Microsoft is discontinuing legacy web components in Windows

Microsoft has updated its list of deprecated features in client Windows versions to notify users that certain parts of the operating system are now on their way out. But do not worry, Microsoft is not taking away your favorite feature. This time, the company is pulling the plug on a bunch of legacy web components primarily related to EdgeHTML and web apps on Windows 8 and 8.1.

The discontinued components include Legacy Web View, Windows 8/8.1/UWP HTML/JavaScript apps (also known as Hosted Web Applications and Windows Web Applications, Legacy Progressive Web Apps (PWA), and Legacy Microsoft Edge (EdgeHTML) DevTools. Microsoft is no longer developing those parts of Windows, as they are based on now-discontinued EdgeHTML, which used to power the original Microsoft Edge from the Windows 10 era before Microsoft switched to the Chromium-based Edge browser.

Microsoft says developers should switch to WebView2, Chromium-based Progressive Web Apps, and other supported web technologies. However, Microsoft is not done with supporting or releasing security updates for those Windows parts. The company is not ready to announce the exact end of support date or when those components will be removed from future Windows versions. The only change is that they are now officially deprecated, and developers should not expect any new features.

Here is what the company published in the support document:

These components, built on the EdgeHTML engine, are no longer in active development and are being phased out. While no specific retirement or end-of-support date is being committed at this time, they're expected to eventually stop receiving nonsecurity and security updates and will be removed from future versions of Windows.

Some of the other features that Microsoft recently discontinued include WMIC and PowerShell 2.0. You can find the complete list of deprecated Windows features and components on the official Microsoft Learn website.

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Posted Wednesday 10 September 2025 at 1:12 pm AEST (my time).

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