Good afternoon everyone! I'm trying to find a software solution that can help me lock down a PC user experience to just one specific application. We've considered using the built-in Kiosk Mode, but the app we want to use is a third-party, non-UWP application, and the PC is running Windows 11 Pro on a domain.
The main goal is to have users see only a single application on a Tablet PC that's dedicated to controlling our lighting system. We could use Sysinternals for autologon, but locking down the user experience is crucial. We need an admin-friendly way to exit lockdown for maintenance, management, or troubleshooting as needed. The PC won't be in use all the time—just when adjustments to the lighting system are required.
We checked out FrontFace Lockdown Tool, which is great and free, but it doesn't come with support. We're really looking for a paid solution similar to that but with customer service. I know we could achieve this with Group Policy Objects (GPO), but I'd love to hear about software alternatives you recommend. Thanks!
5 Answers
You might want to explore using application whitelisting along with group policy lock downs. There are plenty of ways to achieve this—you could already have tools in your stack that can help!
Kiosk mode actually isn’t just for UWP apps! You should check out the official Microsoft docs—it could be a perfect fit for your situation.
Faronics DeepFreeze has worked well for me in the past! It's a bit concerning about the future of the product, but the pricing is reasonable so it might be worth considering.
Another approach is to use local security policy settings to restrict access. You could configure it under Administrative Templates and list allowed .exe files to ensure only your application runs.
Have you thought about using GPOs on your domain? It's a solid option to lock things down and might be quicker than you think. Just curious if that’s something you've looked into!
I did start setting up GPO, but I was just looking for something that could be configured more easily with a dedicated tool.