not working due to DWM not being enabled, except, it is enabled.

its not working and says dwm appears to be not enabled, but it is enabled, no effects are working no nothing
I have Windows 11 24H2

10,808 views 14 replies
Reply #1 Top

Hello,
Sorry to hear you are having issues. Need more information.

  1. Windows 11 24H2 OS Build number. Please use Winver.exe to get this number.
  2. From your screenshot:
    • Why Windows FX features not turn on? It won't work if that slider button does not turn on.
    • How do you make your title bar transparent? What software you use to make it so?
    • Top bar, what is that? From what software?

Thank you,
Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant.

Reply #2 Top

Windows 11 24H2 OS Build number 26100.7462
it doesn't work even if i have it on i cant send a image because the messages are not sending if it includes a image
i use dwmblurglass to make titlebar transparent however, despite disabling it (using uninstall button in dwmblurglass) and restarting, the program still does not work
i use droptop four for the topbar, its a rainmeter skin.

Reply #3 Top

Unfortunately, I can do the wobbly movement. Refer to my short video below. Just make sure you turn on the "Movement" setting.

As a test and if you have Windows 11 Pro, please do a Sandbox test. Refer to this guide. It is for Fences test. But, I do believe it also work on WindowFX.

https://support.stardock.com/space/SHC/1416560645/Testing+Fences+in+Sandbox.

Thank you,

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant

Reply #4 Top

If it says the DWM is not enabled then something on your computer is making the DwmIsCompositionEnabled api to return false.

My best guess is you have installed some sort of OS mod like windhawk and that is doing that to achieve something else.

Unfortunately if that is the case then it is breaking WindowFX and you would have to disable / remove whatever is causing that.

Reply #5 Top

even after having everything disabled, no other apps running, i still run into the issue

Reply #6 Top

My AI says: "...certain applications, particularly full-screen games, may disable DWM composition temporarily using the DwmEnableComposition function with fEnable set to DWM_EC_DISABLECOMPOSITION, which stops DWM from managing the desktop until the application exits or re-enables it...in Windows 8, 10, and 11, DWM is an integral part of the operating system and cannot be disabled through standard methods. Attempting to end the process via Task Manager will not work, as it is a protected system process."

Perhaps customization software or something else corrupted your DWM or associated functions. I wonder if running sfc /scannow from an elevated prompt might not fix the problem?

Reply #7 Top

i've run sfc /scannow multiple times, didnt fix, and i do use something related to dwm, its called dwmblurglass, pretty sure that uses dwm, so if that can, then it must be something else? is there a way to like have the app ignore if dwm on or off and just try running?

Reply #8 Top

Quoting Kryxzort, reply 7

i've run sfc /scannow multiple times, didnt fix, and i do use something related to dwm, its called dwmblurglass, pretty sure that uses dwm, so if that can, then it must be something else? is there a way to like have the app ignore if dwm on or off and just try running?

That software operates as a DWM hook, intercepting Desktop Window Manager (DWM) calls to apply blur and glass effects behind window title bars and content without modifying core system files or patching the operating system...if it's the official version downloaded from Github. Because it doesn't alter system files, sfc /scannow won't cure the problem. Unistalling it and rebooting to clear temporary memory might solve your problem.

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Reply #9 Top

Quoting Kryxzort, reply 7

i've run sfc /scannow multiple times, didnt fix, and i do use something related to dwm, its called dwmblurglass, pretty sure that uses dwm, so if that can, then it must be something else? is there a way to like have the app ignore if dwm on or off and just try running?

Unfortunately no, the app relies on the OS telling it the truth.

If it says no DWM it will disable those features as using them would break badly if the DWM is off.

One further thing to check is no compatibility settings on the exe have been set to make it think no DWM is enabled.  You can check by right clicking on the windowfxconfig.exe file and picking properties.

This isn't something that I recall being reported before so it is going to be something specific to your install.  It is possible your dwm glass thing has somehow broken this.

Reply #10 Top

Quoting Neil, reply 9

It is possible your dwm glass thing has somehow broken this.

This is why I suggested uninstalling it, then reinstalling WindowFX. 

Reply #11 Top

Quoting Kryxzort, reply 2

i use dwmblurglass to make titlebar transparent however, despite disabling it (using uninstall button in dwmblurglass) and restarting, the program still does not work

i have already tried that, would you like me to delete the program itself too?

Reply #12 Top

Quoting Kryxzort, reply 11

i have already tried that, would you like me to delete the program itself too?

Uninstall the program. Then reboot. Let's see if that fixes it.

Reply #13 Top

after deleting dwmblurglass, and WindowFX and restarting pc, and then downloading WindowFX, it still has the same issue

using dropbox since the site's inbuilt image uploader is broken
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/hodunycil7gmgzit7qntw/image_2026-01-11_171521273.png?rlkey=th9wvn29sayqvr4ajgq0ue11r&st=0ya0zkec&dl=0

Reply #14 Top

Quoting Neil, reply 4

If it says the DWM is not enabled then something on your computer is making the DwmIsCompositionEnabled api to return false.

My best guess is you have installed some sort of OS mod like windhawk and that is doing that to achieve something else.

Unfortunately if that is the case then it is breaking WindowFX and you would have to disable / remove whatever is causing that.

Neil banfield was right, its a windhawk mod thats actually causing this issue
called "classic theme transparency fix"
i have no idea why the issue persisted last time even after exiting windhawk, but this time when i exited windhawk the issue was fixed, and from there i could pinpoint it to this mod.

thank you guys for your support, sorry for the trouble
have a great day