How to Hide or Show Family Options in Windows Security

Applies To

Windows Security has a Family options page. It is the entry point to the Microsoft Family Safety dashboard, where you manage screen time and content filters for children on your PC. This guide shows how to hide that page or bring it back.

The page shows by default on Windows 11. If you do not use parental controls, you can hide it to make the Windows Security window less cluttered. Hiding the page only removes it from the app. It does not delete anything, and you can show it again at any time with the same steps.

This guide applies to both Windows 10 and Windows 11. The interface may look slightly different between versions, but the underlying settings are the same.

Windows Pro, Enterprise and Education include the Local Group Policy Editor. Windows Home does not, so on Home you use the Registry Editor instead. To check your edition, go to Settings › System › About and look under Windows specifications. Either way, sign in with an administrator account.

Important Warning: Registry Editor

To back up, open the Registry Editor, click File › Export, choose All as the export range, give the file a name and save it somewhere safe. You can also create a restore point first. The Group Policy method does not touch the registry directly, so it is the safer choice if your edition has it.

Using the Local Group Policy Editor

The Local Group Policy Editor lets you hide or show the Family options area on Windows Pro and Enterprise editions (Education has it too). Open the Start menu, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter to start. If nothing is found, you are most likely on Windows Home, so use the registry method further down.

1. Press Win+R to open the Run dialog.
2. Type gpedit.msc and press Enter. The Local Group Policy Editor window opens, with a folder tree on the left and details on the right.

3. In the left pane, expand the folders until you reach the Family options folder. Follow this path:

Computer Configuration › Administrative Templates › Windows Components › Windows Security › Family options

4. Select the Family options folder. On the right side, double-click the setting named Hide the Family options area. A settings window opens with three options.

5. Choose one of these settings, then click Apply and OK:

• Not ConfiguredThis is the default setting. Choose it to undo your change and return to normal behavior.
• EnabledHides the Family options area. Use this if you do not need parental controls.
• DisabledShows the Family options area. Use this if it is hidden and you want it back.

Using the Windows Registry

The Windows Registry Editor lets you hide or show the Family options area if you use Windows Home and do not have the Group Policy Editor. Open the Start menu, type regedit, and press Enter. If User Account Control asks for permission, click Yes. You will change the key that controls this setting.

If you’re on Windows Home edition, you will notice the Group Policy Editor isn’t available. In this case, use the Windows Registry instead. Open the Registry Editor and navigate to this path. You can paste it into the address bar at the top of the Registry Editor window, or expand the folders on the left one by one:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender Security Center\Family options

On a PC that has never had this policy set, some of the keys in that path may not exist yet. You can create them. Right-click the last key that does exist, select New › Key, and type the name of the next missing folder from the path. Repeat until the full path is in place. Each new key appears under its parent in the left pane.

1. Select the last key in the path so that its contents show on the right.
2. Right-click in the empty space on the right side.
3. Select New › DWORD (32-bit) Value. A new entry appears with its name highlighted.
4. Type UILockdown as the name and press Enter. This DWORD value controls whether the section appears.

5. Double-click the new value. In the Value data box, enter one of the following, then click OK:

• 0Shows the Family options section in Windows Security app.
• 1Hides the Family options section.

Restart your computer for the changes to take effect. After you sign back in, open Windows Security and check the left sidebar. The Family options page should be gone if you set the value to 1, or back if you set it to 0.

Summary

You can hide or show the Family options area in Windows Security with either the Group Policy Editor or the Registry Editor. Use Group Policy on Pro, Enterprise and Education, and the registry on Home. To undo a change, set the policy back to Not Configured, or set the UILockdown value to 0. If the page still looks wrong, close and reopen Windows Security, or restart the PC.