Media Player is missing from the list in "Turn Windows features on or off"
2014-07
arsaKasra
I decided to reinstall Media Player in Vista [this way], so I figured I should turn it off as a Windows feature. But when I continue with the procedure, I get an incomplete list of features, here's an image:
I looked around a bit, wondering if that is only an option available in 7, and I have seen people saying different things. So, is this only available for 7 or is there something wrong going on here? Can I make Media Player to show up in here?
I am on a Toshiba Satellite A100 with Vista Home Premium OEM. I don't have my recovery disks or any restore point.
Just to mention, I currently do have Media Player and it's working fine.
Sorry if I can't think of any more details to add, please ask me for anything I should have included.
and31415
Turning media features off
That's the expected behavior, because Windows Media Player couldn't be turned off until Windows 7 entered the Release Candidate (RC) phase. Quoting the Engineering Windows 7 blog (emphasis mine):
In Windows 7 we are expanding the number of features you have control over [...], giving customers more control, flexibility and choice in managing the features available in this version of Windows. In addition to the features that were already available to turn on or off in Windows Vista, we've added the following features to the list in Windows 7:
- Windows Media Player
- Windows Media Center
- Windows DVD Maker
- Internet Explorer 8
- Windows Search
- Handwriting Recognition (through the Tablet PC Components option)
- Windows Gadget Platform
- Fax and Scan
- XPS Viewer and Services (including the Virtual Print Driver)
Source: Beta to RC Changes – Turning Windows Features On or Off
Troubleshooting Windows Media Player issues
While reinstalling is not possible, you can still try to fix what's broken. Here are generic articles that might be useful:
- Use the System File Checker tool to repair missing or corrupted system files
- Windows Media Player stops responding after you install a third-party product that registers its own version of the Wmp.dll file
- You cannot view, add, or delete items in the library in Windows Media Player 11
- Error message when you try to use Windows Media Player to stream audio or video from Windows Media Services: "The specified protocol is not supported"
- When I try to use Windows Media Player 11, the program does not start, or some UI elements are blank
You can find similar articles by using these keywords in a search engine:
vista media player kbtshoot site:microsoft.com
If you have a specific problem, refine the search query to get more relevant results.
rpm1200
My friend asked me to look at her Acer Aspire laptop with Vista Home Premium as it is no longer playing DVDs. I found that Windows Media Player would not launch. I found this thread, which contained a number of suggestions, none of which solved the problem. Here is what I tried:
- Tried running WMP via desktop shortcut, QuickLaunch bar or going to Program Files\Windows Media Player\wmplayer.exe. In all cases, wmplayer would launch then terminate immediately (verified through the Processes tab in Task Manager).
- Tried running wmplayer.exe as Administrator. The UAC dialog would come up, I'd approve, then wmplayer would launch and terminate immediately.
- Uninstalled all non-Microsoft media programs except RealPlayer, iTunes, QuickTime, Acer Arcade (the laptop owner uses all those apps).
- Tried running Program Files\Windows Media Player\setup_wm.exe as Administrator, it launched but said that a newer version of WMP was already installed.
- Deleted the "Windows Media" folder located under %userprofile%\appdata\local\Microsoft then tried starting WMP - wmplayer would launch and terminate immediately.
- Register wmp.dll by typing "regsvr32 wmp.dll" in an Administrator cmd window then tried starting WMP - wmplayer would launch and terminate immediately.
- Run "SFC /SCANFILE" in an Administrator cmd window - get an error message that it found invalid system files and could not fix them, so look at the log file cbs.log. The log file shows that there are broken files associated with Windows Sidebar (which the user does not use) but none relating to WMP.
- Log off to safe mode and run "SFC /SCANFILE" in an Administrator cmd window again - same results.
- Try to download and install XP WMP - the microsoft.com site recognizes the OS as Genuine and allows the download, but when I launch the installer it says the system is not Genuine. Clicking the link directs me back to IE where I can authenticate the system as Genuine. The installer still fails to recognize the system as Genuine. It is a Genuine Vista installation.
- Try to run this update (KB931621). The installer said it did not apply to the system.
- Set Windows Media Player as default in Program Access and Defaults. Same results.
- Tried running "for %a in (%systemroot%\system32\wm*.dll) do regsvr32 /s %a" in an Administrator cmd window - same results.
- Went to this Knowledge Base article (947541) and ran the Microsoft Fix It. The Fix It ran successfully, but WMP would still launch and terminate immediately.
- Multiple reboots in the process of doing all of these steps.
- After all this, looked in the Application and Security logs. No events pertaining to WMP were logged.
The computer was preinstalled with Vista Home Premium and I have the Acer backup DVDs which will reimage the drive. I do not have Vista install DVDs. Reimaging the system is not an option. I'd also rather not restore the system to an earlier point unless it's absolutely necessary.
What else can I do to repair or reinstall WMP?
NycLifeG
You can uninstall Windows media player and then run windows update. The updates will install a fresh copy. Make sure you reboot in between and it might take a few searches for updates before it comes up.
Zooks64
I use VLC player and I like it much better than WMP. It will play everything without having to load any missing codecs.
You can get it at www.videolan.org.