Has anyone successfully figured out how to change the lock screen image and disable all those annoying Microsoft widgets on the lock screen using PowerShell? I'm not interested in weather updates, stock tickers, or news; I want a clean lock screen. I also really want to avoid using Group Policy for this. My setup is a hybrid Azure domain-joined Windows 10/11 environment, and I have admin credentials. I've been struggling with this for days, so any help would be greatly appreciated!
5 Answers
Make sure you're switching to a static image for your lock screen if you don't want to deal with spotlight. After that, there should be an option to disable those widgets, but you might still see some things you don't want. It's a bit tricky!
You can actually use PowerShell to change some registry settings, which is essentially what Group Policies do. For instance, there's a registry key for turning off spotlight on the desktop. You might want to check out this link for more details: [Registry Key](https://gpsearch.azurewebsites.net/#15911). It works in hybrid setups just like yours!
I see you don't want to mess with Group Policy, but that's often the simplest way to handle it. However, you can disable the widgets by tweaking the registry directly. You can set the `LockScreenWidgetsEnabled` to 0 at this path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionLock Screen. Also, check out the PersonalizationCSP for setting your lock screen image, too!
If you're avoiding Group Policy, maybe take a peek at what GPO does behind the scenes. You can replicate those settings with PowerShell. You've mentioned you've tried some things; sharing those could help others give better advice.
In our hybrid setup, we still rely on GPO for managing these settings. It makes things easier, but if you're adamant about avoiding it, then you can consider looking into the registry directly.
Thanks for the tip, but I've changed to a static image on several machines, and the spotlight nonsense still pops up, even with 'None' selected for app display. I'm specifically looking for a PowerShell way to get this done!