How to Block Applications in Windows

There are plenty of good reasons to block applications in Windows – from making sure that your employees (or you) aren’t procrastinating in the workplace, to ensuring that your children can’t access things that you don’t want them accessing on their accounts. This tutorial shows several ways to block applications on Windows PC.

Good to know: alternatively, you can hide apps in Windows. Learn how to do that.

1. Via the Group Policy Editor

It’s possible to use the Local Group Policy Editor to block an unwanted program from running on your Windows PC. Follow these steps:

1. Open Windows Search by tapping Win + S.
2. Type “Edit group policy,” and click to launch the top result.

3. Under the “User Configuration” section in the pane on the left, choose “Administrative Templates -> System.” Right-click on the “Don’t run specified Windows applications” option on the right.

4. Select “Edit.”

5. You need to “Enable” the setting first.

6. Selecting the app is as easy as typing its .EXE file name in the “Show Contents” box. Click “OK.”

7. Identify the file name by right-clicking its shortcut, selecting “Properties,” and copying it from the “Target” field.

8. Once the app has been added, you’ll see a “Restriction” window whenever you try opening the app.

9. To re-enable the app, delete its name from the “Don’t run specific Windows applications” setting in Group Policy Editor or disable the whole feature.

Tip: learn how to reset Group Policy settings, as it may come in handy someday.

2. Using the Registry

Windows users can use the Registry Editor to change how their devices work, and that includes the ability to block any app and prevent users from running it. Follow these instructions:

Note: before doing this, you should take precautions and create a backup of your registry.

1. Press Win + R and enter regedit into the Run box to open the Registry Editor.

2. Manually navigate to the following path, or copy and paste it into the Registry Editor top bar:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies

3. In the pane on the left, right-click “Policies,” then select “New -> Key,” and name your new key “Explorer.”

4. Select your newly created Explorer folder/key, then in the pane on the right, right-click an empty space and select “New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value,” and call it “DisallowRun” (without the quotes).

5. Double-click “DisallowRun” and change its “Value data” to “1.”

6. Right-click the Explorer folder you created in the pane on the left, select “New -> Key” and call it “DisallowRun.”

7. Inside the new “DisallowRun” key, create a new value, which should be a “String Value.”

8. After creating it, give it a name. You can use the name of the application you plan to restrict. After creating it, right-click it and choose “Edit.” In the “Value data” field, enter the app’s .EXE name.

Allow Only Specific Applications

The obverse option to what was outlined above is to only allow certain applications to be opened on the account or, put another way, to block everything apart from the applications that you specify. Follow the steps below:

1. Go to “Explorer,” right-click any empty space, create a new DWORD (32-bit) value, and name it “RestrictRun.”

2. Double-click RestrictRun and change its “Value Data” to “1” to activate it.

3. Create a new folder that will contain the apps that will be allowed to run normally. Right-click the “Explorer” folder and select “Add -> Key.” You should name it “RestrictRun” as well. You can have both DisallowRun and RestrictRun at the same time, but don’t enable them simultaneously, as this may cause conflicts.

Note: it’s very important that the first application you add to the RestrictRun folder is “regedit.exe,” otherwise you will lock yourself out of the Registry Editor and will be unable to make future changes. (If this happens, you’ll need to edit this account’s registry from another administrator account.)

4. Right-click any empty space and select “New -> String Value.”

5. This string value will only let one app run, so you need to create one for every app you want to have access. You can rename it whatever you want, but it’s best to name it with something that will remind you of the app so that you can find it later.

6. Double-click the string value and add the executable of the app you want to allow.

Tip: maintain your hard drive’s good health and performance by learning how to defrag the registry.

3. With Local Security Policy

You can use the Local Security Policy tool to instantly block specific apps from running on your PC.

1. Launch Windows Search and type “Local Security Policy.”

2. Double-click the “Software Restriction Policies” key.

3. Right-click “Software Restriction Policies” in the left menu and select the “New Software Restriction Policies” option.
4. A new key will appear with the name “Additional Rules.” Click on it to proceed.

5. Right-click the “Additional Rules” key from the sidebar and select “New Hash Rule.”

6. Click the “Browse” button and select all the .EXE files you don’t want users to launch. You can later proceed with the same steps to undo this.

Tip: if you’ve heard the term Windows Host File thrown around but are unsure what it does, we break it down for you.

4. Try a Third-Party Tool

You may use a third-party tool if you’re not an advanced user and want an easy-to-use method. For this tutorial, we’re using the Simple Run Blocker app, a portable freeware that allows you to block any app from being used by anyone on the computer.

1. Download Simple Run Blocker on your PC.

2. This is a portable app that does not require installation. Launch it by double-clicking it.

3. To start blocking a specific app from running, click the “+” button at the top, then locate the .EXE file of the app you want to block.

4. Once the app has been added, click the green button to save it.

5. Now when you try opening the app you just blocked, you’ll see an error message.

6. To remove the block, select the application again and click the “-” button to remove it from the list.

7. You can also click the gear-shaped Settings icon and select the “Hide or lock drives” option. This allows you to protect specific drives, preventing other users from accessing them.

Frequently Asked Questions

All screenshots and images by Mustafa Ashour.

Mustafa Ashour

Mustafa is a tech content writer who's a geek at heart. His passion lies in writing about technology, especially software-related topics. He's also interested in digital marketing, business development, and entrepreneurship. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Accounting and Finance.