If you are being distracted by notifications popping up the screen of your computer, Windows operating system provides the option disable, manage and customize notifications to suit individual requirements.
As you may agree, reminders, system update alerts and notifications from apps like Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Outlook can be useful. However, it is also not uncommon for users to think in terms of disabling all notifications or disabling notifications from certain busy apps.
While it is rare, users have reported instances of Windows Notification system being hijacked by poorly coded browser extensions to display unwanted or malicious ads in a running browser.
Disable Notifications on Windows Computer
The steps to disable notification on a Windows computer can vary, depending on whether the app is using Windows Notification system or Custom Notification System to display notifications on your computer.
If the apps is using Windows Notification System, it can be disabled from within Windows Settings. If the App is using Custom Notification system, it can only be disabled by going to Settings of that particular App.
In addition to notifications from apps, Windows displays informatory notifications for Microsoft Products and Services, which can also be disabled.
1. Disable All Notifications
If you are not interested in an any type of notifications, you can disable All Windows System Notifications on your computer by using the following steps.
1. Click on Start button and then click on Settings Icon in the start menu.
2. On the Settings screen, select System in the left-pane and click on Notifications in the right-pane.
3. On the next screen, you can disable all types of System Notifications on your computer by moving the Notifications slider to OFF positon.
Windows 10: Go to Settings > System > select Notifications & Actions in the left-pane and disable Get notifications from apps and other senders option in the right-pane.
This will disable Notifications from all Apps that are using System Notifications on your computer, including Windows Store Apps and traditional desktop Apps.
As mentioned above, this method only apps that are using System Notifications will be available on this screen. Apps using custom notifications need to be disabled by going to the Settings menu of the individual apps.
2. Disable Notifications from Individual Apps
Another way of dealing with notifications on a Windows computer is by allowing notifications only from certain selected individual apps and disabling notifications other unimportant apps.
1. Go to Settings > System > click on Notifications in the right-pane.
2. On the Notifications screen, scroll down to “Notifications from apps and other senders” section.
Take a look at the Apps that are displaying notifications and Disable Notifications from Apps that are not important to you by moving the Slider to OFF position.
Windows 10: Go to Settings > System > Notifications & Actions > In the right-pane, scroll down to “Get notifications from these senders” section and turn OFF Notifications for individual apps.
3. Disable Lock Screen Notifications
While Notifications appearing on the Lock Screen of your computer can be useful, they can also be seen by others around you. Hence, Windows provides the option to protect your privacy by disabling Lock Screen Notifications.
1. Go to Settings > System > click on Notifications in the right-pane.
2. On the Notifications screen, expand the Notifications tab by clicking on the Down-Arrow and uncheck Show Notifications on the lock screen and Show Reminders and incoming VOIP calls on the lock screen options.
Windows 10: Go to Settings > System > Notifications & Actions > uncheck Show Notifications on the lock screen option in the right-pane.
4. Disable Notification Sound
If Microsoft Teams and Outlook are the busiest apps on your computer, you may want to prevent others from being bothered by Notifications sounds from these apps on your computer.
1. Go to Settings > System > click on Notifications in the right-pane.
2. On the next screen, expand the Notifications tab by using the Down-Arrow and uncheck Allow Notifications to play sounds option.
After this, you won’t be able to hear any sound when notifications are delivered to your computer. Hence, it is important that you remember to check Notifications on your computer.
5. Disable Notifications and Action Center Using Registry Editor
This method can be used to disable Notifications and Action Center on all versions of Windows.
1. Press Windows + R keys > Type regedit and click on OK.
2. On the Registry screen, navigate to Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows.
3. Right-click on Windows Folder > select New > Key to create a New Key under Windows Folder.
4. Name this newly created Registry Key as Explorer.
5. Right-click on Explorer > select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value and this will create New Value in the right-pane.
6. Name this New value as DisableNotificationCenter.
7. Double-click on DisableNotificationCenter > in the pop-up, change Value data to 1 and click on OK.
8. Close the Registry Editor and restart the computer apply the changes.
When the computer restarts, you should no longer find Action Center icon appearing in the Notification Area of the taskbar. Also, when you go to Settings > System > Notifications & Action, you will find Turn System Icons on or off option being greyed out.
If you change your mind, you can enable Notification and Action Center back on your computer at any time by changing DisableNotificationCenter Value Data to 0.