Even imagining life without the internet can be scary these days. With so much information and content available on the internet, most people spend a lot of time online, learning new things, or socializing. When users like something for themselves, they can also download the stuff they require for personal offline use.
However, what will you do if you see Windows 10 blocking downloads? You will not be able to save any files for offline use, or not be able to run the downloaded files. Let us take a look at how to unblock downloaded files in Windows 10.
Windows 10 Blocking Downloads
By default, Windows automatically adds metadata to the files that you download over the internet. When you execute any such downloaded file, Windows will prevent you from running the download using a feature called Windows SmartScreen.
Depending on how Windows reads the metadata, Windows can either completely block your downloads, or block downloaded files from running on your computer. To prevent this from happening, you can configure Windows to completely block your operating system from adding metadata for your downloaded files.
If you see this error message, let us take a look at how you can solve this easily using some simple solutions.
Solution 1: Clear Browser Data
Let us begin by fixing if the browser itself if preventing you from downloading any files. In such situations, you can begin fixing the error by clearing the browser cache stored on your computer. Clearing the cache data can be beneficial in the case of a corrupted cache library.
Clear the browser cache data and try to download the file again. Your error should now be resolved.
Solution 2: Check Download Space
Another reason why Windows 10 may be blocking downloads is because of storage space running out. If you do not have enough storage space, you will not be able to download anything larger than the available space. Moreover, Windows often reserves some space for such situations.
Check the storage space and make sure that you have enough space to download more files. Also, follow this article to know more about how to free up space by removing junk files.
Solution 3: Make A Group Policy Change
As mentioned earlier, you can configure Windows to not create any metadata for the downloaded files. This will eliminate the possibility of the zone information interfering with your downloads. This can be changed using the local Group Policy Editor, so follow these steps for the same:
- In Windows Search, type gpedit.msc and press Enter to launch the Local Group Policy Editor.
- Navigate the following path by clicking on the appropriate options:
User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Attachment Manager - In the right pane, double click to modify the following policy:
Do not preserve zone information in file attachments - Click on the radio button next to Enabled to enable the policy.
- Finally, click on OK and restart your computer to save the changes.
Solution 4: Make A Registry Change
If you do not have the Group Policy Editor on your computer, there is another method to unblock downloaded files. This involves making a change to the registry, so make sure to follow these steps very carefully:
- Open a Run dialog and type regedit. Press Enter to launch the Registry Editor.
Click on Yes in the User Account Control prompt. - Navigate to the following location by pasting the path in the address bar of the Registry editor:
Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Attachments
Note: If the Attachments key does not exist, create it from the additional menu.
- In the right pane, create a new DWORD 32-bit value from the right-click context menu by selecting the appropriate option.
- Name this DWORD value as SaveZoneInformation and save the entry.
- Double click on this value to change its value.
- Change the value data of this entry to 1 and save the changes.
Upon restarting your computer, the zone information (metadata) should not interfere with your downloads. Your blocked downloads error should now be resolved.
Solution 5: Run SFC And DISM Scans
If the solutions above failed to help you solve your blocked downloads error, there is a possibility that there might be some broken or missing system components interfering with your downloads. Luckily, for situations like these, Windows has a built-in utility to repair your broken system files.
Run the DISM and SFC scans to scan and repair the missing or corrupt system files. Once the scan is finished, your error should now be resolved.
Wrapping Up
So there you have it. Now you know how to troubleshoot if you see Windows 10 blocking downloads on your computer. Comment below if you found this useful, and to discuss further the same.