Installed on Windows 11 - Tried to run and get a "Failed to launch JVM" message box

Installed from Windows Store on my stock Windows 11 Dell laptop (1.5 years old). Installed fine but when I attempt to run I get a dialogue box that says "Failed to launch JVM" with an ok button. Click ok and the app does not load.

JVM seems to indicate Java but so no mention of needing extra libraries install on Feedflow website and Github so not sure what is up....

Thanks for reporting this, that's weird! I tried installing FeedFlow from the Microsoft Store on my Windows 11 machine, but I couldn’t reproduce the issue: the app installed and opened normally.

Since the error happens before FeedFlow opens, it may depend on the specific Windows setup or device model.

Could you please tell me:

The laptop model name.
Whether this is a personal laptop or a work/school-managed laptop.
Whether the error appears every time, even after restarting Windows and opening FeedFlow again from the Start menu.

Did you installed from the store or from the exe?

Here is the info.

The laptop model name. Purchased in 2024
Inspiron 14 Plus, Gen 14 EVO

Whether this is a personal laptop or a work/school-managed laptop.
Personal laptop used for Work

Whether the error appears every time, even after restarting Windows and opening FeedFlow again from the Start menu.
I installed if from both the Windows Store and from the releases listed here. Rebooted Windows multiple times didn't make a difference.

Thanks both for the feedback. I still can't reproduce it on my machines, so I'd like to narrow down what's different on yours. The "Failed to launch JVM" dialog is a generic message from the app launcher, and it can mean two different things: either the bundled Java runtime can't start at all, or the app crashes very early during startup. The steps below will tell me which one it is.

If you installed from the MSI/EXE from GitHub (not the Microsoft Store), could you open Command Prompt (press Win+R, type cmd, press Enter) and run these four commands, then paste the full output here?

echo %USERPROFILE%
set | findstr /I JAVA
"%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\runtime\bin\java.exe" --version
dir "%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\app"

A few extra questions:

Does your Windows user account name contain any accented or non-Latin characters (e.g. é, ü, ñ, Cyrillic, Chinese)?
In Settings → Time & Language → Language & Region → Administrative language settings → Change system locale: is the checkbox "Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support" enabled?
Are you running any antivirus other than Windows Defender?
Is there any file named hs_err_pid*.log in %LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow or in %TEMP%? If yes, please attach it.
Right after trying to launch FeedFlow, is there any error in Event Viewer → Windows Logs → Application? If yes, please paste the details.

There's a known Java bug (JDK-8242283) where the JVM fails to start when the installation path contains non-ASCII characters combined with certain regional settings — since FeedFlow installs per-user under C:\Users\<name>\AppData\Local, questions 1 and 2 would confirm or rule that out.

Otherwise, I will prepare a diagnostic build that shows the real error message in a console window, so if the commands above don't reveal the cause, I'll attach it here and ask you to run it.

Thanks again for your patience! 🙏

I have the same problem. In my runtime folder ("%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\runtime\bin", there is no java.exe, only java.dll and other files.

Thanks for the additional information! I still can’t reproduce this issue on any of my Windows test machines, so I need a little more diagnostic output from an affected installation.

First, the missing runtime\bin\java.exe is expected. FeedFlow includes a reduced Java runtime where command-line tools such as java.exe are intentionally removed. Sorry—the previous command asking you to run java.exe --version was incorrect.

If possible, please install the MSI from the GitHub release, then open Command Prompt and run:

set JPACKAGE_DEBUG=true

dir "%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\runtime\bin\jli.dll"
dir "%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\runtime\bin\server\jvm.dll"
dir "%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\app\FeedFlow.cfg"

set JAVA_TOOL_OPTIONS
set _JAVA_OPTIONS
set JDK_JAVA_OPTIONS

start /wait "" "%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\FeedFlow.exe"

The final command enables the packaged launcher’s built-in diagnostic mode. Please copy the complete console output here, or attach a screenshot if copying it is difficult.

If any of the three Java environment variables are set, please also try launching FeedFlow after temporarily clearing them in the same Command Prompt window:

set JAVA_TOOL_OPTIONS=
set _JAVA_OPTIONS=
set JDK_JAVA_OPTIONS=

start /wait "" "%LOCALAPPDATA%\FeedFlow\FeedFlow.exe"

Clearing them this way only affects that Command Prompt session; it does not permanently change your system.

Please also let me know:

Your exact Windows version, as shown by running winver.
Whether this diagnostic test used the GitHub MSI or the Microsoft Store version.
Whether Windows Security or another antivirus shows anything related to FeedFlow in its quarantine/protection history.

The diagnostic output should tell us whether the bundled JVM is failing to load, an environment option is interfering with it, or FeedFlow is encountering an exception very early during startup.

Thank you for your patience and help investigating this! 🙏

I've got the same problem on my Desktop with Windows 11. Now I've installed the MSI from the GitHub release and run the set of commands indicated. Now look like working

Thanks a lot for testing this! 🙏 Glad it works now. To find the root cause, could you tell me:

Before this, were you using the Microsoft Store version or the GitHub MSI?
When you ran the set JAVA_TOOL_OPTIONS, set _JAVA_OPTIONS and set JDK_JAVA_OPTIONS commands, did any of them print a value? If so, please paste it.
Did the app start with the first start /wait command, or only after clearing those variables?
Does FeedFlow open now from the Start menu too, or only from that Command Prompt window?

If one of those variables is set, it's very likely the cause, and I'll document a fix for it.

@prof18

Thanks a lot for testing this! 🙏 Glad it works now. To find the root cause, could you tell me:
1. Before this, were you using the Microsoft Store version or the GitHub MSI?

Microsoft Store version

2. When you ran the `set JAVA_TOOL_OPTIONS`, `set _JAVA_OPTIONS` and `set JDK_JAVA_OPTIONS` commands, did any of them print a value? If so, please paste it.

Every three command return to me the same result: "Environment variable JAVA_TOOL_OPTIONS not defined"

3. Did the app start with the first `start /wait` command, or only after clearing those variables?

With the first.

4. Does FeedFlow open now from the Start menu too, or only from that Command Prompt window?

Its start from the Start menu too

If one of those variables is set, it's very likely the cause, and I'll document a fix for it.

If I didn't do anything wrong, unfortunately I seem to understand that this is not the case

I remain available for any tests, thanks @prof18 for your efforts!

Thanks a lot for the quick answers, they help! It seems the problem is tied to the Microsoft Store version, but it doesn't happen on every machine, so a few more details would help:

Do you remember which version the Store showed when it failed? (No worries if not.)
If you have a moment: uninstall the MSI, install FeedFlow from the Microsoft Store again, and tell me if it starts. If it does, a broken or half-updated Store install is the likely cause.
Please open Command Prompt, run echo %PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE%, and paste what it prints.
Is there a folder starting with MarcoGomiero.FeedFlowRSSReader_ inside %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages? If yes, please list the file names in its LocalCache folder (only the names, no need to send the files).

The next release will also show the real error message instead of "Failed to launch JVM", which will make this much easier to track down. Thanks again!

Thanks a lot for the quick answers, they help! It seems the problem is tied to the Microsoft Store version, but it doesn't happen on every machine, so a few more details would help:
1. Do you remember which version the Store showed when it failed? (No worries if not.)

No

2. If you have a moment: uninstall the MSI, install FeedFlow from the Microsoft Store again, and tell me if it starts. If it does, a broken or half-updated Store install is the likely cause.

It starts! Working with all my old settings.

3. Please open Command Prompt, run `echo %PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE%`, and paste what it prints.

It prints "AMD64"

4. Is there a folder starting with `MarcoGomiero.FeedFlowRSSReader_` inside `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages`? If yes, please list the file names in its `LocalCache` folder (only the names, no need to send the files).

Yes, in folder LocalCache there are just two folder: Local, Roaming. No files.

The next release will also show the real error message instead of "Failed to launch JVM", which will make this much easier to track down. Thanks again!

was a pleasure, let me know if you need anything else
Buona serata

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Installed on Windows 11 - Tried to run and get a "Failed to launch JVM" message box #1208

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Installed on Windows 11 - Tried to run and get a "Failed to launch JVM" message box #1208

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prof18 commented on Jun 8, 2026

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