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Windows 10 Tweaks + Bloat Removal

windows windows 10 w10 make it less awful

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#1 Turnip

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 03:37 PM

*
POPULAR POST!

Here we are!! Some Windows 10 tweaks.
 
I noticed that this is a bit long, so to download all of the registry keys and other fixes I've talked about here, download the .rar located here!
In case that link goes down, here is a mirror.

If either of these links go down, message me or post here to let me know and I'll reupload them.

 


Start menu
Removing the tiles:
Right click and select unpin from start menu. If the tiles don't go away, go to the task manager (ctrl + shift + esc) and restart explorer. To remove the empty space you can change the size of the start menu like you would with a regular explorer window by dragging the edges.
 
Disabling web search:
Type in gpedit.msc and press enter, then go to Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Search, then enable Don't search the web or display web results in Search and Don't search the web or display web results in Search over metered connections.
 
Making it a little more minimalistic:
Open up the start menu and go to Settings -> Personalisation -> Start, then untick everything. Go into Choose which folders appear on start and select the ones you want.
Pinning programs will cause the tiles to come back.
 
There's also a program you can download called Classic Shell. It's a free program that allows you to change the look of your start menu. You can download it and view its features here:
http://www.classicshell.net/
 
Removing the search bar in the task bar
Right click on it and go to Search -> Hidden.
 
Remove tracking
If you're concerned about your privacy you might want to do this. If you're really concerned, you might want to use an open source OS instead of a closed source one like Windows.
 
Go to Settings -> Privacy, and disable everything. So everything in location, camera, microphone, etc. In the feedback and diagnostics section, select Never in the first box and Basic in the second.
Run CMD as an administrator and enter the following, one line at a time:


sc delete DiagTrack
sc delete dmwappushservice
echo "" > C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Diagnosis\ETLLogs\AutoLogger\AutoLogger-Diagtrack-Listener.etl

I've seen some people have trouble with getting the third line to work, so if it doesn't just skip it. Now launch gpedit.msc as an admin, and go to Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Data Collection and Preview Builds and disable Telemetry. Next you'll want to go to Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> OneDrive and enable "Prevent the usage of OneDrive for file storage". Now go to Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Application Compatibility -> Turn Off Steps Recorder and enable this.
Launch Regedit as an admin and go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\DataCollection, then change change AllowTelemetry's value to 0.
Run notepad as an administrator, press ctrl+o, and now you'll want to navigate to C:\Windows\System32\Drivers\etc. Press the little dropdown menu in the bottom right-hand corner and switch from *.txt files to All Files, and select your hosts file. Add all of the addresses here into the file then save it.
 
Edit:
Even by doing this, you still won't completely disable sending information to MS. SearchUI.exe still sends your keystrokes in chunks straight to Bing. To stop this, using a firewall of your choice (I've seen a lot of people recommend Tinywall), block SearchUI.exe.

Through a packet analyzer, someone found out that explorer.exe is sending TCP packets to a military base in Singapore. Why is this happening? Who knows but that doesn't sound too good. To prevent this, block the following IPs in a firewall of your choice.
http://pastebin.com/raw.php?i=3jxFifxF

And now you're done!!

Removing bloatware
Type in powershell in the start menu then right click and select Run as administrator (or press ctrl + shift + enter simultaneously). Enter the following, unless there are programs you want to keep then remove the line before entering it:

Spoiler

Bam!! Gets rid of all that crap.
 
Remove ribbon from explorer
Download the .zip here and run the application in it. Install the shell extension and select these. Restart explorer and it'll act just like how it did in Windows 7!
 
And now, registry stuff.
If you don't know how to make files like this, open up notepad, paste in the code and instead of saving it as a .txt file, select All Files from the Save as type dropdown menu and save as the type as specified. So if it says save as .reg, you would save an item as, say, buttholes.reg and it'll work.
 
Disabling the Action Center
Save the following as a .reg and run it.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer]
"DisableNotificationCenter"=dword:00000001

 
Disable the drag to reveal logon prompt
Save the following as a .reg and run it.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
 
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Personalization]
"NoLockScreen"=dword:00000001

 
Add confirm to delete, disable Cortana and stops some pointless services
Why did they remove confirm to delete?? I can't believe this. At least it still asks you when you permanently delete an item (shift+delete).
Save as a .reg and run.

Spoiler

 
Remove quickview from file explorer
Save as a .reg and run it.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{679f85cb-0220-4080-b29b-5540cc05aab6}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:a0600000
 
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Wow6432Node\CLSID\{679f85cb-0220-4080-b29b-5540cc05aab6}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:a0600000

 
Removing OneDrive
Save the following as a .bat and run it.

Spoiler

 
Bring back the old calendar and time
Download this program, then go to Appearance -> Enable New Date & Time Panel, and untick the box.
 
Open .jpgs and .pngs in the old photo viewer
Save the following as .reg and run.
PNG
http://pastebin.com/raw.php?i=qF3k0M2f
JPG
http://pastebin.com/raw.php?i=0NskX6Yc
JPEG
http://pastebin.com/raw.php?i=D4MdPRj7
BMP
http://pastebin.com/raw.php?i=vg91CR8e
Thanks to Anonymous on /g/.
 
Make your computer fully shut down
Type in power lid in the start menu (if that doesn't appear, fast startup should be the same thing) and choose the "Change what closing the lid does" option. Press the little button that allows you to change unchangeable options (it's under the laptop icon), then untick the fast start-up option.
If you have a Gigabyte motherboard: you have to uninstall a program called "ON_OFF", just do this like you would uninstall a regular program. If you don't do this but disable the fast start-up, you're going to get a bluescreen.
 
If you want to disable prefetch and superfetch
Save this as a .reg and run it.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
 
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\PrefetchParameters]
"EnableSuperfetch"=dword:00000000
"EnablePrefetcher"=dword:00000000

Prevent your Wifi passwords from being shared with Facebook/Skype/etc contacts
Press the little Wifi icon in your taskbar/system tray and go to Network Settings. Scroll down to Manage Wifi settings and untick everything.
 
If you want to use the old control panel rather than settings, just type in control panel on the start menu.
 
Deleting your Windows.old folder
Change the owner of the folder from System to Auth. User and you'll be able to delete it. If you're having issues deleting it this way, you can try deleting it through Disk Cleanup. You can also delete it if you run CMD as an admin, then enter the following command:


RD /S /Q %SystemDrive%\windows.old

Unfortunately I don't think there's anything you can do about the spacing in between desktop icons. If anyone knows how to fix this, please tell me and I'll update this!
 
Also, you might notice that in Microsoft Edge and the Windows 10 UI that the font looks like fucking garbage. This is because Cleartype isn't supported in these. Why? Who knows but I don't think we can do anything about it.
 
 
And there we go!! If you want to see what it's going to look like for you, this is what my desktop and explorer windows look like this now. Not bad, right?
 
If I missed anything then please let me know and I'll add it to this post ^^



#2 Strategist

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 03:39 PM

Thanks @Turnip! Will give it a proper look over when I get home from work so I can tweak my Windows 10.

#3 Turnip

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 03:41 PM

Thanks @Turnip! Will give it a proper look over when I get home from work so I can tweak my Windows 10.


You're welcome man!! :3



#4 Rocket

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 03:46 PM

Ahh thank you! I don't know if I like Win10 yet ... I've got it on my laptop but it's unlicensed so I can't change any personalization settings. 

 

I don't like change.



#5 Turnip

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:07 PM

Ahh thank you! I don't know if I like Win10 yet ... I've got it on my laptop but it's unlicensed so I can't change any personalization settings. 

 

I don't like change.

 

Awwww man they don't let you change anything if it's unlicensed? That's pretty dumb. And heheh, I get what you mean :p But now that everything's closer to what it was like in 7 it's not as confusing lol

 

 

Also, added removing ribbon from explorer!!



#6 Adam

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:10 PM

This is the most helpful thing on W10 I've read since installing it! Thanks!



#7 Sweeney

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:12 PM

Noice. I've been meaning to do a bunch of this stuff, and look into some of the others. Thanks for collating everything :D

I like the new calendar, though :p

#8 Drakonid

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:13 PM

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Remove-AppxPackage

 

I was told Edge was pretty good. Sure, not naming it Project Spartan was the stupidest thing they could ever do, but still...



#9 Romy

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:17 PM

Also, you guys can use CCLeaner to remove bloat too :p


Great job @Turnip!



#10 Rocket

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:22 PM

Awwww man they don't let you change anything if it's unlicensed? That's pretty dumb. And heheh, I get what you mean :p But now that everything's closer to what it was like in 7 it's not as confusing lol

 

 

Also, added removing ribbon from explorer!!

 

K3N4Amb.jpg

 

yea that sucks, but the more I mess around with it it's not too bad. 



#11 Elindoril

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:24 PM

Also, you guys can use CCLeaner to remove bloat too :p


Doing it through Powershell does it all at once unless they changed CCleaner to do that too.

#12 Michaelhex

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 04:50 PM

I've currently got a registered Windows 8.1, if I were to update to W10 will it be a registered version too or otherwise ?



#13 Elindoril

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 05:02 PM

I've currently got a registered Windows 8.1, if I were to update to W10 will it be a registered version too or otherwise ?


We did it with Windows 7. With a pirated copy to boot. We reserved for the free upgrade beforehand, but I don't know if that did anything significant in the upgrade process.

#14 Adam

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 05:09 PM

I've currently got a registered Windows 8.1, if I were to update to W10 will it be a registered version too or otherwise ?

Correct. I was in the same position as you.



#15 Turnip

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 05:17 PM

I'm glad I could help you all out!! ^^ <3

 

Also, you guys can use CCLeaner to remove bloat too :p


Great job @Turnip!

 

Can someone confirm if you can uninstall the bloatware through CCleaner? Bing Finance and Groove Music are two uninstallable programs that are bundled in with 10 that may or may not be in that list. Since the programs you uninstall through Powershell can't be uninstalled normally :0

 

Even if it is then like Elin said, it's just easier doing it through Powershell since you just copy/paste everything in and off it goes lol



#16 Swar

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 07:31 PM

It looks so pretty :o I want to update, but mine is pirated, and it looks like it doesn't let you modify stuff? Is that what happened to @Rocket?

Anyway, thanks for this!

#17 Eefi

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 10:43 PM

 


Remove tracking
If you're concerned about your privacy you might want to do this. If you're really concerned, you might want to use an open source OS instead of a closed source one like Windows.

 

Pretty much this ^^; Not nice what I've heard so far from Win10 :/



#18 Elindoril

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 10:45 PM

Pretty much this ^^; Not nice what I've heard so far from Win10 :/


Remember the weird bestiality porn you dabbled in on a whim last week?

Microsoft does...

#19 Romy

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Posted 30 July 2015 - 11:35 PM

OH!

Any of you guys have driver issues?



#20 Turnip

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Posted 31 July 2015 - 08:07 AM

Pretty much this ^^; Not nice what I've heard so far from Win10 :/


I know right? It's a little unsettling how they straight up said they'll read your emails and all that other stuff :x I know they want to improve parts of their OS but that's a little much!!

OH!
Any of you guys have driver issues?


Everything is fine here ^^ I've seen a bunch of people complaining about Nvidia drivers not working and god, that must be a pain in the ass. I'm glad AMD drivers work at least hahah...


How are boot times for you all? For me it's booting faster than 7 was, but for other people it's slower than 7 but faster than 8, and sometimes slower than 8.

#21 Romy

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Posted 31 July 2015 - 08:22 AM

Everything is fine here ^^ I've seen a bunch of people complaining about Nvidia drivers not working and god, that must be a pain in the ass. I'm glad AMD drivers work at least hahah...


How are boot times for you all? For me it's booting faster than 7 was, but for other people it's slower than 7 but faster than 8, and sometimes slower than 8.

Thank you :3

 

Boot times are about the same for me. You have an SSD or HDD?



#22 Turnip

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Posted 31 July 2015 - 08:58 AM

Thank you :3

 

Boot times are about the same for me. You have an SSD or HDD?

 

HDD ^^

 

Also hmmm, well I guess my graphics drivers installed fine when I was installing 10 since everything looks great and it's not broken, but now I'm trying to update it since it's an older version and the installer is just stuck at 0% :V I think it might just be the installer not working though since installers really, REALLY don't wanna work for me. I just wanna get my software on here lol

 

 

Added opening .jpgs and .pngs in the old photo viewer for people who are like me and don't really like the new default photo viewer, but can't be bothered to install other photo viewers ^^



#23 Romy

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Posted 31 July 2015 - 09:38 AM

HDD ^^

 

Also hmmm, well I guess my graphics drivers installed fine when I was installing 10 since everything looks great and it's not broken, but now I'm trying to update it since it's an older version and the installer is just stuck at 0% :V I think it might just be the installer not working though since installers really, REALLY don't wanna work for me. I just wanna get my software on here lol

 

 

Added opening .jpgs and .pngs in the old photo viewer for people who are like me and don't really like the new default photo viewer, but can't be bothered to install other photo viewers ^^

(Have you tried any benchmarks?)



#24 Turnip

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Posted 31 July 2015 - 01:09 PM

(Have you tried any benchmarks?)

 
Nah, too lazy :p
 
 
Added how to fully shut down your computer and a link to Classic Shell.
(Classic Shell doesn't want to install for me unfortunately ;_; Let me know if it doesn't work for any of you, we can try and figure out how to make it work together)

Also added download links so you can download all the registry keys and everything in one go!!

#25 Strategist

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Posted 31 July 2015 - 03:07 PM

I have one driver issue with my D-Link wireless adapter not being recognised due to incompatibility with Win10 :( Now I have to either A: Move the entire office into the room with the router, or B: get a cat6 point put into my home office room -_- (both of which are a major pain in my arse). No issues with my nVidia drivers though, which is great :)



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