Summary
- Windows 11 now shows a OneDrive ad in the Start menu, pestering you to back up to Microsoft's cloud.
- Microsoft increasingly sprinkles product ads across Windows, even adding in-OS subscription management.
- EU rules might force alternative cloud options, but outside it, OneDrive is pushed as the default.
You know that feeling you get where you're in a noisy environment for so long, you get used to it? Then you moved somewhere quiet, and you realise just how much noise you've been surrounded by over the past few minutes? That's how I felt when I moved from Windows to Linux a few months ago; once I had an OS that didn't pester me every so often, I realised just how spoiled I was using Linux.
So, when I check what's happening on the Windows front and see that Microsoft is, once again, adding more pester prompts to its Start menu, I feel bad for the people who have no choice but to use it. However, it's never too late to swap. Just saying.
5 quick changes that stop Windows 11 from spamming you with ads
You don't have to tolerate the ads
Windows 11 gets another ad in its Start menu for OneDrive
They're getting worryingly commonplace
As spotted by Windows Latest, Windows 11 has received another ad in its Start menu. Once a rarity, we've been seeing these ads appear within Windows 11 more and more, including outside of the Start menu. Most of the time, they advertise Microsoft's own products, encouraging the user to subscribe to one of its plans. It has even added the ability to manage subscriptions within Windows itself in recent months.
The newest ad appears when you open the Start menu, and displays a yellow box with the following text:
Action advised—back up your PC
We want to ensure that you always have access to your files, apps, settings, and passwords by backing them up in the cloud.
Windows Latest notes that if you click the "Continue" button underneath the warning, Microsoft will open up the OneDrive setup page. Windows Latest notes that it tested this ad in the US, so there's a chance that the EU's stricter rules may force Microsoft to show third-party cloud storage services alongside its own. However, at least for people outside the EU, OneDrive is all you're getting.
If these ads sound good to you and you want to learn more about how to back up your Windows PC using its built-in tools, we have a guide on how to use OneDrive on Windows 11 and the ways to maximize storage efficiency in OneDrive. However, if you're not a fan, you can always try switching from OneDrive to Proton Drive instead.