Removing Windows 11 "S" Mode

[trs96]

MS has now made it harder to get a PC/laptop out of their S mode. In Windows 10 you could simply disable Secure Boot in the BIOS and S mode would be disabled when you boot again.

What does S stand for ? Not really sure but it could mean "Safe" or "Stupid" or you could think of others. What it does is limit what apps and programs you can run. It locks you into only using MS Windows Store apps instead of others that you download online. It's designed to protect the user from themselves.

This video shows you how to remove Windows 11 S mode without having to create a MS account. Takes more work than previously but it does work. No need to do this for Win10 in S mode.

 

[trs96]

My theory is that MS created this to mimic what Google is doing with ChromeOS that runs on Chromebooks and Chromeboxes. On these devices you can only use the Chrome browser and apps from the Chrome web store. It limits what the end user can download and run to make using the internet more secure. For example, MS wants grade school age children to be using Windows laptops instead of Chromebooks. By offering S mode, schools can lock down these laptops so that the children don't create havoc by messing with Windows settings or installing malicious software unknowingly. Instead of fixing the inborn security vulnerabilities in Windows 10/11 they are just locking down what the end user can do with their laptop or desktop. A simple fix for a major problem.

 

[Jamesbond007]

S Mode? Microsoft still does not want to give up on this rubbish? Does Microsoft (or any other company) offer anything useful via the rubbish Windows Store?

If I were to run Windows 11 (not that I ever want to), one of the first things I would do would be to disable the Windows Store via group policy (a policy that is only effective on the Enterprise or Education edition, by the way).