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Allow Windows Widgets with Intune: Set the Policy and Troubleshoot

Use an Intune Settings catalog profile to set Allow widgets to Allowed on supported Windows 11 devices. Learn the CSP value, assignment steps, and checks for missing Widgets.
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To allow Widgets on Intune-managed Windows devices, deploy the device setting Allow widgets through a Settings catalog profile and set it to Allowed. Its underlying Policy CSP is ./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/NewsAndInterests/AllowNewsAndInterests, where 1 means Allowed. This permits the feature; it does not guarantee that every user has Widgets switched on or that every entry point is visible.

Check whether the policy applies to your devices

Microsoft documents the NewsAndInterests Policy CSP setting for Windows 11 version 21H2 (build 10.0.22000) and later. Listed editions are Pro, Enterprise, Education, and IoT Enterprise, including IoT Enterprise LTSC. Confirm that your target devices meet these requirements before assigning the profile.

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The setting is device-scoped. A device group is therefore the clearest assignment target. Microsoft identifies the Windows 10 and later platform for Intune Settings catalog profiles; that profile platform label does not expand the CSP’s documented applicability to Windows 10.

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Create an Intune Settings catalog profile

  1. Sign in to the Microsoft Intune admin center using an account with permission to manage configuration profiles. Microsoft’s profile guidance names Policy and Profile Manager as the minimum role and requires devices to be enrolled in Intune. See Configure device configuration profiles in Microsoft Intune.
  2. Open Devices > Manage devices > Configuration > Create > New policy.
  3. Choose Windows 10 and later as the platform and Settings catalog as the profile type, then create the profile. Microsoft documents this workflow in Create a policy using settings catalog in Microsoft Intune.
  4. Enter a clear profile name and description. Under Configuration settings, select Add settings and search for Allow widgets or AllowNewsAndInterests. Check that the result is the intended device setting.
  5. Set Allow widgets to Allowed. The underlying CSP value is integer 1. Do not leave the setting unconfigured: an unconfigured setting is not managed by this profile and can be changed by another policy or by the device user.
  6. Assign the profile to the intended device group. Review the assignment and configuration, then create the profile.
  7. Check the profile and device status after the next configuration check-in. Intune applies settings when a device checks for configuration updates; a device that has not checked in may not yet reflect the profile.

Choose a configuration route if the setting is missing

The Settings catalog is searchable and integrates the setting into a standard configuration profile. If the entry is not present in your tenant’s current catalog, Microsoft’s CSP documentation gives the exact device path and data type. Confirm that your tenant supports an appropriate custom CSP configuration route before using one; the documented CSP path alone does not establish that a particular custom-profile workflow is available in every environment.

Route When it fits Setting details
Settings catalog The current Intune catalog contains the intended Allow widgets device setting. Set Allow widgets to Allowed in the profile.
CSP-based configuration The catalog entry is unavailable and an appropriate custom configuration route is supported in your tenant. Device OMA-URI: ./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/NewsAndInterests/AllowNewsAndInterests; integer value 1 allows the feature. See Microsoft’s CSP documentation.

Understand what “Allowed” changes

Microsoft describes the policy as determining whether the Widgets feature is allowed on the device. The taskbar policy reference says Widgets are on by default unless changed in Settings, and that enabling the policy enables them automatically unless a user turns them off in Settings. Policy allowance and the user’s own Widgets setting are therefore distinct.

The CSP documentation also lists DisableWidgetsBoard and DisableWidgetsOnLockScreen, but marks those controls as applicable to Windows Insider Preview. Keep a standard production deployment focused on Allow widgets unless you have confirmed the companion settings’ current support status for your environment.

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Troubleshoot Widgets missing after an Intune policy

Microsoft’s reviewed documentation does not provide a Widgets-specific troubleshooting decision tree. Use these checks to narrow down whether the issue is assignment, policy applicability, or the visible user experience:

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  • Confirm the configured value. Verify the profile sets Allow widgets to Allowed, corresponding to CSP value 1, rather than leaving it unconfigured or setting it to Not allowed.
  • Check device applicability. Confirm the device runs a documented Windows 11 version and edition for this CSP.
  • Verify the target and assignment. Check that the affected device is in the assigned device group and that the profile is configured for the intended platform.
  • Check device check-in and profile status. Intune applies configuration at the next configuration check. Review the reported status and allow for the device to check in.
  • Separate policy allowance from user preference and visibility. A user can turn Widgets off in Settings even when the policy allows the feature. Also check whether the relevant entry point is visible in the device’s current configuration.

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