How to Turn on, turn off sync settings on Windows 10 PC

Simple way to Turn on, turn off sync settings on Windows 10 When Sync settings is turned on, Windows will sync the settings you choose on all Windows 10 devices that you have signed in with with your Microsoft account.

Note:

Sync settings also work if you are logged in with a work or school account associated with your Microsoft account.
If Sync settings are not available on your device, your organization might not allow this feature.
The settings you choose to sync are also saved in OneDrive (cloud).

You can choose to synchronize themes, passwords, language options, Ease of Access and other Windows settings (Other Windows settings). If you enable the Other Windows settings option, Windows will sync some device settings (for things like printers and mouse options), install File Explorer, and notification options. For a complete list of settings that Windows can sync, refer to:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/devices/enterprise-state-roaming-windows-settings-reference#windows-settings-overview

• Theme – Desktop background, taskbar location, etc.
• Passwords – Windows information manager, including WiFi profiles
• Language Preferences – Dictation dictionary, system language settings
• Ease of Access – Narrator (screen reader utility), On-screen keyboard (virtual keyboard), Magnifier (Part or whole screen enlargement tool)

Other Windows Settings – See details at:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/devices/enterprise-state-roaming-windows-settings-reference#windows-settings-details

This guide will show you how to enable or disable Sync settings on all devices using Microsoft accounts in Windows 10.

Option 1: Enable or disable Sync settings in the Settings application

1. Open Settings and click on the Accounts icon.

2. Click on Sync your settings on the left and follow step 3 or step 4 below to do what you want.

3. To turn off Sync settings completely:

In Sync your settings on the right, move the slider to the left to turn off Sync settings and go to step 5 below.

4. To turn on Sync settings:

This is the default setting.

A) In Sync your settings on the right, move the slider to the right to enable Sync settings.

B) If you like, you can now enable or disable your Individual sync settings in option 2 or option 3 below.

5. When done, close Settings to apply.

Option 2: Turn on or off Individual sync settings in the Settings app

1. Open Settings and click on the Accounts icon.

2. Click Sync your settings on the left.

3. If not already done, you will need to enable Sync settings in step 4 of option 1 above.

4. On the right in Individual sync settings, you can enable or disable each sync setting you like.

Note: By default, all individual sync settings are enabled.

5. When done, you can close the Settings if desired.

Option 3: Enable or disable Individual sync settings in Registry Editor

1. If not already done, you will need to enable Sync settings in step 4 of option 1 above.

2. Open the Start menu, type regedit in the search box and press Enter to open Registry Editor.

3. If prompted by UAC, click Yes.

4. In Registry Editor, navigate to the location below.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ SettingSync \ Groups

5. Expand the Groups key in the left panel and click on the subkey in the table below for the personal sync settings you want to turn on or off.

• Personal synchronization settings – Registry Subkey
• Theme – Personalization
• Install Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer – BrowserSettings
• Password – Credentials
• Language preferences – Language
• Ease of Access – Accessibility
• Other Windows settings – Windows
• Start menu layout – StartLayout

6. In the right panel of the subkey (for example, Accessibility), double-click enabled DWORD to modify it.

7. Follow step 8 or step 9 below to do what you want.

8. To turn off personal synchronization settings:

Enter 0, press OK and go to step 10 below.

9. To turn on personal sync settings: (This is the default setting).

Enter 1, click OK and go to step 10 below.

10. Repeat step 6 if you want to enable or disable any other personal synchronization settings.

11. When done, you can close the Registry Editor.

All operations are completed!