There are two options: At work or school or for personal use at home. When you choose Work or school, Windows 11 select a private network profile. If you select at home, a public network profile is chosen. The same thing happens when you’re connecting to a new network, Windows prompts you to select what kind of network you want to use. Two options are given again: Private or Public. Based on these selections, Windows uses this setting to secure a Windows PC and share permissions. In a Private network, devices on the same network can see each other and can also share files and printers. A private network is a trusted network and should be used at home or work. In a Public network, devices cannot see or communicate with each other, and should mostly be used on public networks like at the airport, and coffee shops with public Wi-Fi hotspots. Well, your connection doesn’t have to always be set to private or public mode. If you can configure the private or public connection for your devices, and the steps below show you how to do that. When you want to change your device network profile, follow the steps below:
How to switch network profile from public to private in Windows 11
Windows determines which network profile to use when you connect to a new network or when setting up your PC for the first time. You don’t always have to stay with the current network profile chosen for you. Below is how to change it. Windows 11 has a centralized location for the majority of its settings. From system configurations to creating new users and updating Windows, all can be done from the System Settings pane. To get to System Settings, you can use the Windows key + I shortcut or click on Start ==> Settings as shown in the image below: Alternatively, you can use the search box on the taskbar and search for Settings. Then select to open it. Windows Settings pane should look similar to the image below. In Windows Settings, click Network & internet, and select Wi-Fi or Ethernet on the right pane of your screen shown in the image below. Each adapter can be set to either public or private. Click either Wi-Fi or Ethernet (Wired), then select the profile which fits it. The default is Public (Recommended). As we mentioned above, a Public profile is suitable for public spaces and not intended at home or work. The profile you select for the adapter will automatically go into effect. In some cases, you’ll have to reboot for the settings to fully apply. Do the same for the Wi-Fi connection if you want to configure that as well. When you’re done, exit the setting pane. That’s it! Conclusion: This post showed you how to set up network profiles in Windows 11. If you find any error above, please use the comment form below to report.
