Tweak Library – Hide the “Add Hardware” system icon in Control Panel.

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Hide the “Add Hardware” system icon in Control Panel.

You can customize the display of the Control Panel applets. With this setting, you can hide the "Add Hardware" system icon from the current applets group.

Tweak for : Windows XP, Windows 2003, Windows 2000

Description:

Control Panel is a repository of various applets/administrative tools that can be used to configure the Windows, applications and services environment. If you go to Start > Settings and select Control Panel, Windows will open the Control Panel window. This setting can hide the "Add Hardware" system icon from the current applets list displayed in Control Panel.

"Add Hardware" helps you to install software/device driver for added hardware on your computer.

Important:
The applet is named as "Add/Remove Hardware" in Windows 2000.

For this, go to Start > Run, enter "regedit" and navigate to the registry path listed below. You can create a string value "hdwwiz.cpl" in "don’t load" sub key, if this value does not exist. Setting the Value Data to "No" will hide the system icon "Add Hardware" in Control Panel.

The changes will take effect after a restart or logoff.

NOTE:
In the Control Panel window, the "Add Hardware" system icon is shown by default. If you'd like to show this icon again, you can delete the registry value name "hdwwiz.cpl".

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Hide Add Hardware Wizard in Control Panel.reg

The ".reg" file can hide "Add Hardware" system icon in the Control Panel window.

Download

Show Add Hardware Wizard in Control Panel (Default).reg

The ".reg" file can make the "Add Hardware" system icon to reappear in the Control Panel window.

Download

Registry Entry Details:

Registry Entry 1 :

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\don't load\]

Key Type :

Current User

Value Name :

hdwwiz.cpl

Data Type :

REG_SZ (String Value)

Enabled Value :

Disabled value :

Other value :

Value Action :

Add an Entry

Steps ScreenShots:

Apply registry settings according below given steps of screenshots with related changes.

The system icon "Add Hardware" is hidden from the 'Control Panel' item list.

The system icon "Add Hardware" reappears in the 'Control Panel' window.

First, click the 'Start' button, and select 'Run'. In the resulting dialog box, type "regedit"

Second, go to [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\don't load\] and create a String Value "hdwwiz.cpl" by right-clicking in the open area.

Next, right-click on “hdwwiz.cpl” to modify its data value.

Finally, set the 'Value Data' as “No” in the textbox provided and click on 'OK'.