Why Is My Snipping Tool Not Working On Windows 11

The snipping tool is hands down the best screen snip program available for the Windows OS. Although plenty of us rely on it for day-to-day tasks, sometimes this tool crashes or even fails to start in Windows 11.

Whether it’s because of a bug within the tool or a misconfiguration in the Windows settings, these infrequent glitches, and crashes always cause a major inconvenience.

Nevertheless, there are a few fixes that can help you repair and restore the snipping tool to its very best.

So, if you’re a user who’d like to understand the situation and fix this problem, this guide is just for you. Listed below are all the possible methods through which you can fix your snipping tool in Windows 11.

Why Is My Snipping Tool Not Working?

There are many factors that could influence your application to misbehave. From outdated graphics drivers to internal bugs, here are some of the causes that could have prevented the snipping tool from working properly on your Windows 11.

Outdated Graphics driver
Outdated Windows updates
Interference from other applications
Expired Certificate of the snipping tool
Windows software restriction policy
Unsuitable setting configuration
Faulty application update

How to Fix Snipping Tool Not Working in Windows 11

There are many fixes and repairs for troubleshooting the snipping tool in Windows 11. However, these fixes vary from user to user. A fix that worked for your friend might not work for you and vice versa.

So, keeping this into consideration, here are all the fixes you can follow to solve your problem. These fixes can be followed in any random order.

Install All Windows Updates

Installing all available Windows updates is known to fix bugs and glitches within the system. It can fix the compatibility issues with newer systems and security patches. Follow to steps below to do so.

Press the Windows key + I on your keyboard to open the settings.
Click on Update & Security.
Click on Check for Updates.
If a newer update is available, follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

Update Your Graphics Driver

A graphics driver determines how your system interacts with your graphic component. Hence, an outdated graphics driver can cause corruption and misbehavior in an application.

So, updating your graphics driver might fix your problem. Follow the steps shown below to update your graphics driver.

Right-click on the Start menu.
Go to Device Manager.
Expand the Display Adapter section.
Right-click on your graphics driver and select Update Driver.
Select Search automatically for drivers when prompted and follow the on-screen setup process.

Turn Off Automatic Time

This method will fix your issue if the problem was originally caused by the expiration on the application’s digital certificate. This is a fix that’s been verified by the Microsoft Tech Community. The steps below show you how to turn off the automatic time.

Press the Windows key + I on your keyboard to open the settings.
Click on Time & Langauge.
Go to Date & Time.
Toggle off the Set time automatically option.
Click on Change to set the date and time manually.
Set to any date before October 30, 2021, regardless of today’s date.
Check if your app is working properly.
If so, then toggle on the Set time automatically option once again.

Turn Off Focus Assist

Focus assist is a feature provided by the Windows OS that filters out unwanted and insignificant notifications to help you “focus” on your task at hand. Hence, it might have blocked the Snipping Tool in your system. The steps below show you how to disable Focus Assist on Windows 11.

Press the Windows key + I on your keyboard to open the settings.
Go to System Settings.
Select Focus Assist.
Select Priority only.
Click on Customize priority list.
Select Add an app that’s just below the App section.
Select Snipping Tool from the list of applications.
Close the window.

Turn on the Background App Permission

If your application isn’t permitted to run in the background, it fails to take screenshots when in the background. The snipping tool is an efficient and small application that doesn’t clog up your RAM. So, manually enabling it to run in the background could fix the issue youre facing. The steps show you how to do so.

Press the Windows button + I on your keyboard to open Settings.
On the left panel, select Apps.
Go to Apps & features and click on Snipping Tool.
Go to Advanced Settings.
Set the Background apps permissions to Always.

Repair or Reset the Snipping Tool

Windows 11 offers its users a built-in troubleshooter to troubleshoot any application directly from the app settings. You can either repair or reset your application if it isn’t working properly.

If you repair an application, none of its app data will be lost. However, if you reset an application, all the app data will be deleted. So, by keeping this in mind, follow the steps shown below.

From the Start menu, search for and right-click on the Snipping tool.
Select App Settings.
You’ll see the options for repairing and resetting the application.
Try repairing the application first.
Check if the snipping tool works properly now.
If not, then reset the application.

Reinstall the Snipping Tool

Reinstalling the Snipping tool could fix the issues caused by the previous corrupted installation. Furthermore, when we reinstall an outdated application, it resolves the hidden bugs that were preventing the app from functioning at full capacity.

To reinstall an application, you have to uninstall it first. Here’s how to do so.

From the Start menu, search and go to Add or remove programs.
Scroll down till you find the Snipping tool.
Tap the three dots beside the app and select Uninstall.
After completing the uninstallation process, go to the Microsoft store.
Search for Snipping Tool.
Click on Get to reinstall the application.

Run Snipping Tool From Windows.old Folder

Windows OS stores the essential files in a folder named Windows.old before upgrading to a newer operating system. So, if you recently upgraded to Windows 11 from Windows 10, you can run the snipping tool from the Windows.old folder.

Open the File Explorer.
Open local disc C.
Go to Windows.old folder.
Open system32.
Search for and run SnippingTool.exe.

Enable the Snipping Tool in the Local Group Policy Editor

Windows 11 policy settings are known to disable applications at times. So, the Windows 11 OS has an advanced administrator setting that uses the Local Group Policy Editor to help you undo any policies that you don’t want on your system. Enable the Snipping tool by following the steps below.

Press the Windows button + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialog box.
Type gpedit.msc and hit enter.
Select Computer Configuration from the left panel.
Extend Administrative Templates.
Extend Windows Components.
Select Tablet PC from the left panel.
Go to Accessories.
Click on Do not allow Snipping Tool to run.
Select Disabled from the options provided.

Perform a Clean Boot of the System

A clean boot starts the system with only the minimum required drivers and programs. So, if your Snipping tool is being interfered with by other applications running in the background, then performing a clean boot of the system might fix the issue for you. Here’s how to do it.