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The Windows Start menu is one of the most common contents used to access applications. In each version of Windows, the Start menu was updated with new features and design. In Windows 10, users can change the background and selection color in the Start Menu. You can also customize its size and applications. However, if you share your computer with other users and they often change the Start menu background without your consent. As an administrator, you can completely disable personalization using the methods described in this article.
We have also added a save method that allows you to change these settings, since local group policy is not available in the home editions of Windows 10.
Prevent users from changing the home screen wallpaper and accent color
You can use the Group Policy Editor or the Registry Editor, depending on your needs:
With the Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc):
- Press the “WIN + R” key combination to open the “RUN” dialog box. Then type “gpedit.msc” and press Enter. The Group Policy Editor will open.
- now go to:
Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Control Panel -> Personalization
- Double-click the “Start” option in the right pane and set the value to “On”.
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This is it. The default home screen background and the accent color are applied immediately, and all home screen personalization options are disabled. Users cannot change the Home screen background image and the color of the accent. If you want to enable the settings again later, set it to “Disabled” or “Not configured”.
Disable the Start menu background setting from the Registry Editor
Another way to prevent users from setting up the Start menu background is to use the Registry editor. This method is a bit technical because sometimes the keys / values for a certain parameter are missing. Users must create and edit them manually in the Registry Editor. It will do the same job as the method described above. To try it, follow these steps:
- Simultaneously press the Windows + R keys to open the scan. Type “regedit” and press Enter to open the registry editor. Also select Yes to request user account control (UAC).
- In the Registry Editor, go to the next section in the left pane:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Policies \ Microsoft \ Windows \ Personalization
- Create a new value named NoChangingStartMenuBackground by clicking anywhere in the right pane and selecting “Create”> “DWORD value (32-bit)”. If it is already a turnkey value, proceed to the next step.
- To change these values, double-click the NoChangingStartMenuBackground value and set these values to “1”. Click the OK button to save the changes.
- After all changes have been made, you need to reboot the computer and allow the changes to take effect.
After updating the settings, go to “PC Settings” > “Personalization” window (click “Settings” on the icons to access it, then “PC Settings”) and you will see that the main screen settings are disabled. If for some reason this does not prevent users from changing the home screen wallpaper, restart the system and go to PC Settings -> Customize window to check if Home screen wallpaper is disabled or not.
When this option is disabled, you will see the message “Some options on this page have been disabled by group policy” in the “Settings” window. Note that users cannot change the Home screen background until this policy setting is enabled.
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