In Windows, when you connect to a wireless network, it will either register it as a Public network or a Private network. Private networks are basically home and work whereas public networks are anywhere else, which you don’t trust.
Sometimes Windows detects a private network as a public one and vice versa. You can manually make some changes to ensure that you are not accidentally sharing either too much on a public network or blocking all sharing on a private network.
In this article, I walk you through the steps for Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8 and Windows 7.
Windows 10
In Windows 10, go ahead and click on the Ethernet or wireless icon in the system tray of your taskbar. The Ethernet icon is like a little computer and the wireless icon is, well, pretty well-known. Once you do that, click on the Network & Internet Settings link.
This will bring you to the PC settings dialog with the Status tab selected. If you are connected to a WiFi network, click on WiFi in the left-hand pane, otherwise click on Ethernet.
Go ahead and click on the name of the WiFi network or Ethernet network that has the Connected status. When you click on the network, you will now be able to select Public or Private.
For WiFi networks, you’ll also have the option to connect automatically when in range of the WiFi network.
Windows 8.1
In Windows 8.1, to change the network profile, we have to go into the PC Settings screen. To do that, open the Charms bar and click on Change PC Settings at the bottom.
Now click on Network and you’ll see the list of connections, i.e Ethernet, Wireless, etc.
Now all you have to do is turn on the Find devices and content option. It’s automatically turned off for public networks, so when you turn it on, it changes the network to a private network.
Windows 8
For Windows 8, follow the following procedure. First, right-click on the network icon in the Windows 8 system tray and click on Open Network and Sharing Center.
Here you will see the network you are connected to and what type of network Windows 8 has identified it as.
As you can see above, my network is considered a Private network, which is correct since I’m at home and connected via Ethernet. If this is incorrect, there are a couple of things you can do. First, you can click on Change advanced sharing settings in the left-hand pane.
Click on Private and then make sure you have these options enabled:
– Turn on network discovery
– Turn on file and printer sharing
– Allow Windows to manage homegroup connections
Then collapse Private and expand Guest or Public and make sure you have these options set:
– Turn off network discovery
– Turn off file and printer sharing
Once you have done this, you then need to go to the Windows 8 desktop and open the Charms bar. Click on Settings and then click on the Network icon.
You’ll see Network and then Connected. Go ahead and right-click on that and choose Turn sharing on or off.
Now choose Yes if you want your network to be treated like a private network and No if you want it to be treated like a public network. Note that the label Private or Public may remain the same in Network and Sharing Center, but once you choose the sharing settings manually, the network will have the appropriate settings applied.
Windows 7
In Windows 7, the process is a bit different. You still have to click on the network icon in your taskbar, but this time click on the Open Network & Sharing Center link.
Here, you will see an overview of your network connection. Under View your active networks, you’ll see the name of the Ethernet or WiFi network and it should have a link underneath called Home network, Work network or Public network.
Click on that link and you’ll be able to change between the three different network types.
There is also an option in Windows 7 to treat all future networks as public networks automatically, though I don’t think most people would find that useful.
Manually Force a Network Location
As a last resort, if you can’t change the network location using the methods above, you can manually change the network location using a tool called secpol.msc. This will not work on the Home, Student or Starter editions of Windows. In Windows, press the Windows Key + R, which will bring up the Run dialog box. Type in secpol.msc into the run dialog box.
Then click on Network List Manager Policies at the left and on the right-hand side you should see a couple of items with descriptions and then something called Network, which is the current network you are connected to. It may also be called something else, but it doesn’t have a description. If you are connected to a WiFi network, it will be the name of your WiFi network.
Double-click on it and click on the Network Location tab. Here you can manually change the network location from Private to Public and vice versa.
That’s about it! Not the easiest thing in the world, but it’s Microsoft! If you are having problems with changing network locations in Windows, post a comment here and we’ll help. Enjoy!
If you want to allow your PC to be found on the network by other PC and devices, you can set the network to private. Otherwise, set it as public. In this article, we show you how to change your Network type into Private or Public for Ethernet connections in Windows 10.
Part 1: To set your network as private or public in Windows 10, here's how:
Step 1: Go to Settings app in Windows 10.
Step 2: In the Settings app, click Network & Internet option.
Step 3: If you use an Ethernet cable to connect to a network, select Ethernet in the column on the left. Then, click the name of the active network connection on the right.
Step 4: Turn this on for private networks. ( See the following screenshot )
Step 5: When done, close the Settings app to check whether you have successfully set your network as private by opening Network and Sharing Center. In the network and the sharing center, you can see the actual location of private network connection, just under its name.
Step 6: Similarly, to turn this off for public networks. Please repeat the above three steps, such as Step 1, Step2, Step 3. Then the new window will be opened, just click this On button, and it will automatically become Off button. ( See the following screenshot )
Step 7: After finished, close the Settings app. Launch Network and Sharing Center to check whether your network has been set as public. In the network and the sharing center, you can see the actual location of public network connection, just under its name.
Tips: Or when you have set your network by switching on or switching off for Ethernet connections, you can also go back to this NETWORK & INTERNET window to select the Network and Sharing Center option to check if the network has been changed into private or public. ( See the picture below )
Part 2: To change network type from private to public, here's how:Way 1: Change network type from private to public in Registry Editor![]()
Step 1: Launch Registry Editor in Windows 10.
Step 2: In Registry Editor window, navigate to the following command line:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersionNetworkListProfiles
Step 3: Click the key under Profiles. Right-click Category to choose Modify option in right side.
Step 4: Change Category Value data can be 0 for Public network, 1 for Private network and 2for Domain network. In Value data dialog box, type 0 and click OK button to change network type from private to public. Launch Network and Sharing Center to find the network type that has been set as Public network.
Way 2: Change network type from private to public in Local Group Policy Editor
Step 1: Open Local Group Policy Editor in Windows 10.
Step 2: In Local Group Policy Editor window, navigate to Computer ConfigurationWindows SettingsSecurity SettingsNetwork List Manager Policies. When navigates to Network List Manager Policies, double-click Unidentified Networks.
Step 3: In Unidentified Networks Properties, choose Public and click OK button.
Step 4: Go to Network and Sharing Center, you will see the network type is changed into Public network.
Way 3: Change network type from private to public in Windows PowerShell
Step 1: Run PowerShell as administrator in Windows 10.
Step 2: In Windows PowerShell window, copy and paste Get-NetConnectionProfile, press enter.
Step 3: Input Set-NetConnectionProfile -Name 'Network' -NetworkCategory Public, press enter.
Step 4: Open Network and Sharing Center, you will find the network type is displayed into Public network.
Note: If you want to change the network type from public to private, just need to type the command line below:
Set-NetConnectionProfile -Name 'Network' -NetworkCategory private
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When you connect Windows 10 to a new network for the first time, through a wireless network, a cable network, or a mobile USB modem, you’re asked whether you want to allow your PC to be discoverable by other PCs and devices on that network.
If you select Yes, your computer can find PCs, devices, and content on this network and to automatically connect to devices like printers and TVs. When you select Yes, you set the network profile to Private.
Setting up the network profile assigned in Windows 10.
Windows 10 Change Network To Private Ethernet
Make your home or work network private if it’s used by people and devices you trust. By default, network discovery is turned on, and you can see other computers and devices that are part of the network. This allows other computers from the network to access your computer, and you can create or join a HomeGroup.
If you select No, you disable all these preceding features, and you set the network profile to Public. This profile is appropriate when you’re in public places such as airports, cafes, and libraries. Network discovery and sharing are turned off. Other computers from the network can’t see your computer. This setting is also useful when your computer is directly connected to the Internet (such as via direct cable/modem connection or mobile Internet).
A third network location profile called a domain network is available for enterprise workplaces. Only a network administrator can set it or change it. This profile is applied only when you’re connected to the network at your workplace.
Except for a domain network, you can easily change profiles for a network after you connect to it.
If you set an incorrect profile when you connect to a new network, you can always change the profile. If you agreed to allow Windows 10 find PCs, devices, and content on your network, then you have set the Private network profile, which makes your Windows 10 device discoverable on the network. If you didn’t agree to let Windows 10 find PCs, devices, and content, you set the Public network profile, which doesn’t allow network sharing.
To change the network profile in Windows 10, follow these steps:
To enable network sharing, set the Find Devices and Content switch to On. To disable network sharing, set the switch to Off.
The Windows 10 Settings UI and the Network flyout is completely different from Windows 7 and Windows 8.1. The options have been moved around and it is not clear how to change the network type - private or public. I would like to share how you can change the network location type in Windows 10.
RECOMMENDED: Click here to fix Windows errors and optimize system performance
When you are signing in to your account for the very first time, Windows 10 asks you which kind of network you are connecting to: Home or Public.
If you pick Yes, the OS will configure it as a private network and turn on network discovery. For a Public network, discovery and access will be limited. If you need to access your computer from a remote PC or browse the PCs and devices on your local network, you need to set it to Home (Private).
If you decide later to change the access type of the network you are connected to, you might even not find which settings to change!
There are two ways to change the network type in Windows 10.
Windows 10 Change Network To Private 1809Method one. Change network access type via the Settings app
That's it. This is pretty easy, isn't it? This is all you need to know in the Settings app to change the network location type.
Method two. Change network access type by Registry editing
You can change the network profile in Windows 10 using a Registry tweak. After you follow the steps described below, you can easily switch your network location type from Public to Private and vice versa.
After the reboot, open the Network and Sharing Center and check out the state of your network. It should reflect the changes you made. For example, I set my Network to Private using the following values:
Finally, you can use PowerShell to change the Network location type from Private to Public and vice versa. See Change network location type with PowerShell in Windows 10.
That's it. Feel free to post your thoughts, questions and suggestions in the comments.
RECOMMENDED: Click here to fix Windows errors and optimize system performance
Windows 10 makes it easy for the users to configure Windows Firewall by using pre-defined configurations of Windows Firewall. By default, there are three network types on which Windows Firewall configurations are used, public, private and domain.
Windows 10 Change Network To Private 2019
Windows gives users an option to select a network type when a new network is connected to the computer. Windows will set the Windows Firewall rules according to the network type selected. Lets first know more about each network type.
Quick Summary
Network TypesPublic Network
A public network is the default network type. If no network type is selected, Windows will configure Windows Firewall using the Public network type rules. In public network, Windows Firewall rules will be the most restrictive. The firewall will block most of the apps from connecting from the Internet and disabling some features like file and printer sharing, network discovery and automatic setup of network devices etc.
You should use this type of network when you have only one computer and do not want to communicate with any other network device.
Private Network
The private network can be a home network or work network. This type of network will enable most networking features of Windows 10 like file sharing, network device setup, network discovery etc.
Use this network type if you trust the network you are connecting to.
Domain Network
The domain network is automatically detected when your computer is a member of Active Directory domain network. Windows should automatically detect this type of network and configure Windows Firewall accordingly. This type of network gives more control to the network administrator and the admin can apply different network security configurations using Active Directory group policies.
In this article, we will be more interested in changing the network type from public to private and vice versa as the domain network is automatically detected by Windows 10 and we don’t need to change anything.
What is the current network type of your computer?
Before going through the ways to change network type in Windows 10, we need to see what is the current network type of the connected network. To check the current network type settings, follow the steps below:
Ways to change network types in Windows 10
Let’s go through a few methods to change the network type in Windows 10.
1- Using Windows Settings
To change the network type using Windows Control Panel settings, follow the steps below:
You can configure each type of these networks in more detail by clicking on the link “Change advanced sharing settings…”.
2- Setting network type using Windows Registry![]()
If you are an advanced user and are comfortable with editing Windows Registry, this method will be easier for you to change the network type especially when you want it to be done on multiple PCs using just a single registry file.
3- Change network type using Local Security Policy
4- Setting network type using PowerShell
Open PowerShell with administrative privileges
This will change the network type immediately.
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