How to Stop Network Sharing on Windows 10 & 11

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Easy steps to stop sharing folders, files, & more on Windows

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: June 17, 2026 Fact Checked

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• Disable Network Sharing (Windows 11)
|
• Disable Network Sharing (Windows 10)
|
• Stop Sharing Folders
|
• Disable Internet Connection Sharing
|
• Disable Mobile Hotspot
|
• Video

|Show more |Show less

This wikiHow guide will teach you how to stop sharing folders, files, and your internet connection over a network on your Windows PC. To turn off file and folder sharing, you'll just need to make a quick change in Network and Sharing Center (Windows 10) or Settings (Windows 11). It's just as easy to turn off internet connection sharing, as well as disabling your mobile hotspot if you're sharing your connection over Wi-Fi.

How to Stop Network Sharing on Windows

• Turn off network sharing (Win 11): Go to Settings > Network & internet > Advanced network settings > Advanced sharing settings, and turn off "File and printer sharing" for all profiles.
• Turn off network sharing (Win 10): Go to Settings > Network & internet > Network and Sharing Center > Change advanced sharing settings, and choose "Turn off file and printer sharing" for all profiles.
• Stop sharing folders: Right-click a folder, go to Properties > Sharing > Advanced Sharing, and uncheck "Share this folder."

Steps

Method 1

Method 1 of 5:

Turn Off Network Sharing (Windows 11)

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1. 
   1
   Open your Windows Settings. You can do this quickly by pressing Windows key + I, or by clicking the Settings gear in your Start menu.

   • If you don't want to disable network sharing altogether but do want to stop sharing one or more folders, jump to Stop Sharing Folders instead.
2. 
   2
   Click Network & internet. You'll see this in the left panel.
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3. 
   3
   Click Advanced network settings. It's the last option in the right panel.
4. 
   4
   Click Advanced sharing settings. This option is in the "More settings" section below the list of network adapters.
5. 
   5
   Select a network profile (Public or Private). The profile you're using now will be selected by default. If you want to turn off network file sharing for the current connection, just skip to the next step. Otherwise, you can enable or disable file sharing for Private networks (such as on your home network), Public networks (at school or in a café), or All networks.
6. 
   6
   Toggle off "File and printer sharing"

   

   . Once the switch turns gray or white, you'll no longer be sharing files or your network printer with other devices on your network.

   • If you don't want other devices on the network to be able to see your PC, you can also click the switch next to "Network discovery" to disable it.
   • Just to be safe, expand the other profiles (Public, All, etc.) to see if you've set up sharing there. If so, toggle off "File and printer sharing" for all of them.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 5:

Turn Off Network Sharing (Windows 10)

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1. 
   1
   Open your Windows Settings. If you want to turn off file and printer sharing altogether, you can do so from settings. Press Windows key + i to open your Settings, or click Settings in the Start menu.

   • If you don't want to disable network sharing altogether but do want to stop sharing one or more folders, jump to Stop Sharing Folders instead.
2. 
   2
   Click Network & internet. This opens your network settings.
3. 
   3
   Click Network and Sharing Center. You'll see this near the bottom of the right panel.
4. 
   4
   Click Change advanced sharing settings. It's the third link from the top of the left panel.
5. 
   5
   Expand the "Public," "Private," and "All" panels. You can do this by clicking the small arrow to the right of each of the 3 sections. This will show you whether you're set up to share files and printers over any of these profiles, as well as whether your computer is visible to others. .
6. 
   6
   Select "Turn off file and printer sharing" for each profile. Clicking the radio button next to this option disables file network sharing for the network profile.

   • If you don't want other devices on the network to see your computer when you're connected, you can also click the radio button next to "Turn off network discovery."
7. 
   7
   Click Save changes. If prompted, click Yes to confirm.
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Method 3

Method 3 of 5:

Stop Sharing Folders

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1. 
   1
   Open File Explorer. If you are sharing folders over the network, it's easy to stop sharing them at any time. The easiest way to do so is from within File Explorer.

   • You can use this method to stop sharing folders on Windows 10 and 11.
2. 
   2
   Type \\localhost into the address bar and press ↵ Enter. The address bar is at the top of File Explorer. When you press Enter, you'll see a list of all active shared drives and folders from this computer.
3. 
   3
   Right-click a folder and click Properties. Do this on any folder you want to stop sharing over the network.
4. 
   4
   Click the Sharing tab.
5. 
   5
   Click the Advanced Sharing… button. Your sharing settings for the selected folder will appear.
6. 
   6
   Uncheck "Share this folder" and click OK. The folder is no longer shared.

   • Repeat for any other folders you want to stop sharing.
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Method 4

Method 4 of 5:

Stop Sharing Your Internet Connection

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1. 
   1
   Open the Control Panel. This method will teach you how to stop sharing your PC's network connection with other users. To open Control Panel:

   • Press Windows key + S.
   • Type control panel.
   • Click Control Panel in the search results.
   • If you're using Windows 11, you should only use this method if you're sharing your internet connection using an Ethernet cable. If you're sharing your connection over Wi-Fi, see this method instead.
2. 
   2
   Click Network and Internet. If you don't see this option, click the menu at the top-right and select Category. You'll see it then.
3. 
   3
   Click Network and Sharing Center.

   • You'll see your current connection under the “View your active networks” header at the top of the main panel. Remember the name of the connection, as you'll need it in a moment.
4. 
   4
   Click Change adapter settings. It's the second link from the top of the left column. This opens a list of your saved network connections.
5. 
   5
   Right-click your current connection and select Properties. Look for the adapter name that matches the one you noted a moment ago. Right-click it, then select Properties.
6. 
   6
   Click the Sharing tab. It's near the top of the dialog window.
7. 
   7
   Uncheck “Allow other network users to connect through this computer's internet connection.” Clicking the box once should remove the check mark.

   • If the box was already empty, you don't need to make any changes.
8. 
   8
   Click OK. It's at the bottom of the dialog window. Now that you've turned off connection sharing, nobody else on your network can connect to the internet through this computer's connection.
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Method 5

Method 5 of 5:

Turn Off Mobile Hotspot

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1. 
   1
   Open your Windows Settings. You can do this quickly by pressing Windows key + I, or by clicking the Settings gear in your Start menu.

   • If you created a W-Fi mobile hotspot to allow other devices to share your internet connection, use this method to turn off the hotspot.
2. 
   2
   Click Network & internet. It's in the left panel on Windows 11. On Windows 10, click the icon in the main panel.
3. 
   3
   Click Mobile hotspot. If you're using Windows 11, it's in the right panel. On Windows 10, it's on the left panel.
4. 
   4
   Toggle off "Mobile hotspot"

   

   . Once you turn off this switch, any devices sharing your internet connection will be disconnected.
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