Windows offers the option to have multiple user accounts on a single PC. To ensure complete system protection, you must restrict access to certain apps for all users on a Windows PC. But you cannot simply block apps in the operating system as you may on your phone.
However, you can leverage either the inbuilt Group Policy User or other tools to effectively block apps for a user.
1. How to Block an App on Windows Using the Group Policy Editor
If you have Windows 11 Pro, Education, or Enterprise version, you’re able to use the Group Policy Editor and modify a system policy to block apps. If you’re on Windows Home, you’ll need to firstaccess the Group Policy Editor on Windows Homebefore you continue.
Once set up, your chosen app will be blocked for all users if you use this method. Repeat the following steps:
Closethe Group Policy Editor and restart your PC. Log back in and try to launch the app that you added to the block list. You will see the following message.
2. How to Block an App on Windows Using the Local Security Policy Editor
you’re able to also use the Local Security Policy Editor to block apps on Windows 11. Repeat the following steps:
3. How to Block an App on Windows Using the Registry Editor
If you don’t have the Group Policy Editor on your Windows PC, you can use the Registry Editor to block apps for a user on Windows 11. This process is a tad bit longer compared to the other methods described above.
Here’s how to do it:
Before modifying your Registry Settings,create a manual backup of the Registryand export a copy of it to a USB drive.
After that, you must create a new subkey under the Explorer key and modify its properties. Here’s how to do it:
Restart your PC to apply the changes, then pressWin + Sto open the Windows Search app. Type the app name you blocked using the Registry Editor and press theEnterkey.
You will see the same error message indicating that you can no longer access the app using the currently signed-in user account on your PC. However, other users can access the app. So, you can make changes to their registry and block the app for them too.
4. How to Block an App on Windows Using Program Blocker
If you find the Group Policy Editor or Registry Editor route too complicated, you can use a GUI-based app to block apps on your PC. We will demonstrate the Program Blocker app in this post, but you can use other similar app-blocking programs on your Windows 11 PC if you prefer.
Firstly,download Program Blockerand then extract the app on your PC. After that, repeat the following steps to block any app:
Prevent Your Users From Opening Certain Apps on Windows
These were just some methods to block app access for certain or all users on a Windows 11 PC. The Group Policy Editor and Local Security Policy Editor methods block apps for all users, while the other two methods can help you restrict the current user account from accessing one or more apps.
