How to
How To Sideload Android Apps On Windows 11
As you already know, you can run Android apps on your PC using Windows Subsystem for Android. Recently Microsoft has teamed with Amazon to merge the Amazon Appstore with the Microsoft Store. It means you can’t access the massive library of apps and games available on the Google Play Store. That’s not all! Right now, not all Amazon Appstore apps are accessible on Windows 11. They currently restricted the list to 50 handpicked apps. So, how to install APK on Windows 11? Microsoft has a functioning debugging option in the Windows Subsystem for the Android environment. Thus, you can sideload apps on Windows 11 that are not available in the Amazon Appstore. This support is available in the Windows Insider Program’s Beta Channel. In this article, we will show how to sideload apps on Windows 11 and also how to download android apps on Windows 11.
How to Use the Windows Subsystem for Android to Sideload Apps on Windows 11?
Credit: XDA
We will use the normal Android Debugging Bridge (ADB) to access and debug the underlying Android layer from the host Windows 11 OS.
Install ADB on your Windows 11 PC
- Navigate to the Android developer website.
- Click the Download SDK Platform-Tools for Windows
- Install ADB by downloading the zip file
- Double-click the platform-tools zip folder to open it.
- Choose the Extract all option.
- Select a place for the files and tap Extract
After you’ve completed the procedures, you’ll need to install Windows 11 Android APK files. Ensure to save the Android APK file to the platform-tools folder after downloading it from your preferred trusted source.
Instructions to sideload apps on Windows 11 using the WSA platform:
- To visit the app settings, search for Windows Subsystem for Android and pick the first result.
Credit: XDA
2) It will open the Windows Subsystem for the Android settings panel. Scroll down and turn on the “Developer mode” switch.
Credit: XDA
3) We can reach the Android instance through the localhost (127.0.0.1) interface as it is operating simultaneously with the host Windows kernel. In reality, the Android layer uses a random IP address from the 172.30.0.0/24 private network.
If you don’t see the IP address in the form 172.30.x.x, choose the “Files” option at the top of the Settings screen to launch the Android layer. Then, to acquire the IP address, click the “Refresh” button and copy it.
Credit: XDA
4) Once the Android layer is up and running, we can connect to it through ADB from the host Windows 11 OS. To connect, use either localhost (127.0.0.1) with port 58526 or the IP address shown in the Settings box.
5) Go back to the downloaded platform tool folder and type cmd in the address bar. It will open a new Windows Terminal window in the same folder. Now enter one of the following commands:
adb connect 127.0.0.1:58526
or
adb connect <IP address>
(Put the IP address you copied in the previous step.)
Credit: XDA
6) We can now use ADB to install our chosen APK and sideload apps on Windows 11. Use the command:
adb install <full_path_to_the_APK_file>
Credit: XDA
7) It will generate an Android app shortcut in Windows’ Start Menu. To launch the app, double-click the shortcut.
Credit: XDA
8) If you can’t locate the Android app’s shortcut, launch it manually by the command:
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\WindowsApps\MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe\WsaClient.exe /launch wsa://<PACKAGENAME>
Alternatively, run the program from a linked ADB shell window:
adb shell monkey -p <PACKAGENAME> 1
Final Words
Sideloaded apps will have network access, which means you may install and use the Android version of major browsers like Firefox inside the Windows Subsystem for Android, and then use that to download apps right away. While it is possible to sideload apps on Windows 11 that depend on Google services, it will crash when you try to launch it owing to a lack of Google services. However, you may try using microG as a potential solution.
That’s all! For more Windows11 tips and tricks follow TechBurner!
