8 Windows 11 Settings to Review: Startup Apps, Privacy, Fast Startup and More

So treat this as a checklist to review, not a list to work through blindly. Below are the eight items, the exact paths, what each change actually does, and where the claims need a correction.

Why "turn off immediately" is the wrong frame​

BGR's argument is that these settings stay as they are unless you change them, and the defaults may be part of why your PC annoys you. That's fair. But the eight items solve very different problems:

• Layout clutter: taskbar search, Widgets
• Boot-time load: startup apps, Fast Startup
• Interruptions: notifications
• Data and privacy choices: Copilot, diagnostics and advertising settings, online speech recognition

One more thing before you start. On a work or school PC, some of these settings may be greyed out. Microsoft's Windows privacy documentation says that if the diagnostic options are unavailable, the device is probably managed by an organization, and the Diagnostics & feedback page will show a banner saying some settings are hidden or managed by your organization.

Section summary: These are eight separate settings for eight separate problems. Pick the ones that match what's actually bothering you.

1. Taskbar search: a space saver, not a speed boost​

Path: Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Search (dropdown) > Hide

BGR's point is that the search box takes up a lot of taskbar space, and you can still search by opening Start and typing. The same dropdown has smaller options too: Search icon only and Search icon and label. Either keeps one-click search without the wide box.

What it doesn't do: It doesn't turn off Windows Search or indexing, and it won't make your PC faster. It's purely about how the taskbar looks.

2. Copilot: uninstall it if you don't want it​

Path: Settings > Apps > Installed apps > find Copilot > three-dot menu > Uninstall

BGR says this removes the Copilot app completely and that you can reinstall it free from the Microsoft Store. That makes it a low-risk change for anyone who doesn't use it.

The important caveat: Removing the Copilot app is not a privacy setting. Windows diagnostic data is controlled separately (see item 5). Uninstalling one app doesn't stop Windows from sending the required diagnostic data Microsoft uses to keep devices updated and secure.

3. Startup apps: review the list before you switch things off​

Path: Settings > Apps > Startup

This is probably the most useful item on the list. You can sort by Startup impact, Name or Status and turn apps on or off individually. BGR recommends going through the list rather than disabling everything, which is right.

A practical approach:

1. Sort by Startup impact.
2. Disable anything marked High that you don't need the moment you sign in, such as launchers, updaters you check yourself, or chat apps you open manually.
3. Leave alone anything to do with audio drivers, touchpads, security software, or cloud sync you rely on.
4. Restart, then check that nothing you depend on has stopped working.

Turning off a startup entry only stops it opening automatically. The app stays installed and you can still launch it whenever you want.

4. Notifications: be selective before you mute everything​

Path: Settings > System > Notifications

BGR offers two choices: turn notifications off entirely, or turn on Do Not Disturb. There's a middle option too. The same page lists your apps individually, so you can mute the noisy ones and keep the alerts that matter, like calendar reminders or security warnings. Do Not Disturb can also be set to turn on automatically at certain times. That's often a better fit than a permanent off switch.

5. "Telemetry": three separate switches​

BGR groups several settings under "Telemetry" and says the defaults let Microsoft "track your every move." That's an exaggeration. The controls are real, though:

Ads and recommendations: Settings > Privacy & security > Recommendations & offers. Turn off the recommendations toggles and Advertising ID.

Optional diagnostic data: Settings > Privacy & security > Diagnostics & feedback. Turn off Send optional diagnostic data.

Inking and typing: On the same Diagnostics & feedback page, turn off Improve inking and typing.

Here's what Microsoft's support page "Diagnostics, feedback, and privacy in Windows" says each one actually does:

• Required diagnostic data covers the device, its settings and capabilities, and whether it's working properly. Microsoft calls it the minimum needed to keep a device reliable and secure. You can't turn it off.
• Optional diagnostic data adds more detail. Microsoft says it may include websites you browse, device activity and enhanced error reporting, plus memory contents from a crash. Microsoft also says your device stays just as secure and works normally if you send only required data. So turning this off costs you nothing in function.
• Improve inking and typing: Microsoft says this collects samples of what you type or write to improve handwriting recognition, autocomplete, next-word prediction and spelling correction. It says the samples are split up and stripped of identifiers. BGR describes this as Microsoft training "its AI models." Microsoft's wording is narrower: it says it uses the data to improve its typing and writing services.
• Deleting diagnostic data: The same page has a Delete diagnostic data button. Microsoft warns that it doesn't delete data tied to your Microsoft account, and it doesn't stop future data being sent. Data linked to your account is managed separately through the Microsoft privacy dashboard.

Bottom line: These are good settings to review if privacy matters to you. They don't amount to a single "stop tracking me" switch.

6. Widgets: hiding the button isn't the same as disabling the feature​

Path: Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Widgets toggle (or right-click the taskbar > Taskbar settings)

BGR's complaint is fair. Widgets on Windows live in one panel and mostly show weather and news, which is less flexible than phone widgets. Turning off the toggle removes the taskbar button and frees up space.

Be clear on what this does, though: it hides the entry point. The Widgets board is still there, and the Windows key + W shortcut still opens it.

7. Fast Startup: the item that needs the most correction​

Path: Control Panel > System and Security > Power Options > Change what the power buttons do > clear Turn on fast startup (recommended)

BGR describes the mechanism correctly. Microsoft states that "During Fast Startup, the kernel session is not closed, but it is hibernated," and Fast Startup is on by default. With it on, Shut down signs you out and closes your apps, but saves the kernel session and all currently loaded drivers to a hibernation file on disk — hiberfil.sys. The next boot restores that saved state instead of starting fresh.

Here's what the list skips: you don't need to disable Fast Startup to get a clean boot. Microsoft says "the restart process in Windows continues to perform a full boot cycle, without the hibernation performance improvement". In other words, during a restart, the kernel session ends for good, and Windows rebuilds that session. All drivers load fresh, the kernel initializes from scratch. That's why "restart it" works so often as a first fix.

When disabling Fast Startup makes sense:

• Dual-boot setups. Windows can leave NTFS volumes in a state that Linux interprets as hibernated or not safely closed.
• Recurring hardware or driver problems after a cold power-on that a Restart fixes.
• You just want every Shut down to be a full shutdown and don't mind a slightly slower boot.

Watch out for these:

• BGR's steps leave out one click. Before you can clear the checkbox, select Change settings that are currently unavailable, then save the change.
• The checkbox may not appear when hibernation is unavailable or disabled, because Fast Startup depends on the hibernation infrastructure and hiberfil.sys.
• For a one-off full shutdown without changing anything, holding Shift while choosing Shut down is also commonly used to request a full shutdown.

The feature has a history. The idea was to save the kernel session and loaded drivers to a single hibernation file every time you shut down your PC. The result was that boot times with mechanical disks went from minutes to seconds. On a modern NVMe SSD the speed gain is much smaller, so turning it off costs less than it used to. That's a reasonable trade-off to weigh, but it's no reason to panic.

8. Online speech recognition: a privacy vs. accuracy trade-off​

Path: Settings > Privacy & security > Speech > turn off Online speech recognition

BGR explains that online recognition uses Microsoft's cloud and is meant to be more accurate, while device-based recognition processes your voice locally. With the online option off, BGR says, only device-based features such as Narrator remain.

If you don't use voice input, turning this off costs you nothing. If you use voice typing or depend on voice for accessibility, expect worse accuracy and fewer features. Test it before committing.

The practical checklist​

Overall: BGR's list is a useful prompt to go through your settings. Of the eight, startup apps and the privacy settings are the changes most likely to help. Copilot, Widgets, taskbar search and notifications are matters of preference. For Fast Startup, the simplest fix is usually just to choose Restart.