Turn off Windows Installer
Verified with Windows 11 25H2 — updated on July 30, 2026
Supported on: At least Windows 2000
Path in the GPO console
Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Windows Installer Description
This policy setting restricts the use of Windows Installer. If you enable this policy setting, you can prevent users from installing software on their systems or permit users to install only those programs offered by a system administrator. You can use the options in the Disable Windows Installer box to establish an installation setting. -- The "Never" option indicates Windows Installer is fully enabled. Users can install and upgrade software. This is the default behavior for Windows Installer on Windows 2000 Professional, Windows XP Professional and Windows Vista when the policy is not configured. -- The "For non-managed applications only" option permits users to install only those programs that a system administrator assigns (offers on the desktop) or publishes (adds them to Add or Remove Programs). This is the default behavior of Windows Installer on Windows Server 2003 family when the policy is not configured. -- The "Always" option indicates that Windows Installer is disabled. This policy setting affects Windows Installer only. It does not prevent users from using other methods to install and upgrade programs.
Registry
Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer MDM / Intune (CSP)
./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_MSI/DisableMSI 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 Windows Installer
; State: Enabled
; Supported on: At least Windows 2000
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer]
"DisableMSI"=dword:00000001More formats (PowerShell, Intune, SCCM)
PowerShell
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Windows Installer
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows 2000
$path = 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'DisableMSI' -Value 1 -Type DWordIntune XML
OMA-URI: ./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_MSI/DisableMSI
Data type: String
Value:
<enabled/>
<data id="DisableMSI" value="1"/>Intune Remediation
# === Detection script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Windows Installer
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows 2000
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
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer' -Name 'DisableMSI' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Windows Installer
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows 2000
$path = 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'DisableMSI' -Value 1 -Type DWordSCCM scripts
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Windows Installer
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows 2000
# 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 Windows Installer
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows 2000
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
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer' -Name 'DisableMSI' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Turn off Windows Installer
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows 2000
$path = 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Installer'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'DisableMSI' -Value 1 -Type DWordBuilding a multi-setting collection? Add this setting and generate combined .reg / PowerShell / GPO scripts.