How to delete OOBE recovery backups on Windows 11

• To delete OOBE recovery backups on Windows 11, open Settings > Accounts > Windows backup and turn off both “Remember my apps” and “Remember my preferences.”
• Then, from the Microsoft “Devices” page, click “Clear stored settings” to remove cloud backups.
• This clears saved preferences so they no longer appear during setup.

On Windows 11, you can delete the backups that show up during the Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE), and in this guide, I’ll outline the steps to complete this configuration.

When you go through the OOBE, the system may suggest restoring your computer from an existing backup, especially if you’re reinstalling Windows 11 on the same device. If you click “More options,” you may also find a list of other backups tied to your Microsoft account, even from different devices.

These backups appear because Windows 11 automatically enables the Windows Backup feature when you sign in with a Microsoft account. This includes options like “Remember my apps” and “Remember my preferences.” If you use OneDrive, it may also back up your files as part of this setup.

The only problem with this approach is that it doesn’t provide a clear interface to manage these backups. There’s no settings page on your setup or dashboard on your Microsoft account where you can delete or organize them. Over time, as you use the same Microsoft account across multiple devices, the list of backups grows, making it confusing and cluttered.

Related

How to backup Windows 11 to external USB drive

How to create a full backup to a network drive on Windows 11, 10

How to backup and restore files, apps, settings using OneDrive on Windows 11

Although you can’t remove these backups individually, since Microsoft doesn’t offer that level of control, there is a workaround. You can delete all backups at once. This lets you start fresh or disable the feature entirely if you prefer not to use it.

In this guide, I’ll explain exactly how to clean up your Windows 11 backups and take back control of your setup experience.

Remove old cloud recovery backups from OOBE on Windows 11

To delete the backups of your apps and settings (such as passwords, personalization, languages, and system configurations), follow these steps:

1. Open Settings on Windows 11.

2. Click on Accounts.

3. Click the Windows backup page.

4. Turn off the “Remember my apps” toggle switch.

5. Turn off the “Remember my preferences” toggle switch.

   

   Quick note: This option will disable backups for Easy of Access, accounts, wireless, passwords, personalization, language settings, and other settings for Windows 11.

6. Open the Devices page on your Microsoft account.

7. Click the “Clear stored settings” option under the “Cloud synced settings” section.

   

8. Click the Clear button.

   

9. Click the OK button.

Once you complete the steps, the backups stored in the cloud will be deleted from your account during the next backup schedule, and the next time you go through the Out-of-Box Experience, you won’t see a long list of confusing backups.

This is the OOBE experience with a list of backups.

These instructions won’t affect the files you’re storing in your OneDrive account.

Reconfigure cloud backup recovery for OOBE

If you don’t want to upload backups to the cloud or use this feature, you must keep the “Windows backup” settings disabled on every device. If you want to reset the feature, once you clear the data, you’ll have to turn on backup again with these steps:

1. Open Settings.

2. Click on Accounts.

3. Click the Windows backup page.

4. Turn on the “Remember my apps” toggle switch.

5. Turn on the “Remember my preferences” toggle switch.

   

After you complete the steps, the system will create a backup of your apps and settings to the cloud.