

Select Start > Settings > System > Activation. Then, follow the steps that apply to your product key scenario. For more info, see Find your Windows product key. For more info, see Activate Windows.įirst, check if you have a Windows Pro product key. If you’re not activated, we recommend you activate Windows 11 Home first. You don’t have direct access to the Windows Registry via the Registry Editor, either.Important: The following steps apply only to devices currently running an activated copy of Windows 11 Home. Various other developer tools are also off limits. Windows 10 in S Mode can’t use command-line shells like PowerShell, Command Prompt, or Bash, either. (The official documentation may be outdated.) However, it’s worth noting that Microsoft’s official documentation still says you cannot change your default search engine without leaving S Mode. Update, 7/13/22: We’ve heard that the modern Chromium-based version of Microsoft Edge does let you change your default search engine while running in S Mode. You can still use other search engines in Edge, for example by navigating to. You can’t change Edge’s default search engine to Google or anything else without leaving S Mode first. While in S Mode, the Microsoft Edge web browser uses Bing as its default search engine. S Mode also pushes the Bing search engine. RELATED: What Is "Developer Mode" in Windows 10? You can’t install applications from the web, so they can’t install startup tasks that slow down your boot process or junkware that hides in the background and spies on you. Because Windows can only run apps from the Store, malware from the web won’t be able to run. Microsoft is pitching security, speed, and stability here. On Windows 11 in S Mode, you can install other browsers from the Microsoft Store-but Edge will always be your default browser. On Windows 10 in S Mode, you can only install apps from the Store, and you can only browse the web with Microsoft Edge. Windows 10 or Windows 11 in S Mode is a more limited, locked-down Windows operating system.
