Windows per-user installer 4.88.1 reports successful product registration but omits required HKCU product key

[jhatt00-hub]

Bug report

Bug description

Docker Desktop 4.88.1 build 237512 completes a clean per-user installation on Windows 11 Pro and reports Installation succeeded. It creates the application files, per-user uninstall registration, and docker-desktop URL protocol, but does not create:

HKCU\SOFTWARE\Docker Inc.\Docker Desktop

The key is absent in both 64-bit and 32-bit HKCU registry views. The installer log nevertheless records:

Running per user installation
InstallerCli.exe --user -i
Registering new product
Registering product information
Registering docker-desktop url-protocol
Installation succeeded

This reproduced through two clean owner-context installation paths:

1. Documented PowerShell installation using per-user mode, WSL 2, Linux containers only, and a custom WSL data-root flag.
2. Interactive double-click installation selecting recommended per-user mode and WSL 2, without a custom data-root flag.

Before each reinstall, Docker Desktop was uninstalled and its application/AppData residuals were removed while .docker was preserved. Docker Desktop was not launched after the interactive installation because the required key was already confirmed absent.

Expected: after successful product registration, the supported per-user product key exists under HKCU and Docker Desktop can proceed to first launch.

Actual: the product key is absent even though these registrations exist:

• HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\Docker Desktop
• HKCU\SOFTWARE\Classes\docker-desktop

No installer error is reported.

Reproduction steps

1. On Windows 11 Pro with current WSL 2, uninstall Docker Desktop.
2. Remove remaining per-user Docker application and AppData residuals while preserving .docker.
3. Run the official Docker Desktop 4.88.1 build 237512 Windows x86_64 installer normally, without elevation.
4. Select Per-user installation (Recommended) and WSL 2; leave Windows containers disabled.
5. Complete installation and observe Installation succeeded.
6. Before first launch, check both HKCU registry views for SOFTWARE\Docker Inc.\Docker Desktop.
7. Observe that the product key is absent while the uninstall and URL-protocol registrations are present.

Platform

Windows

Version information

Docker Desktop: 4.88.1
Build: 237512
Installation mode: Per-user
Backend selected: WSL 2
Windows: Windows 11 Pro, build 26100.9168, x64
WSL: 2.7.12.0
WSL kernel: 6.18.33.2-2
Bundled Docker Engine reported by local diagnostics: 29.7.2

The backend has never initialized, so docker version and docker info cannot return server information.

Diagnostics ID

No response