Technical Anshu
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🛠️ Manual Registry Method

Disable Snipping Tool Manually in Registry Editor Step by Step

No downloads, no scripts, nothing running as administrator except you. This is the same block the one click script applies, done by hand in about two minutes - and because you type every part of it yourself, you know exactly what changed.

✍️ Technical Anshu🪟 Windows 10 / 11⏱️ 2 minute job
🎥 Watch the one click script working live in the video - press 1, the tool is gone; press 2, it is back

Plenty of admins prefer the manual route: a script is convenient, but editing the value yourself means there is nothing to trust and nothing to wonder about later. The method below writes the documented Windows policy value for the Snipping Tool directly. It works on Windows 10 and Windows 11, including Home edition, because it writes the policy itself instead of going through the Group Policy Editor that Home does not have. Follow the order - backup first, then the key, then the value, then the test.

Registry Editor - the target location (example)
KeyHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\TabletPC
Value nameDisableSnippingTool
Value typeREG_DWORD (32-bit)
Data 1Snipping Tool blocked
Data 0 or value deletedSnipping Tool allowed

If the TabletPC key is missing on your PC, that is normal - you create it in step 3. Windows reads the policy from exactly this location.

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Step 1 - Export a Registry Backup First

Thirty seconds of insurance before any registry edit. Open Registry Editor (next step shows how), click Computer at the top of the left tree, then File > Export, and save the file somewhere you will find it, with today's date in the name. If anything ever goes wrong, double-clicking that file restores the registry to this moment. On a work PC, this step is not optional.

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Step 2 - Open Registry Editor as Administrator

  1. Press Windows + R, type regedit and press Enter
  2. Approve the administrator prompt with Yes

Running as administrator matters: the policy keys under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE cannot be changed by a standard account, and without elevation your new value will either fail to save or land nowhere useful.

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Step 3 - Create the TabletPC Policy Key

  1. In the left tree, open HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE > SOFTWARE > Policies > Microsoft
  2. Look for a key named TabletPC under Microsoft
  3. If it is missing, right-click Microsoft > New > Key and name it exactly TabletPC
  4. Click the TabletPC key so it is selected

The key being absent is the normal state of a PC where this policy was never set - creating it is part of the method, not a sign of a problem.

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Step 4 - Add the DisableSnippingTool Value

  1. With TabletPC selected, right-click the empty right pane > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value
  2. Name it exactly DisableSnippingTool - spelling and capitals as shown
  3. Double-click it, set Value data to 1, and click OK

Prefer one command instead? In an administrator terminal, this line does the identical job:

reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\TabletPC" /v DisableSnippingTool /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

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Step 5 - Sign Out, Then Test Honestly

Sign out and back in (a restart also works) so Windows reloads the policy, then open the Start menu and try to launch the Snipping Tool. It should refuse to open. If it still opens, do not start changing random keys - the usual causes are a small set: the value in the wrong key, a spelling slip, or the value sitting under HKEY_CURRENT_USER while you test a different account. This site has a troubleshooting page that walks those checks in order.

🔴 Two honest notes. First, type the value name exactly - a typo does not produce an error, it produces a dead value Windows ignores while the tool keeps running, which is the most common reason this method "does not work". Second, remember what you have built: a block on one app. Print Screen, Xbox Game Bar, third-party capture tools and a phone camera pointed at the screen are all untouched by this value. It is an office hygiene control, not a promise that the screen cannot be copied.

🎥 See the One Click Script in the Video

Watch the one click version of this same edit in the video - one minute, start to finish.

▶️ Watch Full Video
❓ Common Questions (FAQ)

The TabletPC key does not exist on my PC. Is that normal?

Yes. The key only appears when a policy creates it. Create it yourself under Policies and Microsoft as shown in step 3 - Windows reads the policy from there.

Should the value go in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE or HKEY_CURRENT_USER?

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE blocks the tool for every user on the PC and needs administrator rights. The same value under the HKEY_CURRENT_USER policy key affects only the account that is signed in.

How do I undo this manual change?

Set DisableSnippingTool to 0 or delete the value, then sign out and back in. The Snipping Tool runs again straight away.

This guide is based on the Technical Anshu Snipping Tool disable video • Stuck on any step? Ask in the video comments — you will get an answer 🙏