How To Enable Gpedit.msc (Group Policy) In Windows 10 Home

In this article, we will show you how to install and enable the Group Policy Editor for Windows 10 Home edition. This approach is also compatible with Windows 7 and Windows 8.

What is Group Policy?

Group policy is a method of configuring computer and user settings for a local or network-connected computer (using Active Directory). It is capable of configuring practically every aspect of the operating system, including programme and Windows settings, network and security policies, and so on.

The majority of local group policies necessitate changes to the Windows Registry. Instead of navigating through the Windows Registry, the user can utilise a group policy editor to configure many components of the Windows Operating System.

What is Group Policy Editor?

Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) is a Windows configuration manager that simplifies the setup of group policies.

Download and Install GPEdit.msc in Windows 10 Home using PowerShell script

1. Download the GPEdit Enabler script by clicking on the link below.

This is a simple PowerShell script that will enable the disabled Group Policy feature in Windows 10 Home.

2. Run as Administrator by right-clicking the downloaded gpedit-enabler.bat file.

3. This will begin the installation procedure. It may take some time depending on the performance of your system. When the operation is finished, close the command prompt window by pressing any key.

4. Although a restart is not required, you should restart the computer once if the policies are not working.

How to Install GPEdit.msc Package in Windows 10 Home Using DISM?

Open a command prompt as administrator and enter the following command to instal the local group policy editor on Windows 10 Home edition.

FOR %F IN ("%SystemRoot%\servicing\Packages\Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientTools-Package~*.mum") DO (
DISM /Online /NoRestart /Add-Package:"%F"
)
FOR %F IN ("%SystemRoot%\servicing\Packages\Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientExtensions-Package~*.mum") DO (
DISM /Online /NoRestart /Add-Package:"%F"
)

You can save this code in a text file called gpedit-install.bat and run it as administrator. Wait for DISM to instal the packages from the Windows 10 component storage.

ClientTools and ClientExtensions packages were installed in Windows 10 Home in my case:

Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientTools-Package~…~amd64~~….mum
Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientTools-Package~…~amd64~en-US~….mum
Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientExtensions-Package~…~amd64~~….mum
Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientExtensions-Package~…~amd64~en-US~….mum

Try to launch the gpedit.msc console again — the local group policy editor interface should appear (no reboot required). The GPO editor is completely functional even in the home version of Windows 10 and includes all of the necessary policy sections found in the Pro/Enterprise editions of Windows.

How to Launch the Group Policy Editor After Installation

After installing the group policy editor, you should be able to access and update local group policies as well as group policies that are already in place on your computer.

By pressing the Windows key + R, you can access the Run dialogue. Enter gpedit.msc and press the Enter or OK key. This will launch gpedit in Windows 10 Home.

Some users say that, despite the fact that this approach enabled the group policy editor, the majority of the settings do not work on the Home edition. If both approaches fail in your instance, you should probably try the third technique, which is explained further below.

How to Enable the Group Policy Editor on Windows 10 Home

A Reddit user posted a batch script on the site’s Windows 10 board that enables the Group Policy Editor directly on Windows 10 Home PCs.

Because it employs DISM, it must be run with higher privileges.

Here is the script:

@echo off
pushd "%~dp0"

dir /b %SystemRoot%\servicing\Packages\Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientExtensions-Package~3*.mum >List.txt
dir /b %SystemRoot%\servicing\Packages\Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy-ClientTools-Package~3*.mum >>List.txt

for /f %%i in ('findstr /i . List.txt 2^>nul') do dism /online /norestart /add-package:"%SystemRoot%\servicing\Packages\%%i"
pause

I’ve created and compressed the file. You can get it by clicking on the link -> Here

To enable gpedit.msc on Windows 10 Home, simply do the following.

1. Before making any changes to the system, make a backup of it. I tested it on several Windows 10 Home PCs and virtual machines and it worked perfectly every time. However, to be on the safe side, make a backup before running the batch file.
2. Open the archive with your system’s built-in zip extractor or a free third-party application such as Bandizip or 7-Zip.
3. Right-click the batch file, gpedit-windows-10-home, and select Run as administrator. If you downloaded the archive version, the file’s name is bat, and you can execute it as administrator by selecting “run as administrator” from the context menu.
4. Wait for the commands to complete their tasks.
5. When prompted, press any key on the keyboard to exit the command prompt window. The Group Policy Editor should be accessible right now.
6. Go to Start, type gpedit.msc, and see if it appears.

How to Enable Group Policy Editor in Windows 10 Home using GPEdit Installer

Because the Group Policy Editor is not included by default in Windows 10, we will need to download it first. You can get it through the download link provided below.

This is a basic setup file that, when executed, will instal and configure the Group Policy Editor in your Windows Home.

How to properly instal gpedit.msc

If you have 32-bit Windows (x86), the installation should run successfully, and you should be able to access the Group Policy Editor via the Microsoft Management Console by navigating to Run –> gpedit.msc. However, if you have Windows 64-bit (x64), you will need to perform some additional procedures after executing the installer. After launching the installation, proceed as follows:

1. Go to C:\Windows\SysWOW64 folder
2. Copy the following folders and files from C:\Windows\SysWOW64 to C:\Windows\System32
   “GroupPolicy“, “GroupPolicyUsers” and gpedit.msc.

This will ensure you run the editor from the Run dialog.

Solving common problems with running gpedit.msc

If you receive a “MMC cannot create a snap-in” error when launching gpedit.msc, follow the instructions below to resolve the issue:

1. Go to C:\Windows\Temp\gpedit\ folder and make sure it exists.
2. Download the following zip file and unzip it to C:\Windows\Temp\gpedit\. This should replace two files x86.bat and x64.bat.
   Zip File (1.3 KiB, 63,956 hits)
3. Now run x86.bat if you are running 32-bit Operating System and x64.bat if you are running 64-bit Windows 10. Make sure you are running the batch files as Administrator.

After completing the above steps, you should have a functional Group Policy Editor on Windows 10 Home edition. You are always welcome to discuss any confusion or problem by leaving a comment below.

Policy Plus: Download Group Policy Editor for All Windows Versions

Policy Plus is a third-party tool that can be used instead of the built-in Group Policy editor. Its user interface is extremely similar to that of GPEdit. One significant advantage of utilising Policy Plus is that it includes a search option that allows you to find the policies you need.

1. Download Policy Plus from the link -> Here
2. Run Policy-Plus.exe. It is a portable app so it will open immediately. You can make changes to the policies exactly how you do it in the Windows built-in group policy editor.

Hopefully, these approaches will assist you in enabling gpedit.msc in your system.