Windows code page not in Unicode

Windows code page defines the character set used by Windows. Language-specific setups of Windows can still have a non-Unicode code page active.

As with most things, the legacy requirements for Windows are pretty long and varied, which are the leading cause for these kinds of issues and why Unicode is not the default setting for all Windows installations.

Verify the problem

• Open the Command Prompt.
• Run the chcp command. If the result is not Active code page: 65001, you are affected by the problem.

Set Windows code page to Unicode without changing the operating system language

The fix only changes the code page to 65001. The operating system language is not affected.

The guide below is in English, and Windows layouts in Settings tend to change. The screenshot should help you in determining the correct location. Of course, you can give this guide to your IT to fix the setting for all machines.

• Go to Windows Start menu and type: Language Settings
• Select: Administrative Language Settings
• Select: Change system locale
• Enable Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support
• Click OK and restart the machine to make sure all terminals and applications get the new code page.