I am in the EU but unable to uninstall Edge?

itsme1 · Oct 26, 2025

According to your Wikipedia link, I think you're part of the EEA, currency doesn't change anything.

Did you download the Microsoft Media Creation Tool or the ISO from the Microsoft page for your language? That's what I did for the Microsoft Media Creation Tool, and when creating the USB, I choose my country/language. And when I download an ISO from the Microsoft page, I choose my country/language.
That's all I did. And I also believe that during the clean install, I had the internet connection enabled.

cereberus · Oct 26, 2025

itsme1 said:
According to your Wikipedia link, I think you're part of the EEA, currency doesn't change anything.

Did you download the Microsoft Media Creation Tool or the ISO from the Microsoft page for your language? That's what I did for the Microsoft Media Creation Tool, and when creating the USB, I choose my country/language. And when I download an ISO from the Microsoft page, I choose my country/language.
That's all I did. And I also believe that during the clean install, I had the internet connection enabled.

If as you are suggesting you get a different version depending on language selection, then what about the Irish who are part of EU but there is no Irish English version (only US and International (GB) versions).

What about Spanish versions, Portuguese and French versions? Many countries round the world speak these.

I wonder if it is more related to which MS servers serve EU countries, with them having different versions to the rest of the world?

If it was like that, could you fool them using a vpn, could I fool the servers into think I am in an EU country (specifically Ireland for me)?

Well, if I setup vpn so it thinks I am in Dublin, i cannot access the download servers.

Octopuss · Oct 27, 2025

I really think it's either deliberate crap from Microsoft OR their stuff is horribly broken, considering the option to uninstall Edge on my Windows 10 PC suddenly unlocked one day in the past few months (this PC was installed in 2022 btw and I never changed regional settings on it). I'd given up trying to figure it out long before that. I eventually figured maybe they didn't give a rubbish about Windows 10 anymore, didn't care about the european court order (or whatever it was), and simply only made that accessible on Windows 11. But then I installed Windows 11 and it didn't work either - while it does on my Windows 10 machine now.

cereberus · Oct 27, 2025

Octopuss said:
I really think it's either deliberate crap from Microsoft OR their stuff is horribly broken, considering the option to uninstall Edge on my Windows 10 PC suddenly unlocked one day in the past few months (this PC was installed in 2022 btw and I never changed regional settings on it). I'd given up trying to figure it out long before that. I eventually figured maybe they didn't give a rubbish about Windows 10 anymore, didn't care about the european court order (or whatever it was), and simply only made that accessible on Windows 11. But then I installed Windows 11 and it didn't work either - while it does on my Windows 10 machine now.

View attachment 150537

99% of your issue relates to a pointless need to remove Defender.
Answer is simple - ignore it and do not use it.

z3r010 · Oct 27, 2025

cereberus said:
99% of your issue relates to a pointless need to remove Defender.
Answer is simple - ignore it and do not use it.

Shush, how will I pay my bills if people start following common sense talk like that!!!

I'd have to get a real job :scream:

itsme1 · Oct 27, 2025

cereberus said:
If as you are suggesting you get a different version depending on language selection, then what about the Irish who are part of EU but there is no Irish English version (only US and International (GB) versions).

What about Spanish versions, Portuguese and French versions? Many countries round the world speak these.

I wonder if it is more related to which MS servers serve EU countries, with them having different versions to the rest of the world?

If it was like that, could you fool them using a vpn, could I fool the servers into think I am in an EU country (specifically Ireland for me)?

Well, if I setup vpn so it thinks I am in Dublin, i cannot access the download servers.

There are separate ISOs for some of the same languages: Portuguese (Brazil), Canadian French, and Spanish (Mexico).

Microsoft may use three methods to, among others, enable Edge uninstallation: in a separate ISO, with a non-separate ISO during a clean install or update when an EU region is selected and the internet connection is enabled to install the KB(s), a non-separate ISO when an EU region is selected and the internet connection is disabled during a clean install or update, the KB(s) are installed via Windows Update.

The servers in each region must also influence the result.

Octopuss said:
I really think it's either deliberate crap from Microsoft OR their stuff is horribly broken, considering the option to uninstall Edge on my Windows 10 PC suddenly unlocked one day in the past few months (this PC was installed in 2022 btw and I never changed regional settings on it). I'd given up trying to figure it out long before that. I eventually figured maybe they didn't give a rubbish about Windows 10 anymore, didn't care about the european court order (or whatever it was), and simply only made that accessible on Windows 11. But then I installed Windows 11 and it didn't work either - while it does on my Windows 10 machine now.

View attachment 150537

If this is not the case, enable the "Get latest updates as soon as they're available" option. It's on the Windows Update page, below "Check for updates." You'll have to wait up to a few months. It may be a dynamic KB that installs in the background and will not be visible during a Windows Update search and will not appear in the update history.

OAT · Oct 27, 2025

itsme1 said:
Microsoft may use three methods to, among others, enable Edge uninstallation: in a separate ISO, with a non-separate ISO during a clean install or update when an EU region is selected and the internet connection is enabled to install the KB(s), a non-separate ISO when an EU region is selected and the internet connection is disabled during a clean install or update, the KB(s) are installed via Windows Update.

The servers in each region must also influence the result.

I am sorry but I find it difficult to decipher anything remotely truthful in your statements and you are right to use 'may' & 'must be'.
But assumptions are not really what technical knowledge is all about.

At this time, the ISO has nothing to do with your ability to uninstall Edge.
Currently it is simply done thru the IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json file.
The latest builds in the Canary branch no longer use that method.

The location of your update distribution servers are solely governed by the values in the keys listed below,
where CountryCode is located with a subkey RegisteredWithAU with a Reg_Word value of 1.
This allows world travelers to obtain a quicker connection to the local MS update servers.

Code:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\Services

The DeviceRegion can be found in the following key as well:
This gets set either at installation time or via a selection in settings.

Code:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Control Panel\DeviceRegion

Again, nothing to do with Edge and your ability to uninstall it.

dacrone · Oct 27, 2025

Octopuss said:
I really think it's either deliberate crap from Microsoft OR their stuff is horribly broken, considering the option to uninstall Edge on my Windows 10 PC suddenly unlocked one day in the past few months (this PC was installed in 2022 btw and I never changed regional settings on it). I'd given up trying to figure it out long before that. I eventually figured maybe they didn't give a rubbish about Windows 10 anymore, didn't care about the european court order (or whatever it was), and simply only made that accessible on Windows 11. But then I installed Windows 11 and it didn't work either - while it does on my Windows 10 machine now.

View attachment 150537

cereberus said:
99% of your issue relates to a pointless need to remove Defender.
Answer is simple - ignore it and do not use it.

uninstalling edge is one eea feature that you can enable for any region with a simple registry edit, region aside.

itsme1 · Oct 27, 2025

OAT said:
I am sorry but I find it difficult to decipher anything remotely truthful in your statements and you are right to use 'may' & 'must be'.
But assumptions are not really what technical knowledge is all about.

At this time, the ISO has nothing to do with your ability to uninstall Edge.
Currently it is simply done thru the IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json file.
The latest builds in the Canary branch no longer use that method.

The location of your update distribution servers are solely governed by the values in the keys listed below,
where CountryCode is located with a subkey RegisteredWithAU with a Reg_Word value of 1.
This allows world travelers to obtain a quicker connection to the local MS update servers.

Code:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\Services

The DeviceRegion can be found in the following key as well:
This gets set either at installation time or via a selection in settings.

Code:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Control Panel\DeviceRegion

Again, nothing to do with Edge and your ability to uninstall it.

Yup, those are assumptions. Since the op does not have the possibility to uninstall edge and I have this possibility and I do not know how microsoft proceeds, I indicate in my comment 41 what I did. The suggestions were in response to Cereberus.

"It is simply done through the IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json file."
So technically, how do EU citizens have the DMA ACT features enabled without touching this json file? I haven't touched the json file. And the op hasn't touched this json file for his Windows 10, where the ability to uninstall Edge appeared well after installing Windows 10.

garlin · Oct 27, 2025

dacrone said:
uninstalling edge is one eea feature that you can enable for any region with a simple registry edit, region aside.

The two safest methods for using the EEA loophole:

1. Temporarily edit the defaults in IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json so everyone is eligible. This works, but the edited file may be overwritten when SFC runs. Not a big deal, if you've already removed Edge.

2. Temporarily change DeviceRegion, uninstall Edge and restore your old DeviceRegion. Don't leave it permanently changed, because the wrong region will make Windows act incorrectly for other features.

For an example of a script that safely removes Edge (using the EEA loophole):
EdgeRemover/RemoveEdge.ps1 at main · he3als/EdgeRemover

OAT · Oct 27, 2025

itsme1 said:
Yup, those are assumptions. Since the op does not have the possibility to uninstall edge and I have this possibility and I do not know how microsoft proceeds, I indicate in my comment 41 what I did. The suggestions were in response to Cereberus.

"It is simply done through the IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json file."
So technically, how do EU citizens have the DMA ACT features enabled without touching this json file?

That file is delivered pre-configured based on the device country code. (key listed above)
This can be done at any time during any CU, build or others .
The owner of that file is TrustedInstaller to prevent the user from modifying it and the 2 letter country/regions are as follows.

Code:

 "region": {
          "enabled": ["AT", "BE", "BG", "CH", "CY", "CZ", "DE", "DK", "EE", "ES", "FI", "FR", "GF", "GP", "GR", "HR", "HU", "IE", "IS", "IT", "LI", "LT", "LU", "LV", "MT", "MQ", "NL", "NO", "PL", "PT", "RE", "RO", "SE", "SI", "SK", "YT"]

Please note that if the command SFC /scannow is run, it will replace the modified file back to its correct region code.

dacrone · Oct 27, 2025

garlin said:
The two safest methods for using the EEA loophole:

1. Temporarily edit the defaults in IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json so everyone is eligible. This works, but the edited file may be overwritten when SFC runs. Not a big deal, if you've already removed Edge.

2. Temporarily change DeviceRegion, uninstall Edge and restore your old DeviceRegion. Don't leave it permanently changed, because the wrong region will make Windows act incorrectly for other features.

For an example of a script that safely removes Edge (using the EEA loophole):
EdgeRemover/RemoveEdge.ps1 at main · he3als/EdgeRemover

changing the "Country or Region" didnt work for me on any of the 3 PCs i tested on (all 25H2). i had to actually change the "Device Setup Region" which can be done via:

run
%WINDIR%\system32\sysprep\sysprep.exe
when it reboots:
Choose Germany, or Ireland or another EU
Set English & US Layout (or whatever is needed)
Click Next until Search for Updates > then disable internet
Shift + F10
start ms-cxh:localonly
create a new local account (will be deleted later)
reboot
Log out of new Local Account
Log into your account
delete account you created during oobe

*Pinned Taskbar, Run Commands, Pinned Start Menu - WILL BE UNDONE from your original account, but no data lost*

OAT · Oct 27, 2025

dacrone said:
.....

Did not have to do any of that, but then again I am in the US.... And a reboot is a must once the file has been modified.

Code:

 {
  "$schema": "schemas/IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.Schema.1.1.0.json",
  "version": "1.0",
  "policies": [
    {
      "$comment": "Edge is uninstallable.",
      "guid": "{1bca278a-5d11-4acf-ad2f-f9ab6d7f93a6}",
      "defaultState": "enabled",
      "conditions": {
        "region": {
          "enabled": ["AT", "BE", "BG", "CH", "CY", "CZ", "DE", "DK", "EE", "ES", "FI", "FR", "GF", "GP", "GR", "HR", "HU", "IE", "IS", "IT", "LI", "LT", "LU", "LV", "MT", "MQ", "NL", "NO", "PL", "PT", "RE", "RO", "SE", "SI", "SK", "US", "YT"]
        }
      }
    },

Table of Geographical Locations - Win32 apps

This topic lists the available geographical locations with identifiers (data type GEOID).

learn.microsoft.com

dacrone · Oct 27, 2025

OAT said:

Did not have to do any of that, but then again I am in the US.

View attachment 150554 View attachment 150555

Code:

 {
  "$schema": "schemas/IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.Schema.1.1.0.json",
  "version": "1.0",
  "policies": [
    {
      "$comment": "Edge is uninstallable.",
      "guid": "{1bca278a-5d11-4acf-ad2f-f9ab6d7f93a6}",
      "defaultState": "enabled",
      "conditions": {
        "region": {
          "enabled": ["AT", "BE", "BG", "CH", "CY", "CZ", "DE", "DK", "EE", "ES", "FI", "FR", "GF", "GP", "GR", "HR", "HU", "IE", "IS", "IT", "LI", "LT", "LU", "LV", "MT", "MQ", "NL", "NO", "PL", "PT", "RE", "RO", "SE", "SI", "SK", "US", "YT"]
        }
      }
    },

so am i. but on a test machine i setup with ireland at oobe, i could not change it to germany. had to re-enter oobe. not sure why. but as i stated, uninstalling edge is easy no matter where in the world you are....

Code:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\Microsoft Edge]
"NoRemove"=dword:00000000

and reboot

Octopuss · Oct 28, 2025

cereberus said:
99% of your issue relates to a pointless need to remove Defender.

What on Earth are you talking about?

I am in the EU but unable to uninstall Edge?

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