Disabling Windows telemetry: AllowTelemetry, DiagTrack, and what actually stops
Short answer
UpdatedSetting AllowTelemetry to 0 under SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\DataCollection and disabling the DiagTrack service stops the Connected User Experiences and Telemetry service collecting and uploading diagnostic data. The privacy benefit is real. The performance benefit is small: this is a privacy tweak that gets marketed as an FPS tweak.
DiagTrack Connected User Experiences and Telemetry
Startup typeManualDisabled
What it does
DiagTrack batches diagnostic and usage data and uploads it periodically. It is not continuously heavy, which is why the FPS claims around it are overstated.
Windows only honors AllowTelemetry 0 on Enterprise and Education editions. Home and Pro treat it as the lowest level they allow, required diagnostic data. Disabling the service is the part that reliably takes effect.
When it helps, and when it hurts
When it helps
- A genuine reduction in what leaves your machine.
- Removes periodic background disk and network activity, which occasionally coincides with a hitch.
When it hurts
- Windows Feedback and some diagnostic tooling stop working properly.
- Certain Windows Update troubleshooting paths rely on this data being present.
- The frame-rate improvement is close to unmeasurable on any modern system. Treat this as privacy, not performance.
What it writes
Exactly what the switch changes, read from the app's source. Switching it off is what the app writes when you turn the tweak off again.
| Key and value | With the tweak | Switching it off |
|---|---|---|
| HKLMSOFTWARE\ | 0 | Not setThe value is deleted. Windows decides. |
| Service | With the tweak | Switching it off |
|---|---|---|
| DiagTrackConnected User Experiences and TelemetryCollects diagnostic and usage data and uploads it. Disabled, it no longer runs or uploads. | Disabled | ManualWindows ships it as Automatic. |
From the app's source (telemetry_disable.hpp), app 2.0.0, checked .
The same change by hand
You do not need the app for this one. These commands make the changes from the table above. Run them in a Command Prompt opened as administrator, and make a restore point first.
reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\DataCollection" /v "AllowTelemetry" /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f
sc config "DiagTrack" start= disabledreg delete "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\DataCollection" /v "AllowTelemetry" /f
sc config "DiagTrack" start= demandreg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\DataCollection" /v "AllowTelemetry"How to undo it
In the app: Partial
Switching it off sets the telemetry service (DiagTrack) to Manual. Windows ships it as Automatic.
Delete the AllowTelemetry value and set DiagTrack back to Automatic. Switching it off in Frozen Tweaks deletes the policy value but sets DiagTrack to Manual, not Automatic, so set it to Automatic in services.msc if you want it back the way Windows ships it.
Changing several settings at once? The app's Make a restore point button, on every plan, makes a Windows restore point before you start.
Verdict
Do it for privacy reasons if you want to. Do not expect frames, and be sceptical of anyone selling it as a performance tweak.
In the app
- Switch
- Disable Telemetry
- Category
- Security
- Plan
- Pro
- Undo
- Partial
Related guides
- Windows 11 Gaming Optimization: What Still Works in 2026An honest audit of Windows 11 gaming tweaks: which settings still measurably help in 2026, which are placebo, and which quietly cost you security.8 min read
- Is PC Optimization Software Safe? What to Check Before InstallingThe honest answer depends on one question: does the tool touch your games, or only your operating system? Here is how to tell, and what to verify first.7 min read
More tweak explainers
- Defender scheduled scansMicrosoft Defender runs scheduled scans in the background and may use half the processor while it does. What it changes, when it hurts, and how to undo it.2 min read
- Hyper-V hypervisorWhen the Windows hypervisor is on, Windows itself runs as a virtual machine on top of it. What it changes, when it hurts, and how to undo it.2 min read
- SmartScreenSmartScreen checks downloaded programs and websites against Microsoft's reputation service before they open. What it changes, when it hurts, and how to undo it.3 min read
Written by
Frost LIVEFounder of Frozen Tweaks, based in Hamburg, Germany. Publishes settings guides for competitive games on his YouTube channel, Frost LIVE.
In the app
- Category
- Security
- Plan
- Pro
- Undo
- Partial
Frozen Tweaks
Free for Windows 10 and 11
58 tweaks free, each with an undo switch. Never edits game files.
v2.0.0 · 6.4 MB · Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit · free account, no payment details
Or type frozentweaks.com on your PC.
The free Windows app for competitive games.
58 tweaks free, each with an undo switch. Never edits game files.
v2.0.0 · 6.4 MB · Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit · free account, no payment details
Frozen Tweaks runs on Windows. Send the link to your PC and download it there.
Or type frozentweaks.com on your PC.