How to Disable Delete Browser History in Internet Explorer

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Do people who use your computer seem to have a tendency of deleting their browsing history so that you cannot see what they have been up to? This article will walk you through disabling their ability to clear the history in Internet Explorer.

Steps

1. Open the Group Policy Editor. This is where the options to disable various features of Internet Explorer reside, as well as a number of other options that affect the workings of Windows.
   
   1. Click on your start button on the task bar at the bottom of your screen.
      
   2. Select Run... from the Start Menu.
      
   3. In the "Open:" box type gpedit.msc.
      
   4. Click OK to open the Group Policy Editor.
      
   
   
2. Select User Configuration on the left hand side of the resulting window.
   
3. Double-click on Administrative Templates on the right hand section of the window.
   
4. Double-click, this time on Windows Components.
   
5. Double-click on Internet Explorer.
   
6. In the resulting list of options locate and select Disable changing Temporary Internet files settings.
   
   1. Right-click the item and choose Properties;
      
   2. On the Properties pane, select Enable and click OK;
      
   
   
7. Locate and select Disable changing history settings;
   
   1. Right-click the item and choose Properties;
      
   2. On the Properties pane select Enabled and click on OK;
      
   
   
8. Exit the Group Policy Editor. People who use the computer will no longer be able to clear their internet history in Internet Explorer.
   

Tips

• Set the individuals you are attempting to monitor as regular users on the computer - any administrator will be able to open gpedit.msc and undo your changes.
  
• Ensure that there are no other browsers installed on the computer, as they might be used to circumvent your settings.
  
• Ensure that no one in your house knows how to boot the computer to a USB pen drive or Linux Live CD.
  

Warnings

• These settings will not affect browsers other than Internet Explorer, such as Firefox or Google Chrome.
  
• Clearing your history through the browser is not a fail-safe method. Your history is still stored inside internal windows files and can be retrieved with a little bit of scripting. Deleting the file "index.dat" located in C:\Documents and Settings\\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\ is the only real way to completely remove your internet history.
  
• Always be up front with whoever you allow onto your computer. If you don't trust someone, don't let them use your computer.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Login to Windows XP as the Administrator
  
• How to Restrict Web Browsing Using Internet Explorer
  
• How to Be Safe on the Internet
  
• How to Remove a Website From the Restricted Site List in Internet Explorer
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Disable Delete Browser History in Internet Explorer. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.