Blog · November 2, 2026

Copilot Actions on Windows 11: What It Can Do and How to Control It

Copilot Actions is an experimental feature of the Copilot app on Windows 11 that lets Copilot carry out tasks on your PC, such as organizing files or pulling information out of a PDF, by working in apps in a separate agent workspace. Microsoft describes it as a preview for Windows Insiders in Copilot Labs. It only works when an administrator turns on Experimental agentic features in Settings > System > AI components, and that setting is off by default.

What is Copilot Actions?

Copilot Actions is Microsoft’s name for Copilot taking real actions for you instead of only answering. Microsoft first announced it on the web, where its examples include booking a table at a restaurant or ordering groceries. On Windows 11, Microsoft is previewing a mode that goes beyond the browser and works directly with local files.

Microsoft’s Windows Insider Blog calls it "a general-purpose agent". You describe the task in your own words, and the agent "will attempt to complete it by interacting with desktop and web applications in a contained environment separate from the interactive user session – like a separate desktop instance just for Copilot."

If you are new to the idea, our guide What Is Agentic AI? explains how an agent differs from a chatbot.

What can Copilot Actions do on Windows 11?

The examples Microsoft gives are everyday file chores:

sorting through recent vacation photos
organizing your Downloads folder
converting files
extracting information from a PDF

To start a task, Microsoft says you choose Take Action from the drop-down in the Copilot composer. You can give it specific material with Attach file or Attach folder from the + button. Copilot then takes a few moments to create a desktop for the agent before it starts working.

Microsoft is clear that this is early. It says Copilot Actions "may make mistakes or encounter challenges with complex interfaces" and asks people to "monitor their work closely." It is also starting with "a narrow set of use cases."

Who can use it right now?

As of Microsoft’s documentation checked on November 2, 2026:

Copilot Actions is described as a preview for Windows Insiders in Copilot Labs.
It came with Copilot app version 1.25112.74 and higher, rolling out through the Microsoft Store across all Insider channels.
Microsoft says it is rolling out gradually to Insiders worldwide, excluding the EEA, so not every Insider has it.

If your PC isn’t in the Windows Insider Program, you most likely won’t see it yet. Microsoft can change this as the preview moves along, so check its support page for the latest status.

How Copilot Actions works: agent account and agent workspace

Copilot Actions relies on a Windows 11 setting called Experimental agentic features. Microsoft says this setting "has no AI capabilities on its own". It is a security feature that lets Windows create two things:

An agent account. A separate standard account the agent uses when it acts for you. Microsoft says the apps and actions driven by Copilot Actions run under this agent account, not under your own account, so the agent’s work is kept apart from yours.
An agent workspace. A contained space where the agent works in parallel with you, with its own desktop. In this preview it runs in a separate Windows session, so you can keep using your PC while the agent works.

Our article on Windows 11 agentic AI covers this setting in more detail.

What can Copilot Actions access on your PC?

According to Microsoft:

Files. While it runs in the agent workspace, the agent can request access to six known folders in your user profile: Documents, Downloads, Desktop, Music, Pictures and Videos. Microsoft says Copilot Actions can reach data outside these folders only when you authorize it.
Shared folders. Agent accounts can reach any folder that all authenticated users can reach, such as the public user profile folders.
Apps. The agent can use the apps that are installed for all users by default. Microsoft suggests installing apps for specific users if you want to limit what the agent can open.

Microsoft also says that each agent has its own workspace and its own permissions, so what one agent can access does not automatically apply to another.

How to control Copilot Actions

You have several layers of control. Microsoft’s own documentation is the source for each.

1. Leave the main setting off, or turn it off

The Experimental agentic features setting is off by default, and only an administrator can turn it on. Once it is on, it applies to every user on the PC, including other administrators and standard users. To check it:

Sign in to Windows with an administrator account.
Open Settings > System > AI components.
Find Experimental agentic features and turn it off. Microsoft’s security documentation lists it under Agent tools on that page, so look there if you don’t see it straight away.

Microsoft says that to limit agents’ access to those six known folders, you turn this setting off.

2. Set file permissions per agent

On preview builds 26100.7344 and later, Microsoft says you can manage folder access for each agent separately. By default, Windows asks for your consent when an agent requests files in those folders. To change it:

Open Settings > System > AI components > Agents.
Select the agent from the list.
Go to the Files section and choose one option:
Allow Always: the agent can access the six known folders when it needs to.
Ask every time: Windows prompts you each time.
Never allow: Windows denies the request.

3. Watch, take over or stop a task

Microsoft says you can check on a task’s progress at any time, review what actions have been taken, and take over. Its security documentation adds that Copilot Actions "might request additional user approval" before sensitive actions or important decisions.

To fully stop Copilot Actions for now, Microsoft’s known-issues notes say to close any Copilot Actions conversations, or right-click Copilot in the system tray and select Quit.

4. Be careful what you attach

Only attach the files and folders a task really needs. Agents read what you give them, and Microsoft warns that agentic apps bring new risks such as cross-prompt injection, where content hidden in a document or on screen tries to override the agent’s instructions.

Known issues Microsoft lists

Microsoft’s support page currently lists a few issues on build 26220.7262 and later:

Windows will not sleep while Copilot has active conversations.
You may see "Someone else is still using this PC" when you shut down or restart, because of active Copilot Actions conversations.
Businesses using Endpoint Privilege Management may see leftover Intune profiles for the agent accounts in the Users folder. Microsoft says it is working on a fix.

For the first two, Microsoft’s workaround is the same: close the Copilot Actions conversations or quit Copilot from the tray.

Copilot Actions in a small office

If your team uses Windows Insider builds, a few simple rules help:

Decide who may turn the setting on. Only administrators can, so keep everyday accounts as standard users. Our AI agent policy guide shows how to write this down.
Pick a file permission. "Ask every time" keeps a person in the loop on each request.
Keep sensitive client files out of agent tasks until you have tested how the feature behaves.
Check each PC. The setting is per device, so one PC being off says nothing about the next.

Copilot Actions is only one kind of agent. Other AI agents install like ordinary apps or browser extensions and run with your own permissions. Our guide on how to tell if an AI agent is running covers how to look for them, and how to stop an AI agent on Windows 11 covers what to do next.

How PERCARIS helps

PERCARIS surfaces recognized AI-agent activity on your Windows computer and gives you a Stop control for agents you did not authorize. PERCARIS recognizes known AI tools. It doesn’t recognize all AI agents, only known ones.

You decide whether to press Stop. PERCARIS works alongside Windows’ own settings and your existing security tools, and each Windows PC is managed on its own. You can read more on how it works.

Plans cover 1, 5 or 25 PCs. For 26 or more PCs, contact support@percaris.com. See plans.

FAQ

What is Copilot Actions on Windows 11?

It is an experimental Copilot feature that carries out tasks on your PC, such as organizing files or extracting information from a PDF, by working in apps inside a separate agent workspace. Microsoft describes it as a preview for Windows Insiders in Copilot Labs.

Is Copilot Actions on by default?

No. It needs the Experimental agentic features setting, which Microsoft ships off by default. Only an administrator can turn it on, and once on it applies to every user on the PC.

How do I turn off Copilot Actions?

Sign in as an administrator, open Settings > System > AI components and turn off Experimental agentic features. To end a running task, close the Copilot Actions conversation or quit Copilot from the system tray.

What files can Copilot Actions access?

Microsoft says it can request access to six known folders: Documents, Downloads, Desktop, Music, Pictures and Videos, plus folders all users can reach. It reaches data outside those folders only when you authorize it. On newer preview builds you can set each agent to Allow Always, Ask every time or Never allow.

Does turning off agentic features remove the Copilot app?

No. Microsoft says the setting has no AI capabilities on its own. It controls the agent account and agent workspace. The Copilot app is separate; our guide on how to turn off Copilot on Windows 11 covers it.

Sources

Checked against each source on November 2, 2026. Copilot Actions is a preview, and Microsoft may change how it works, where its settings are and who can use it.

— The PERCARIS Team