Question How to Disable Cortana Completely (Without Uninstalling)

[accesscpu_]

One of the items on my to-do list when setting up my new Windows 11 install was to get rid of Cortana. I'd heard that even though this app is being phased out, even when turned off, it can still be collecting data (which I'm not a fan of).

However, doing a little more research, I see that in the past users have reported it causing buggy issues down the line and even breaking certain aspects of the Windows OS (or causing crashes). Not something I'm a fan of either, since I just had a corrupted user profile on my last system.

So I'm wondering what are the best ways to completely cripple/disable Cortana, without having to uninstall it? That seems like the best, middle-of-the-road solution.

 

[35below0]

Crippling it is more likely to cause problems down the line. Best to ignore it or uninstall.

Go to System Components and remove it from there. That's what i would do.
Remove other components you don't want while you're there.

 

[accesscpu_]

Crippling it is more likely to cause problems down the line. Best to ignore it or uninstall.

Go to System Components and remove it from there. That's what i would do.
Remove other components you don't want while you're there.

I was thinking of uninstalling it, but doesn't Microsoft still use her voice feature for some new features/updates they push down occasionally? And would that cause more problems than it's worth later (if they try to use their built-in app that's no longer there)? Just wanna make sure I don't screw myself later.

 

[Math Geek]

you have no way of knowing what they will do down the line. all you can do is work with it right now as is, then when the updates come and it's totally changed around, work with it then as it is then.

they are constantly changing dependencies, your settings, reinstalling what you deleted and so on and so on. no one knows what the next thing will be. that's half the fun of tweaking it. figure it out now and then start fresh and figure it out when they change it later

 

[accesscpu_]

Yup, makes sense. Thanks all!