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# 7 essential settings for Windows laptops at school

|| This information was previously published as a [blog on myndr.nl](https://www.myndr.nl/nl/blog/7-basisinstellingen-voor-windows-laptops-op-school/).
## With these settings, things get a lot calmer digitally in the classroom

Questions regularly come up from teachers who notice that students can do more on the laptops than is necessary or desirable. For example, that they can browse incognito so that no history is kept and the Myndr extension does not work. Or why everything is turned off and they can still play a surf game. Or why notifications keep popping up. Or …

In Microsoft Intune you can arrange these kinds of things fairly easily.

But the Edge browser alone has 954* different settings. Not everyone considers a cosy afternoon of nerding out to sort through all of them a treat. So that's why we have listed the most important settings that affect the level of distraction in the classroom below:

### 1. Only sign in with a school account

If you don't turn it off, anyone with a Microsoft account can sign in to the school laptops. For example an XBOX, Skype or MSN account. For school laptops that is not very handy: those accounts are not bound by the school rules. The Myndr add-on will not do its job either.

For the student laptops it is therefore important [that signing in is only allowed with a school account](/en/article/prevent-signing-in-to-a-windows-laptop-with-a-personal-microsoft-account-8zuasi/).

### 2. Do not allow opening InPrivate windows

In an InPrivate window (or an Incognito window in Chrome), different rules apply than normal. Plugins do not work, and browsing history and cookies are not saved. The user has more freedom and is more shielded from the rules than in a normal window.

In general there are few to no good reasons for using incognito windows at school. That is why we recommend blocking incognito browsing. We have [a detailed explanation of how to disable private browsing](/en/article/blocking-inprivate-incognito-windows-on-windows-computers-1u71z7v/).

### 3. Do not let students install apps or extensions themselves

The Microsoft Store, the Edge Add-ons store and the Chrome Web Store contain wonderful apps and extensions. But not many of them are suitable for schoolwork. Extensions that can do a lot of damage are even regularly removed from the various stores. On top of that, the stores contain a great many games that are regularly found to be much more fun than the lessons 🤷‍♂️. [So you really are better off turning off the option to install apps or extensions/add-ons](/en/article/blocking-edge-add-ons-and-chrome-extensions-on-windows-laptops-1ru317i/). Of course, that does not mean you can no longer listen to your students' suggestions.

### 4. Disable the Edge Sidebar

The Edge browser has a wonderful Sidebar where you can put websites you want to visit often. A sort of bookmarks on steroids! It could be handy, were it not for the fact that the Myndr extension has no influence on what is shown in the Sidebar…
All websites are simply reachable there again. Games, YouTube, Netflix, Snapchat, Discord. It is all simply available to the students again. [Needless to say, you are better off disabling that Sidebar](/en/article/disabling-the-edge-sidebar-on-windows-laptops-1oh277z/). Right?

### 5. Safe search on YouTube (restricted mode)

The Myndr plugin makes sure that searches on Google, Duck Duck Go, Bing and [Vinden.nl](https://Vinden.nl) always go through "Safe search". But on YouTube the plugin cannot enforce that. You will of course find many interesting educational videos there, and plenty of ordinary fun videos too. But there are also quite a few sexually tinted videos. [If you don't want students to find these videos, you can set that up too](/en/article/setting-up-youtube-safe-search-on-windows-laptops-1625bl8/). Keep in mind that this setting is not super reliable and sometimes filters out more than you might want.

### 6. Disable built-in games

Several teachers have asked us how they can turn off "that dinosaur game" or "that surf game". People, and therefore children too, simply like playing games, and in the absence of other options even the most rudimentary game can be a welcome distraction. [Disabling the built-in games](/en/article/ingebouwde-spelletjes-uitschakelen-op-windows-laptops-1hqvrg6) can also be done in the admin centre.

### 7. Disable desktop notifications

Browsers such as Edge and Chrome let websites send small messages directly to the user's desktop. Those #%@*!! pop-ups telling you how fantastically successful Roxy Dekker is with bitcoins. Or how incredibly necessary it is that you **try this new snack** RIGHT NOW!!

Okay, for some things it can be quite useful, such as … er … well … hmm, maybe … er. Hm, actually I can't think of anything where such a notification would actually be useful in the classroom. But that is probably just a lack of imagination on my part!

Either way, you can [turn off the ability of websites to show these notifications](/en/article/disabling-desktop-push-notifications-on-windows-laptops-1mo7uxa/).

And there you have it! Our advice is to apply (or have someone apply) at least these settings on the Windows laptops. It will save you a lot of hassle.

And if you really want to tackle it properly, and you are not yet a member, [then of course you take out a subscription to Myndr for School](https://www.myndr.nl/nl/school/basispoort/) so you can decide for yourself, at any moment, which websites your students can and cannot access on the internet.

*) On 22-4-24 there are 954 separate settings in the Edge category