How to Enable Windows Script Host

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Windows script host is a feature of your operating system which, when disabled, can prevent some of your applications from running. While Windows script host is enabled by default, some users choose to disable it to prevent malicious code written in scripting languages to be executed on their computers. This also means, however, that you may be unable to run any program that relies on code written in such a language. Even though Windows tries to help you in such a case by warning you that Windows script host is disabled, it does not tell you how to manually enable it. Fortunately, it is possible to do so by editing a specific Windows file.

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Step 1

Open the Windows Start screen and type "regedit" (without the quotes). Press the "Enter" key or tap on the "regedit.exe" shortcut to launch Regedit, the Windows registry editor. The Windows registry is a file that contains the core data and settings of your operating system. Inside the registry is the setting to enable Windows script host.

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Step 2

Locate the following key using Regedit's left navigation pane: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows Script Host\Settings

Step 3

Right-click on the "Enabled" key in the right pane and select "Modify."

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Step 4

Enter "1" under "Value data" and click "OK" to confirm the changes.

Step 5

Exit Regedit and restart your computer. Windows is able to use the Windows script host feature.

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