Guide: How To Revert Changes

[Raphire]

This guide will show you how to revert any of the changes made by Win11Debloat.

Reinstalling Apps

Nearly all applications removed by Win11Debloat can easily be reinstalled through the Microsoft Store or via their respective websites. Alternatively they can also be reinstalled via WinGet. To my knowledge the only apps that cannot (easily) be reinstalled are the Microsoft Store itself and the XboxSpeechToTextOverlay.

If you removed the Microsoft Store itself please refer to this guide to reinstall it.

Restoring the Start Menu

You can manually restore the pinned apps in your start menu using the backup created by the script.

To do this, please follow these steps:

1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Copy and paste the path below into the addressbar to navigate to the correct folder:

%localappdata%\Packages\Microsoft.Windows.StartMenuExperienceHost_cw5n1h2txyewy\LocalState\

3. In this folder you should see at least 2 files: start2.bin and start2.bin.bak. First, rename start2.bin to something else, like start2.bin.old
4. Next, copy and paste the start2.bin.bak file inside the folder to duplicate it and name the copy start2.bin
5. Lastly sign out of your user account or restart your PC. After logging back in your old start menu layout should be back!

Re-enable Bing Web Search

Bing Web Search in Windows Search can be restored by running the Enable_Bing_Cortana_In_Search.reg file that is provided by the script, You can find it by navigating to Win11Debloat > Regfiles > Undo. You can alternatively download this registry file here.

If your Windows Region is set to a country within the EEA (European Economic Area) you may also need to reinstall the Web Search from Microsoft Bing app. Ensure this app is enabled in the Windows Search settings.

Please note that you may need to sign out of your user account or restart your PC to apply the changes.

Re-enable the Home and Gallery Sections in File Explorer

Win11Debloat adds an option that allows you to show/hide the Home and Gallery sections easily via the File Explorer folder options. These can be found by simply searching for File Explorer Options in Windows Search. You can also access them within File Explorer by clicking the three dots in the top bar.

Once opened, navigate to the view tab and scroll all the way down. Here you can find the toggles to show/hide the Home and Gallery sections. If you don't see these options, please use the method described in the next section.

Please note that you may need to sign out of your user account or restart your PC to apply the changes.

Reverting Other Changes

All of the other changes can be reverted by using the registry files that are provided with the script, these registry files can be found by navigating to Win11Debloat > Regfiles > Undo. Alternatively these registry files can be individually viewed and downloaded here.

Simply run the registry file that applies to the setting you want to revert, and you're done!

Please note that you may need to sign out of your user account or restart your PC to apply the changes.

[TheAbstractHero]

Which registry files would need to be reverted to restore the windows 11 style settings menu?

[Raphire]

Heya,

That's this one: https://github.com/Raphire/Win11Debloat/blob/master/Regfiles/Undo/Enable_Show_More_Options_Context_Menu.reg

Edit: This file has since been renamed. It can now be found here: https://github.com/Raphire/Win11Debloat/blob/master/Regfiles/Undo/Enable_W11_Style_Context_Menu.reg

[TheAbstractHero]

You are incredible, thank you for the support and the fantastic tool!

[Raphire]

You're very welcome!

[grayhound666]

Hello, thanks for the good work! I noticed two things after using the installation script: 1. In Explorer, the options menu (three dots) scrolls upwards. It is then no longer usable in the full-screen window. 2. When calling up the settings, it takes a few seconds until the main page is displayed.

Update: Maybe its caused by the 24H2 Update or the combination of both :)

[Raphire]

Heya, the menu options moving outside of the screen seems to be a Windows issue, it also occurs on my test machine where the script wasn't run. As for the explorer homepage loading slowly, this also seems to be a longstanding issue with Windows 11. I have noticed that it is especially slow if you have a NAS or some other network drive setup.

[kklodhi]

I am having a problem with Windows 11 debloating. Whenever I go to settings and system and click on power and battery, it does not let me enter the power and battery settings. It immediately closes the entire settings window and throws me to the desktop.

please help me and reply me

[Raphire]

Heya,

I'm not sure how this could be caused by the script. I did find some threads with people talking about a similar issue where a service was disabled for some reason after a Windows Update. See: https://www.elevenforum.com/t/cant-access-power-settings.19296/

In short: Make sure the Sensor service is enabled in services.msc. (Simply search services in Windows Search to find it)

[kklodhi]

Your suggestion was correct. By enabling the sensor service, I am able to access the power settings. Thank you very much. I am very happy that there are still great people like you on the internet. Thank you.

[Raphire]

You're very welcome!