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Microsoft recently introduced a new AI-powered chatbot called Copilot for Windows, designed to assist users by answering questions, recommending actions, and interacting with apps. The Copilot feature was officially rolled out with the Windows 11 2022 Update (version 22H2) and 2023 Update (23H2). However, the Copilot button may be missing from some users’ taskbars even after installing the latest Windows updates. This guide will discuss multiple methods to easily access Copilot on Windows 11.
What is Microsoft Copilot?
Microsoft Copilot is an AI-powered productivity assistant that combines large language models (LLMs), Microsoft Graph content, and Microsoft 365 apps to provide real-time intelligent assistance. It aims to improve users’ creativity, productivity and skills within Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and other Microsoft apps. Copilot uses an advanced processing engine to coordinate LLMs like GPT-4 with Microsoft 365 data and apps. Allows users to access organizational data and complete tasks through natural language prompts.
Most important features
- Integrated into Microsoft 365 apps such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams to help with document authoring, analysis, presentations, email, meetings, etc.
- Microsoft 365 Chat bot that can summarize conversations, provide updates, schedule meetings, etc.
- Business-focused features like meeting summaries with action items in Teams, data analysis in Excel, presentation generation in PowerPoint.
- Windows integration that provides AI support for apps and workflows.
- Customizable with Copilot Studio – create custom AI models and experiences.
also read: Microsoft launched Copilot
How do I access Copilot on Windows?
Method 1: Enable from the taskbar settings
- Open the Settings application on your Windows 11 computer. You can open the Settings by clicking the Start menu and selecting the Settings gear icon or typing “Settings” into the search bar.
- In the Settings window, click the category on the left.
- On the Personalization page, scroll down and click the Taskbar tab at the top of the page. This will open the taskbar settings.
- In the taskbar settings, scroll down until you see a toggle switch labeled “Copilot.” Toggle this toggle switch from Off to On by clicking on it. This will enable the Copilot feature.
- The Copilot button should now appear in your Windows 11 taskbar once enabled. You can confirm that Copilot is enabled by reopening your taskbar preferences and making sure the Copilot switch is in the On position.
Method 2: Enable from the Registry Editor
- Open the Start Menu search bar by clicking the Windows icon in the taskbar or using the Windows key on your keyboard. Type regedit in the search bar and click the Registry Editor app icon in the search results to open the Registry Editor.
- In the Registry Editor, use the navigation tree on the left to navigate to the following registry path: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced
- In the right pane, double-click the ShowCopilotButton DWORD registry key.
- In the Edit DWORD Value box that appears, change the Value data field to ‘1’ to enable Copilot and click OK.
- Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer for the Copilot changes to take effect.
- After your PC restarts, you should now see the Copilot icon enabled in your Windows 11 taskbar.
Also read: How do I get Copilot for free?
Enable Copilot on Windows 11 (policy)
Method 1: Enable from the Group Policy Editor
- Open the Start Menu search box and type “gpedit” to open the Local Group Policy Editor app in the search results. Click the app icon to launch the Group Policy Editor.
- In the Group Policy Editor, navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Copilot in the navigation tree in the left pane.
- Double-click the policy called “Disable Windows Copilot.” This will display the policy settings options.
- In the Disable Windows Copilot Policy Options window, select the “Not Configured” or “Disabled” option button, then click Apply and OK to commit your change.
- Finally, restart your computer. Copilot should now be enabled in your Windows 11 taskbar afterwards.
Method 2: Enable from the Registry Editor
- Open the Registry Editor by clicking the Start Menu and typing regedit, then clicking the resulting Registry Editor app icon.
- Navigate to or paste this registry path into the address bar: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsCopilot
- If the DWORD value “TurnOffWindowsCopilot” exists here, double-click it to open the Edit DWORD Value box.
- Change the Value data field from “1” to “0” and click OK to enable Copilot via the registry.
- Copilot should now be enabled and appear in the Windows 11 taskbar after closing regedit.
Enable Copilot on Windows 11 (Europe)
- Right-click on an empty area of your Windows desktop and select New > Shortcut from the context menu. You can also open File Explorer in a folder view and select New > Shortcut from the top ribbon of the File menu.
- When prompted for a location for the new shortcut, copy and paste the following URL into the text field: microsoft-edge://?ux=copilot&tcp=1&source=taskbar
- Click Next, give your new shortcut a name such as “Launch Copilot,” then click Finish.
- You can now double-click the shortcut icon on your desktop at any time to launch the Copilot app for your Windows region.
Also read: How do I access Copilot?
Enable Copilot on Windows 11 (preview)
- Open your web browser and go to the ViveTool GitHub page at https://github.com/thebookisclosed/ViVe/releases
- Download the latest ViveTool release .zip file to your local computer.
- Extract the files from the .zip archive by right-clicking on them and selecting Extract All > Extract.
- Launch an administrative command prompt window by clicking the Start Menu and typing “Command Prompt,” then right-clicking the app result and selecting Run as administrator.
- Type the command
cd
and a space, then copy and paste the extracted ViveTool folder path and press Enter to navigate there in the Command Prompt. - Run this command:
vivetool /enable /id:44774629,44776738,44850061,42105254,41655236
and press Enter to enable Copilot IDs. - Restart your computer to apply the changes.
- Open Windows Settings > > Taskbar and, if necessary, toggle the Copilot switch to On to fully enable the feature and add the taskbar icon.
Conclusion
Conclusion In summary, users who cannot immediately access the Copilot feature after updating Windows 11 have several options to enable it manually. This includes enabling the Copilot toggle switch under the taskbar settings, changing registry keys related to the Copilot feature, changing group policies, using a special shortcut for European regions, or using the ViveTool app for Insider Preview – builds. Hopefully Microsoft will expand availability soon, but in the meantime, these steps should give you access to the AI chatbot. Please note that some methods, such as the registry editor, require caution so as not to disrupt your system.
🌟 Do you have burning questions about using Copilot on Windows? Do you need some extra help with AI tools or something else?
💡 Feel free to send an email to Arva, our expert at OpenAIMaster. Send your questions to support@openaimaster.com and Arva will be happy to help you!