Can we disable the charms bar in Windows 8?

Anonymous
2013-01-22T14:37:05+00:00

Old Title: when I move the mouse around the right hand side bar keeps appearing, when I don't want it to.

I recently bought a new computer with Windows 8 and have managed to work with it OK.  The thing is that when I move the mouse around, the right hand sidebar with the Search, Share, Start, Devices and Settings buttons (and the date and time, bottom left),  keeps appearing.  It is so frustrating as I keep having to click to get rid of it. Ironically, when I am ready to close the computer down, I have to fiddle around with the mouse trying to get the damn bar to appear so that I can get the settings button to shut it down. Are there any solutions for this?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Email and communications

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments No comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2013-06-05T09:31:15+00:00

"I am sorry to inform you that we do not have any option to disable the Charms Bar in Windows 8."

OMG, when I pay hundreds of my hard-earned dollars, especially in this economy, I expect to customize my product after purchasing. Did Microsoft have regular people try Win 8 for awhile before releasing it?

Got it!!! Its simple, go to control panel, synaptics touchpad and disable side swipe function, simples. it was really beginning to annoy me.

Was this answer helpful?

20+ people found this answer helpful.
0 comments No comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2013-01-23T10:24:36+00:00

Hi Deborah,

Thank you for choosing Windows 8 and posting your query on Microsoft Community Forums.

It seems that you are not happy with the “Charms Bar” in Windows 8 as it always appears when you move the mouse pointer to the right hand side of your computer screen and would like to know if we can disable it.

I am sorry to inform you that we do not have any option to disable the Charms Bar in Windows 8. I can definitely forward your suggestions to the concerned department.

Microsoft has designed it for making things faster and easier. The charms bar help you do the things you do most often, like search, share links and photos, connect devices, and change settings without any difficulties.

For more information, please check this link:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-8/charms#1TC=t1

Hope this information is helpful.

Was this answer helpful?

10+ people found this answer helpful.
0 comments No comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2013-07-31T18:02:19+00:00

"I am sorry to inform you that we do not have any option to disable the Charms Bar in Windows 8."

OMG, when I pay hundreds of my hard-earned dollars, especially in this economy, I expect to customize my product after purchasing. Did Microsoft have regular people try Win 8 for awhile before releasing it?

Got it!!! Its simple, go to control panel, synaptics touchpad and disable side swipe function, simples. it was really beginning to annoy me.

This issue was driving me crazy with my new week old inspiron 7720 windows 8.  I even spent time on the phone with tech support who suggested using an external mouse. I followed your suggestion to disable side swipe function and it worked perfectly.  Thank you.

Was this answer helpful?

1 person found this answer helpful.
0 comments No comments

737 additional answers

Sort by: Newest
  1. Anonymous
    2013-05-11T22:20:51+00:00

    Did the Regedit

    Which changed what exactly?   Both in the registry and in your testing.

    did not work on my Toshiba Satellite

    That's the first mention of that detail in this thread.   What Touchpad does it have?...

    Looks like it is an insufficient specification to know for sure but it could be a Synaptics device.   So which driver version do you have?  

    FWIW I finally tried using my Touchpad last night and discovered that I must still have an old W7 driver, so no EdgeUI stuff in it (but lots of other quirky features that I would have to learn to deal with if they had been enabled.)    If there is a download I can try to get a newer version I will, so I can try to understand what you all are seeing.  

    I still think that using a real mouse--easier to use buttons and more reliable scrolling using a wheel--would be less trouble, especially as I see Touchpads getting wider which means that users are going to get more problems (with who knows what symptom) from "palm" touches while typing.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments No comments
  2. Anonymous
    2013-05-11T20:19:44+00:00

    What the tap-dancing cats? Seriously? I came here just to learn how to disable that ****, and it *can't* be disabled *by design*?! What is it with Microsoft assuming they know what settings I prefer over what setting I would actually prefer? The charms bar is a never-ending irritation of this OS and if your coders had the sense of a simple-minded goat, they would have made it optional. Fer fahck's sake. No wonder your brain trust is losing market share.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments No comments