Is there a free way to distribute free Windows 8 apps?

Question

I'm considering developing a free non-enterprise Windows 8-style application. I would like to be able to distribute it with no fees charged to myself or users. (Please not that I am not asking about Windows 7-style desktop applications.)

From Microsoft Community, it seems that the only way to distribute these types of applications is using Windows Store. In fact, since the removal of the term, metro, it appears to me that one of the replacement phrases is Windows Store Apps, which clearly implies a strong association with Windows Store.

The licence agreement for the store appears to support distributing free applications. However, I've also read that there is no (permanently) free way to use the store as a developer. (See this, for example.) Microsoft does appear to market some 'free' methods to do this, but they appear to be first-year-free subscriptions that still require credit card details for subsequent years.

I have already looked at and considered the following Stack Overflow questions about this:

1. How to Distribute Compiled Windows 8 Metro Applications without Windows Store?
   • This question appears to be in the context of using pre-release Windows 8 before the store was available.
2. How to install a Windows 8 App Without Submitting to Store
   • This appears to be related to enterprise users and applications.

How can I distribute a free Windows 8 application without having to pay for a Windows Store developer account?

Answer 1

You cannot. A store account is required to distribute applications in the Windows Store; however, there are programs in which that cost ($49 per annum for a individual developer) is absorbed, such as MSDN subscriptions and BizSpark.

Sideloading (as mentioned in the first link you provided) remains possible, but requires (and automatically provisions) a free 'developer' account to run it.

Answer 2

Sort of.

What you do is you go to the Store menu, and hit "build store package." When it asks you whether you want to build something for store, you hit no.

You will be presented with a directory that contains a .sh1 script, which you can then use to install the application.

The downside is, this requires enterprise windows or a (free) developers' license to install. So it's not general population adequate.

Now, I should point out that .EXEs still work just fine the old way. There is only an impediment if you mean Modern UI applications.