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Get snippingtool in Windows Server 2012

Snipping tool is very useful and handy tool for taking screenshots of the console. I used it very much when worked on Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. While playing with Windows Server 2012, I found it is missing. Without that, it is difficult for me to post any blog update(trust me, I rely so much on it).

After some struggle, I learned that it will come by default and this optional feature needs to be installed explicitly if you want to have it on Windows Server 2012. The below powershell commands will help you in enable this feature.

Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName User-Interfaces-Infra

Similarly if you want to remove the feature, try below oneliner.

Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName User-Interfaces-Infra

Hope this helps.

Comments on this entry are closed.

  • Tom October 4, 2012, 9:45 pm

    This did not completely enable the snipping tool – once I ran the line below, I had to THEN go to install roles/features, open it, go to user interfaces and infrastructure, open that, THEN add desktop experience to get the snipping tool

    Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName User-Interfaces-Infra

  • Sitaram Pamarthi October 5, 2012, 11:45 pm

    Hi Tom, I didn’t get you. What is that you have to open it explicitly from “install roles/features”?

  • Curtiss November 23, 2013, 3:37 am

    after running your powershell command
    go into add roles and features.
    get down to features.
    find “user interfaces and…” and expand it. it will only have 2 of 3 choicesselected.
    you have to select “desktop experience” to get the snipping tool.
    which requires “ink and handwriting services” and “media foundation” also be installed. (at least on my server 2012 R2 box)

  • Tino April 2, 2014, 1:21 am

    I was able to get the snipping tool on Windows 2012 R2 after running the following powershell. It requires reboot.

    Install-WindowsFeature -Name Desktop-Experience,Server-Gui-Mgmt-Infra,Server-Gui-Shell

  • Scott July 8, 2014, 10:58 pm

    PowerShell alone (run as Admin) did not do it for me. What Curtis wrote is what did work, needed a reboot afterwards.

  • Harri Enlund September 23, 2014, 3:31 pm

    Hi,

    I tried “Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName User-Interfaces-Infra” at Windows Powershell
    and got error message:

    Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature : The requested operation requires elevation.
    At line:1 char:1
    + Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName User-Interfaces-Infra
    + ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    + CategoryInfo : NotSpecified: (:) [Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature], COMException
    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : Microsoft.Dism.Commands.EnableWindowsOptionalFeatureCommand

    Am I missing something?

    Best regards,
    Harri

    • Dustin Meany December 9, 2014, 1:41 am

      Harri, be sure to run PowerShell as an Administrator

  • Adrian April 23, 2015, 3:23 pm

    Thank you very much for sharing information. It works for me!

    best regards,
    Adrian

  • Jose Padron Astudillo June 6, 2018, 6:57 pm

    Hello, for the “Requires Elevation error” you must run the powerShell as Admin user.

  • Mark April 1, 2021, 1:39 am

    Really helped me . Thank you all.