Internet Explorer's deep integration with Windows makes complete removal technically impossible, but we can effectively disable it through Group Policy while deploying Chrome Enterprise for organizational use.

First, create a new Group Policy Object in your domain controller:

# Create GPO
New-GPO -Name "BrowserRestrictionPolicy" -Comment "Enforces Chrome as default browser"

Navigate to:

Computer Configuration 
-> Policies 
-> Administrative Templates 
-> Windows Components 
-> Internet Explorer

Enable these policies:

1. "Disable Internet Explorer" = Enabled
2. "Prevent running first-run wizard" = Enabled
3. "Turn off the Internet Explorer Help Menu" = Enabled

Use the Chrome ADMX templates for centralized management:

1. Copy chrome.admx to PolicyDefinitions folder
2. Configure:
   - Default browser setting enforcement
   - Home page URL
   - Extension whitelisting

For additional restrictions, implement these registry keys:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Restrictions]
"NoBrowserOptions"=dword:00000001
"NoBrowserSaveAs"=dword:00000001

After deployment, verify through:

gpresult /h gpreport.html
Get-GPOReport -Name "BrowserRestrictionPolicy" -ReportType Html -Path policyreport.html

For legacy applications that require IE:

1. Configure Chrome's IE Mode policies
2. Set up site-specific compatibility lists
3. Consider application virtualization for critical cases

Remember that complete IE removal isn't recommended due to system dependencies, but these measures will effectively make Chrome the only usable browser for end users.

As IT administrators in Windows domain environments often discover, Internet Explorer remains deeply integrated with the OS despite Microsoft's official retirement announcement. This creates security and compatibility concerns when organizations want to standardize on modern browsers like Chrome.

Here's a step-by-step approach to completely disable IE and enforce Chrome:

# Sample GPO settings to disable IE
User Configuration → Administrative Templates → Windows Components → Internet Explorer
→ "Turn off Internet Explorer" → Enabled

# Set Chrome as default via XML file
<DefaultAssociations>
  <Association Identifier=".htm" ProgId="ChromeHTML" ApplicationName="Google Chrome"/>
  <Association Identifier=".html" ProgId="ChromeHTML" ApplicationName="Google Chrome"/>
  <Association Identifier="http" ProgId="ChromeHTML" ApplicationName="Google Chrome"/>
  <Association Identifier="https" ProgId="ChromeHTML" ApplicationName="Google Chrome"/>
</DefaultAssociations>

For additional hardening, implement these registry modifications through Group Policy Preferences:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings]
"Security_HKLM_only"=dword:00000001
"Security_options_edit"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Restrictions]
"NoBrowserOptions"=dword:00000001
"NoTheaterMode"=dword:00000001

• Test in a pilot OU before domain-wide deployment
• Combine with Chrome Enterprise MSI deployment
• Monitor Event Viewer logs for policy application errors
• Consider legacy web apps that might require IE mode in Chrome

Use this PowerShell script to verify IE disablement:

$ieStatus = Get-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Active Setup\Installed Components\{89820200-ECBD-11cf-8B85-00AA005B4383}" -Name "IsInstalled" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

if ($ieStatus.IsInstalled -eq 1) {
    Write-Host "IE is still enabled - GPO not applied properly"
    exit 1
} else {
    Write-Host "IE successfully disabled"
    exit 0
}