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Removing the Search Box

With Internet Explorer 7.0 Microsoft introduced built in search options. However if you are on a smaller screen the built in search box can take up valuable screen space. You can remove the search box by making a small registry change.

This screenshot shows Internet Explorer 7.0 with the search bar (and menu bar) enabled

This screenshot shows Internet Explorer 7.0 after the registry change:

To use the registry key below, copy and paste everything in to a new notepad document and save it as ie-searchremove.reg. Then right click on it and choose merge. Restart Internet Explorer to see the change.

The change also works on the Windows Vista version of Internet Explorer 7.0, but the registry file needs to be copied to the local machine before you can merge.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Infodelivery\Restrictions] "NoSearchBox"=dword:00000001

Registry Disclaimer: We cannot be held responsible for any damage done to your machine by using registry files or following any of the advice given on this site. Modification of your registry is done at your own risk. You should always have a back up of your registry before making any changes. Click here for more information on backing up your registry.