Fixed: ‘Action Center won’t Open error’ Issue on windows 11

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We’ve recently seen a strange problem ‘Action Center won’t Open error’ Issue on windows 11, more specifically on the “Personalization Colors” page, is greyed out. We never gave it much thought because we use a dynamic wallpapers app with a light theme for the start menu and taskbar. But when we wanted to change the colors of the start menu and taskbar, we couldn’t do it anymore.

In Windows 11, the Action Center lets you know when apps and other system tasks happen. Using the right notifications, you can act right away on a number of issues. Microsoft has tried to improve Action Center in each new version of Windows 10 so that it is more useful for clients. We mentioned below are the ways to fix ‘Action Center won’t Open error’ Issue on windows 11. You can also go to the official Microsoft support site for more information about this error.

Ways To Fix ‘Action Center won’t Open error’ Issue

Enable Action Center via Local Group Policy Editor

Sometimes, your computer may not let you use the action centre because it is turned off. If this situation applies to you, you can turn it on using the Local Group Policy Editor. Follow the steps below:

• First of all, open up the Run dialog box by pressing Windows key + R on your keyboard.
• In the Run dialog box, type in gpedit.msc and then hit the Enter key.
• This will open up the Local Group Policy Editor.
• There, locate to the following directory:
• User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar
• Once you are there, on the right-hand side, scroll down and locate the Remove Notifications and Action Center policy.
• Double click on the policy once you have located it to open it up.
• Choose the Disabled option and then click the Apply button.
• Once you have done that, go ahead and restart your computer for the changes to take effect.
• After your PC boots up, see if the problem is still there.

Restart Windows Explorer

When you run into this problem, the first thing you should do is restart the Windows Explorer process. This is because Windows Explorer is in charge of your computer’s file management, and it also takes care of your desktop. So, if it has a problem, your desktop won’t work right.

If this is the case, you can fix the problem by going into the Task Manager and restarting the Windows Explorer. Follow the steps below:

• First of all, right-click on the Windows icon on your taskbar, and then from the menu that appears, click Task Manager.
• Once the Task Manager window is open, look for the Windows Explorer process in the Processes tab.
• After finding the process, right-click on it, and from the drop-down menu, click the Restart option.
• Wait for it to restart. Once done, see if the problem has been resolved.

Enable Action Center via Windows Registry

You can also use the Windows Registry to turn on the action Centre. The way your desktop computer acts is controlled by the Windows Registry. So, any changes you don’t want can make your computer stop working. Before moving on, we suggest making a copy of the Windows Registry. The steps here are pretty easy, and if you do them right, you shouldn’t have any problems.

• To start, open up the Run dialog box by pressing Windows key + R.
• Then, in the Run dialog box, type in Regedit and hit the Enter key.
• Once the Windows Registry window is open, paste the following path in the address bar and then hit Enter:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows

• Now, under the Windows key, look if you can find an Explorer key.
• In case there is no Explorer key, you will have to create it yourself.
• To do that, right-click on Windows, and then from the drop-down menu, go to New > Key.
• Name this newly created key Explorer.
• After that, right-click the Explorer key and from the drop-down menu, choose New > DWORD (32-bit).
• Name this value DisableNotificationCenter.
• After you have done that, double click DisableNotificationCenter on the right-hand side and set its value to 0. Click OK.
• Once you’ve done that, restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Check to see if the action Centre still doesn’t work after your computer starts up.

Create a New User Account

Last but not least, if none of the above solutions worked for you, the problem may be with the user account you are using. This can happen if the files for the user account are damaged, making some features stop working.

If this is the case, you will need to make a new user account on your computer to fix the problem. Just follow the steps below:

• First of all, open up the Windows Settings app by pressing Windows key + I on your keyboard.
• On the Settings window, click on the Accounts option on the left-hand side.
• Then, on the Accounts screen, click the Family & other users option provided.
• Now, under Other users, click the Add account option provided.
• A new window called Microsoft account will open up. Click the I don’t have this person’s sign-in information option.
• Then, on the next prompt, click the Add a user without a Microsoft account option.
• Once you have done that, on the Create a user for this PC screen, provide the account and a password. Click the Next button.
• Wait for the new account to be created. Finally, you will have to click Next one more time to finish up.

Repair Windows Apps

As we’ve already said, one reason the problem happens is because the Windows apps on your computer are broken. In this case, you will need to use Powershell on your computer to fix the apps. Just follow the steps below:

• First, open a Powershell window that is high up. To do this, go to the Start Menu and look for Powershell. Then, right-click on it. From the drop-down menu, choose Run as administrator. You can also click the “Run as administrator” button on the right side.
• Once the Powershell window is open, copy and paste the following commands one at a time to repair the apps:

Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Windows.ShellExperienceHost | foreach {Add-AppxPackage -register "$($_.InstallLocation)\appxmanifest.xml" -DisableDevelopmentMode}
Get-AppXPackage | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

• After both of these processes are done, go ahead and restart your computer.
• See if the problem persists when your computer boots up.

FAQ

Why is my taskbar color option greyed out?

Because Windows is in Light mode, the option to show accent colour is turned off. That means all you have to do to turn on the option again is switch Windows to Dark mode.

Why are my icons greyed out?

Are the app icons on your Android phone or tablet greyed out? This could be because your administrator has set up a passcode policy for your device through Miradore, but your device doesn’t meet the requirements for the passcode.