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How to Debloat Windows 11 24H2 Safely (Step-by-Step Guide Without Scripts)

August 26, 2025
How to Debloat Windows 11 24H2 Safely (Step-by-Step Guide Without Scripts)
Updated for Windows 11 24H2

How to Debloat Windows 11 24H2 Safely (No Risky Scripts)

Short, transparent, and fully reversible tweaks. Remove AI Recall, new bloatware, and optimize speed. Everything runs in PowerShell (Admin).

Before you start: Open Terminal (Admin) or Windows PowerShell (Admin) via Win+X. Consider a full backup first.
Last update : 02/09/2026
Table of contents
  1. Remove bloatware apps (Updated)
  2. Clean up Explorer & Start Menu
  3. Disable AI & Recall
  4. System performance tweaks
  5. OLED safety tweaks
  6. Services: privacy & performance
  7. Windows Update control
  8. Remove Copilot
  9. FAQ

How to Debloat Windows 11 24H2 Safely

Q: How do I remove bloatware apps in Windows 11?
A: Use PowerShell (Admin) to uninstall them directly. This list is updated for 24H2.

Remove common preinstalled apps

PowerShell (Admin)
# Run in PowerShell (Admin) - Updated List
$BloatApps = @(
  "Microsoft.3DBuilder",
  "Microsoft.BingNews",
  "Microsoft.BingWeather",
  "Microsoft.GetHelp",
  "Microsoft.Getstarted",
  "Microsoft.MicrosoftOfficeHub",
  "Microsoft.MicrosoftSolitaireCollection",
  "Microsoft.MicrosoftStickyNotes",
  "Microsoft.MixedReality.Portal",
  "Microsoft.OutlookForWindows",      # The "New" Outlook
  "Microsoft.People",
  "Microsoft.PowerAutomateDesktop",
  "Microsoft.SkypeApp",
  "Microsoft.Wallet",
  "Microsoft.Windows.DevHome",        # New 2025 Bloat
  "Clipchamp.Clipchamp",              # Video Editor Bloat
  "Microsoft.Xbox.TCUI",
  "Microsoft.XboxApp",
  "Microsoft.XboxGameOverlay",
  "Microsoft.XboxGamingOverlay",
  "Microsoft.XboxIdentityProvider",
  "Microsoft.XboxSpeechToTextOverlay",
  "Microsoft.YourPhone",
  "Microsoft.ZuneMusic",
  "Microsoft.ZuneVideo"
)
foreach ($app in $BloatApps) { Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers $app | Remove-AppxPackage }

Optional: remove Microsoft Store

Only for ultra-minimal builds; otherwise keep it.

PowerShell (Admin)
Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers Microsoft.WindowsStore | Remove-AppxPackage

Remove OneDrive

PowerShell (Admin)
taskkill /f /im OneDrive.exe
Start-Process "$env:SystemRoot\SysWOW64\OneDriveSetup.exe" "/uninstall"
How to Reinstall (Undo):

If you made a mistake, run this command to reinstall all built-in apps (works offline):

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers| Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

Or, to restore a specific app (e.g., Calculator), use Winget:

winget install "Windows Calculator" --source msstore

Clean Up Explorer & Start Menu

Q: How do I make Windows 11 look clean and simple?
A: Remove Gallery, Explorer ads, and restore classic menus.

Remove "Gallery" from File Explorer

PowerShell (Admin)
# Remove Gallery Icon
New-Item -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace_41040327\{e88865ea-0e1c-4e20-9aa6-ed25316e5fa9}" -Force | Out-Null
Remove-Item -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace_41040327\{e88865ea-0e1c-4e20-9aa6-ed25316e5fa9}" -Recurse -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Clean Start Menu Layout

PowerShell (Admin)
# Set Start Menu to "More Pins" (Reduces Recommended/Ads area)
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" -Name "Start_Layout" -Value 1

Restore classic right-click menu

PowerShell (Admin)
New-Item -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\CLSID\{86ca1aa0-34aa-4e8b-a509-50c905bae2a2}\InprocServer32" -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\CLSID\{86ca1aa0-34aa-4e8b-a509-50c905bae2a2}\InprocServer32" -Name "(default)" -Value ""

Taskbar tweaks

PowerShell (Admin)
# Remove Chat / Teams Personal
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced' -Name 'TaskbarMn' -Value 0
# Remove Widgets
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced' -Name 'TaskbarDa' -Value 0
# Remove Task View
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced' -Name 'ShowTaskViewButton' -Value 0

Disable "Recall" (AI Snapshots)

Q: How do I stop Windows from taking screenshots of my screen for AI?
A: Disable the "Recall" feature via DISM and Registry.

Disable Windows Recall Feature

PowerShell (Admin)
# Disable the AI Recall feature system-wide
Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName "Recall" -NoRestart

Block AI Data Analysis Policy

PowerShell (Admin)
New-Item -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsAI" -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsAI" -Name "DisableAIDataAnalysis" -Value 1

System Performance Tweaks

Q: How do I speed up Windows 11 24H2?
A: Disable hibernation, turn off Fast Startup, and stop Game DVR to reduce overhead.

Disable hibernation

PowerShell (Admin)
powercfg /hibernate off

Disable Fast Startup

PowerShell (Admin)
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Power' -Name 'HiberbootEnabled' -Value 0

Disable Xbox Game DVR & Game Bar

PowerShell (Admin)
# Per-user
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKCU:\System\GameConfigStore' -Name 'GameDVR_Enabled' -Value 0
# Policy (system-wide)
New-Item -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\GameDVR' -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\GameDVR' -Name 'AllowGameDVR' -Value 0
Reversibility: Re-enable with the inverse commands: HiberbootEnabled=1, powercfg /hibernate on, and set DVR values back to 1.

OLED Safety Tweaks

Q: How do I reduce burn-in risk on OLED screens?
A: Block static Windows promos and lockscreen Spotlight features.

Disable Windows Tips & popups

PowerShell (Admin)
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ContentDeliveryManager" -Name "SubscribedContent-338388Enabled" -Value 0

Disable lock screen Fun Facts & Spotlight ads

PowerShell (Admin)
New-Item -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CloudContent" -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CloudContent" -Name "DisableWindowsSpotlightFeatures" -Value 1
These commands can be mixed with enabling taskbar auto-hide in Taskbar settings and turning on Dark Mode under Personalization → Colors for a cleaner, lower-contrast UI.
Reversibility: Set SubscribedContent-338388Enabled=1 to re-enable tips and DisableWindowsSpotlightFeatures=0 to restore Spotlight.

Services: Privacy & Performance

Q: Which Windows services can I safely disable?
A: Shut down telemetry and unused background services you don’t need.

Privacy-oriented

PowerShell (Admin)
# Telemetry
Stop-Service DiagTrack -Force; Set-Service DiagTrack -StartupType Disabled
# Error Reporting
Stop-Service WerSvc -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service WerSvc -StartupType Disabled
# Legacy WAP Push
Stop-Service dmwappushservice -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service dmwappushservice -StartupType Disabled

Performance / Optional

PowerShell (Admin)
# Xbox services (disable if unused)
Stop-Service XblAuthManager -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service XblAuthManager -StartupType Disabled
Stop-Service XblGameSave -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service XblGameSave -StartupType Disabled
Stop-Service XboxGipSvc -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service XboxGipSvc -StartupType Disabled
Stop-Service XboxNetApiSvc -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service XboxNetApiSvc -StartupType Disabled

# Print Spooler (disable if no printer)
Stop-Service Spooler -Force; Set-Service Spooler -StartupType Disabled

# SysMain (Superfetch)
Stop-Service SysMain -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service SysMain -StartupType Disabled

# Biometrics (disable if not using Windows Hello)
Stop-Service WbioSrvc -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Set-Service WbioSrvc -StartupType Disabled
Reversibility: For any service, set startup type back to Automatic (recommended) or Manual and restart the PC.

Windows Update Control

Q: How do I stop unwanted updates?
A: Disable driver updates, defer features, and lock to Windows 11 24H2.

Disable automatic driver updates

PowerShell (Admin)
New-Item -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate' -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate' -Name 'ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate' -Value 1

Defer feature updates (365 days)

PowerShell (Admin)
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate' -Name 'DeferFeatureUpdatesPeriodInDays' -Value 365

Lock to Windows 11 24H2

PowerShell (Admin)
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate' -Name 'TargetReleaseVersion' -Value 1
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate' -Name 'TargetReleaseVersionInfo' -Value '24H2'
Reversibility: Set the policy values back to 0 or remove them; delete TargetReleaseVersion* keys to allow newer versions again.

Remove Copilot (Completely)

Q: How do I disable Copilot in Windows 11 24H2?
A: Uninstall the web app package and hide the UI elements.

Uninstall Copilot Application

PowerShell (Admin)
# Uninstall the Copilot Web App
Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers *Copilot* | Remove-AppxPackage

# Hide the Taskbar Button
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" -Name "ShowCopilotButton" -Value 0

Remove "Ask Copilot" context menu

PowerShell (Admin)
Remove-Item -Path "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\ContextMenuHandlers\AskCopilot" -Recurse -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Block Copilot with policy

PowerShell (Admin)
New-Item -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsCopilot" -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsCopilot" -Name "TurnOffWindowsCopilot" -Value 1
Reversibility: Set ShowCopilotButton=1, re-create the context key if needed, and set TurnOffWindowsCopilot=0 or remove the policy key.

FAQ — How to Debloat Windows 11 24H2 Safely

How to debloat Windows without third-party tools?

You can debloat Windows with PowerShell (Admin) commands. Uninstall bloatware, disable Recall, clean Explorer, and optimize services manually.

How to debloat Windows 11 24H2?

Remove preinstalled apps, stop telemetry, hide Copilot/Widgets, and disable Tips & Spotlight ads. All steps here are transparent and reversible.

How do I disable Recall in Windows 11?

PowerShell (Admin)
Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName "Recall" -NoRestart

Can I break Windows if I run these commands?

No. These are safe, popular admin tweaks. Each has an undo path. Always create a backup first.

What’s the safest way to clean Windows 11?

Manual debloating using PowerShell (Admin). Avoid random “debloater” scripts that make opaque changes.

Reversibility: Every command in this guide includes an obvious inverse. Create a System Restore Point or a full image with Acronis before heavy changes.

You’ve now debloated Windows 11 24H2 the right way: transparent, reversible, and safe.

Before you dive deeper, always back up your system with Acronis True Image 2019 Lifetime

For a clean, genuine license:

Now your PC is faster, cleaner, and truly yours.

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