How do you fix SAP GUI issues after WebView2 Runtime 144 updates on Windows clients?

Why does WebView2 version 144 break SAP GUI HTML Control, and what workaround can admins use now?

WebView2 Runtime v144 is breaking SAP GUI HTML Control on Windows

If SAP GUI for Windows suddenly shows blank areas, missing controls, or non-clickable UI elements after routine client updates, check Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime. In January 2026, WebView2 Runtime version 144 began triggering display and interaction failures inside SAP GUI components that rely on the embedded HTML control.

This matters because the issue can look like a normal “Windows patch problem,” yet it sits in the browser runtime layer that SAP GUI uses to render certain screens and controls.

What admins and users are seeing

Field reports are consistent across multiple environments:

• Controls disappear or render as unreadable inside SAP GUI
• Links and buttons stop responding inside HTML-based areas
• Content loads blank, including headers and dropdown regions in common transactions

Examples reported in the wild include blank UI regions in areas like ALV headers (e.g., in SM50) and missing content in development/admin tools (e.g., SE80 lists, RZ11 screens), where HTML control rendering is part of the workflow.

Likely cause: WebView2 Runtime update, not January Windows cumulative updates

Initial testing in affected environments points away from the January 2026 Windows cumulative updates. The failure correlates instead with the rollout of WebView2 Runtime 144.x, which SAP GUI can use as the embedded browser control.

In practical terms: even stable SAP GUI installations can break as soon as WebView2 Runtime updates on the client.

A key operational detail from admin reports: in some deployment setups, version 144 cannot be rolled back easily (or at all) once installed, which increases the urgency of controlling rollout.

SAP guidance exists, but is gated

Admins have referenced SAP support material related to this behavior (commonly circulated as an SAP Note / KB item tied to WebView2 v144 and SAP GUI HTML control). Access typically requires an SAP customer login, which slows down broad verification and troubleshooting for teams that rely on open incident threads and peer reporting.

Separate community signals also exist, including a public GitHub issue discussing Edge/WebView2 controls not being visible in SAP contexts, plus admin forum threads tracking the same pattern: WebView2 144.x update → SAP GUI HTML control failures.

Workaround being used: switch SAP GUI browser control away from Edge/WebView2

A commonly reported workaround is to change SAP GUI’s browser control setting from Edge/WebView2 to Internet Explorer control, but only on clients or transactions where the failure occurs.

This workaround tends to restore missing controls and bring back click behavior, because it bypasses the WebView2 rendering path that v144 affects.

Important constraint: this is a workaround, not a final fix. It can also conflict with newer SAP GUI scenarios that depend on Chromium-based rendering, so apply it selectively and test against your specific transactions.

Longer-running instability reports (freezes in multi-monitor DPI setups)

Some teams report broader instability over time when SAP GUI HTML control runs on Chromium/Edge, not limited to v144:

• SAP GUI freezes or turns gray/unresponsive
• The issue appears more often with two or more monitors using different DPI scaling
• The HTML control and the SAP GUI container can run under different DPI awareness modes (e.g., System Aware vs Per-Monitor Aware), which increases risk

At least one organization reported direct escalation to Microsoft via a tracking ID and received a response indicating no immediate solution was available at that time. That supports a cautious stance: treat WebView2 runtime updates as a managed dependency, not a passive background update.

Advisor guidance: what to do now (admin-focused)

• Freeze WebView2 Runtime v144 rollout in WSUS/endpoint management until SAP and Microsoft publish a confirmed fix path
• Identify affected client groups (SAP GUI for Windows + HTML control usage) and prioritize them for mitigation
• Apply the browser control workaround where business-critical transactions fail, then retest key flows
• Document impacted transactions and client display setups (especially multi-monitor + mixed DPI) to speed vendor support cases
• Track SAP notes/KB updates and test new WebView2 builds in a pilot ring before broad deployment