Repeat the previous step until you have disabled all the ports on the list.

From now on, when you connect a device to any USB port on your machine, your system will not connect to that deviceIn the future, you can re-enable your USB ports by opening Device Manager, expanding “Universal Bus Controllers,” clicking right on each port in the list and choosing “Enable Device.

Block USB storage devices from PowerShell

If you prefer command line methods, you can use a cmdlet in PowerShell to block all USB storage devices on your PC. Please note that other devices such as keyboards and mice will continue to work. 🔒🖱️

To get started, open Windows Search (by pressing Windows+S), type PowerShell, and select “Run as administrator.” Choose “Yes” at the Control prompt. of user accounts.

In the PowerShell window, type the following cmdlet and press Enter. This cmdlet changes a value in the registry Windows to prevent USB storage devices from working with your machine.

Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR" -Name "Start" -Value 4

After running the cmdlet, Restart your Windows 11 PC for the changes to take effect take effect. 🔄

In the future, you can re-enable USB storage devices on your PC by running the following command in PowerShell.

Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR" -Name "Start" -Value 3

Don't forget to restart your computer after running the command. 🔙

Block USB storage devices using the Local Group Policy Editor

If you are using the Pro edition of Windows 11, you can use the Local Group Policy Editor tool to block USB storage devices. Please note that this tool is not available in the Pro edition. Home from Windows 11. 🛠️

To use it, open the Run dialog box by pressing Windows+R. Type the following in the box and select “OK” or press Enter:

gpedit.msc

In the Local Group Policy Editor window, using the options on the left, navigate to the following path. In the right pane, double-click the item that says “All removable storage classes: Deny all access.”

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Removable Storage Access

In the opened window, at the top, select the “Enabled” option. Then, at the bottom, choose “Apply” and then “OK”. 🎉

Close the Local Group Policy Editor and restart your PC. 🔁

In the future, to unblock USB storage devices, double-click the “All removable storage classes: Deny all access” entry, select “Not configured,” then “Apply” followed by “OK.” Make sure to restart your computer afterwards. 🔄

Block USB storage devices using Registry Editor

You can adjust a value in the Windows registry to disable and enable USB storage devices. This method works on both Pro and Home editions of Windows 11. ⚙️🖥️

To get started, launch Run by pressing Windows+R. Type the following into the box and select “OK” or press Enter:

regedit

Select “Yes” on the User Account Control prompt.

In the Registry Editor, navigate to the following path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR

In the right pane, double-click on the item that says “Startup.” In the opened window, click on the “Value data” field and type 4. Then, select “OK.” The value 4 tells Windows not to recognize any USB storage devices. 🛑

Close the Registry Editor and restart your PC for the changes to take effect. 🔄💻

To revert your change and unblock USB storage devices in the future, navigate to the above-mentioned path in the Registry Editor, double-click the “Start” entry, type 3 In the “Value data” field, select “OK,” and restart your PC. 🔄

If you can't disable the USB ports using other methods, use the BIOS

If you don't see the option to disable USB ports in Device Manager, use the menu BIOS setup on your PC to disable those ports. To do this, open Settings, select System > Recovery, click “Restart now” next to Advanced Start, and I chose “Restart Now” from the prompt. 🔄

On the Choose an option page, select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Troubleshooting settings. UEFI firmware and click “Reboot.” Each BIOS menu is different, but you will find an option labeled USB or something similar. In my Asus laptop, I will go to the “Advanced” tab, choose “USB Settings” and then disable the ports. ⚙️

When you want to use the ports again, you will have to enable them from the BIOS (since you disabled them from the BIOS). 🔄

And this is how you can prevent USB devices from interacting with your Windows 11 computer. If you are worried. 📸🔒