Disabling your computer’s USB drives can help keep your files safe, and the process is easier than you might think. You can choose many methods, and if this one didn’t work for you, you could always try another one.

Enable / Disable USB port using Registry

Suppose you want to try disabling a USB drive using the registry, type “run” in the search box. When it appears, type regedit, and the registry editor will appear. Find and double-click the “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE” option.

A few options down, you will see the option “SYSTEM”. Click that option, followed by the “CurrentControlSet” option.

The next folder you need to select is “Services folder -> USBTOR.” To find the USBTOR option, you’ll need to pass a few folders as they are all in alphabetical order. Click the Start option at the bottom, and a new window will appear.

The value data, by default, will be set to “3.” To disable the USB port, you need to change it to “4.” Click OK. To (re) turn on the USB port, change the value data to “3” and the theUSBportwill work normally.

Use Device Manager to Disable USB Ports

Disabling the USB port through Device Manager is also pretty straightforward. Right-click on the Start menu and click “Device Manager.” When the window appears, click the Universal Serial Bus controller. (It’s the last option in the list.) You can also choose the uninstall option for the USB port, and when someone inserts a USB, Windows won’t be able to find it.

Turn off the USB port using the Group Policy Editor

To turn offUSBstorageusing Group Policy Editor, You will open “Run”. Once opened, entergpedit.msc. In the left pane, click “Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> System -> Removable Storage Access”.

When you click “Removable Storage Access”, new options will appear in the right pane. Find and click on the options that say “RemovableDisks: Deny execute access”, “RemovableDisks: Deny read access,” and “RemovableDisks: Deny write access”.

Click on each of them to configure them. After clicking on one, a window with the name of the option will appear. On the left side will be three options: Not Configured (not configured), Enabled (enabled), and Disabled (disabled).

Click “Enabled” to disable this feature. If you’ve ever changed your mind and had to re-enable something, select the “Not Configured” or “Disabled” option.

Conclude

The reason why you might want to disable the USB port might be different. You must keep your data safe, even if that means turning off the USB connection. Which method do you think you would try first? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.