Windows 11 Recall Toggle Greyed Out on Copilot Plus PC: Fix

If you own a Copilot Plus PC and try to enable the Recall feature in Windows 11, you may find the toggle switch is greyed out and cannot be clicked. This problem occurs when the system detects that your device lacks the required hardware or software prerequisites for Recall to run. The most common cause is that the NPU driver, the Windows AI component, or a Group Policy restriction is blocking the feature. This article explains why the toggle becomes disabled and provides a series of targeted fixes to restore the Recall toggle.

Why the Recall Toggle Is Greyed Out on Copilot Plus PCs

Recall is a Windows 11 feature exclusive to Copilot Plus PCs that uses the onboard Neural Processing Unit to take snapshots of your screen and make them searchable via natural language. The toggle under Settings > Privacy & security > Recall & snapshots is greyed out when the system cannot verify that all prerequisites are met.

The root cause is almost always one of these three conditions:

• Missing or outdated NPU driver. The NPU driver must be version 10.0.26100.1 or newer. If the driver is missing or older, Windows disables the toggle.
• Windows AI component not installed. Recall depends on the Windows AI platform, which is delivered via an optional update from Windows Update. Without this component, the toggle remains greyed out.
• Group Policy blocks the feature. In enterprise or managed environments, an administrator may have enabled the “Turn off Recall” policy, which greys out the toggle for all users.

Steps to Enable the Recall Toggle on a Copilot Plus PC

Follow these steps in order. After each step, restart your PC and check the toggle in Settings. If the toggle remains greyed out, proceed to the next step.

Step 1: Install the Latest NPU Driver

1. Open Device Manager
   Press Win + X and select Device Manager from the menu.
2. Expand System devices
   Scroll down and expand the System devices category. Look for an entry named Qualcomm(R) Snapdragon(R) X Elite NPU or similar.
3. Check the driver version
   Right-click the NPU entry and select Properties. Go to the Driver tab and note the Driver Version. If it is older than 10.0.26100.1, you need to update it.
4. Update the driver
   Click Update Driver, then select Search automatically for drivers. If Windows does not find a newer version, download the latest NPU driver from your PC manufacturer’s support website.
5. Restart your PC
   After the driver installs, restart your computer. Then open Settings and check the Recall toggle.

Step 2: Install the Windows AI Component

1. Open Windows Update
   Go to Settings > Windows Update and click Check for updates.
2. Install all available updates
   Windows Update will offer a set of updates labeled Windows AI or Windows AI Platform. These are optional updates that must be manually selected.
3. Select and install the optional update
   Click Advanced options > Optional updates. Check the box next to any update that includes “AI” in its name. Click Download and install.
4. Restart your PC
   After installation, restart. Then verify the toggle in Settings.

Step 3: Check Group Policy for Recall

1. Open Local Group Policy Editor
   Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter. This tool is only available in Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, or Education editions.
2. Navigate to the Recall policy
   Go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows AI. Double-click Turn off Recall.
3. Set the policy to Not Configured or Disabled
   If the policy is set to Enabled, select Not Configured or Disabled. Click Apply and then OK.
4. Update policy settings
   Open a Command Prompt as Administrator and run gpupdate /force. Restart your PC.

Step 4: Reinstall the NPU Driver

1. Uninstall the NPU driver
   In Device Manager, right-click the NPU entry and select Uninstall device. Check the box Delete the driver software for this device and confirm.
2. Restart your PC
   Windows will automatically reinstall the NPU driver during boot. After restart, check the toggle.

If the Recall Toggle Still Does Not Work

“Recall toggle is greyed out after installing all updates”

If you have installed the NPU driver, the Windows AI component, and verified Group Policy, but the toggle remains greyed out, the issue may be a corrupted user profile. Create a new local user account and test the toggle there. To create a new account, go to Settings > Accounts > Other users > Add account and follow the prompts. If the toggle works under the new account, migrate your data to that account.

“Recall toggle is greyed out on a Copilot Plus PC that previously had it working”

If Recall was working and then stopped, a Windows update may have replaced the NPU driver with a generic version. Reinstall the NPU driver from your PC manufacturer’s website as described in Step 4. Also check that the Windows AI component was not removed by a cumulative update. Reinstall the optional AI update from Windows Update.

Recall Toggle Greyed Out vs Recall Not Saving Snapshots: Key Differences

Item	Toggle Greyed Out	Toggle On but Snapshots Not Saving
Description	The toggle switch cannot be clicked or changed from Off	The toggle is On but no snapshots appear in the timeline
Primary cause	Missing NPU driver, missing Windows AI component, or Group Policy block	Storage space full, snapshot folder corrupted, or Recall service stopped
Fix	Update NPU driver, install Windows AI optional update, or disable Group Policy	Free up disk space, reset the snapshot folder, or restart the Recall service

The greyed-out toggle is a hardware or policy gate, while a working toggle with no snapshots is a runtime issue. Always resolve the greyed-out toggle first before troubleshooting snapshot saving.

You can now identify why the Recall toggle is greyed out on your Copilot Plus PC and apply the correct fix. Start by updating the NPU driver and installing the Windows AI optional update from Windows Update. If you manage multiple devices, use Group Policy to verify that the Turn off Recall policy is not enabled across your organization.