Windows 10: Unwanted apps and reset settings

Windows 10 comes with many apps, some of them may be installed automatically – again and again.


Allegations (still) not completely reproducible


The former Microsoft employee and now Youtuber "Barnacules Nerdgasm" raises serious accusations against his former employer. After the Anniversary update, which has been distributed since August 2017, Windows 10 has received additional features that users should not taste. Microsoft can now install apps from the Windows Store without asking the user. To this end, there are reset privacy settings to help Microsoft collect data.


Solution for the affected


The apps are not easy to remove for non-professionals. An uninstall would make little, since the apps would only appear a few minutes later in the start menu. It is not just a question of placeholders, such as the "Download Skype" application or the office application Office. Rather, the apps would actually be installed. This would consume computing power and other resources, both on the Internet and on the hard drive.


In fact, we've found preinstalled apps like Candy Crush Soda or the Netflix application on test systems. For clarity: There was not only a download link as a tile in the store, but there was an installed app. These came however not with the Anniversary Update in August, but with the Patch Day in November. But contrary to the statement of "Barnacules Nerdgasm" said and other apps after an uninstall did not appear again on the system. This is at least for our computers with Windows 10 Pro and a system with Windows 10 Home. There was not even one of these forcibly installed apps.


Lesetipp: Windows 10 - typical problems after Anniversary Update


In the allegations to back-up privacy settings, the allegations also seem not always to apply. On none of our systems has changed with the three Patch Days since August something in the settings. It may be natural that first users are affected in the US - that again does not explain why we suddenly had the Netflix or Candy Crush soda app on the affected systems.

Who is affected by the allegations of "Barnacules Nerdgasm", at least with a workaround can prevent the subsequent installation of deleted apps. This is done through the registry, which you as an administrator in the start menu by entering "regedit" and pressing the enter key open. Confirm the User Account Control message with "Yes," and then navigate to the "HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ ContentDeliveryManager \"

Lesetipp: Windows 10 disable espionage


On the right, double-click SilentInstalledAppsEnabled. Set the value 1 to 0. A subsequent reboot should then help you avoid recurring apps.