Preventing installation of Removable Devices in Windows 10
In case you don’t know, Windows 10 supports installation and use of a number of removable devices which includes plug and plays mouse, keyboard, and other USB-based devices. But this could actually pose a threat to the integrity of a computer system and thus, some organizations pose a restriction in using these kinds of devices.
the restriction on these devices is also useful especially if you keep on leaving your computer idle and someone tries to mess it up by plugging in a removable device. In such situations, the restriction will defend the user against data theft. Thus, in this post, you will be guided on how you can prevent the installation of removable devices on your Windows 10 computer.
There are two options that can help you in preventing the installation of any removable devices on your computer – you can either try to use the Registry Editor or use the Group Policy Editor instead. Follow whichever option you want to use the instructions given below but before you start, don’t forget to create a System Restore Point first.
Option 1 – Prevent installation of Removable Devices via Registry Editor
- Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and type “Regedit” in the field and hit Enter to open the Registry Editor.
- Next, navigate to this registry path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftWindowsDeviceInstallRestrictions
- From there, look for a DWORD named “DenyRemovableDevices” and set its value to “0”. On the other hand, if you can’t find this DWORD, just simply create it and set its value to 0.
- Once done, exit the Registry Editor and reboot your PC to apply the changes made.
Option 2 – Prevent installation of Removable Devices via Group Policy Editor
Keep in mind that the Group Policy Editor is not available in the Home Edition of the Windows operating systems. Thus, if you are using one, just stick to the first option, otherwise, proceed to the following steps.
- Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run utility and type “gpedit.msc” and click OK or tap Enter to open the Group Policy Editor.
- After that, go to this policy setting: Computer ConfigurationAdministrative TemplatesSystemDevice InstallationDevice Installation Restrictions
- Next, look for the “Prevent installation of removable devices” entry and once you find it, set it as “Enabled”. From this window, you should see the following description of this policy setting:
“This policy setting allows you to prevent Windows from installing removable devices. A device is considered removable when the driver for the device to which it is connected indicates that the device is removable. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) device is reported to be removable by the drivers for the USB hub to which the device is connected. This policy setting takes precedence over any other policy setting that allows Windows to install a device. If you enable this policy setting, Windows is prevented from installing removable devices and existing removable devices cannot have their drivers updated. If you enable this policy setting on a remote desktop server, the policy setting affects redirection of removable devices from a remote desktop client to the remote desktop server. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting, Windows can install and update device drivers for removable devices as allowed or prevented by other policy settings.”
- Then click the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made.
- Now restart your computer to save the changes made. This should prevent the installation of any removable devices in your Windows 10 computer.
Conclusion
Congratulations, you have just fixed the Preventing installation of Removable Devices error in Windows 10 all by yourself. If you would like to read more helpful articles and tips about various software and hardware visit errortools.com daily.
Now that’s how you fix the Preventing installation of Removable Devices error in Windows 10 on a computer. On the other hand, if your computer is going through some system-related issues that have to get fixed, there is a one-click solution known as Restoro you could check out to resolve them.
This program is a useful tool that could repair corrupted registries and optimize your PC’s overall performance. Aside from that, it also cleans out your computer for any junk or corrupted files that help you eliminate any unwanted files from your system. This is basically a solution that’s within your grasp with just a click. It’s easy to use as it is user-friendly. For a complete set of instructions in downloading and using it, refer to the steps below
Perform a full system scan using Restoro. To do so, follow the instructions below.
