The “about:flags” page allows advanced users to enable and disable the experimental settings and features. Since most of the settings and features in this page can cause instability issues, the page is typically hidden from plain sight. However, it can be easily accessed by simply typing “about:flags” in the address bar. If you are an admin and would like to restrict users from messing with the flags page, here’s how to do so.
Disable about:flags in Edge Using Group Policy Editor
If you are using the Pro version of Windows 10, you can use the Group Policy Editor to disable the “about:flags” page in the Edge browser. Search for gpedit.msc in the Start menu and open it.
Here, navigate to the policy folder “Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Microsoft Edge.”
On the right panel, find and double-click on the policy “Prevent access to the about:flags page in Microsoft Edge.” This policy is what allows you to manage the flags page in the Edge browser.
Once the policy settings window has been opened, select the radio button “Enabled,” and then click on the “OK” button to save the changes.
To apply the changes, restart the system. Alternatively, use the follow command as an administrator. The below command will force the changes. After applying the changes, whenever a user tries to access the flags page they will receive an error message something like this.
Disable about:flags in Edge Using Registry
Alternatively, you can use also the Windows Registry editor to do that same. To start, search for regedit in the Start menu and open it.
After opening the Registry Editor, navigate to the following key: Here we need to create two sub-keys. Right-click on the “Microsoft” key, and select the option “New -> Key.” Name the new key “MicrosoftEdge.”
Now, right-click on the newly-created key, and then select the option “New -> Key.” Name the new sub-key “Main.”
Once you are done creating the keys, this is how the key structure looks.
Now, select the “Main” key, right-click on the right panel and then select the option “DWORD (32-bit) Value.”
The above action will create a blank value. Name the value “PreventAccessToAboutFlagsInMicrosoftEdge” and press the Enter button.
By default, the new value will be set to “0.” To change that, double-click on the value, enter the value data as “1” and click on the “OK” button to save the changes.
This is how it looks when you are done setting up the value.
Restart your system to make sure that the changes take effect, and you are good to go. If you ever want to revert back, simply change the Value Data back to “0” or just delete the value completely. However, if you chose to delete the value, make sure that you have a good backup of the registry just in case of any mishaps. Do comment below sharing your thoughts and experiences about using the above methods to disable the about:flags page in Microsoft Edge browser.
