25H2 - Microsoft Store recommendations in search

cheaterslick · Oct 19, 2025

orzplay said:
WinAero shouldn't necessarily be needed, presumably.

True, but since I'm already using Winaero for other things, I might as well take advantage of that setting.

orzplay said:
I'm using a local account (not that I think it will make any difference) and I've tried these web-search settings via powershell, to no avail.

I don't recall ever having this kind of trouble before - something seems weird.

Yeah, Microsoft keeps pushing ads to people who don't want them. They've decided to make it a bit more difficult, even against the tiny minority of users (like in this thread) who are trying to remove it.

orzplay · Oct 19, 2025

hdmi said:
Disable Recommended Tips and App Ads on Start Menu in Windows 11

This post explains how you can turn off ads and recommended tips on the Windows 11 Start menu for your user account. This feature is new to the

winaero.com

Unfortunately this seems to be for a slightly different thing

XxXxX · Oct 19, 2025

please try Wintoys from the Microsoft store

in the tweak section of Wintoys
there is an ad section where you can disable 9 sections of ads
which includes the start menu along with other tweaks and settings.

best of luck Steve ..

hdmi · Oct 19, 2025

I use ExplorerPatcher to remove the Recommended section from the Start menu, but my primary Start menu is still Open-Shell Menu (using the Windows 7 style option). My secondary menu is SystemTrayMenu. Tertiary is Everything (from voidtools). And then there's the Windows 11 Start menu that just sits there waiting to grow up (which I don't expect will happen).

Edwin · Oct 19, 2025

If you don't use UWP Apps, there's no need for the Store.

hdmi · Oct 19, 2025

Edwin said:
If you don't use UWP Apps, there's no need for the Store.

Yes and no. The store is no longer limited to UWP apps and is used to distribute other types of apps, including some traditional desktop applications. The store handles various system components and updates, which can affect your Windows installation. You can bypass it for certain apps by using alternatives like winget or by downloading .MSIX packages directly, though uninstalling it is not a supported option and can cause problems.

Edwin · Oct 19, 2025

hdmi said:
... uninstalling it is not a supported option and can cause problems.

Ah! That's where all my problems are coming from!

Anyway, I didn't give them permission to open a Store on my property!
It's too big, too ugly, has no curb appeal and there's no ample parking!
Besides, they didn't even file with the city for a zoning permit!

cheaterslick · Oct 19, 2025

I wouldn't delete the Store, either. Like what @hdmi said, there are certain things in there that are necessary or something that some people want, but it is unique and exclusive to the Microsoft Store. Something you can't get anywhere else.

But I do want it to be benign, just sitting there not doing anything unless I call on it without any stupid nag "Recommended" appearing in my Start Menu.

Edwin · Oct 19, 2025

I uninstalled the Store from all devices ages ago, I don't miss it.
You can get most of their rubbish online anyway...

orzplay · Oct 19, 2025

As others have said, the Store is pretty important, it's not something most people would be happy removing entirely even if they barely use it.

FrancoDT · Oct 19, 2025

What worked for me to Disable Windows Web Search:

Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows

Go to or create a new key (aka folder) called Explorer (if missing) and navigate to it.

Create a new DWORD (32-bit) registry key and name it DisableSearchBoxSuggestions

Double-click on DisableSearchBoxSuggestions to edit it and set the Value data field to 1 and click OK then reboot.

dacrone · Oct 19, 2025

lol this thread is going in circles

orzplay · Oct 19, 2025

FrancoDT said:
What worked for me to Disable Windows Web Search:

Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows

Go to or create a new key (aka folder) called Explorer (if missing) and navigate to it.

Create a new DWORD (32-bit) registry key and name it DisableSearchBoxSuggestions

Double-click on DisableSearchBoxSuggestions to edit it and set the Value data field to 1 and click OK then reboot.

Are you sure this fixed this specific issue and not something very, very similar?

Because as far as the experts here are saying, this seems to be new with 25H2, whereas the methods you mention are for very similar, but older things.

FrancoDT · Oct 19, 2025

orzplay said:
Are you sure this fixed this specific issue and not something very, very similar?

Because as far as the experts here are saying, this seems to be new with 25H2, whereas the methods you mention are for very similar, but older things.

I just used it to stop all the silly ads on the back of my start menu. Was that what your goal was? They started with 24H2 though not just 25H2.

glasskuter · Oct 19, 2025

An observation only: Did the account you're working with go through oobe?
I have 4 machines. Each updated from 24h2 to 25h2 using the enhancement package. Recommendations,search highlights, bing search, & suggested content were turned off in 24h2 start menu settings using Brink's instructions. I don't use 3d party apps.

None of the machines running 25h2 show this 'MS store recommendation" on start menu.

A wild guess here but If you did go through oobe, quite possibly MS may honor the old settings until the machine goes through oobe (new computers with 25h2 pre-installed, clean installs, or new accounts created in 25h2 after upgrade.)

dacrone · Oct 19, 2025

glasskuter said:
An observation only: Did the account you're working with go through oobe?
I have 4 machines. Each updated from 24h2 to 25h2 using the enhancement package. Recommendations,search highlights, bing search, & suggested content were turned off in 24h2 start menu settings using Brink's instructions. I don't use 3d party apps.

None of the machines running 25h2 show this 'MS store recommendation" on start menu.

A wild guess here but If you did go through oobe, quite possibly MS may honor the old settings until the machine goes through oobe (new computers with 25h2 pre-installed, clean installs, or new accounts created in 25h2 after upgrade.)

no i updated a 24h2 home to 25h2 via enablement package to replicate the issue OP has. it did get those store section results in start menu search too

glasskuter · Oct 19, 2025

@That's so weird that none of my 4 have it.

dacrone · Oct 19, 2025

glasskuter said:
@That's so weird that none of my 4 have it.

yeah that is odd. on that test machine i have:

used the reg that worked in 24h2 to make it think its EDU... no go
disabled recommended via EP... no go
disabled Microsoft store via multiple methods... no go
uninstalled store, then reinstalled store immediately... GO

i dont foresee Microsoft allowing this to be disabled easily as they have already removed the recommended section in the new start menu, so they will get their ads in somehow. windows home and pro have become digital billboards for Microsoft in recent years. only EDU and ENT are good quality anymore

*caveat - the test machine i replicated it on did have the new start menu pushed to it and i disabled it via vive. have your machines received the new start menu yet? maybe the coding is not in-place if the new menu has not been pushed to yours yet... just a thought

orzplay · Oct 19, 2025

glasskuter said:
An observation only: Did the account you're working with go through oobe?
I have 4 machines. Each updated from 24h2 to 25h2 using the enhancement package. Recommendations,search highlights, bing search, & suggested content were turned off in 24h2 start menu settings using Brink's instructions. I don't use 3d party apps.

None of the machines running 25h2 show this 'MS store recommendation" on start menu.

A wild guess here but If you did go through oobe, quite possibly MS may honor the old settings until the machine goes through oobe (new computers with 25h2 pre-installed, clean installs, or new accounts created in 25h2 after upgrade.)

Good thinking tbh.

This was a 24H2 clean install after some tweaking with NTLite; I did whatever the current bypass was a few months ago in order to use a local account. And then upgraded to 25H2 via WU. Regarding OOBE, that may or may not answer your question (I'm not entirely sure exactly what OOBE comprises).

One thing I will say is that on the first restart after updating to 25H2, I had a random popup box on the desktop from MS asking me to sign in. That was new, and I wonder if that's related somehow. I have always been signed into Store, but not signed into to Windows itself (as otherwise, it immediately swaps you from a local account to an MS account). Unsure if that's related to this.

dacrone · Oct 19, 2025

orzplay said:
popup box on the desktop from MS asking me to sign in. That was new, and I wonder if that's related somehow. I have always been signed into Store, but not signed into to Windows itself (as otherwise, it immediately swaps you from a local account to an MS account). Unsure if that's related to this.

not related

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