How to Enable or Disable SMBv2 in Windows 11/10

If you want to enable or disable SMBv2 on your Windows 11/10 device then this guide will help you to do so. But before that, let's give a brief introduction to this application, however, if you are familiar with the application, you can directly go to the section below and use the steps to continue.

SMB (Server Message Block) is a true network file sharing protocol designed to share data across computing devices like files, printers, etc. On the SMB client and in the network, there are currently three versions supported by Windows 10/11. These are SMB version 1 (SMBv1), SMB version 2 (SMBv2) and SMB version 3 (SMBv3) - in where SMBv1 was the original implementation of SMB. However, SMB2 is a new version of the old Server Message Block communication protocol and it is more secure. Latest version of SMBv3

How to enable/disable SMBv2 in Windows 10/11

Method 1. Using Windows PowerShell

1. Open the Power User Menu using the Windows Keys +X. Select Windows PowerShell (Admin) from the menu list.

2. In administrative Windows PowerShell window, paste following and press Enter key:

Get-SmbServerConfiguration | Select EnableSMB2Protocol

If the response of above command is True, then SMBv2 protocol is enabled.

3. To disable SMBv2 protocol on your system, execute following command:

Set-SmbServerConfiguration -EnableSMB2Protocol $false

After this, you’ll need to press Y to confirm this operation. In few seconds, the SMBv2 protocol will be disabled. You can again check the status of protocol using cmdlet mentioned in step 2.

If later you need to enable SMBv2 protocol again, use this command and similarly confirm the operation by pressing Y key:

Set-SmbServerConfiguration -EnableSMB2Protocol $true

So this is how you can manage SMB protocol using PowerShell.

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Method 2. Using Registry

Registry Disclaimer: It is recommended to create a System Restore point first, if you’re not familiar with registry manipulation.

1. Run regedit command to open Registry Editor. 

2. In left pane of Registry Editor window, go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters

3. In right pane of Parameters, set the Value data of SMB2 registry DWORD to 0 to disable SMBv2 protocol. If you want to enable SMBv2 protocol, set its Value data to 1.

4. Close Registry Editor and reboot to make your changes effective.

That All!