How to Enable or Disable Remote Assistance Connections in Windows 11 Windows Remote Assistance lets IT support help users fix computer issues by sharing their screen, chatting, and even controlling the mouse and keyboard. Knowing how to turn this feature on or off is an important skill to keep devices safe and compliant with company policies, and we will show you how. Before we begin, be sure to subscribe to NinjaOne's IT Video Hub and our YouTube channel for more tech content like this. Prerequisites to Enable or Disable Remote Assistance Connections There are several ways to turn Windows Remote assistance on or off. The easiest method for most users is through System Properties. Before you begin, keep these points in mind. You’ll need administrator access for system-wide changes. To check, go to Start > Settings > Accounts and look for “Administrator” under your username. Remote Assistance runs on port 3389 (TCP), so be sure your firewall settings allow or block it as needed. This feature is only available in Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions. Method 1: Enable or disable via System Properties (GUI) This method works best for individual users or lightly managed PCs. Press Win + R, type SystemPropertiesRemote, and hit Enter. Open the Remote tab. To turn Remote Assistance on, check Allow Remote Assistance connections. To turn it off, uncheck it. Click Apply, then OK. Method 2: Configure via Group Policy For multi-user or domain-joined devices, Group Policy is the most secure way. Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc, and hit Enter. Go to: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Remote Assistance. Configure these policies: Offer Remote Assistance – which allows IT staff to connect and help. Solicited Remote Assistance – which lets users request help by email or file transfer. To apply changes, open Command Prompt as administrator, type gpupdate /force, and press Enter. Method 3: Enable or disable via Registry Editor For Windows 11 Home users without Group Policy, you can use the Registry. Remember to back up your Registry first. Open the Start Menu, search for Registry Editor, and open it. Go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE > SYSTEM > CurrentControlSet > Control > Remote Assistance. Look for fAllowToGetHelp. If it’s not there, right-click Remote Assistance, choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it fAllowToGetHelp. Double-click it, then set the value to 1 to turn Remote Assistance on, or 0 to turn it off. As an optional step, if you need to allow unsolicited support, go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE > SOFTWARE > Policies > Microsoft > Windows NT > Terminal Services and create or edit fAllowUnsolicited. Method 4: Use PowerShell to view or configure the setting For remote administration, PowerShell is a great option. You can even deploy scripts to multiple devices at once. Open the Start Menu, search for Windows PowerShell, right-click, and select Run as administrator. To check the current setting, type... To disable Remote Assistance, type... To enable it, type... Remote Assistance in Windows 11 can be very useful, but it also comes with security risks. For more information, check out our official blog post on Remote Assistance Connections linked in the description below.