Want to hide Programs and Features page in Control Panel on Windows?
If your PC is used by multiple users, sometimes it is best to limit their access to the administrative-level tools and features to ensure a safe environment.
One such important Windows component is the Control Panel, which allows the users to view and change the system’s settings. It features several administrative-level functions and if you do not want the standard users to mess with them, you have the option to hide certain pages of the Control Panel.
In this guide, we will show you how to hide the Programs and Features page in Control Panel, which will prevent the standard users from viewing, repairing, and uninstalling the programs installed on your PC.
Let’s get started.
1. Use the Group Policy Editor.
If you want to hide the Programs and Features page in Control Panel, then one of the easiest ways of doing so is via Group Policy Editor.
Windows Group Policy Editor is an administrative-level feature that is designed to help advanced users customize their operating system according to their requirements. The information stored in Group Policy Editor is in the form of policies, and users can alter the policies accordingly to customize Windows operations.
Here is how you can hide Programs and Features page in Control Panel using the Group Policy Editor:
- Press Windows + R keys simultaneously to open a Run dialogue box.
- In the text field of the dialogue box, type ‘gpedit.msc‘ and hit Enter. Doing so will launch Group Policy Editor on your PC.
- Inside the newly launched window, navigate to the location mentioned below.
User Configuration\ Administrative Templates\ Control Panel\ Programs\
- Locate Hide Programs and Features page in the right pane and double-click on it.
- Click Enabled and then hit Apply/OK to save the changes.
- Now check if updating the policy helped you hide the Programs and Features page in Control Panel. If it did not, you would likely need to force the update, and for that, follow the steps in step 7 of the procedure.
- Type cmd in the search bar and click on Run as administrator. This will launch elevated Command Prompt on your screen.
- Inside the Command Prompt window, type the command mentioned below and hit Enter to execute it.
gpupdate /force
As simple as that!
This should help you make the required changes without any issues.
2. Try Using CleanMyPC.
In the event our recommended solutions do not work for you, there is a possibility that your system is infected with bugs or corruption errors that are preventing you from executing certain operations. The best choice in this scenario is to remove the junk files from your computer before you begin troubleshooting.
You can remove clutter from your computer by using an efficient computer cleaner. If you need one, our personal favorite is CleanMyPC.
Besides removing junk files, CleanMyPC has a range of system maintenance tools that can handle other PC-related issues as well. After installing the tool and running an initial scan, it will automatically identify and fix problems with little to no user intervention.
Furthermore, CleanMyPC is very easy to use, so even if this is your first time using a PC cleaner, you should do just fine!
3. Use the Registry Editor.
Another easy method of hiding the Programs and Features page in the Control Panel is via Windows Registry.
The Windows Registry is a database of information, like the Group Policy Editor, that lets users customize the operating system to their preferences. Information is stored in the Registry as Registry keys, which must be modified to customize Windows.
Here is how you can use the Registry Editor to hide the Programs and Features page:
- Open a Run dialogue box by pressing Windows + R keys simultaneously.
- Type ‘regedit‘ in the text field of the dialogue box and hit Enter. Doing so will launch Windows Registry on your PC.
- Inside the Registry Editor, navigate to the location mentioned below.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Programs
- In case the Programs key is missing, right-click on Policies and click the New > Key option.
- Rename this newly created key as Programs.
- Now double-click on the Programs key and then right-click anywhere in the right pane.
- Choose the New > DWORD (32-bit) Value option and name this value as NoProgramsAndFeatures.
- Double-click on NoProgramsAndFeatures value and under Value data, type 1.
- Finally, restart your PC to save the changes you just made.
Hopefully, the Windows Registry will make it possible for you to accomplish the desired task without any difficulties.
This brings us to the end of our guide on hiding the Programs and Features page in the Control Panel. We tried walking you through all the steps in detail and hope that one of the methods mentioned above did the trick for you. In case you still have any confusion about the methods, please let us know in the comment section below!
If this guide helped you, please share it. 🙂
