Do you see a “Test Mode” watermark in the bottom-right corner of your Windows 10 or 11 desktop? In this guide I show you how to turn Test Mode off with two quick commands, and how to turn it back on if you need it.
In this article
What is Test Mode in Windows?
Test Mode is a special boot configuration in Windows that lets you install unsigned or test-signed drivers. It is usually used for development or testing. When it is enabled, Windows shows a “Test Mode” message in the bottom-right corner of your desktop, together with your Windows edition and build number.
Turning Test Mode off restores the default driver signature enforcement. This removes the watermark and brings Windows back to normal mode.
Note: if you turned on Test Mode for a specific driver or program, that driver may stop working after you turn it off.
How to disable Test Mode
- Click Start, type cmd and select Run as administrator.
-
Type the first command and press Enter:
bcdedit.exe -set loadoptions ENABLE_INTEGRITY_CHECKS -
Type the second command and press Enter:
bcdedit.exe -set TESTSIGNING OFF - After each command, you should see The operation completed successfully.
- Close the Command Prompt window.
- Restart your PC.
Once your PC restarts, the Test Mode watermark should be gone.
In the video, I only needed the second command (TESTSIGNING OFF) to remove the watermark on Windows 10 Pro. The first command turns the driver integrity checks back on, in case they were disabled too.
How to turn Test Mode back on
If you need Test Mode again, for example to test a driver:
- Open Command Prompt as administrator.
-
Paste this command and press Enter:
bcdedit /set testsigning on - Restart your PC.
Note: if you get the error “The value is protected by Secure Boot policy and cannot be modified or deleted”, you have to disable Secure Boot in your BIOS/UEFI settings first. According to Microsoft, BitLocker may also stop you from changing this setting.
Related links and official help
- Microsoft Learn: Loading test-signed code (the TESTSIGNING boot option)
