Last month, I noted that the Windows Store version of Adobe Photoshop Elements 15 would not run on Windows 10 S. This problem still isn’t fixed, but Adobe has issued a workaround.

I first wrote about this issue in Living with Windows 10 S: The Basics, one of the early articles in my Living with Windows 10 S series, in which I tried to use this incomplete OS every day for over two weeks.

“Adobe Photoshop Elements 15—the one Store app I give a damn about–will not run; it simply crashes on the first-run experience,” I wrote. “I tweeted about this on Friday, tried every app and Windows troubleshooting technique you can imagine, including completely reinstalling Windows 10 S, and it just would not work. And then Adobe reached out to me and told me they were aware of this issue and were working to fix it. Something specific to Windows 10 S, apparently. (Oddly, I installed and used this back in June, so it must be tied to a more recent update on either end.)”

Since then, I’ve checked back from time to time to see if the issue was resolved, but I always had the same problem: The app crashes on first run. I did note, however, that Microsoft at some point changed the Store description of the app to note it had issues.

“IMPORTANT: This app works with Windows 10 Pro and Home, but DOES NOT WORK WITH WINDOWS 10S,” the Windows Store description notes. “Microsoft and Adobe are working to fix this issue.”

Well, it’s still not fixed. But you can still make it work by using a workaround that Adobe has posted to its support website.

Here’s what you do:

• Open C:ProgramData in File Explorer; it’s a hidden folder, so just paste that path into the address bar.
• Create a new folder and name it Adobe.
• Create a new folder inside Adobe and name it Elements Organizer.
• Create a new folder inside Elements Organizer and name it 15.0

When you’re done, the folder path will be C:ProgramDataAdobeElements Organizer15.0. Now, just run Adobe Photoshop Elements 15. It will launch normally and will work.

Hooray!

Tagged with Windows 10 S