Internet Explorer 11 Enterprise Mode

Q: How do I use the Internet Explorer 11 Enterprise Mode?

A: The new Internet Explorer 11 Enterprise Mode, which was introduced in Windows 8.1 Update 1, uses an improved legacy rendering engine to enhance the use of sites designed for Internet Explorer 8, in an enterprise environment. The feature works through a list of sites, which you define, that should run in Enterprise Mode. To create this list, download the Enterprise Mode Site List Manager tool. After you install the tool, launch it and add sites that should render in Enterprise Mode, as well as sites that should render in the default engine, as the following figure shows.

When you're done adding sites, use the File, Save to XML option to export the list to an XML file. The XML file needs to be available to clients via a URL; therefore, you should save the file to an accessible location.

Next, you must configure clients to use the Enterprise Mode, as follows:

Finally, you need to refresh Group Policy on the client machines, which will update the policy in the registry (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftInternet ExplorerMainEnterpriseMode for user level, or HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftInternet ExplorerMainEnterpriseMode for machine level). When you access a site in Internet Explorer that's configured as part of the legacy list, you'll see the Enterprise Mode icon next to the site name. If you click the icon, you'll see that Enterprise Mode is on, as the following figure illustrates.