Enable or Disable Cortana on Windows 10 Lock Screen

Enable or Disable Cortana on Windows 10 Lock Screen: Cortana is your cloud-based personal assistant that comes built-in with Windows 10 and it works across all your devices. With Cortana you can set reminders, ask questions, play songs or videos etc, in short, it can do most of the work for you. You just need to command Cortana on what to do and when to do. Although it’s not a full functioning AI but still it’s a nice touch to introduce Cortana with Windows 10.

Note: Although for sensitive tasks or those which requires launching application, Cortana will ask you to unlock the device first.

Now with Windows 10 Anniversary update, Cortana comes enabled by default on your Lock Screen which can be a dangerous thing because Cortana can answer questions even if your PC is locked. But now you can easily disable this feature using Settings app as earlier you need to edit the registry to disable Cortana on the Windows 10 lock screen (Win+L). So without wasting any time let’s see How to Enable or Disable Cortana on Windows 10 Lock Screen with the help of the below-listed guide.

Table of Contents

Enable or Disable Cortana on Windows 10 Lock Screen

Make sure to create a restore point just in case something goes wrong.

Method 1: Enable or Disable Cortana on Windows 10 Lock Screen in Settings

1.Press Windows + I keys to open Settings then click on Cortana icon.

2.Now from the left-hand menu make sure “Talk to Cortana” is selected.

3.Next, under Lock Screen heading turn off or disable the toggle for “Use Cortana even when my device is locked“.

4.Reboot your PC to save changes and this will disable Cortana on Windows 10 lock screen.

5.If in future you need to enable this feature, simply go to Settings > Cortana.

6.Select “Talk to Cortana” and under Lock Screen turn on or enable the toggle for “Use Cortana even when my device is locked“.

7.Restart your PC to save changes.

Also Read: How to Force Cortana to Use Chrome on Windows 10

Method 2: Enable or Disable Cortana on Windows 10 Lock Screen in Registry Editor

1.Press Windows Key + R then type regedit and hit Enter.

2.Navigate to the following registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Speech_OneCore\Preferences

3.Now double-click on VoiceActivationEnableAboveLockscreen DWORD and change its value according to:

Disable “Hey Cortana” on your lock screen: 0
Enable “Hey Cortana” on your lock screen: 1

Note: In case you can’t find VoiceActivationEnableAboveLockscreen DWORD then you need to manually create it. Just right-click on Preferences then select New > DWORD (32-bit) value and name it as VoiceActivationEnableAboveLockscreen.

4.Once finished, click Ok and close everything. Restart your PC to save changes.

How to use Cortana on your Lock Screen in Windows 10

To use Cortana on your Windows 10 lock screen first make sure “Hey Cortana” setting is enabled.

1.Press Windows Key + I to open Settings then click on Cortana.

2.From the left hand menu make sure to select “Talk to Cortana“.

3.Now under “Hey Cortana” make sure to enable the toggle for Let Cortana respond to “Hey Cortana”.

Next, under your Lock Screen (Windows Key + L) simply say “Hey Cortana” followed by your question and you will be able to easily access Cortana on your lock screen.

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That’s it you have successfully learned How to Enable or Disable Cortana on Windows 10 Lock Screen. Also, read Fix Windows 10 Critical Error Start Menu and Cortana Aren’t Working issue. If you still have any questions regarding this tutorial then feel free to ask them in the comment’s section.