it. I've had this setup this way since I bought this computer over a year ago.
2. Did this and nothing changed. Hovering over the Widget icon in the taskbar still says "no internet access"
3. There is no update for Web Explorer Pack showing. Only an "Open" option shows.
4. I am using WIN11 Home (not Pro) so when I search for "gpedit.msc", an error message comes up saying that file can't be found.
5. Interestingly, when I go to Accounts, there is no "Family & other users" option as you mention. I did add a new account under "Family". I created a new account and can access Widgets normally there.
6. Re-install Widgets - there is no " " option when I right-click the Start button. These are the options... Installed Apps, Power Options, Mobility, Event Viewer, System, Device Manager, Network Connections, Disc Management, Computer Management, Terminal, Terminal (Admin)... are the only options.
   It did manually run PowerShell as an admin using the search function for "Powershell" and this was the response in the cmd window (I also installed the latest version of Powershell before hand):
   Get-AppxPackage MicrosoftWindows.Client.WebExperience | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"} Add-AppxPackage : Deployment failed with HRESULT: 0x80073D02, The package could not be installed because resources it modifies are currently in use. error 0x80073D02: Unable to install because the following apps need to be closed MicrosoftWindows.Client.WebExperience_525.15301.20.0_x64__cw5n1h2txyewy. NOTE: For additional information, look for [ActivityId] 725fae12-f372-0004-17e4-8a7272f3db01 in the Event Log or use the command line Get-AppPackageLog -ActivityID 725fae12-f372-0004-17e4-8a7272f3db01 At line:1 char:67
   • ... | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.I ...

   •             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     

     • CategoryInfo : NotSpecified: (C:\Program File...ppXManifest.xml:String) [Add-AppxPackage], Exception
     • FullyQualifiedErrorId : DeploymentError,Microsoft.Windows.Appx.PackageManager.Commands.AddAppxPackageCommand
7. I am not using a proxy (option was already off) and I am not using a VPN.

Hopefully these answers will help guide us to fixing my Widgets issue. Since Widgets works fine with the other user set up, obviously, it is installed on my machine. Seems to be either a corruption in my settings or something causing it to not work with my main user. I am the only one to use this laptop.

Thanks.

Hi Matthew, Thanks for sharing all those details. Let's go through a few more things together.

Try these:

Check your Microsoft account

• Go to settings > Accounts > Your info
• Make sure you're signed in with a Microsoft account
• If you are, sign out and back in

Restart Windows Explorer

• Press Crtl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager
• Find Windows Explorer, right-click it, then click Restart

Reset Microsoft Store

• Press Windows + R, type wsreset.exe , press Enter
• When the Store opens, search for Windows Web Experience Pack
• If there's an update, install it

Check Group Policy (if you're Windows Pro)

• Press Windows + R, type gpedit.msc , press Enter
• Go to: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Widgets
• Make sure it says Not Configured or Enabled
• Restart your PC

Try a new user account

• Go to Settings > Accounts > Family & other users
• Click Add account
• Log into the new account
• Check if Widgets work there

Reinstall Widgets

• Right-click PowerShell from the Start menu, choose Run as administrator
• Paste this and press Enter: Get-AppxPackage MicrosoftWindows.Client.WebExperience | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
• Restart your PC

Check proxy or VPN

• Go to Settings > Network & Internet > Proxy
• Turn off Use a proxy server
• If you're using a VPN, turn it off and try Widgets again

Hope this helps! If it doesn't work, let me know there's one more way to fix this without resetting your whole computer, will figure it out.