Hellbovine
Well-Known Member
The following is a guide on how to remove the default links, shortcuts, pins, tiles, and apps from the start menu and taskbar in Windows 10, giving you a blank slate, for all users on the computer. The benefit of this solution is that it will not break anything in the operating system, and is a cleaner, more effective approach, than trying to solve it on a live install. This guide was tested on 21H2 and will work on similar versions, but it is not fully compatible with Windows 11, because that operating system uses a different start menu.
STEP 1: XML FILES
STEP 2: INTEGRATE REGISTRY FILE
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STEP 1: XML FILES
The XML files must be integrated into the image before Windows is installed. It is important to note that these are not the same kind of XML files as templates and presets are, rather these files are special instructions that Windows reads while it is preparing the installation of the operating system, and they tell Windows to skip the steps of downloading bloat, rather than having users remove those things later.
1A) Load a Windows 10 image into NTLite.
1B) Right-click on source OS and then explore mount directory.
1C) Left-click twice in address bar and add \Users\Default\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\ to the end.
1D) Copy the tweaked DefaultLayouts.xml and LayoutModification.xml into the mounted Shell directory.
1E) Exit the mounted directory window.
1A) Load a Windows 10 image into NTLite.
1B) Right-click on source OS and then explore mount directory.
1C) Left-click twice in address bar and add \Users\Default\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\ to the end.
1D) Copy the tweaked DefaultLayouts.xml and LayoutModification.xml into the mounted Shell directory.
1E) Exit the mounted directory window.
STEP 2: INTEGRATE REGISTRY FILE
You can tweak the registry file provided to remove any of the changes that do not match your personal preferences. All the keys have been commented inside the file to explain what they do in more detail.
2A) Click "Registry" from the left menu, then "Add", choose "Registry files" and select "Clean.reg" to integrate.
2B) Go to “Apply” and then “Process” to finalize the image.
Note: Exit NTLite after processing is complete, copy and paste the newly edited files onto a USB drive, then boot into that drive to install your custom Windows! If you are not sure how to install Windows, or how to deal with drivers, check out my other guides on that topic.
2A) Click "Registry" from the left menu, then "Add", choose "Registry files" and select "Clean.reg" to integrate.
2B) Go to “Apply” and then “Process” to finalize the image.
Note: Exit NTLite after processing is complete, copy and paste the newly edited files onto a USB drive, then boot into that drive to install your custom Windows! If you are not sure how to install Windows, or how to deal with drivers, check out my other guides on that topic.
Visit the Gaming Lounge to find more guides like these.
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