Microsoft continuously develops features that will make daily computing tasks more convenient. For example, the tech giant invested a great deal of effort and resources to build the virtual assistant for Windows, Cortana. By command, it can perform various tasks, including organizing your calendar, searching for information on the web, and getting the weather forecast, among others.

However, not everyone has been happy with Cortana. Some claimed that the feature anonymously collected their details. Others complained about how it ate up a considerable percentage of their system memory. So, many chose to disable it.

What if you change your mind? Do you want to learn how to bring back Cortana on Windows 10? Well, if this is the case, then you will be glad you found this article. We will teach you how to completely reset Cortana and bring it back to your computer and to keep your PC safe.

Method 1: Using the Group Policy Editor to Bring Back Cortana

You can use the Group Policy Editor to re-activate Cortana. To do that, follow the instructions below:

  1. On your keyboard, press Windows Key+R. Doing this will bring up the Run dialog box.
  2. Type “gpedit.msc” (no quotes), then press Enter.
  3. On the left pane, navigate this path: Local Computer Policy ->Computer Configuration ->Administrative Templates.
  4. Click Windows Components, then go to Search.
  5. Look for the ‘Allow Cortana’ policy, then double-click it.
  6. Select the Enabled radio button to re-activate the ‘Allow Cortana’ policy.
  7. Save the changes by clicking Apply, then OK.
  8. Exit the Local Group Policy Editor, then restart your PC.

Method 2: Using the Windows Registry to Re-enable Cortana

It is worth noting that the Group Policy Editor is only available in the Pro Edition of Windows 10. So, if you are using a different version, you won’t be able to re-enable Cortana, using that feature. Thankfully, you can still go to the registry to resolve the problem. Here are the steps:

  1. Open the Run dialog box by pressing Windows Key+R.
  2. Type “regedit” (no quotes), the hit Enter to open the Registry Editor.
  3. Navigate to this path:
  4. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsSearch
  5. Double-click the ‘Allow Cortana’ registry value.
  6. Set the value to 1 to re-enable Cortana.
  7. Exit the Registry Editor, then restart your PC.

Pro Tip: To ensure that Cortana and the entire system will run smoothly, we recommend using Auslogics Registry Cleaner. This tool will address registry issues, including corrupted or missing keys.

Method 3: Using the Correct Program Path Name

One of the ways to disable Cortana is by renaming the path. So, if this is the method you chose, you can bring back the feature in the same manner. Here’s what you have to do:

  1. Press Windows Key+R on your keyboard to launch the Run dialog box.
  2. Type “taskmgr” (no quotes), then click OK.
  3. Click More Details at the bottom of the window to reveal all the necessary information.
  4. Go to the Processes tab, then right-click Cortana.
  5. Select Open File Location.
  6. Locate the Microsoft.Windows.Cortana folder that has the .bak extension.
  7. Right-click it, then choose Rename.
  8. Remove the .bak extension.
  9. Restart your PC.

Can you suggest other ways to re-enable Cortana on Windows 10?

Feel free to share them in the comments section below!