Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
Verified with Windows 11 25H2 — updated on July 30, 2026
Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
Path in the GPO console
User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Control Panel\Add or Remove Programs Description
Removes the Set Program Access and Defaults button from the Add or Remove Programs bar. As a result, users cannot view or change the associated page. The Set Program Access and Defaults button lets administrators specify default programs for certain activities, such as Web browsing or sending e-mail, as well as which programs are accessible from the Start menu, desktop, and other locations. If you disable this setting or do not configure it, the Set Program Access and Defaults button is available to all users. This setting does not prevent users from using other tools and methods to change program access or defaults. This setting does not prevent the Set Program Access and Defaults icon from appearing on the Start menu. See the "Remove Set Program Access and Defaults from Start menu" setting.
Registry
HKCU
Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Uninstall Value name: NoChooseProgramsPage
MDM / Intune (CSP)
./User/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_AddRemovePrograms/NoChooseProgramsPage Microsoft Learn documentation Mapping data: Microsoft Learn (CC BY 4.0)
Export Builder
BETAConfigure the state, scope and options, then generate .reg, PowerShell, Intune and SCCM outputs — or add the setting to a multi-setting collection.
These exports write the registry — this is not a managed GPO. ⓘ
.reg file
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
; Exported from gporais.com
; Policy: Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
; State: Enabled
; Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Uninstall]
"NoChooseProgramsPage"=dword:00000001More formats (PowerShell, Intune, SCCM)
PowerShell
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
# Warning: In SYSTEM context (the Intune default), HKCU targets the SYSTEM profile. Run this script using the logged-on credentials.
$path = 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Uninstall'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'NoChooseProgramsPage' -Value 1 -Type DWordIntune XML
OMA-URI: ./User/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_AddRemovePrograms/NoChooseProgramsPage
Data type: String
Value:
<enabled/>Intune Remediation
# === Detection script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
# Warning: In SYSTEM context (the Intune default), HKCU targets the SYSTEM profile. Run this script using the logged-on credentials.
function Test-RegistryValue {
param(
[Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string]$Path,
[Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string]$Name,
[object]$Expected,
[ValidateSet('String', 'DWord', 'MultiString')][string]$Kind = 'String',
[switch]$Absent
)
try {
$item = Get-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -ErrorAction Stop
} catch {
return $Absent.IsPresent
}
if ($Absent.IsPresent) { return $false }
$actual = $item.$Name
if ($Kind -eq 'DWord') { return ([int64]$actual) -eq ([int64]$Expected) }
if ($Kind -eq 'MultiString') {
$actualValues = @($actual)
$expectedValues = @($Expected)
if ($actualValues.Count -ne $expectedValues.Count) { return $false }
for ($i = 0; $i -lt $expectedValues.Count; $i++) {
if ([string]$actualValues[$i] -ne [string]$expectedValues[$i]) { return $false }
}
return $true
}
return [string]$actual -eq [string]$Expected
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Uninstall' -Name 'NoChooseProgramsPage' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
# Warning: In SYSTEM context (the Intune default), HKCU targets the SYSTEM profile. Run this script using the logged-on credentials.
$path = 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Uninstall'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'NoChooseProgramsPage' -Value 1 -Type DWordSCCM scripts
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
# SCCM Configuration Item guidance:
# Create a Configuration Item of type "Setting: Script".
# Discovery script: use the Detection script below.
# Remediation script: use the Remediation script below.
# Compliance rule: the Discovery script output equals 'Compliant'.
# === Detection script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
# Warning: In SYSTEM context (the Intune default), HKCU targets the SYSTEM profile. Run this script using the logged-on credentials.
function Test-RegistryValue {
param(
[Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string]$Path,
[Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string]$Name,
[object]$Expected,
[ValidateSet('String', 'DWord', 'MultiString')][string]$Kind = 'String',
[switch]$Absent
)
try {
$item = Get-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -ErrorAction Stop
} catch {
return $Absent.IsPresent
}
if ($Absent.IsPresent) { return $false }
$actual = $item.$Name
if ($Kind -eq 'DWord') { return ([int64]$actual) -eq ([int64]$Expected) }
if ($Kind -eq 'MultiString') {
$actualValues = @($actual)
$expectedValues = @($Expected)
if ($actualValues.Count -ne $expectedValues.Count) { return $false }
for ($i = 0; $i -lt $expectedValues.Count; $i++) {
if ([string]$actualValues[$i] -ne [string]$expectedValues[$i]) { return $false }
}
return $true
}
return [string]$actual -eq [string]$Expected
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Uninstall' -Name 'NoChooseProgramsPage' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Hide the Set Program Access and Defaults page
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 only
# Warning: In SYSTEM context (the Intune default), HKCU targets the SYSTEM profile. Run this script using the logged-on credentials.
$path = 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Uninstall'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'NoChooseProgramsPage' -Value 1 -Type DWordBuilding a multi-setting collection? Add this setting and generate combined .reg / PowerShell / GPO scripts.