How can I disable "Discover"`?

Brass Contributor

Hello,

- I can't disable it in the sidebar

- I can't remove the icon from the search-/icon bar.

- I can't remove it from the symbol bar

- I can't find any setting for this

So, how I can remove/disable "Discover"?  (The purple +, with a small yellow +)?

33 Replies
They seem intent on pushing us back to Chrome :-(.
And today on Dev 111.0.1633.0 not only can I still not remove this ridiculous button (that's where the menu ellipses has always been no less - very classy, that), now I have a battery button show up. Because for some reason that's what I need in addition the battery icon that's already part of the OS :(

<sigh>

@Lastwebpage 

 

add this argument in the Edge shortcut:

--disable-features=msUndersideButton

@Spelunky Any tips how to do this on macOS?

 

As for the feature itself, it seems like it could be interesting, but the point the button is placed exactly where the ... menu would be normally feels like an incredibly dark pattern choice.

(top is current Dev build, bottom is normal build)

Screenshot 2023-01-30 at 08.33.42.png

 

In my opinion this button is very out of place, and even hovering on it will bring up the sidebar. We compromised to the extension button issue, and now we have this. I haven't been this frustrated with Edge for a while.

--disable-features flag will work for now if Edge is explicitly launched with that flag. However, there are many scenarios where the browser is launched by 3rd party apps that won't pass the flag. And it can be removed at any time.
Ugh... why did you add something that you gave zero options to configure.... Allow us the option to disable/remove please.

off topic

How do you get the rounded corner, top right (and the color border vertically)?
I don't have this border and the color vertically

Thanks

 

EDIT : ok, on MAC I guess

Finally, I found out that you can disable the entire sidebar feature along with this icon with MDM, policies, or registry settings, as long as someone else isn't managing your browser and mandating otherwise.

If you are okay with losing the sidebar entirely, see the following policy documentation for details.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/deployedge/microsoft-edge-policies#hubssidebarenabled
There is already the option to completely remove the sidebar in Edge, but nothing to remove the Discovery button

@tistou The policy would disable both in a documented thus reliable way. There might be future changes, but I believe alternative policies would be available since enterprise customers do need a way to manage its use.

@dl444 

 

Ah ok thanks, I'll test :)

It works, thank you very much
I did this and it worked. Now Microsoft just have to change the function of the button for us to be able to remove it without "hacks". Hover over a button showing a menu is a horrible user experience when all other buttons functions in a other way. And no right click to remove.... Why Microsoft? Are you trying to recreate a bloated browser, we have had that before you know?
It worked 🥳

@AnotherUsername Microsoft always screw things like this. It’s a big ugly button out of nowhere that no-one asked for. 
if you want to put that at least give me an option to disable or I will default to another browser 

This is obnoxious. Users should have the choice to disable this without policies or hacky command line workarounds. It's not even on brand with the rest of Edge or the existing buttons. Come on MS. Stop trying to shove Bing and MSN "tabloid" content down our throats.

You can use option four or five in the tutorial below to remove the Bing Discover button from Microsoft Edge. Option four does also disable the sidebar.

https://www.elevenforum.com/t/add-or-remove-sidebar-and-discover-bing-toolbar-icon-in-microsoft-edge...

It's kind of crazy that they keep pushing "features" like this (and then later removing the flags to disable them even though it's clear people hate them). I switched to Edge back when it was in pre-release alpha as it was essentially a better version of Chrome. But since then patch after patch has just turned it into a modern Internet Explorer.

The annoying thing about it is, the reason it's gone downhill is because the feedback/dev forums got spammed by people who liked the Classic Edge browser and wanted Chromium Edge turning into it (this is why we got stupid I.E style flyouts to replace the downloads/history tabs). Microsoft seem to have forgotten that the whole reason they made Chromium Edge was because Classic Edge sucked and nobody wanted to use it lol.