If an application is already open, you can right click on it and choose the Pin to taskbar option to pin that application to the taskbar so that you can launch it directly with a single click from then on. However, as simple as it is to pin an application, it is even simpler to unpin an application as well. That is, you could accidentally unpin an application from the taskbar by right clicking on it and then by clicking on the Unpin from taskbar option.
If you are pretty much sure which all applications you want on your taskbar and if your taskbar is somewhat finalized, you might not want to pin or unpin any applications from the taskbar after a particular point. In that case, you can simply remove the pin or unpin from taskbar option in your Windows 11. In this article, we have explained 2 different methods in detail, using which you can disable or enable the Pin/Unpin to taskbar option in your Windows 11.
Note: Please note that if you disable this feature, you will not be able to remove any applications from the taskbar that are already pinned, nor will be able to add any new applications to the taskbar, till you enable the Pin/Unpin from taskbar option again.
Method 1: Through Local Group Policy Editor
Step 1: Launch the Run dialog box by pressing the Win and R keys simultaneously.
Type in gpedit.msc and hit the Enter key.
Step 2: When the Local Group Policy Editor launches, navigate to the following location by double clicking on each folder on the way.
User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar
Now in the center part of the window, click on the header named Setting once, to sort the settings to make it easy for you to find the required setting.
From the sorted settings, double click on the one that says Do not allow pinning programs to the Taskbar.
Step 3: In the Do not allow pinning programs to the Taskbar window, choose the radio button corresponding to the Enabled option. Hit Apply button and then the OK button.
If you would like to enable this feature again, you simply need to choose the radio button corresponding to the Not Configured option, hit the Apply button, and then the OK button.
Method 2: Through Registry Editor
This method involves making changes to your registry settings. Since incorrect registry settings can cause serious system instabilities, it is advised that you take a backup of your registry settings before you proceed with this method.
Step 1: Press the keys Win and R at the same time to open the Run window. When it does, type in regedit and hit the Enter key.
Step 2: In the navigation bar, copy & paste the following location and then hit the Enter key.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows
As next, right click on the Windows folder as shown in the screenshot below, click on the New option and then click on the Key option.
Step 3: Right click on the newly created key and choose the Rename option. Set the name as Explorer.
Step 4: As next, make sure the Explorer key is clicked and selected in the left window pane. Then in the right window pane, right click on an empty space, click on the New option and then click on the DWORD (32-bit) Value option.
Step 5: Set the name of the newly created DWORD value as NoPinningToTaskbar. You can do so by simply clicking on the new key, then by pressing the F2 button, and then by typing in the name.
Once the key is named, double click on it to open its Properties window. Give the Value data field value as 1. Hit the OK button once done.
That’s it. For the changes to take over, you need to restart Windows Explorer. For that, follow the steps below.
Step 6: Right click on the Windows Start menu icon and click on the Task Manager option.
Step 7: Click on the Processes tab first. From the list of processes, right click on the Windows Explorer process, and click on the Restart option.
That’s it. Pin/Unpin Option from Taskbar should now be successfully removed.
If you would like to enable this feature again through Registry Editor, in Step 5, remove the newly created DWORD value NoPinningToTaskbar and then restart the Windows Explorer as explained in Steps 6 and 7 for the changes to take over.
Hope you found the article useful.