Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
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\Smart Card Description
This policy setting lets you reverse the subject name from how it is stored in the certificate when displaying it during logon. By default the user principal name (UPN) is displayed in addition to the common name to help users distinguish one certificate from another. For example, if the certificate subject was CN=User1, OU=Users, DN=example, DN=com and had an UPN of [email protected] then "User1" will be displayed along with "[email protected]." If the UPN is not present then the entire subject name will be displayed. This setting controls the appearance of that subject name and might need to be adjusted per organization. If you enable this policy setting or do not configure this setting, then the subject name will be reversed. If you disable , the subject name will be displayed as it appears in the certificate.
Registry
SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\SmartCardCredentialProvider Value name: ReverseSubject
Enabled: ReverseSubject = 1
Disabled: ReverseSubject = 0
MDM / Intune (CSP)
./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_Smartcard/ReverseSubject 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: Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
; State: Enabled
; Supported on: At least Windows Vista
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\SmartCardCredentialProvider]
"ReverseSubject"=dword:00000001More formats (PowerShell, Intune, SCCM)
PowerShell
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
$path = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\SmartCardCredentialProvider'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'ReverseSubject' -Value 1 -Type DWordIntune XML
OMA-URI: ./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_Smartcard/ReverseSubject
Data type: String
Value:
<enabled/>Intune Remediation
# === Detection script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
# 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
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\SmartCardCredentialProvider' -Name 'ReverseSubject' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
$path = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\SmartCardCredentialProvider'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'ReverseSubject' -Value 1 -Type DWordSCCM scripts
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
# 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: Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
# 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
}
$checks = @(
(Test-RegistryValue -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\SmartCardCredentialProvider' -Name 'ReverseSubject' -Expected 1 -Kind DWord)
)
if ($checks -notcontains $false) {
Write-Output 'Compliant'
exit 0
}
Write-Output 'Non-compliant'
exit 1
# === Remediation script ===
# Exported from gporais.com
# Policy: Reverse the subject name stored in a certificate when displaying
# State: Enabled
# Supported on: At least Windows Vista
$path = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\SmartCardCredentialProvider'
New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name 'ReverseSubject' -Value 1 -Type DWordBuilding a multi-setting collection? Add this setting and generate combined .reg / PowerShell / GPO scripts.