Deploy Claude Desktop for Windows

Administrators on Team or Enterprise plans can deploy Claude Desktop automatically across their organization to manage installations and updates centrally. We offer MSIX packages for Windows deployments via Microsoft Intune, SCCM, Group Policy, or PowerShell.

Claude Desktop for Windows requires the Virtual Machine Platform to use Cowork. You can automate installation of this feature via most endpoint management solutions, but you may also run the following command to install it manually:

The feature takes effect after the machine restarts. The -NoRestart flag suppresses the automatic restart for silent deployment, so schedule one through your management tool.

The Claude MSIX is packaged as a per-user application. Add-AppxPackage registers it for the current user only, while Add-AppxProvisionedPackage stages it machine-wide so it's available to every user on the device, including standard users without admin rights.

For more details, see Microsoft's Add-AppxPackage documentation.

For more details, see Microsoft's Add-AppxProvisionedPackage documentation.

Claude Desktop can be deployed through various enterprise software distribution services. Choose the method that aligns with your organization's existing infrastructure:

By default, Claude Desktop checks for updates approximately every four hours and applies them automatically—independent of the version your MDM has assigned. To keep the in-app updater and your MDM from conflicting, choose one of these approaches before you deploy:

Option 1: Your MDM manages versions. Set the disableAutoUpdates policy to 1 and push new MSIX builds through your MDM on your own schedule. See Enterprise configuration for Claude Desktop for the policy location.

Option 2: Claude Desktop manages versions. Leave disableAutoUpdates unset. Deploy the MSIX once via a Win32-wrapped Add-AppxProvisionedPackage install, then use a custom detection script that checks Get-AppxPackage -Name Claude for a version greater than or equal to the one you provisioned. This keeps your MDM reporting Installed after the app self-updates.

To configure Claude Desktop settings such as auto-updates, extensions, and MCP servers, see Enterprise configuration.

By default, packaged apps may be restricted by AppLocker policies. Ensure your AppLocker rules allow MSIX packages, or add Claude Desktop to your allowed applications list. Consult your organization's security policies before making changes.

This usually means the in-app updater and your MDM have both registered the package, leaving duplicate entries under the Claude package family. Pick a single update owner using the guidance in Manage auto-updates alongside your MDM above.

Both symptoms indicate the MSIX was installed in user context rather than provisioned machine-wide:

If Cowork fails to start with an error like "Missing HCS services: HNS, vmcompute, vfpext," the Virtual Machine Platform service stack isn't registered on the machine, even if Claude installed successfully.

To diagnose and fix:

Check whether the feature is enabled and its services exist:

If the feature shows as disabled or the services are missing, re-enable it:

Restart the machine using Restart, not shut down and power on. With Windows Fast Startup enabled, a shutdown cycle can leave the virtualization services uninitialized.

If VMware or VirtualBox is also installed on the machine, confirm the Windows hypervisor is set to launch at boot. Run bcdedit from an elevated prompt and check that hypervisorlaunchtype reads Auto. If it doesn't, run bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto and restart.