{"slug": "winaero-tweaker", "name": "Winaero Tweaker", "category": "other", "category_name": "Other software", "description": "", "recommenders": 3, "commenters": 4, "warners": 0, "score": 2.843, "rising": -0.98, "first": "2026-01-18", "latest": "2026-04-12", "why": "I use it and the WinAero tweak tool [1] just to keep Windows Update disabled", "why_is_quote": true, "has_verdict": false, "sentiment": {"recommend": 3, "neutral": 1, "compare": 0, "warn": 0}, "spark": [0, 0, 1, 0, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0], "listed": true, "loved": [], "caveat": "", "short_quote": "I use it and the WinAero tweak tool [1] just to keep Windows Update disabled", "kind": "", "icon": true, "domain": "winaerotweaker.com", "github_repo": null, "official_url": "https://winaerotweaker.com", "pricing": "", "aliases": ["Winaero Tweaker", "WinAero Tweaker"], "verdict": null, "praise": [{"label": "", "summary": "", "quotes": [{"id": 763846883, "item_id": 47740430, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47740430", "by": "pogue", "date": "2026-04-12", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I use it and the WinAero tweak tool [1] just to keep Windows Update disabled", "excerpt": "I used this when installing fresh copies of Windows 11 and was very satisfied with it. I never thought about it increasing RAM as the author says, I was just interested in disabling CoPilot, all telemetry options, changing the start menu and task bar to act more like Windows 10 and various other options. Winutil is definitely a tool I wouldn't recommend for a beginner, as many of the options are things you wouldn't w", "context": "", "use_case": "disabling Windows Update", "switched_from": "", "story": "Windows debloating tools are basically useless"}, {"id": 759386016, "item_id": 47461626, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47461626", "by": "wnevets", "date": "2026-03-20", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "https://winaerotweaker.com/", "excerpt": "https://winaerotweaker.com/", "context": "", "use_case": "Windows configuration tweaks", "switched_from": "", "story": "Our Commitment to Windows Quality"}, {"id": 746800128, "item_id": 46675008, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46675008", "by": "okanat", "date": "2026-01-18", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I can do most of my customizations using a GUI app like Winaero Tweaker.", "excerpt": "Average PC user doesn't even know what an OS is. All they know is clicking certain icons. Newer GUIs are designed to be anti-intellectual. It has started to gain speed with iPhones and has been consistently worse. What you remove/configure also depends on what you expect. Windows and its ecosystem is GUI-first so I can do most of my customizations using a GUI app like Winaero Tweaker. I can use Powershell to remove c", "context": "", "use_case": "Windows customization", "switched_from": "", "story": "Prediction: Microsoft Is Going to Do the Funniest Thing Imaginable"}]}], "caveats": [], "who": [], "tags": [], "use_cases": ["disabling windows update", "turn off windows web search", "windows configuration tweaks", "windows customization"], "compared": [], "makers": [], "threads": [{"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47738917", "title": "Windows debloating tools are basically useless", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47542695", "title": "People inside Microsoft are fighting to drop mandatory Microsoft Account", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47459296", "title": "Our Commitment to Windows Quality", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46673264", "title": "Prediction: Microsoft Is Going to Do the Funniest Thing Imaginable", "mentions": 1}], "sentiment_by_month": {"2025-11": {}, "2025-12": {}, "2026-01": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-02": {}, "2026-03": {"recommend": 1, "neutral": 1}, "2026-04": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-05": {}, "2026-06": {}, "2026-07": {}, "2026-08": {}, "2026-09": {}, "2026-10": {}}, "versions": [], "version_unnamed": 0, "family_ref": null, "runs_on": null, "lines": [], "quotes": [{"id": 763846883, "item_id": 47740430, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47740430", "by": "pogue", "date": "2026-04-12", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I use it and the WinAero tweak tool [1] just to keep Windows Update disabled", "excerpt": "I used this when installing fresh copies of Windows 11 and was very satisfied with it. I never thought about it increasing RAM as the author says, I was just interested in disabling CoPilot, all telemetry options, changing the start menu and task bar to act more like Windows 10 and various other options. Winutil is definitely a tool I wouldn't recommend for a beginner, as many of the options are things you wouldn't w", "context": "", "use_case": "disabling Windows Update", "switched_from": "", "story": "Windows debloating tools are basically useless"}, {"id": 760800897, "item_id": 47550056, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47550056", "by": "jasonfarnon", "date": "2026-03-27", "version": null, "stance": "neutral", "quote": "I did use winaero tweaker to turn off the web results", "excerpt": "I don't know how but it works beautifully for me on windows 11. What I mean is, I have been using windows for decades and I do not like any changes at all, they are all forced on me. But this change successfully turned me around. I find I rarely use File Explorer/file managers any more and access most applications and documents through the search. I do remember it sucking on previous versions. I did use winaero tweak", "context": "", "use_case": "Turn off Windows web search", "switched_from": "", "story": "People inside Microsoft are fighting to drop mandatory Microsoft Account"}, {"id": 759386016, "item_id": 47461626, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47461626", "by": "wnevets", "date": "2026-03-20", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "https://winaerotweaker.com/", "excerpt": "https://winaerotweaker.com/", "context": "", "use_case": "Windows configuration tweaks", "switched_from": "", "story": "Our Commitment to Windows Quality"}, {"id": 746800128, "item_id": 46675008, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46675008", "by": "okanat", "date": "2026-01-18", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I can do most of my customizations using a GUI app like Winaero Tweaker.", "excerpt": "Average PC user doesn't even know what an OS is. All they know is clicking certain icons. Newer GUIs are designed to be anti-intellectual. It has started to gain speed with iPhones and has been consistently worse. What you remove/configure also depends on what you expect. Windows and its ecosystem is GUI-first so I can do most of my customizations using a GUI app like Winaero Tweaker. I can use Powershell to remove c", "context": "", "use_case": "Windows customization", "switched_from": "", "story": "Prediction: Microsoft Is Going to Do the Funniest Thing Imaginable"}]}