How to Disable Windows 11 Widgets
The tasksbar has been at the heart of Windows for a long time. Its purpose is to display multiple folders, apps, files and settings. It’s not just about looking up something. You can also use it as an extension of your Start menu on your computer (Windows Explorer). For that reason, I often get frustrated with my tasksbar. If you want to disable widgets in Windows 11 or have them disappear, this guide will help you with that.
How To Remove Widget Support from Your Desktop, Programs, Apps & More
The steps below will help you to remove Windows widgets from your computer. This will require you to have some extra software installed on your computer. I use Microsoft Edge version 81.0.1.64 for many of my browsers. While using Edge, all of these are enabled by default. However, if you want to disable these widgets you may need to install one of the following extensions when prompted.
You may want to check the list of available extensions here. Selecting a file containing a certain extension opens it open automatically and displays only that portion of its content. Unfortunately, some extensions aren’t compatible with the rest of Windows. For example, while using Firefox, Edge or Chrome, I end up displaying two tabs, each containing different extensions. These are two separate programs, but both require access to the same internet. With these extensions set, no further customization can be possible.
If you still don’t understand how to manage your widgets from the Start menu, a quick step-by-step process may be needed. Follow along with my tutorial to learn how to change the notification area. First make sure Windows Settings isn’t disabled (Windows Security Center won’t allow Windows Security Center to take control) so that the window won’t show any notifications. Click the Windows Security Center icon at the bottom left-hand corner of the taskbar and select “Windows Security Center”. Choose which features are available and click “Get started”. Enter the Windows Password if necessary. Tap the “Windows Security Center” button to enable Windows Security Center. Now go back to the “Windows Security Center” page and choose “Manage Windows Security.” Tap “Continue.” Once security is enabled, the Manage Windows Security buttons will appear. There are three buttons in each row which may require further selection. At most, there are seven buttons. The first button will be used to configure your system, such as disabling Cortana for the current session.
The next two buttons will be used to configure windows within Window Insets, such as setting size, background wallpaper, fingerprint scan order and more.
The last button will be used to refresh your notifications, such as selecting the new account or removing your active accounts.
The final button will be used to create/enable accounts if those aren’t currently being used and creating a password if required. Note that “Create Password” is only available through the Start Menu (Windows Explorer), NOT in Windows Security Center. In addition, for this part of the wizard, you may be asked to connect to Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, enter details if applicable, and add a device. If prompted, you may need to enter a valid email address or phone number, or enter a second PIN if that’s not already in place. Make sure if Windows cannot find the email address or phone number, proceed to “Next Step.”
After you complete the above screen prompts, your Wizard Wizard toggler pops up. Do not press it yet, because you will face a message telling you that you don't need to restart Windows, you just need to select another option. To enable the Wizard toggler, press “Startup again” and continue until you see a small box appear in the middle of Windows. Press Windows Key, entering the code provided to the program. Wait 1 minute, then the Wizard toggler should pop up again. By now the entire process should look like this from the Start menu:
You should be able to select from five options, including “Windows Security Center.” Confirm and then use the dropdown list provided to select which feature best suits your needs. Finally, select what you actually want to do. Use this information to choose your next preference. When you’re happy with what you’ll have selected, follow the instructions on how to start accessing the feature.
Wait, and once again, wait. After your computer boots back into action, click OK, select it from the Windows Security Center then select where you want the Windows Security Center icons and finally tap them on your desktop. Once Windows Security Center is loaded, select “Windows Security Center” from the top left corner of the screen and scroll down to view your security settings. Go ahead and create your user account, write down your password, and log in. Remember, if you ever want to go back Windows will launch automatically when you turn the computer on. It will give you the choice of choosing to start Windows all over again or going back and resetting all of that to the factory settings. Here again, select the second option. Then the Wizard will open and all of your information will have been wiped clean. Run Windows Security Center and reopen the computer. Continue to your preferred settings.
That’s it! As promised, it took me 2 hours to find all of the tools I needed to accomplish this task. No additional costs were required. All Windows Security Center data was cleared. My computer is running the latest versions of Windows 10 and Windows 7.
Now, you know how to enable Windows widgets from the Start menu, but did I mention they’re still supported in 2021? Yes, you heard me correctly. That means you can always use this helpful tool whenever you’ve needed to remove a widget on Windows 10.
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