Windows 10: Turn On or Off Location Access for Desktop apps in Windows 10

How to: Turn On or Off Location Access for Desktop apps in Windows 10

How to Turn On or Off Location Access for Desktop apps in Windows 10


Some apps need to know when youre in a specific location to work correctly. For instance, if youve asked an app to remind you to buy bread when youre in the grocery store, the app will need to know when youre in the store. To give you maps to get you where youre going, or to show you lists of shops or restaurants near you, many apps and services request location information from your device. Thats what the Windows 10 location service does: tells your apps and services where you are or where youve been, so that you can get info more relevant to you.

Desktop apps are a specific type of app that wont ask for separate permission to discover your device location information and wont appear in the list that allows you to choose apps that can use your location. What are desktop apps? Theyre usually downloaded from the internet or installed with some type of media (such as a CD, DVD, or USB storage device). Theyre launched using an .EXE or .DLL file, and they typically run on your device, unlike web-based apps (which run in the cloud).

Even when youve turned off the device location setting, some third-party apps and services could use other technologies (such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, cellular modem, etc.) to determine your devices location with varying degrees of accuracy. Microsoft requires third-party software developers that develop apps for our Microsoft Store or develop apps using Microsoft tools to respect the Windows location settings unless youve provided any legally required consent to have the third-party developer determine your location. However, to further reduce the risk that an app or service can determine your location when the Windows device location setting is off, you should only install apps and services from trusted sources. For more comprehensive protection of your location, you could consider disabling radio-based components of your device such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular modem, and GPS components, which might be used by an app to determine your precise location. However, doing so will also impair other experiences such as calling (including emergency calling), messaging, internet connectivity, and connecting to peripheral devices like your headphones. Please read the privacy policies of the apps and services youve installed to learn more about how they use your devices location.

See also:

• Windows 10 location service and privacy | Microsoft Support
• Windows 10 desktop apps and privacy | Microsoft Support

This tutorial will show you how to turn on or off allowing desktop apps to access your location for your account in Windows 10.

*note If you turned off location for this device or turned off allow apps to access your location, it will also disable (gray out) the allow desktop apps to access your location setting.

*note Some apps and Windows features need to access your location to work as intended. Turning off allow desktop apps to access your location might limit what desktop apps and Windows can do.


CONTENTS:

• Option One: Turn On or Off Location Access for Desktop apps in Settings
• Option Two: Turn On or Off Location Access for Desktop apps using a REG file

OPTION ONE [/i] Turn On or Off Location Access for Desktop apps in Settings
1. Open Settings, and click/tap on the Privacy icon.

2. Click/tap on Location on the left side, and turn on (default) or off Allow desktop apps to access your location for what you want on the right side. (see screenshot below)

*note If you turned off location for this device or turned off allow apps to access your location, it will also disable (gray out) the allow desktop apps to access your location setting.

3. When finished, you can close Settings if you like.









OPTION TWO [/i] Turn On or Off Location Access for Desktop apps using a REG file
*note The downloadable .reg files below will modify the string value in the registry key below.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\CapabilityAccessManager\ConsentStore\location\NonPackaged

Value sting value

Deny = Off
Allow = On
1. Do step 2 (on) or step 3 (off) below for what you would like to do.


2. To Turn On Location Access for Desktop apps
*note This is the default setting.
A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below, and go to step 4 below.

Turn_ON_allow_desktop_apps_to_access_your_location.reg

Download

3. To Turn Off Location Access for Desktop apps
A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below, and go to step 4 below.

Turn_OFF_allow_desktop_apps_to_access_your_location.reg

Download
4. Save the .reg file to your desktop.

5. Double click/tap on the downloaded .reg file to merge it.

6. When prompted, click/tap on Run, Yes (UAC), Yes, and OK to approve the merge.

7. If you like, you can delete the downloaded .reg file if you like.

That's it,
Shawn


Related Tutorials

• How to Turn On or Off Location Services in Windows 10
• How to Set, Change, or Clear Default Location for Windows 10 PC
• How to Clear Your Location History on Windows 10 PC
• How to Turn On or Off Cortana Location Permissions in Windows 10

:)

 

Unable to turn on Location in Windows 10

Hello,

We regret the inconvenience. Let me assist you.

Before we proceed further, let us know a few more details on the below questions.

• 
  Did you make any changes to the computer prior to the issue? Is it an abrupt issue?
  
• 
  Do have any System Restore point set in Windows prior to the issue?
  
• 
  Did you check if the same issue occurs when you log in to Windows using a different Local Administrator user account?
  

As an initial recommendation, I suggest you to follow the steps to try and fix the issue:

Step 1:

Follow the steps to change the region:

a) Type “Region” on the Search and click on
Change your country or region option from the search results.

b) Now choose the location from the drop down menu to change the region. (As per your location)

Move to the next step.

Step 2:

I would suggest you to turn On Windows location platform on the computer and check if it helps.

You can follow the steps:

a) Type
location on the Search.

b) Click on
Change Location settings.

c) Check the box which states “Turn ON Windows location platform” and “Help improve Windows Location services”.

e) Click on Apply.

Proceed to the next step.

Step 3:

If you are trying to use location settings for an app, I would suggest you to turn ON the settings to allow apps to use the location on the computer.

Follow the steps:

a) Type
location on the Search.

b) Click on
Location privacy settings.

c) Move the slider towards the right to turn ON settings for ‘Let Windows apps use my location’.

Restart the computer once after making the changes.

Write to us with the updated status and the required information related to Location service in Windows, for us to be able to assist you further.

Thank You.

 

Turn on location history / give an app access to your location

actually I'm not interested in activating cortana I'm just wondering how to turn on location history in case another app needs it

Also would you happen to know how to give an app access not currently listed under location access to my location?

 

Windows 10 Tweaks

Pressing “Windows+Pause Break” (it’s up there next to scroll lock) opens the “System” Window.

Windows 10: In the new version of Windows, Explorer has a section called Quick Access. This includes your frequent folders and recent files. Explorer defaults to opening this page when you open a new window. If you’d rather open the usual This PC, with links to your drives and library folders, follow these steps:

• Open a new Explorer window.
• Click View in the ribbon.
• Click Options.
• Under General, next to “Open File Explorer to:” choose “This PC.”
• Click OK

credit to Lifehacker.

 

why is there a windows 10 app for netflix?

Yes, it's no longer the windows phone OS. It's just Windows 10. And yes, the app is perfect for the phone.

 

Location incorrect in weather app and find my device

Windows 10 has several settings that control access to a device's location. They can be found under:

Settings -> Privacy -> Location

The first two settings are called Location and Location service. If either one is turned off, then Windows will NOT REVEAL your location to apps that ask.
Location is a system-wide setting, and if turned on, then
Location service controls location access for the current user only.

• Make sure that Location and Location service are both turned on.

The next setting lets you specify a Default location to be used whenever Windows cannot determine your location with any degree of accuracy or confidence. I'll come back to this setting in a moment.

This is followed by a way to Clear your location history stored on this device, as well as
some links to manage or review information concerning your location online.

After that, you should see a list of Apps. This is where you can allow or deny location access on a per-app basis.

• Make sure this setting is turned on for the "Weather App" and "Find My Device".

Please note that despite having identical names, this more general Windows 10
Default location setting does NOT work in the same way as the Default location setting in the Weather App. The Weather App will
always use its default location if one is specified. Windows 10 only uses its more general default location setting if all else fails. I have devised an experiment, which exploits that difference. I think it should be able to identify the
underlying location problem on your system.

1. Start the Weather App and select the Settings tab. Make sure that
   Launch Location is set to "Always detect my location".
   Exit the Weather App.
2. Go to the general Windows 10 Settings -> Privacy -> Location and temporarily set your
   Default Location to somewhere that's way off - wrong by thousands of miles (let's say Timbuktu in Mali).
3. Note which of the following networks are up and accessible form your Surface Pro 2017:
   
   (a) Ethernet, (b) Wi-Fi, (c) Bluetooth, (d) cell phone connectivity (via optional LTE-Advanced modem).
4. Start the Weather App again and select the Favorites tab. Make a note of the first listed favorite (the Launch Location), and exit the Weather App.
5. If it is Timbuktu (Windows hasn't got a clue where you are), then go to Step 9.
6. If it is Cape Coral (Windows THINKS it knows where you are, but it's WRONG), then go to Step 8.
7. If it is Knoxville (Windows got it right), then the
   Location Service works correctly when Windows has access to the infrastructure of the networks you noted as available in Step 3. Go to Step 8.
   
8. To reproduce the problem and perhaps isolate the cause, disable all the networks listed in Step 3. Then re-enable each of the networks ONE AT A TIME, repeating the steps from Step 3 each time. If you ever get to Step 6, then the one-and-only enabled network
   that time is the SOURCE OF YOUR PROBLEM. If you ever get to Step 7, then ADD the one-and-only enabled network that time to YOUR LIST of reliable location sources.
   
   SOLUTION A:
   
   (a) Ensre that a network on YOUR LIST of reliable location sources is up and available.
   
   (b) Whenever you require an accurate location, ensure that the network observed to be the SOURCE OF YOUR PROBLEM is neither up nor available.
   
9. Using the infrastructure of the networks you noted as available in Step 3, Windows was not able to determine your location with any degree of accuracy or confidence. Enable as many of the networks listed in Step 3 as you can. Restart the experiment at Step
   3. If you still end up here, then you MUST EITHER modify the general Windows 10
   Default location setting every time you need an accurate location OR ...
   
   SOLUTION B:
   
   Move back to Cape Coral, Florida.
   
   Phew!