Phone Link
Phone Link is the Windows app that connects a PC to a supported Android device or iPhone.
since 0.9.8.11
Purpose
Identifier: Microsoft.YourPhone
Setup Foundry removes this app package by default from existing user accounts and from provisioning for new accounts.
Phone Link is the Windows app that connects a PC to a supported Android device or iPhone. Its current Store name is Phone Link, while the underlying package retains the technical name Microsoft.YourPhone.
Available capabilities vary by mobile device, Windows release, and the permissions granted during pairing. They can include viewing and responding to messages, handling mobile notifications, making and receiving calls, and accessing contacts, call history, photos, files, or supported mobile apps from the PC. The Windows app works with Link to Windows on the mobile device; some iPhone capabilities use the Bluetooth connection.
Notes
Additional effects
Phone Link provides the PC interface for several cross-device experiences, including sending files to a linked Android device and, on supported hardware, cross-device clipboard or mobile-app access.
Current Windows 11 releases also provide mobile-device features through Windows Settings and File Explorer. Those experiences may rely on additional Windows components rather than solely on Microsoft.YourPhone. Removing this package therefore does not by itself establish that a phone will disappear from File Explorer, connected-device settings, or every other cross-device feature.
Privacy and security
Phone Link processes mobile content only after a device has been paired and the corresponding permissions have been granted. Depending on the enabled features, the exchanged information may include message contents—including authentication codes—notifications, contacts, call history, photos, files, clipboard data, and content from supported mobile apps. Microsoft advises using separate Windows accounts when several people share a PC, so that each user's Phone Link data remains separated.
If location access is enabled for Link to Windows, the mobile component can provide the PC with the phone's GPS coordinates and nearby Wi-Fi or cellular-tower data. Microsoft states that this location information is de-identified before upload and used to improve Windows location accuracy.
Removing the Windows package stops this app from synchronizing or presenting mobile content on the PC. It does not delete information held on the phone, cloud backups, or files that were previously copied to ordinary PC folders. Package removal also does not necessarily unlink the device from the Microsoft account, Windows mobile-device settings, or the Link to Windows app.
Effects of the change
Phone Link is no longer installed and cannot be launched from Start or from Windows surfaces that refer specifically to the app. Users consequently lose its PC interface for calls, text messages, notifications, mobile apps, and the other Phone Link capabilities supported by their device. Sharing or handoff actions that specifically require Phone Link are unavailable as well.
Link to Windows remains installed on the mobile device. Existing account or device associations may also remain visible because fully removing a linked device is a separate operation spanning Phone Link, Windows settings, and the mobile app.
Removing the provisioned package means that Windows does not install this copy of Phone Link automatically for user profiles created later. Phone Link can be obtained again from Microsoft Store if Microsoft continues to offer it for the device and region. Reinstallation may require the user to sign in, pair the devices again, and grant the relevant mobile permissions.
Notes
Microsoft classifies Phone Link as deeply integrated with Windows 10 and Windows 11 and does not offer normal uninstallation through the standard Windows interface. Setup Foundry's package removal therefore goes beyond that interface. It does not, merely because they provide related functionality, remove separate cross-device packages or Windows components.
Microsoft documentation
Microsoft Support: Phone Link requirements and setup
Microsoft Support: Remove your mobile device from Phone Link, Link to Windows, and Windows Settings