Microsoft has opted for Edge Chromium, deprecating Internet Explorer in recent versions of Windows 10. Packed with lots of great new features, the new browser also includes a compatibility mode for the Trident MSHTML engine from Internet Explorer 11.IE Mode‘, the feature helps load old websites and supports legacy apps that haven’t been updated to work with Chromium-based software (or other newer browsers). Today we will show you how to enable or enable IE Mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium via in-app settings and Windows Group Policy Editor for better compatibility with legacy apps and services.
Enable IE Mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium
Largely aimed at businesses that still run applications and intranet sites written for Internet Explorer, IE Mode is available in both legacy Edge based on the EdgeHTML engine and Edge Chromium, which launched on Windows 10 early last year. Expanding to other desktop and mobile platforms. However, since the old Edge itself has been deprecated, our tutorial will only deal with Edge Chromium. Without further delay, let’s check out how you can enable or disable IE Mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium on your Windows 10 PC.
What is IE Mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium?
IE (Internet Explorer) Mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium is a compatibility mode that helps the browser to render legacy sites and web pages written for Internet Explorer. It also enables corporate users to use all the sites their organizations need in a single browser.
IE Mode uses the integrated Chromium engine for modern sites and the Trident MSHTML engine from Internet Explorer 11 (IE11) for legacy sites. As part of the functionality, only the sites you have specifically configured (via policy) will use IE mode, while all other sites will be created using the new engine.
Method 1: Using In-App Settings
You can easily enable IE Mode (Internet Explorer mode) in Microsoft Edge Chromium using in-app settings in a few simple steps. Here’s how to do it:
1. Open MS Edge Chromium in full screen mode and ‘More’ button (three dots) in the upper right corner. In the drop-down menu, click on Settings.
2. Now select Default Browser in the left pane. Unless you’re in full-screen mode, the option may be hidden behind a hamburger menu (three small parallel horizontal lines) in the top left.
3. Under ‘Internet Explorer compatibility’ in the right pane, turn on ‘Allow sites to reload in Internet Explorer mode’. Also, make sure that the ‘Allow Internet Explorer to open sites in Microsoft Edge’ drop-down menu keeps the default option. Incompatible sites only. Restart the browser for the change to take effect.
4. To open a web page in IE mode, load the target page. Now click on the overflow menu in the top right, hover over Other Tools and click on Reinstall in Internet Explorer mode.
5. When a site is loaded in IE mode, the IE logo indicator is displayed on the left side of the navigation bar. You can click on the logo for additional information.
Method 2: Using the Local Group Policy Editor
You can also enable IE Mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium with Group Policy. But to do this, you need to download the policy template from the official Microsoft website. Here’s how to do this:
1. Download the policy template from the ‘Microsoft Edge for Business’ website (Free). Make sure you click ‘.Get Policy File‘ link instead of the blue Download button.
Note: To download the file, you need to enter your Edge version, build, and platform details. You can check these details by going to the Settings menu as described above and then clicking ‘About Microsoft Edge’ in the left pane..
2. After downloading the zip file, extract its contents. Now go to the extracted folder and windows > admx. Here, scroll down and copy msedge.admx and msedgeupdate.admx folders C:\Windows\PolicyDefinitions\. Grant admin permission and click To continue when asked.
Note: If you don’t already have file archiving software on your computer, download WINRAR (Free) to start.
3. Then copy all *.adml from your language folder (eg “en-US” for US English, “fr-FR” for French, “ja-JP” for Japanese, etc.) C:\Windows\PolicyDefinitions\
4. Now open the Local Group Policy Editor using the Local Group Policy Editor. Run dialog (Windows key + R). in summer gpedit.msc and shoot Entrance or click on OK.
Note: Group Policy Editor is only available in Professional and Enterprise editions of Windows 10. Not available on Windows 10 Home..
5. In the Group Policy Editor, navigate to: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Microsoft Edge in the left pane. Then in the right pane find: Configure Internet Explorer configuration.
6. Double click the IE configuration option and in the popup window first set the option to: activated [1] As shown below. Then use the dropdown menu [2] ‘ to selectInternet Explorer Mode‘. click OK [3] To save your settings
7. Now navigate to: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Internet Explorer. In the right pane, find ‘Use Enterprise Mode IE website list’.
8. First, activation this option [1] as previously described. Then set the path to your XML site list [2], as a URL, or as a UNC if you’re using a local XML file. Finally, hit OK [3] Click below to save your changes.
Note: If you don’t have Enterprise Mode site list, download Enterprise Mode Site List Manger v2 from Microsoft (Free). Be sure to specify your language before downloading..
Enable IE Mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium for Compatibility with Legacy Apps and Websites
The above guide works for KB4503293 or later and KB4501375 or later or KB4509479 or later with v1809, Microsoft Edge Chromium v77.0.223 or later (the latest version is Edge 88) on Windows 10 v1903. After enabling IE mode, you will be able to run old websites and intranet pages while loading newer websites using Chromium.
So go ahead, enable IE mode in Microsoft Edge Chromium and see if you can make the modern browser work better with sites and apps that need legacy engine. Meanwhile, Microsoft has also launched a Kids Mode in Edge Chromium to improve online safety for kids. Click the link to check how you can enable this feature.
