Excluded features
Windows 10 N includes the same functionality as other Windows 10 editions, except for Windows Media Player and related technologies. These technologies include, but are not limited to, the following features:
Windows Media Player user experience: Enables Windows Media Player features, such as the ability to play media files and audio CDs, manage media in a library, create a playlist, provide metadata (including album art) for media, create an audio CD, transfer music to a portable music player, and play streaming content from a website.
Windows Media Player ActiveX control: Exposes methods and properties to manipulate multimedia playback from a webpage or an application.
Windows Media Format: Provides support for the Advanced Systems Format (ASF) file container, the Windows Media audio and video codecs, basic network streaming capability, and digital rights management (DRM).
Windows Media DRM: Enables the secure delivery of protected content for playback on a computer, portable device, or network device.
Media sharing and Play To: Enables music, pictures, and videos on a networked computer to be shared with other computers and devices on the same network. Also enables computers to find those kinds of files on the network.
Media Foundation: Provides support for content protection, audio and video quality, and interoperability for DRM.
Windows Portable Devices (WPD) infrastructure: Communicates with attached media and storage devices that include devices that support the Media Transfer Protocol.
MPEG, WMA, AAC, FLAC, ALAC, AMR, and Dolby Digital audio codecs: Enable the playback of digital audio content, such as MP3, WMA, MPEG-2 audio, AAC audio, FLAC and ALAC audio, and AC-3 audio.
VC-1, MPEG-4, and H.264, H.265, and H.263 codecs: Collectively known as "Standards-based codec components." Enable Windows 10 program such as Windows Media Player to support activities that include the playback and recording of multimedia files that are encoded with standards-based codecs.
Groove Music: A preinstalled app that's used to play digital music.
Video: A preinstalled app that's used to play digital video.
Voice Recorder: A preinstalled app that's used to record sounds.
Skype: A preinstalled app that's used for messaging and communications.
Effects on other features
Some features aren't excluded directly from Windows 10 N edition, but they are affected by the media technology exclusions. These features include the following:
- Application Sync: This feature doesn't work.
- OneDrive and Photos: These applications cannot play videos.
- Xbox: Some functionality that's associated with this application, such as Game DVR, doesn't work.
- HomeGroup: Integrated media sharing through streaming features doesn't work.
- Webcam: This feature doesn't work.
- Windows Portable Devices: There is no support for media synchronization, image acquisition, or file browsing.
- Windows 10 camera devices: Cameras that use the picture transfer protocol (PTP) don't work.
- Sound Recorder: Recordings are limited to WAV format.
- Alarms and clock: Alarm and timer sounds don't play.
- Group Policy for removable disks: This feature is not available in the N edition of Windows 10 Pro.
- Cortana Personal Assistant: Speech interaction with Cortana doesn't work.
- Windows Store Media Content: Audio and video content that was obtained through the Store cannot be played. Also, the preview of audio or video content in the Store doesn't work.
- Wireless Display: This feature doesn't work.
- PDF Viewing in Edge: This feature doesn't work.
- Windows Hello: This feature doesn't work.