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Remove certain Bluetooth devices from "Cast to Device" right-click menu

Anonymous
2023-06-29T22:18:50+00:00

First, let's clarify the topic we're talking about. By "Cast to Device", I mean this menu which appears any time I right-click on any eligible media file in Windows Explorer:

Here is a problem.

As you can see in the above image, there are devices called "HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio" and "Beats Solo^3". These devices were bluetooth headphones I have owned years ago, and I stopped using them for at least a year. I am very confident that either of these devices are located at least 5,000 miles away from my computer.

I have made the following effort to eliminate them:

  • Delete whatever such entry from "Settings" app ->"Devices"
  • Delete whatever such entry, either hidden or not, from "Device Manager" (devmgmt.msc)
  • Delete whatever such entry from "Control Panel" -> "Devices and Printers", and elsewhere if I can find them
  • Search for these names in "Registry Editor" and delete results where appropriate
  • Search for these names in the system drive, from text and non-text files, and delete results where appropriate
  • Search for these names in the system drive from text files, learn an association between device names and GUIDs, then search for these GUIDs in Registry Editor and delete results where appropriate
  • Search for binary encoded strings of these names from REG_BINARY records in Registry Editor
  • Clear caches and restart the computer.

At this point, I can not find any apparent trace of the existence of these devices on my computer, yet the Cast to Device menu still displays them. To the extent of my imagination, I have no idea what I should do next, other than recklessly decompiling %system32%\playtomenu.dll .

I would really, really appreciate it if you can give me any advice on how to remove those devices from the menu, without disabling the menu itself.

However, I do not welcome answers that ask me to run antivirus, check Windows update, use Windows troubleshooters, run sfc /scannow or dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth, or re-install the OS. If you are tempted to reply with one of these low-effort low-value template answers, please kindly don't.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Devices and drivers

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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  1. Anonymous
    2023-07-01T16:46:28+00:00

    Hello SaltfishAmi,

    Good to see you in Microsoft Community.

    To remove the names of connected devices in the "Cast to Device" option in the Windows right-click menu, you can follow these steps:

    1. Press Win + R to open the Run dialog box, type "regedit" and click "OK" to open the Registry Editor.
    2. Navigate to the following registry path: 
       HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Discardable\PostSetup\Shell\Cast To Device
    3. Under the "Cast To Device" key, you will see multiple subkeys, each corresponding to a connected device.
    4. Identify and delete the device keys you want to remove:
    5. Click on each subkey and look at its Name data to find the device keys you want to delete.
    6. Right-click on the device key and select "Delete."
    7. Repeat step 4 until you have deleted all the unwanted device keys.
    8. Close the Registry Editor.

    Now, you have successfully removed the names of connected devices in the "Cast to Device" option in the Windows right-click menu.

    Disclaimer*: Generally, modifying registry subkeys or workgroups is intended for advanced users, administrators, and IT Professionals. It can help fix some problems,* h owever, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For further protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click How to back up and restore the registry in Windows (microsoft.com) to view the article.

    If anything is unclear, please do not hesitate to let me know.

    Best Regards,

    Mosken_L - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

    Thanks for the reply.

    On my computer, under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Discardable\PostSetup, there was no key named Shell.

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  2. Anonymous
    2023-06-30T06:26:38+00:00

    Hello SaltfishAmi,

    Good to see you in Microsoft Community.

    To remove the names of connected devices in the "Cast to Device" option in the Windows right-click menu, you can follow these steps:

    1. Press Win + R to open the Run dialog box, type "regedit" and click "OK" to open the Registry Editor.
    2. Navigate to the following registry path: 
       HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Discardable\PostSetup\Shell\Cast To Device
    3. Under the "Cast To Device" key, you will see multiple subkeys, each corresponding to a connected device.
    4. Identify and delete the device keys you want to remove:
    5. Click on each subkey and look at its Name data to find the device keys you want to delete.
    6. Right-click on the device key and select "Delete."
    7. Repeat step 4 until you have deleted all the unwanted device keys.
    8. Close the Registry Editor.

    Now, you have successfully removed the names of connected devices in the "Cast to Device" option in the Windows right-click menu.

    Disclaimer*: Generally, modifying registry subkeys or workgroups is intended for advanced users, administrators, and IT Professionals. It can help fix some problems,* h owever, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For further protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click How to back up and restore the registry in Windows (microsoft.com) to view the article.

    If anything is unclear, please do not hesitate to let me know.

    Best Regards,

    Mosken_L - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

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  3. Anonymous
    2024-01-10T11:44:54+00:00

    It's not found in my Windows 11, every time I move the mouse over it it crashes any and every program!!

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  4. Anonymous
    2023-07-04T02:08:06+00:00

    Since "Cast to Device" is related to network sharing, you can try the following steps.

    1. Clear Network and Sharing Center Cache
      1. Press Win + X keys, then select "Control Panel".
      2. In the Control Panel, choose "Network and Internet".
      3. Click on "Network and Sharing Center".
      4. In the left navigation pane, click "Change adapter settings".
      5. Right-click on the current network connection and select "Disable." After a moment, right-click on it again and choose "Enable".
      6. Close the "Network and Sharing Center" window and try using the "Cast to Device" feature.
    2. Reset Network Settings
      1. Press Win + X keys, then select "Command Prompt (Admin)".
      2. In the Command Prompt window, type the following command and press Enter: 
         netsh winsock reset
      3. Wait for the command to complete, then restart your computer.
      4. After the restart, try using the "Cast to Device" feature.

    Thank you for the information.

    Neither of these solutions worked.

    For your information, both of the problematic devices are Bluetooth headphones and had no Wi-Fi connectivity.

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  5. Anonymous
    2023-07-04T01:52:10+00:00

    Since "Cast to Device" is related to network sharing, you can try the following steps.

    1. Clear Network and Sharing Center Cache
      1. Press Win + X keys, then select "Control Panel".
      2. In the Control Panel, choose "Network and Internet".
      3. Click on "Network and Sharing Center".
      4. In the left navigation pane, click "Change adapter settings".
      5. Right-click on the current network connection and select "Disable." After a moment, right-click on it again and choose "Enable".
      6. Close the "Network and Sharing Center" window and try using the "Cast to Device" feature.
    2. Reset Network Settings
      1. Press Win + X keys, then select "Command Prompt (Admin)".
      2. In the Command Prompt window, type the following command and press Enter: 
         netsh winsock reset
      3. Wait for the command to complete, then restart your computer.
      4. After the restart, try using the "Cast to Device" feature.

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