Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
Verified with Windows 11 25H2 — updated on July 30, 2026
Supported on: At least Windows Vista
Path in the GPO console
Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Application Compatibility Description
This policy setting controls the state of the Program Compatibility Assistant (PCA). The PCA monitors applications run by the user. When a potential compatibility issue with an application is detected, the PCA will prompt the user with recommended solutions. To configure the diagnostic settings for the PCA, go to System->Troubleshooting and Diagnostics->Application Compatibility Diagnostics. If you enable this policy setting, the PCA will be turned off. The user will not be presented with solutions to known compatibility issues when running applications. Turning off the PCA can be useful for system administrators who require better performance and are already aware of application compatibility issues. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting, the PCA will be turned on. To configure the diagnostic settings for the PCA, go to System->Troubleshooting and Diagnostics->Application Compatibility Diagnostics. Note: The Diagnostic Policy Service (DPS) and Program Compatibility Assistant Service must be running for the PCA to run. These services can be configured by using the Services snap-in to the Microsoft Management Console.
Registry
Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat Value name: DisablePCA
Enabled: DisablePCA = 1
Disabled: DisablePCA = 0
MDM / Intune (CSP)
./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_AppCompat/AppCompatTurnOffProgramCompatibilityAssistant_2 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: Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
; State: Enabled
; Supported on: At least Windows Vista
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat]
"DisablePCA"=dword:00000001More formats (PowerShell, Intune, SCCM)
PowerShell
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
$path = 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'DisablePCA' -Value 1 -Type DWordIntune XML
OMA-URI: ./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_AppCompat/AppCompatTurnOffProgramCompatibilityAssistant_2
Data type: String
Value:
<enabled/>Intune Remediation
# === Detection script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
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
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat' -Name 'DisablePCA' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
$path = 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'DisablePCA' -Value 1 -Type DWordSCCM scripts
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
# 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: Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
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
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat' -Name 'DisablePCA' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Program Compatibility Assistant
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
$path = 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'DisablePCA' -Value 1 -Type DWordBuilding a multi-setting collection? Add this setting and generate combined .reg / PowerShell / GPO scripts.