How to enable Find My Device on Windows
Why this matters
If your Windows laptop is lost or stolen, Find My Device lets you locate it on a map from any browser by signing in to your Microsoft account. Combined with BitLocker and a strong Windows Hello sign-in, an opportunistic thief gets a paperweight and you get either your laptop back or peace of mind about the data on it.
This is free, built into Windows, and takes three minutes to enable.
How to do it
- Open Settings → Privacy & Security → Find My Device.
- Toggle Find My Device to On.
- Make sure Location services is also on under Settings → Privacy & Security → Location (Find My Device needs it).
- You must be signed in with a Microsoft account, not a local account, for Find My Device to work. If you’re on a local account, the menu will tell you so.
- Verify by visiting account.microsoft.com/devices on your phone — your PC should appear.
What you don’t need
You don’t need a paid laptop-tracking service like Prey or Absolute. Microsoft’s built-in option covers the same use cases at no cost.
Verify it worked
Sign in to account.microsoft.com/devices on another device and confirm your PC appears under "Find my device".
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