Is it possible to set the default geolocation now without Maps?

[Anonymous Internet User]

Hi all,

Is it possible to set the default geolocation in Windows 11 Pro now without Maps with a script or a registry key? My geolocation in Windows has always been wrong since I moved to Poland (not sure why... ISP's fault?). This is a PITA. I never had any issues with geolocation when I lived in the US up until 2021. But after I moved it was possible to set the default location in the Windows settings. It no longer seems possible since MS killed the Maps application.

I just installed 24H2 but I still have my old 23H2 boot disk untouched (that has manually set location) so I was thinking maybe there is a way to copy a reg key from the old install? Otherwise, I may just pop that old disk back in for good and go back to 23H2. I've got few annoying issues with 24H2 anyway.

Thanks!

 

[garlin]

While 24H2 removed the Maps apps (because the Bing Maps API is being retired), Windows continues to have access to geo-location services from the Privacy & Security screen. MS is migrating enterprise customers to (paid) Azure Maps, so it's not like Windows itself won't have future access to any location data.

If you change your location from Privacy & Security / Location / Default location, this reg key gets updated:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\ControlSet001\Services\lfsvc\Migrated\UserStore\{SID}]
"DefaultGeoposition"=hex(3): ...

Of course, this doesn't affect any websites that attempt their own geo-location by checking your IP address.

 

[Anonymous Internet User]

Thank you Garlin, again!

I'll try to extract that registry key from my old installation tomorrow.

But...

...when I click Set Default in my "new" 24H2, I don't get the map popup like in your second screenshot. The Settings app just quits. I saw such screenshot posted elsewhere. I suspect this popup needs some feature that I removed. Perhaps it needs Edge?

I'm thinking that my component removal might have been too aggressive this time. Perhaps I need to rethink and revise this and redo my image with a bit more restrain

 

[garlin]

This is a 25H2 image (with no mods). You probably removed Edge so Windows can't run a captive browser from inside another app.

 

[Anonymous Internet User]

Yup. I just did a quick new image, only removed OneDrive, Xbox stuff and few apps but left Edge alone, installed on a test PC and it works. So this is not WebView (I have that on my 24H2 since some of my apps need it) but it actually needs Edge itself. Annoying. I really hate this.

It solves this location problem though.

Even though I'm technically in EU, I don't have the option to uninstall Edge either. I guess that's because I use US as my region. I'll need to find a way to keep Edge but disable it somehow so I don't have fifteen instances of msedge.exe running out of the blue for no reason.

Thank you Garlin, I appreciate your help.

 

[garlin]

Edge doesn't run in the background, if you remove it from Task Manager's startup boost list.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge]
"StartupBoostEnabled"=dword:00000000

But Edge WebView2 is used by a number of UWP apps for rendering the user interfaces, so that's a different thing.

 

[Anonymous Internet User]

Oh yeah, the Edge startup boost, I forgot all about that. Thanks WebView is kinda useful since some apps use it. I'd rather do without it too, but, oh well...

 

[Anonymous Internet User]

Update.

There was a WU KB5063878 after I finished building my image that wasn't included in the build, or I missed it for some reason. I noticed, because the Settings app looks different on the test PC (the search field is on the top). So, I downloaded the .msu and ran it manually. I now get the map popup in the Location Settings and I can set the default location.

However, Edge has not been reinstalled. There is no Edge in the Start Menu and in the Installed Apps control panel, and there is no "standalone" msedge.exe anywhere on the C drive except in the LocalAppData\Microsoft\EdgeWebView folder.

So, so maybe it's not because Edge was removed after all, but something else? Maybe a bug?

Anyway, I'm gonna leave it at that for now and use the PC for a bit, before I decide to reinstall, to see if there are any more issues that might stem from overaggressive component removal. This was the most vexing issue so far.

Thank you Garlin for your help!