How To Disable Cortana On Surface Pro 4

Miss the old Windows 10, where you were able to turn Cortana on and off however you pleased, with a simple toggle switch? Obviously, Microsoft didn’t like that; otherwise, it wouldn’t have removed it from its new update. But don’t worry, there’s a way to disable Cortana on Surface Pro 4.

If only it weren’t so annoying with all its restrictions… Oh, and the way it automatically launches the Microsoft Edge browser, forcing your hand to use Bing for your searches… Perhaps you wouldn’t have desperately wanted to bypass it and disable Cortana in Surface Pro 4’s new update.

But if you want to do all that, you need to know you can. As a home user, there’s a registry hack at your disposal. As an enterprise user, there’s a group policy setting you can take advantage of. Either way, once you made the move, Cortana will turn into a simple tool for searching files locally and you can disable windows Cortana on Microsoft Surface Pro 4.

How to disable Cortana from the Surface Pro 4 Registry

This option will best suit home users. That’s because it’s much easier to access and edit the Registry when you’re running the Windows 10 Home version and registry update. If you happen to work with the Professional or the Enterprise versions, skip this part. Just save your energy for the Group Policy Editor method, which we will present right after this one.

Disclaimer! As easy as we make it all sound, the Windows Registry Editor is an extremely powerful tool. It should be used with extreme care. The wrong adjustments can affect the functionality of your system, making it anything from unstable to inoperable.

• So make sure you operate no other change than the ones listed below.
• We also advise you to run a System Restore before anything else, just so you can have a backup if anything goes wrong.

Step 1: Access the Windows Registry editor

1. Simultaneously press Windows and R from your keyboard
2. Use the popup box to type in “regedit”
3. Press enter

Step 2: Access the “Windows Search” key folder

1. Look in the left sidebar for the following folder:
2. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Search.
   • If you don’t see one, create it yourself:
   • Right click on the Windows folder >>> New >>> Key >>> type in the name “Windows Search”
3. Right click on the folder named Windows Search>>> New >>> and select DWORD (32-bit) Value
4. Rename the value as “AllowCortana” >>> set its value as “0” by double-clicking on the new value

Step 3: Activate the change

1. Close the registry editor
2. Sign out and then sign in once again or just restart your computer for the change to become active

How to disable Cortana from the Group Policy

As already stated, this option will best suit those who use a Professional or Enterprise Windows 10 edition. Just like with the Registry strategy, it is important to:

• Begin with a System Restore before operating any changes;
• Also, if your computer is part of a company network, it is best to discuss this change with the admin first – your computer might very well belong to a domain group policy which would take over the local group policy.

Step 1: Access the Policy Editor

1. Simultaneously press Windows and R from your keyboard
2. Use the popup box to type in “gpedit.msc”
3. Press enter

Step 2: Identify the “Allow Cortana” option

1. Go to Computer Configuration
2. Click on Administrative Templates
3. Click on Windows Components
4. Click on Search
5. Locate in the right-side pane the “Allow Cortana” setting

Step 3: Activate the change

1. Double click on “Allow Cortana”
2. Click on the “Disabled” option
3. Click “OK” to confirm
4. Close the editor
5. Sign out and then sign in once again or just restart your computer for the change to become active

NOTE: If you ever want to restore Cortana on your Windows 10 Professional or Enterprise edition, you follow the same steps until you reach the “AllowCortana” setting. Then, you double click on it and click on the “Enabled” option on your Microsoft Surface Pro 4.