Three different texts appear in the same corner of the desktop, and each one is reporting a different fact about your PC. Identify yours first — the correct fix depends on it.
Before removing anything, answer one question: which watermark is this, actually? The Insider Preview text, the Evaluation copy text and the Test Mode text sit in the same place and get confused with each other constantly — and the fix for one does nothing for the others. This page separates the three cleanly, so you spend your time on the right problem.
People lump every desktop watermark together and then apply the wrong fix. The block of text has a structure: the first line names the condition, the lines under it just add the edition and the build number. Read the first line and you already know which of the three situations below is yours.
If the text says Insider Preview, this PC is enrolled in the Windows Insider Program and runs pre-release builds from the Canary, Dev, Beta or Release Preview channel. The second line usually adds Evaluation copy plus the build number, because preview builds are time-limited test builds.
The fix family for this one is about enrollment: hide the text cosmetically, or unenroll and return to a stable build. Both routes are covered on this site — and remember, this build has an expiry date whether the text is visible or not.
If the text says Evaluation copy without Insider Preview, the PC runs an evaluation build or edition — for example a preview build installed from an ISO without enrollment, or an evaluation edition used for testing. The important word here is not evaluation, it is the invisible one: expiry.
Evaluation builds stop working on a schedule: warning popups first, then automatic restarts every few hours, then the PC refuses to boot. Check the exact date with winver and plan the move to a stable build before that date arrives — no watermark remover touches this clock.
If the first line says Test Mode, you are looking at something else altogether. Test Mode means Windows has been told to accept test-signed drivers — a boot setting, usually switched on while installing an unsigned or test driver. The PC is not on a preview build; the Windows underneath is perfectly normal, but one of its driver security checks is relaxed.
Because it is a different problem, it has its own complete video and guide on this channel: turning test signing off takes one bcdedit command, plus a little detective work if something keeps switching it back on. Follow that guide for Test Mode — the preview watermark fixes on this page will not remove it, and preview builds are not involved.
Still unsure which one you have? Let Windows settle it:
winver, Enter — the dialog repeats the edition and build, and shows an expiry date on evaluation buildsTwo of these can even appear together — a preview PC with test signing on shows both stories at once. Deal with each one on its own terms.
See the watermark removal done live in the video — the registry script, the one-click tool, and the settings that matter.
▶️ Watch Full VideoEnrollment is only one way to land on an evaluation build. Installing Windows from a preview or evaluation ISO also produces the Evaluation copy text, with no Insider account involved. Check winver for the build and its expiry date — the deadline applies either way, and the exit is the same: move to a stable retail build.
Yes. They come from independent switches: the preview watermark reports the build, and the Test Mode line reports the test-signing boot setting. A preview PC with test signing enabled can show both. Fix them separately — unenroll or reinstall for the preview side, and use the bcdedit test-signing fix for the Test Mode side.
Each is serious in a different way. Evaluation copy carries a hard deadline after which the PC stops booting. Test Mode quietly weakens driver security for as long as it stays on. Insider Preview means your daily system is pre-release software that can change or break with any build. None of them is a virus, and none should simply be hidden and forgotten.