How to Enable or Disable Driver Signature Enforcement and Test Mode in Windows 10
64-bit versions of Windows 10 include a driver signature enforcement feature that requires all drivers be signed by Microsoft with a digital signature before being allowed to install and load into the Windows kernel. This is a security feature to help prevent malware from getting into the Windows kernel.
If needed, you can disable driver signature enforcement to install and load unsigned drivers you trust or testing.
See also:
- Driver Signing | Microsoft Docs
- Digital Signatures | Microsoft Docs
- Driver Signing Policy | Microsoft Docs
- Enable Loading of Test Signed Drivers | Microsoft Docs
This tutorial will show you how to enable or disable driver signature enforcement and Test Mode in Windows 10.
You must be signed in as an administrator to enable or disable driver signature enforcement and Test Mode.
It is required to suspend BitLocker or turn off BitLocker for the OS drive to be able to disable driver signature enforcement and/or enable Test Mode.
It is required to disable Secure Boot to be able to disable driver signature enforcement and/or enable Test Mode.
Contents
- Option One: Temporarily Disable Driver Signature Enforcement in Startup Settings at Boot
- Option Two: Enable or Disable Driver Signature Enforcement in Command Prompt
- Option Three: Enable or Disable Test Mode in Command Prompt
This option will only temporarily disable disable driver signature enforcement in Windows 10 allowing you to install unsigned drivers until you restart the computer next.
The next time you restart the computer, driver signature enforcement will automatically be enabled.
If driver signature enforcement is enabled while you still have unsigned drivers installed, those drivers will stop functioning.
1 Boot to Advanced Startup Options.
2 Click/tap on Troubleshoot on the Choose an option screen at boot. (see screenshot below)
3 Click/tap on Advanced options in Troubleshoot options. (see screenshot below)
4 Click/tap on Startup Settings in Advanced options. (see screenshot below)
5 Click/tap on the Restart button in Startup Settings. (see screenshot below)
6 When the computer restarts into Startup Settings, press the 7 or F7 key to Disable driver signature enforcement. (see screenshot below)
7 The computer will now automatically restart with driver signature enforcement disabled until you restart the computer next to automatically enable driver signature enforcement.
This setting is independent of Option Three
It is required to disable Secure Boot if you get the error message below while trying to enable Test Mode.
An error has occurred setting the element data.
.
The value is protected by Secure Boot policy and cannot be modified or deleted.
This option allows you to completely disable driver signature enforcement in Windows 10 allowing you to install unsigned drivers until you enable driver signature enforcement.
If you enable driver signature enforcement while you still have unsigned drivers installed, those drivers will stop functioning.
1 Open an elevated command prompt.
2 Copy and paste the command you want to use below into the elevated command prompt, and press Enter. (see screenshots below)
(enable driver signature enforcement - DEFAULT)
bcdedit /set nointegritychecks off
OR
(Disable driver signature enforcement)
bcdedit /set nointegritychecks on
3 Restart the computer to apply.
This setting is independent of Option Two.
This option allows you to enable Test Mode to disable driver signature enforcement on test-signed code and drivers until you disable Test Mode.
If you disable Test Mode while you still have unsigned drivers installed, those drivers will stop functioning.
It is required to disable Secure Boot if you get the error message below while trying to enable Test Mode.
An error has occurred setting the element data.
The value is protected by Secure Boot policy and cannot be modified or deleted.
1 Open an elevated command prompt.
2 Copy and paste the command you want to use below into the elevated command prompt, and press Enter. (see screenshots below)
(enable Test Mode)
bcdedit /set testsigning on
OR
(Disable Test Mode - DEFAULT)
bcdedit /set testsigning off
3 Restart the computer to apply.
4 If you enabled Test Mode, you will see a Test Mode watermark in the lower right corner of your main display to indicate so. (see screenshot below)
That's it,
Shawn
Related Tutorials
- How to Verify if System Files and Drivers are Digitally Signed in Windows
- How to Enable and Disable Driver Verifier in Windows 10
- How to Turn On or Off Developer Mode in Windows 10