How to remove the Microsoft Edge Feedback Smiley
Microsoft's upcoming Chromium-based Microsoft Edge browser displays a smiley icon in the browser's toolbar right now. A click on the icon opens the "send feedback" popup that you may use to provide feedback to Microsoft; the functionality makes sense considering that the browser is still in development and that bugs are to be expected in these pre-release builds.
Microsoft provided builds for Windows 10 first but Edge is now also available for Mac OS X and Windows 7 / Windows 8.1.
There is no option to hide the smiley icon from the Microsoft Edge toolbar, at least none that is attached to the button or Edge itself. Right-clicking on the button does nothing, and since it is not possible to modify icons placed on the toolbar at all in Edge, it is necessary to look elsewhere if you want to hide the icon in Edge.
The recently leaked Stable build of Microsoft Edge hides the icon and it is likely that it remains that way. A guide to remove the icon is still useful considering that Microsoft will continue to use development channels after Edge Stable has been released.
Tip: Microsoft released a preview of Edge policies recently.
Removing Feedback from Microsoft Edge
A value in the Windows Registry determines whether Microsoft Edge displays the feedback icon or not. It is easy enough to modify the value to hide or show the icon. Please note that the change impacts the option to send feedback via the Edge Menu or the keyboard shortcut Alt-Shift-I as well. If you hide the icon, sending feedback is no longer possible using these options.
Here is how that is done:
- Open Start, type regedit.exe, and load the Windows Registry Editor from the list of search results.
- Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge
- Check if the Dword UserFeedbackAllowed exists under Edge.
- if it does, go to 4.
- if it does not, right-click on Edge and select New > Dword (32-bit) Value. Name it UserFeedbackAllowed.
- Double-click on UserFeedbackAllowed and give it the value 0.
Restart Microsoft Edge if it was open; the Smiley icon should be gone from the toolbar. Just delete the Registry value if you want to restore the functionality.
Now Read: How successful will the Chromium-based Microsoft Edge browser be?
I have created a Registry file that you can run on your computer to make the change without having to edit the Registry manually. Just download the following file and run Edge Feedback Removed or Edge Feedback Restored to hide or show the icon in the Edge toolbar.
Note that you need to accept the UAC prompt and the warning prompt to make the change in the Registry.
Click on the following link to download an archive with the show and hide Registry scripts to your local system: (Download Removed)
Closing Words
I understand why Microsoft wants user feedback but I'd like to see an option to easily remove the feedback icon from the main toolbar for usability purposes.
Now You: Do you ever send feedback to companies? (via Deskmodder)
Hi,
I intend to contribute a guest post to your website that will help you get good traffic as well as interest your readers.
Shall I send you the topics then?
Best,
Hassan Khan
I don’t have any such Value as ‘Edge’ in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.
I did find it in HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft and manually added the new dword. It was already default to zero so I left it. I’ll report back if it works.
“Do you ever send feedback to companies?”
Sometimes, depending. But I don’t use built-in feedback tools to do so (who knows what other data they’ll send along with my feedback?). I use email if possible, a web form if I have to, or nothing if neither is available.
I send feedback when appropriate. My best example is the Do Not Call list. Without sufficient numbers how would there be reason for action. Thankfully, many have used the do not call feedback to begin getting the issue addressed. Think about it.
Details steps 1 through 4. Step 3.1, If it does go to 5.
Thank you, corrected.
>Do you ever send feedback to companies?<
Well, I sent feedback to MS when a windows update wrecked one of our laptops. They asked for feedback; can't print what was sent.
How a smiley has anything to do with feedback, IDK. You're only supposed to send happy comments?
Thanks Martin,
For the articel and the ferry handy Edge remove – and also restore smiley registry file.
As far as the horizon of my eye can reach, there is not even a smile to be seen as far as its microsoft Edge browser concerned.
Which makes me personally think it’s more than appropriate to remove the smiley…
I have no objection to the feedback smiley in Version 77.0.235.9 (Official build) beta (64-bit) of Edge (Chromium). I expect the first release level of a Microsoft beta to be quite buggy, and a fast icon way to report a problem is convenient, although not necessary as a feedback path is also available in Settings.
As a longtime Chrome default x64 beta user, I have been pleasantly surprised how good Edge (Chromium) already is. Its many remaining problems are already mostly identified and being worked on by Microsoft per a detailed post I saw somewhere, but the beta seems quite useable in this first beta release.
It is useful to take the time to Personalize the news in order to tolerate its output.
FYI Edge (Chromium) automatically updated my installed version 2019-08-26 to:
Microsoft Edge is up to date.
Version 77.0.235.15 (Official build) beta (64-bit)
Based on what I read somewhere from Microsoft, they beat their goal of updating every 6 weeks by a considerable margin.
Why use a spyware-filled browser like Edge for maybe a 2% performance improvement over Firefox or equally fast Chromium variants? MS isn’t offering any benefits for users, and you’re doing free beta testing for Microsoft. Edge is just the default for Windows, something that mindless poorly-trained municipal IT workers will force on users rather than a product people choose because it’s superior.
Microsoft made a fatal mistake succumbing to Google’s Chromium monopoly. It has lost all chances to beat Chrome now that it is at the mercy of Google developers. Edge is as irrelevant as IE.