To disable Remote Assistance in Windows 10 and 11, open Registry Editor, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Remote Assistance, and set the fAllowToGetHelp DWORD value to 0. This prevents Windows from allowing incoming Remote Assistance connections and takes effect after a restart. You can also use the reg add one-liner below to make the change without opening Registry Editor manually.
Applies to: Windows 10 (22H2) and Windows 11 (23H2, 24H2, 25H2) | Last updated: May 27, 2026
Key Takeaways
- Remote Assistance is a Windows feature that lets others connect to your PC to help with problems — disabling it reduces your attack surface if you don’t use it.
- The registry key is at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Remote Assistance — set fAllowToGetHelp to 0 to disable.
- A single
reg addcommand handles the change in one step without opening Registry Editor manually. - Disabling Remote Assistance does not affect Remote Desktop (RDP) — they are separate Windows features.
- Windows updates typically do not revert this registry change, but major feature updates or clean installs will reset it.
Quick Steps
- Press Win + R, type regedit, press Enter and click Yes at the UAC prompt
- Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Remote Assistance
- Double-click fAllowToGetHelp and change the value data to 0
- Click OK, close Registry Editor, and restart your PC
Why Disable Remote Assistance in Windows?
Remote Assistance is a built-in Windows feature that lets someone else connect to your computer over the internet to view your screen or take control — typically used for remote tech support. While it requires the recipient to accept an invitation, it still represents an enabled attack surface that’s unnecessary if you never use it.
In my years running a computer repair business, I’ve seen how features like this get targeted in social engineering attacks, where someone is tricked into sending a Remote Assistance invitation to a scammer posing as Microsoft support. Disabling it removes that risk entirely. It’s one of those quick privacy and security wins that takes 30 seconds and has no downside if you manage your own PC.
If you want to handle this and dozens of other privacy tweaks in one place, my free tool Winhance includes a Remote Assistance toggle alongside other Windows privacy and security settings.
How to Disable Remote Assistance via Registry Editor
Step 1: Open Registry Editor
Press Win + R to open the Run dialog. Type regedit and press Enter. If you get a User Account Control prompt asking whether to allow Registry Editor to make changes, click Yes.
Step 2: Navigate to the Remote Assistance Key
In Registry Editor, navigate to the following path. You can paste it directly into the address bar at the top of the Registry Editor window to get there instantly:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Remote AssistanceStep 3: Set fAllowToGetHelp to 0
In the right panel, find the entry named fAllowToGetHelp. Double-click it to open the edit dialog. Change the value data from 1 to 0, then click OK to save. Setting this to 0 tells Windows to block Remote Assistance connections. Close Registry Editor when done.
Note: If you don’t see the fAllowToGetHelp entry in the right panel, you can create it. Right-click in the right panel, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, name it fAllowToGetHelp, and set its value to 0.
Step 4: Restart Your PC
Close Registry Editor and restart your computer. The change takes effect on next boot. After the restart, Remote Assistance is fully disabled.
Quick Method: reg add One-Liner
If you prefer to skip Registry Editor entirely, you can apply the same change with a single command. Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as Administrator and run:
reg add "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Remote Assistance" /v fAllowToGetHelp /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /fThe /f flag forces the change without asking for confirmation. This works on Windows 10 and 11 and sets the same registry value as the manual steps above. Restart your PC after running it for the change to take effect.
Tip: To re-enable Remote Assistance, run the same command but change
/d 0to/d 1, or go back to the registry key and set fAllowToGetHelp back to 1.
Related Privacy Tweaks
If you’re locking down Remote Assistance, you’re probably doing a broader privacy pass on Windows. Here are a few related registry-based tweaks that follow the same pattern:
- Disable Windows Telemetry via Registry — stops Windows from sending diagnostic data to Microsoft
- Disable Activity History via Registry — prevents Windows from tracking your app and file usage
- Disable Advertising ID via Registry — stops Windows from assigning a tracking ID used for targeted ads
- Disable Location Services via Registry — turns off location tracking at the system level
Alternatively, Winhance applies all of these settings (and many more) through a single interface, so you don’t have to navigate through the registry for each one individually.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will disabling Remote Assistance affect Remote Desktop?
No. Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) are completely separate features in Windows. Disabling Remote Assistance via the fAllowToGetHelp registry value has no effect on your ability to use RDP to connect to or from your machine.
Is it safe to edit the Windows registry for this change?
Yes — this is a single, well-documented value change at a stable registry path. I’ve been making registry edits for over a decade in my repair business. The key is to follow instructions exactly and only modify the specific value mentioned. If you want extra peace of mind, export the Remote Assistance registry key before editing: right-click the key in the left panel and select Export.
Can I disable Remote Assistance using Group Policy instead?
Yes, on Windows Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions you can use Group Policy Editor. Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Remote Assistance and set “Configure Solicited Remote Assistance” to Disabled. The registry method works on all Windows editions including Home, so it’s more universally applicable.
Will Windows updates re-enable Remote Assistance?
In my experience, standard Windows cumulative updates and security patches do not revert this registry change. However, major feature updates (like upgrading from 23H2 to 24H2) can reset certain settings, so it’s worth checking after a big Windows update. A clean install will also reset it.
How do I verify that Remote Assistance is actually disabled?
After restarting, open Control Panel > System and Security > System and click Remote settings on the left. Under the Remote Assistance section, “Allow Remote Assistance connections to this computer” should be unchecked. If the checkbox is greyed out and unchecked, the registry change was applied correctly.
