Microsoft's tactics with Windows 10 have been questionable. As the newest version of the operating system (OS) comes as a service instead of a product, Microsoft regularly tweaks the system as they see best. With every new update come lots of great features, but also some intrusions.

One of the newest changes allows Microsoft to "conduct experiments" with the settings on your PC. It's not present on the stable version of Windows 10, and only exists in the Pro and higher versions. This suggests that Microsoft might be testing it with Insiders for a full release later. You can disable this experimenting with a simple tweak if you like.

The easier method is using the Windows 10 privacy tool ShutUp10, which includes a switch to Disable conducting experiments with this machine by Microsoft. Enabling this option changes a Registry value, which you can do on your own if you don't want to use the privacy tool.

Open a Registry editor by typing Regedit into the Start Menu, and remember to be careful while you're in here. The key that toggles this (AllowExperimentation) is found here:

        HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\PolicyManager\current\device\System

    

This key can be set to 0 to disable experimentation, 1 (the default) to allow experimentation of device settings, or 2 to allow full experimentation. If you're not an Insider this tweak won't do anything yet, but it will be worth checking again after the Creators Update launches this spring.

What do you think Microsoft is doing with this experimentation? Let us know below if you turned this off, and if you've noticed any changes as an Insider!

Image Credit: maxuser via Shutterstock