When we connect to a network, so to speak, our computer presents itself to the rest of the systems on the network. This is done so that all PCs on the network can see each other and thus exchange files, if they want to do so. But, this is a serious security problem, and you can prevent it by simply making adjustments to the network detection.
The fact that our computer appears before all the computers on a network generates great vulnerability. Anyone could be a malicious attacker and try to access our data improperly. Above all, this occurs on public networks over which we have no control.
This “presentation” feature focuses on sharing documents and files between users. But, Windows does not generate any filter in this regard, it does not tell us at any time if we want to introduce ourselves. So, if we don’t tell him otherwise, he will always do it.
We are going to deactivate this function that we can enable again whenever we want. First, we will see it in Windows 10 and then we will see it in Windows 11.
Disable network discovery in Windows 10
We are going to start by disabling network discovery in this version of the operating system. You can reverse this adjustment whenever you consider. To do this you must follow these steps:
- Firstly, click on the Windows icon to open the menu.
- Now, on the left side, you must click on the “Settings” gear wheel.
- The next step is to access the “Network and Internet” option.
- Next, we will go down and enter the “Network and Sharing Center” option.
- A new window should open and in this we will enter the option “Change advanced sharing settings.”
- We have to display the “Guest or public (current profile)” menu if it is not open.
- Within the “Network Detection” section we must select the “Disable network detection” option.
- Once we change the configuration, we must click on “Save changes” and it will be finished.
You can return this function to its initial situation whenever you like. If you are connecting to a known network and want to share files with other members, you can activate the “network discovery” function by following these same steps. In this case, we should simply select the “Activate” section and then “Save changes.”
Modify network discovery in Windows 11
This feature is active natively in this operating system. To disable this feature, you must follow the following steps:
- We click on the Windows icon on the taskbar.
- Now, we must access the Settings option.
- We must, in the left panel, access the “Network and Internet” option.
- Next, we must go to the last section where the “Advanced network configuration” is located.
- The next step is to access the “Advanced sharing settings” section.
- We have to disable the “Network Discovery” function.
You can activate this function again whenever you want, as well as deactivate it later. This guarantees high security when we connect to an unknown network.
The best thing would be for it to notify us on each occasion and we could reject our equipment being “presented” to the rest of the PCs on the network. But, the truth is that it usually “shows up” without warning.