How to remove items from the new menu in windows file explorer
The New Item menu in File Explorer lets you create new files in the current folder, but you might not ever use some of the options. Here’s how to remove unwanted entries from the list.
You can access the New Item menu by clicking the “New item” button option when you’re in a File Explorer folder.
You can also access it by right-clicking an empty area in a folder and then pointing to the “New” option on the context menu that appears.
Some programs will add new file types to this menu automatically, which can clutter up the menu if you’re never likely to use them. To remove an entry, you need to go into the Windows Registry and delete an entry.
How to Clean Up Your Messy Windows Context Menu
Standard Warning: Registry Editor is a powerful tool and misusing it can render your system unstable or even inoperable. This is a pretty simple hack, and as long as you stick to the instructions, you shouldn’t have any problems. That said, if you’ve never worked with it before, consider reading about how to use the Registry Editor before you get started. And definitely back up the Registry (and your computer!) before making changes.
Open the Registry Editor by hitting Start and typing “regedit.” Press Enter to open Registry Editor and then permit it to make changes to your PC.
In the left sidebar of the Registry Editor will be a top-level key named HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.
All of the files types are stored in here. We’re going to remove the “Contact” file type from the New Item menu. Expand the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT key by clicking on the arrow next to it and then scroll down to find the file extension you want to remove from the New Item menu (in our case, this is “.contact” for a Contact file).
Expand that key, and you’ll see a subkey called “ShellNew.”
Right-click this key and click “Delete” on the context menu.
A confirmation message will appear. If you’re sure you want to remove the file type from the New Item menu, click “Yes.”
And that’s it. The file type—in this case, the Contact file type—is no longer in the New Item menu.
If you’ve deleted something incorrectly, you can add it back in, although you’ll need to create a template file first. This usually is as simple as creating a blank file and using that, but check out our guide for the full instructions.
Rob Woodgate is a writer and IT consultant with nearly 20 years of experience across the private and public sectors. He’s also worked as a trainer, technical support person, delivery manager, system administrator, and in other roles that involve getting people and technology to work together. Read more.
The New Item menu in File Explorer lets you create new files in the current folder, but you might not ever use some of the options. Here’s how to remove unwanted entries from the list.
You can access the New Item menu by clicking the “New item” button option when you’re in a File Explorer folder.
You can also access it by right-clicking an empty area in a folder and then pointing to the “New” option on the context menu that appears.
Some programs will add new file types to this menu automatically, which can clutter up the menu if you’re never likely to use them. To remove an entry, you need to go into the Windows Registry and delete an entry.
Standard Warning: Registry Editor is a powerful tool and misusing it can render your system unstable or even inoperable. This is a pretty simple hack, and as long as you stick to the instructions, you shouldn’t have any problems. That said, if you’ve never worked with it before, consider reading about how to use the Registry Editor before you get started. And definitely back up the Registry (and your computer!) before making changes.
Open the Registry Editor by hitting Start and typing “regedit.” Press Enter to open Registry Editor and then permit it to make changes to your PC.
In the left sidebar of the Registry Editor will be a top-level key named HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.
All of the files types are stored in here. We’re going to remove the “Contact” file type from the New Item menu. Expand the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT key by clicking on the arrow next to it and then scroll down to find the file extension you want to remove from the New Item menu (in our case, this is “.contact” for a Contact file).
Expand that key, and you’ll see a subkey called “ShellNew.”
Right-click this key and click “Delete” on the context menu.
A confirmation message will appear. If you’re sure you want to remove the file type from the New Item menu, click “Yes.”
And that’s it. The file type—in this case, the Contact file type—is no longer in the New Item menu.
If you’ve deleted something incorrectly, you can add it back in, although you’ll need to create a template file first. This usually is as simple as creating a blank file and using that, but check out our guide for the full instructions.
Lori Kaufman is a technology expert with 25 years of experience. She’s been a senior technical writer, worked as a programmer, and has even run her own multi-location business. Read more.
The New Item menu in File Explorer allows you to create a new item for a specific program in the currently open folder. You can add items to this menu for other programs not included on it.
You’ll see this menu both on File Explorer’s Home tab, and on the right-click menu for any given folder, as shown here:
Some programs add entries to the New Item menu automatically, and some don’t. To add an item to the New Item menu for a program not on the New Item menu, we will use a combination of the Windows’ ShellNew folder and the registry. We’ll show you using a GIMP (.xcf) file as an example, though this should work with many other file types.
Step One: Add a Template File to the ShellNew Folder
The first thing we need to do is to create a new file in the program we want to add to the menu. For example, we created a new file in GIMP and set the size of the image to the size we want new images to be by default. We saved our GIMP file as template.xcf .
You can’t save your file directly to Windows’ ShellNew folder, so save it somewhere in your Documents folder, and then copy and paste the file into the C:\Windows\ShellNew folder. Click “Continue” on the Destination Folder Access Denied dialog box to give Windows permission to copy the file to the folder.
The file is pasted into the ShellNew folder. You may see other files there that were added automatically when you installed other programs.
Step Two: Add Your Template File to the Registry
Now that our new file is in place, we’re going to add a key to the registry that will use that file to create new files in the program we’re adding to the New Item menu.
Standard warning: Registry Editor is a powerful tool and misusing it can render your system unstable or even inoperable. This is a pretty simple hack and as long as you stick to the instructions, you shouldn’t have any problems. That said, if you’ve never worked with it before, consider reading about how to use the Registry Editor before you get started. And definitely back up the Registry (and your computer!) before making changes.
Open the Registry Editor by hitting Search/Cortana and typing regedit . Click regedit under Best Match, or press Enter, to open the Registry Editor and give it permission to make changes to your PC.
In the Registry Editor, expand the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT key in the left sidebar.
Then, scroll down and look for the file extension that corresponds to the app you want to add to the New Item menu in File Explorer—in our case, .xcf for GIMP files. Right-click on the extension and go to New > Key.
Name the new key ShellNew .
Next, you’ll need to create a new value inside the ShellNew key. Right-click the ShellNew key and choose New > String Value.
Name the new string value FileName and then double-click on the new value.
Enter the name of the file you created into the “Value data” box and click the “OK” button.
Close the Registry Editor by going to File > Exit or clicking the “X” in the upper-right corner of the window.
To have this change take effect, you need to restart your PC, not just sign out and back in.
How to Use Your New Menu Item
Now you can create a new file of the type you added. Open File Explorer and navigate to the folder in which you want to create the new file. Then, click the “Home” tab.
In the New section on the Home tab, click the“New Item” button. You should see an option for the program you added on the drop-down menu. In our example, “GIMP image” was added to the menu. Select the new option to create a new file of that type.
You can also access the new option by right-clicking in the right pane in File Explorer and going to New > GIMP image (or the option for the program you added).
The new file you created is given a default name of “New” followed by the name of the option, but you can rename the file by selecting it and pressing F2.
To open the new file, simply double-click on it…
…and it opens in the associated program.
To remove an app from the New Item menu that you added, simply delete the ShellNew key in the registry under the appropriate extension under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.
NOTE: This procedure may not work for some programs, because not all programs support creating new files outside of the program. It worked for GIMP, but we also tested adding Snagit (.snag files) to the New Item menu and that did not work. You’ll have to experiment with programs you want to add. Don’t worry, though. If you try to add a program to the New Item menu and it doesn’t work, it won’t harm your system. You can simply delete the registry key you added and the file you added to the ShellNew folder.
The New Item menu in File Explorer allows you to build new files in the existing tab, but some of the options may not be used. In this article, we will guide you through the whole procedure to remove items in the Windows file explorer from the new menu.
Remove items in Windows file explorer from the new menu
These can be the items on the new menu.
To remove items in Windows file explorer from the new menu, follow this procedure step by step.
Click the Search button. Type Regedit in the search bar and choose the Regedit option as the following image is showing.
As soon as you will choose the Regedit option, the Registry Editor will open like this.
Navigate through the following path.
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT -> .contact -> ShellNew
Right click on the ShellNew option and choose the Delete option as highlighted in the above image. As soon as you will click the Delete option, the following alert will appear.
Click the Yes button, if you want to delete this type of item.
You are done with it. Now contact type item will not appear in the New Menu.
Conclusion
By following this procedure you will be able to remove items in Windows File Explorer from the New Menu. To delete any key make sure to know about it fully. If you will delete any key without knowing it, this can affect the operations of other applications.
The New Item menu in File Explorer lets you create new files in the current folder, but you might not ever use some of the options. Here’s how to remove unwanted entries from the list.
You can access the New Item menu by clicking the “New item” button option when you’re in a File Explorer folder.
You can also access it by right-clicking an empty area in a folder and then pointing to the “New” option on the context menu that appears.
Some programs will add new file types to this menu automatically, which can clutter up the menu if you’re never likely to use them. To remove an entry, you need to go into the Windows Registry and delete an entry.
How to Clean Up Your Messy Windows Context Menu
Standard Warning: Registry Editor is a powerful tool and misusing it can render your system unstable or even inoperable. This is a pretty simple hack, and as long as you stick to the instructions, you shouldn’t have any problems. That said, if you’ve never worked with it before, consider reading about how to use the Registry Editor before you get started. And definitely back up the Registry (and your computer!) before making changes.
Open the Registry Editor by hitting Start and typing “regedit.” Press Enter to open Registry Editor and then permit it to make changes to your PC.
In the left sidebar of the Registry Editor will be a top-level key named HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.
All of the files types are stored in here. We’re going to remove the “Contact” file type from the New Item menu. Expand the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT key by clicking on the arrow next to it and then scroll down to find the file extension you want to remove from the New Item menu (in our case, this is “.contact” for a Contact file).
Expand that key, and you’ll see a subkey called “ShellNew.”
Right-click this key and click “Delete” on the context menu.
A confirmation message will appear. If you’re sure you want to remove the file type from the New Item menu, click “Yes.”
And that’s it. The file type—in this case, the Contact file type—is no longer in the New Item menu.
If you’ve deleted something incorrectly, you can add it back in, although you’ll need to create a template file first. This usually is as simple as creating a blank file and using that, but check out our guide for the full instructions.
The Manage item in the context menu of the File Explorer opens the Computer Management tool window. This shortcut is pretty useful for users to open the Computer Management without searching for it in the Windows search feature. However, some shortcuts are not useful for all standard users. An administrator or a parent can hide this item from the context menu of the File Explorer. It will also hide the Manage icon from the File Explorer menu. This will not disable the Computer Management tool and users can still access the Computer Management through other methods. In this article, we will show you methods through which you can add or remove the Manage Item from the File Explorer.
Removing Manage from File Explorer Context Menu
The Group Policy Editor is not available on all versions of Windows 10; therefore, we have also included a Registry method that you can use to modify the same settings. The steps in the below methods will be focusing on removing the Manage item. We have included the adding step at the end of each method.
Method 1: Using the Local Group Policy Editor
The Group Policy is a Windows feature that contains different types of advanced settings for an operating system. The setting that we will be using in this method can be found under the User Configuration category. The Group Policy Editor is much easier to use compared to the Registry Editor. The user just needs to navigate to the setting and enable it.
Users that are using the Windows 10 Home edition can skip this method and move to method 2. However, if your system is equipped with the Group Policy Editor, then follow the below steps to configure the setting:
- Hold the Windows key and press R to open a Run dialog. Type “gpedit.msc” in the box and press the Enter to open the Local Group Policy Editor.
Opening the Group Policy Editor
- Now navigate to the following location in the Local Group Policy Editor.
Navigating to the setting
- Double-click on the setting named “Hide the Manage item on the File Explorer context menu” and that will open in another window. Now you need to change the toggle option from Not Configured to Enabled as shown in the below screenshot.
Enabling the setting
- Click on the Apply and Ok buttons to save the changes. Basically, the group policy will automatically update the new configurations. You just need to close and open the File Explorer if it was already opened.
- However, if it does not update automatically, then you need to force update it. Search for Command Prompt in the Windows search feature and run it as an administrator.
- Type the following command in Command Prompt (Admin) window and press Enter.
Force updating the Group Policy
- You can always add the Manage Item again by changing the toggle option to Not Configured or Disabled in step 3.
Method 2: Using the Registry Editor
The Windows Registry is another tool that can help in hiding the Manage Item on the File Explorer. If you have already used the Group Policy Editor method, then it will automatically update the key and value for the specific setting. However, if you are using this method directly, then you need to manually configure the key and value in Registry Editor. This setting can be configured in the Current User hive. The Windows Home users can also try this method since they don’t have Group Policy Editor on their operating system.
Note: We have also included a step for creating a Registry backup before making any new changes. You can skip that step if you don’t want to create any backup.
- Press the Windows + R key together to open a Run dialog box. Now type “regedit” and press the Enter key to open the Registry Editor. If prompted by the UAC (User Account Control) dialog, then click on the Yes button.
Opening the Registry Editor
- You can also create a Registry backup before making any new changes. Click on the File menu in the menu bar and choose the Export option in the context menu. Now choose the name and path for the file. Click on the Save button to save it.
Creating the Registry Backup
Note: To restore a Registry backup, you can click on the File menu and then choose the Import option in the list. Then you can select the file that you previously created.
You need to navigate to the following path in the Registry Editor window:
Note: If some keys are missing, you can create them by right-clicking on the existing key and choosing the New > Key option.
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How to restore the full context menu to File Explorer in Windows 11
How to restore the full context menu to File Explorer in Windows 11
The full right-click context menu in File Explorer can be restored in Windows 11 with a specific code and an unusual and slightly tricky hack of the Windows Registry File.
Image: Dilok Klaisataporn/Shutterstock
While Microsoft’s primary purpose for pushing the Windows 11 update may be for increased security, there are a few features and user interface changes that former Windows 10 users will notice and may find more than a bit annoying. Some of these “improvements” can be changed with a simple adjustment to settings, others may require a full OS hack.
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For example, the new right-click context menu in Windows 11 File Explorer is a notably different user experience than it was for users of Windows 10. For some users, that may be exactly what they want, but for other users, it may be characterized as a minor disaster. Fortunately, the full right-click context menu can be restored with a very specific code and a hack of the Windows 11 Registry File.
How to restore the full right-click context menu in Windows 11
Under Windows 11’s new user interface, right-clicking a file in File Explorer will call up an abbreviated version of the context menu, as shown in Figure A. Microsoft and the Windows 11 developers have decided these actions are most often chosen by users working with this menu.
Figure A
In general, theses menu options may be all you need to access with the context menu, but if you need to access the full list of potential options you must click the “Show more options” link at the bottom of the list. Figure B shows you all the options you have for that file type, including third-party apps like Windows PowerToys.
Figure B
To return to the Windows 10 version of right-click context menu functionality, we will have to edit the Windows 11 Registry File.
Disclaimer: Editing the Windows Registry file is a serious undertaking. A corrupted Windows Registry file could render your computer inoperable, requiring a reinstallation of the Windows operating system and potential loss of data. Back up the Windows Registry file and create a valid restore point before you proceed.
First, open the registry editor by typing “regedit” into the Windows 11 search tool and selecting the appropriate app from the results. Then, navigate to this key using the left-hand window:
When this is accomplished, you should see something like Figure C.
Figure C
Right-click the CLSID folder and select New | Key and then give the new key this codename (I suggest copy and paste):
Now, right-click that new key you just made and select New | Key and then give that key the name:
Figure D shows you what should be on the Registry Editor’s screen.
Figure D
This next part is a bit unusual so be careful. Double-click the Default settings item in the right-hand window under the new InprocServer32 key you just made to reveal its current default settings, as shown in Figure E.
Figure E
Notice that the current default setting is listed as “value not set.” We have to change that, so click the OK button without typing anything into the Value Data box (this is the important part, leave that box blank).
If you do this correctly, as you can see in Figure F, that default value is now blank, which is what we are looking for.
Figure F
Close the Registry Editor and restart your Windows 11 computer to complete the process.
Now, when you right-click a file name in Windows 11 File Explorer you will be presented with a full list of options in the context menu.
To switch back the default Windows 11 UI, just navigate back to the correct folder and delete the key from the registry file.
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There are lots of built-in features offered by Windows 10 to make your workflow faster. Quick Access is one of those features. You can find this feature on File Explorer. Just like the name suggests, this feature allows you to quickly access the frequently-used files or folders. All recently-used files will be added to Quick Access.
Quick Access itself is basically not a new feature. This feature has been around before Windows Explorer was renamed to File Explorer. Previously, Quick Access was known as Favorites.
The purpose of Quick Access itself is nothing but to help you improve productivity. Instead of performing tens of clicks to find the files/folders buried deep somewhere, you can navigate to Quick Access to find the files/folders you need. Although Quick Access can help you save time in finding necessary files/folder, you sometimes might want certain files to disappear from Quick Access for privacy reason.
Here are how to remove items from Quick Access or to add new items to it.
How to clear Quick Access history in Windows 10
If you want to remove all items on the Quick Access, type “file explorer options” on the search box next to the start menu button to open the File Explorer Options window.
Click the General tab on the File Explorer Options window. Look at the Privacy section and make sure both boxes are checked and click the Clear button.
How to remove only certain items from Quick Access in Windows 10
I am pretty sure that Quick Access is pretty helpful as it can save much times when working. But again, you might want to remove certain items for privacy reason. Instead of removing all items, you can remove only selected items that you don’t want them to appear on Quick Access. To do so, navigate to Quick Access and select the items you want to remove. Right-click and select Remove from Quick access.
How to add a folder to Quick Access manually
File Explorer will automatically pin the frequently-used folders to Quick Access. If you have certain folders that you want them to appear on Quick Access, you can also add them manually. To do so, navigate to the folders you want to add to Quick Access. Right-click and select Pin to Quick access.
Final thoughts
Quick Access is a pretty handy built-in feature offered by Windows 10. You can use it to fasten your workflow and improve productivity. In addition to Quick Access, you can also make use of keyboard shortcuts to minimize mouse click when working with File Explorer.
Microsoft has now started rolling out Windows 11 Build 22000.51 to testers in the Windows Insider program with centered Start menu, taskbar, and a new experience for Action Center/taskbar flyouts. In addition to these big improvements, Windows 11 also comes with a modern interface for File Explorer.
The overall File Explorer interface has remained the same since Windows 7. A ribbon was added with Windows 8, but it has mostly looked the same. This is going to change with Windows 11.
With Windows 11, Microsoft is not doing away with the classic or the current File Explorer app. The same Explorer will be shipping as part of the Windows update this fall, but it appears to have been updated with a modern Fluent Design-like UI on top of the existing app, and it looks different than before.
As you can see in the images above and below, there’s a new simplified menu called “command bar” and it looks to be based on WinUI. It has a clean interface and it’s visible at the top of the explorer window.
Microsoft has removed the Ribbon UI interface that was first introduced in 2012. The new command bar comes with these actions: create a new folder/file or shortcut, cut, copy, paste, rename, share, delete, apply filters, and switch layouts.
Here’s how to remove the OneDrive icon from Windows 11 File Explorer navigation pane. By default, it displays the OneDrive – Personal item with no option to get rid of it. Luckily, it is easy to change this.
OneDrive is a software client for Microsoft’s own cloud service. It allows syncing your documents and files between your computers. Similar to Windows 10, Windows 11 has OneDrive preinstalled.
OneDrive storage capacity depends on your plan. For consumers, Microsoft offers 5GB of space for free. If you have a Microsoft 365 subscription, you will get 1TB on OneDrive. Finally, you can pay a little for extra space, say 2TB.
OneDrive is available on all popular platforms. It also works as a Web app. In Windows 11, the OneDrive icon appears in the Navigation Pane.
If you are not happy with defaults, here’s how to remove it.
Remove OneDrive Icon from File Explorer in Windows 11
- Open the Registry editor; press Win + R and type regedit into the Run box.
- In the left pane, go to the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\ . You can copy-paste it to the address bar of the Registry editor.
- On the right, double-click the System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree DWORD value.
- Change its value data from 0 to 1 and click OK.
- Now, navigate to the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace .
- Right-click the entry on the left and select Delete. You need to remove it.
- Close all Explorer windows to apply the change.
Now, if you open File Explorer, it will no longer show the OneDrive icon in the navigation pane on the left.
You can undo the change at any moment later. All you need to do is to change the System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree value from 0 back to 1. After that, create the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\ key. Finally, re-open File Explorer.
To save your time, I have prepared a couple of REG files.
Download ready-to-use REG files
First of all, download the following ZIP archive and open it. Now, extract the two registry files to any folder of your choice.
To remove the OneDrive icon from File Explorer, double-click the file Remove_OneDrive_from_navigation_pane.reg. Now, re-open File Explorer, and OneDrive will disappear from the left.
To restore OneDrive in the navigation pane, use the file Add_OneDrive_to_navigation_pane.reg.
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Author: Sergey Tkachenko
Sergey Tkachenko is a software developer from Russia who started Winaero back in 2011. On this blog, Sergey is writing about everything connected to Microsoft, Windows and popular software. Follow him on Telegram, Twitter, and YouTube. View all posts by Sergey Tkachenko
7 thoughts on “How to Remove OneDrive Icon from File Explorer in Windows 11”
Sorry but this doesnt work. No matter what you do its still there.
You did something wrong then.
Apologies to Sergey, he is absolutely correct. The issue I missed was, I am in an environment that is locked down. You cant enter anything in our out of the registry. I was using a RUNAS to bring up the registry, the problem is, you are bringing up registry settings for THAT USERID and NOT the locally logged in use sooo….the hard way is to find the the SID of the user that you want to change, go to that users registry settings and use the SAME corresponding keys and it WILL work. Thanks again Sergey!
In Windows 11 (up to date) you can just uninstall OneDrive and it disappears from file explorer automatically.
The problem with that is, many users are One Drive for Business users, if you uninstall you have no One drive for consumer OR One drive for Business. Use Sergey’s way it works! If you are just someone who only has the one drive for consumer then yes, just uninstall it.
Hi, Downloading his REG file, extracting it and running it worked perfectly for me… took me 1 minute, thanks a lot!
This solution will only work properly btw if you are already and admin on your computer…many are not.
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Don’t like recently opened files to appear in the Start menu? Here is how to remove recommended or recent files in the Windows 11 Start menu.
Windows 11 comes with a lot of visual changes compared to Windows 10 or any other previous version. Two of the most striking design changes are the centered taskbar, which you can move to the left side, and a redesigned Start menu that looks a lot like a mobile launcher. All in all, the new redesign is a much-needed change.
The new Start menu in Windows 11 has three main sections. The first section contains a pinned app list that a user can customize. The second section is the Recommended or Recent Files section. The third section provides quick access to user settings, system folders, and the shutdown or power buttons.
By default, the Recommended section is auto-populated with the files you opened recently or files that Windows thinks you might need. Generally, this is a good thing because the Recommended section gives quick access to recently opened files. However, not everyone likes it. Mainly because of privacy concerns, and the recent files section is not that useful if you are not using it. Add to that; the recent files section is not updated in real-time. This means there is no guarantee that you will see a recently opened file immediately in the Recommended section.
The good thing is, if you don’t need it, you can easily hide or remove the recent files in the Windows 11 Start menu. All you have to do is turn off a single option in the Settings app. Here is how to do it.
Remove recent files in Windows 11 Start menu
To hide or remove the recent files in Windows 11 Start menu, follow the below steps.
- Right-click on the Start menu.
- Select the “Settings’ option.
- Select “Personalization” on the sidebar.
- Click the “Start” option on the main page.
- Turn off the “Show recently opened items in Start, Jump lists, and File Explorer” option.
- Close the Settings app.
The option to hide recent or recommended files is in the Settings app. So, right-click on the Start menu and select the “Settings” option. This action will open Windows 11 Settings.
After opening the Settings app, select the “Personalization” option on the sidebar and click on the “Start” option on the main page. As the name suggests, this is where you can configure the functionality and looks of the Windows 11 Start menu.
On this page, turn off the “Show recently opened items in Start, Jump lists, and File Explorer” option.
As soon as you do that, the Windows 11 Start menu will no longer display recommended or recent files. In addition to the Start menu, the option also disables recent files in the Jump Lists and File Explorer.
Even after removing the Recent Files in the Windows 11 Start menu, the Recommended section is not entirely removed or collapsed. Instead, it tells that you need to enable the Recent Files option to see your recent files. Hopefully, future builds will remove this section once the Recent Files are disabled or removed in the Start menu.
That is all. It is that simple to remove recent files in Windows 11 Start menu. If you ever want to see the recent files, follow the same steps but turn on the option we just disabled.
If you need any help, comment below, and I try to help as much as possible.
Disable Windows 11 file context menu.
Hi, I’m a developer working on a security software, and I was wondering if I could get help with the new menu in windows 11.
It seems like windows 11 got a new menu on individual item’s context menu from the taskbar.
Window 10 only had “Open”, “Pin”, “remove from list”, and “Property” but it seems like “Print” and “Edit” got added to these lists.
I was wondering what API I need to use to access/modify/disable these menu items.
1 Answer
The options which you have stated are only for certain file types like PPT, word, etc and it is not applicable to all apps in the Start.
You can disable the new context menu in Windows 11 with registry settings.
Open Run dialog by pressing Win +R
Copy and paste the below and press enter
reg.exe add “HKCU\Software\Classes\CLSID\InprocServer32″ /f /ve
Click on the Task Manager icon on the taskbar, find Windows Explorer, and restart it.
–If the reply is helpful, please Upvote and Accept it as an answer–
Hey, thanks for the reply.
Regarding the Registry Setting, it applies for the new Win 11 context menu that has the “Show more” option,
but not the jump list item menu that I’m currently interested in.
Like you have said, I realized the “Print” seems to only show up for MS programs such as notepad, word etc.
I thought it was a new option, as It didn’t show up with notepad ++ on win 10, but seems like its been present in win10 as well. just for specific applications.
I was wondering if there was any way this menu could be disabled/controlled or if this is something controlled by the application itself, thus not interferable from another process.
Add or remove apps from the new items menu in File Explorer in Windows 10
File Explorer got a major overhaul in Windows 8 and the new user interface, more or less, made its way to Windows 10. The ribbon below the Start menu features a button called ‘New Item’. It is similar to the ‘New’ option that appears in the right-click context menu and allows you to create a new file of a certain type. The options on the New Item menu in File Explorer are usually the same as what you see in the right-click context menu. There are two ways to add and remove an option from this menu. This is what you should do.
Add Application to New Item Menu – Windows Registry
Open the Windows Registry with administrative rights. Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT and expand it. Find the corresponding file extension that you want to add to the New Item menu. For example, if you want to add Photoshop to it, find the .psd key.
Right-click on the key and select New > Key and name it ‘ShellNew’.
Next, right-click on the ShellNew key you just created and select New > String Value. Name it NullFile and you’re done. Close File Explorer and open it again. The file element must be added. If not, try the second method below.
Add Application to New Item – Windows Shell Folder
Go to C:WindowsShellNew and paste a file that is the same type as the one you want to add to the menu. For example, to add Photoshop to the New Item menu, paste a PSD file into this folder. Close File Explorer and open it again. This will also add the item to the right click context menu.
Removing the app from a new item – Windows Registry
Open the Windows Registry with administrative rights. Navigate to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT and expand it. Find the file extension you want to remove and expand its corresponding key. Remove the ‘ShellNew’ key.
Delete the app from a new item – Windows Shell Folder
Navigate to C:WindowsShellNew and remove the type of file from the corresponding application entry you want to remove.
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Published by Timothy Tibbetts on 04/05/2020
When you right-click on your Desktop or in File Explorer, you have the option to create new folders, compressed folders, shortcuts, images, and documents. In this tutorial, we show you how to remove the New Context Menu option.
TIP : Hard to fix Windows Problems? Repair/Restore Missing Windows OS Files Damaged by Malware with a few clicks
Here is a before and after example using the Desktop:
Download Add or Remove New Context Menu in Windows 10, and extract the two files:
Video tutorial:
Remove New Context Menu.reg
Add New Context Menu.reg (Default)
Double-click Remove New Context Menu.reg or Add New Context Menu.reg to enable or disable Disable Automatic Maintenance in Windows 10.
Click Yes when prompted by User Account Control.
Click Yes when prompted by Registry Editor.
Click OK when prompted by the Registry Editor.
This tweak is included as part of MajorGeeks Registry Tweaks.
The all-new Start menu is one of the first things that you notice upon upgrading to Windows 11. The new Start menu gets back the search bar and gets rid of the live tiles.
The Start menu has a section called Recommended, which displays recently opened files and newly installed apps. While the number of recently viewed files and installed apps vary depending on the screen size, many users find it helpful to quickly view recently opened files without opening the File Explorer Quick Access.
That said, there are users who do not want to show recently viewed files and newly installed apps on the Start menu. Although Windows 11 does provide an option not to show anything in the Recommended section, there is no option to hide the “Recommended” text. Luckily, there is a third-party tool out there to help users completely remove the Recommended section from the Windows 11 Start menu. Here is how to use it to hide and remove Recommended section from the Start menu.
Completely remove Recommended section from Start menu in Windows 11
Step 1: Visit this page of GitHub and download the ExplorerPatcher software. Edge and other browsers might warn you against downloading this new software but it’s safe.
Step 2: Next, run the downloaded ExplorerPatcher to install the same. You will not see any setup screen. The taskbar and Start menu might disappear for a few seconds.
Step 3: Once installed, the taskbar and Start might look like the one in Windows 10 or might look different from the default. Worry not. You need to change a couple of settings. To do that, perform a right-click on the taskbar and then click Properties (refer to the picture below) to open TaskbarPatcher Properties dialog.
Step 4: Here, in the left pane, select Taskbar. On the right side, ensure Windows 11 style taskbar is selected.
Step 5: Next, click the Start menu on the left pane. On the right side, select the Disable the “Recommended” option. On the same page, change the maximum number of frequent apps to show on the Start menu to “Unlimited” (refer to the picture below) if you wish to see only apps on the Start menu.
Step 6: Finally, click on the Restart File Explorer link (located bottom left) to restart the Windows Explorer. That’s it! The Start menu will not show the Recommended section from now on. You can now pin as many apps you want to the Start menu.
Hide apps and files from the Recommended section of the Start menu in Windows 11
Step 1: Open the Settings app either using the search or Windows logo + I keyboard shortcut.
Step 2: In the left pane of the Settings app, you will see a list of categories. Click on Personalization.
Step 3: On the right side, click on Start to see Start menu settings.
Step 4: Finally, turn off Show recently added apps and Show recently opened items in Start, Jump Lists, and File Explorer options.
As you might have noticed, when you configure Windows 11 not to show recently opened files in the Start menu, it will not show them in the File Explorer Quick Access as well.
When the Show recently added apps and Show recently opened items in Start, Jump Lists, and File Explorer options are turned off, recent files and new apps do not appear in the Recommended section. However, the Recommended section continues to appear (but does not display anything). If you wish to remove the Recommended text along with the section, please use the ExplorerPatcher software mentioned above.
Microsoft recently released Windows 10. Alongside a lot of new major features, the OS update also includes a couple of tiny improvements. One of the latest addition that comes with Windows 10 is the Recent Files section on the File Explorer. While some may like this feature as it helps them quickly access their recent files, some may not like it because it could clutter their File Explorer. If you’re one of those folks who don’t like the Recent Files section in Windows 10, here’s how to remove it:
How to remove Recent Files section in Windows 10:
- Open File Explorer
- Go to the View section from the top bar
- Click on Options
- Look for the “Open File Explorer to” dropdown
- Click on the drop-down and change “Quick Access” to “This PC” and click on OK
- After that, close File Explorer and reopen it to see the change in action.
Pretty easy, right? If you don’t understand how to remove the Recent Files from the File Explorer after following the above instructions, here’s a GIF showing the tutorial:
If you have any other Windows 10 tips to share, make sure to share them in the comment section below. And don’t forget to checkout more Windows 10 news here!
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Windows 10 File Manager has keyboard shortcuts. You can launch File Explorer and use it completely with the keyboard without touching the mouse.
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Windows 10 File Manager has keyboard shortcuts. You can launch File Explorer and use it completely with the keyboard without touching the mouse. It doesn’t have Norton Commander, but is very keyboard-friendly.
Launch File Explorer
To launch File Explorer from anywhere on a Windows system, press Windows + E
You can also use other keyboard shortcuts. For example, if File Explorer is the first icon on the left on the Windows 10 taskbar, you can press Windows + 1 to activate that taskbar button. If it is the third icon on the taskbar, you can press Windows + 3 to activate.
Directory navigation
File Explorer will open Quick Access when you launch it. Use the arrow keys to select a file and folder, and then press Enter to enter the folder or open the file. To partially expand (such as Devices and drives in This PC ), select it and press the right arrow key.
To select a file or folder in the directory, enter its name. For example, when in the C: folder and entering ‘ Win ‘, File Explorer will select the Windows folder.
To go to the first or last file in a folder, press the Home or End key.
Press Alt + ↑ , Alt + ← and Alt + → to go to the folder above, left or right.
If you need to refresh a directory and see the updated content, press F5 .
Directory navigation
Enter the directory and search
To navigate to the location bar at the top of the window, press Ctrl + L or Alt + D You can then enter an address (such as C: Users ) and press Enter to get there.
To navigate to the search bar, press Ctrl + F or Ctrl + E You can then enter the search term and press Enter .
Select multiple files
To select some files, hold down the Shift key and use the arrow keys. You can also press Ctrl + A to select all files in the current directory.
To select multiple files, press and hold the Ctrl key. Use the arrow keys to highlight other files or folders and press Space to add them to the selection. Release the Ctrl key when done.
Select multiple files
Rename the file
To rename a file using the keyboard, select it with the arrow keys (or by starting to enter the file name) and press F2 . File Explorer will automatically highlight the file name, not including the extension. You can then enter a new name for the file and press Enter . Press Escape to cancel renaming the file without saving any changes.
The usual shortcuts for editing active text while editing a file name, so you can press Ctrl + ← to quickly navigate between words in multi-word filenames.
Create a new folder
To create a new folder in the current directory, press Ctrl + Shift + N Enter a name for the folder and press Enter .
Create a new folder
Copy, paste and delete files
As usual, press Ctrl + C to copy a file, Ctrl + X to cut (delete the file from its current location) and Ctrl + V to paste the file into a new location.
To undo an action, press Ctrl + Z To redo an action that has just been undone, press Ctrl + Y
To delete a selected file, press Delete . To permanently delete the file, go to the Recycle Bin , press Shift + Delete .
Open context menu
To open the context menu for the currently selected items, press Shift + F10 . The context menu will open as if you right-click on an item.
Navigate between menu options with the up and down arrow keys. Press Enter to select an option.
You can also press Alt + Enter to open the Properties window for a selected item, bypassing the context menu. Use the Tab , arrow and Enter keys to use the Properties window . You can also press Alt along with an underlined character displayed in the Properties window to activate the option.
For example, the Advanced button appears as Advanced . with the underlined d . This means you can press Alt + D to activate it.
Open context menu
See the Preview and Details windows
To open and close the Preview window, which shows you a preview of the currently selected file, press Alt + P
To open and close the Details window, showing you the details of the selected file, press Alt + Shift + P
Launch and close Windows
To open a new File Explorer window, press Ctrl + N To close the current File Explorer window, press Ctrl + W
Launch and close Windows
Find more shortcuts
For more help, press Alt and release it. You should see the letters appear on the buttons at the ribbon. You can press Alt along with any letter shown here to activate the button. For example, Alt + F opens the File menu .
If you press Alt + H , Alt + S or Alt + V to select the Home, Share or View tabs , you will see a list of shortcuts for actions for that part of the ribbon.
Find more shortcuts
As usual in Windows applications, you can also repeatedly press the Tab key to cycle between parts of the interface, then use the arrow and Enter keys to navigate, as well as activate buttons. Press Shift + Tab to cycle back. For example, with the main content window selected, you can press Shift + Tab to navigate to the left sidebar, use the arrow keys to select a folder, and press Enter to open.
This is the menu I mean:
I want to be able to add and delete items. Thanks for your assistance.
This is not a context menu (sometimes known as a right-click menu). It’s the drop-down menu available near the top of the File Explorer display, under ‘New Item’.
How can I change its items?
1 Answer 1
You will need to edit the registry to add and remove entries in the New Context Menu:
Navigate to the Registry editor first by opening the run prompt ( Windows+R ) then type regedit and press enter.
Removing an entry
- Navigate to the key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT and expand it.
- Look for the extension of the file-type you want to remove from the menu. For example, if you want to remove “New Word Document”, find .docx and expand it.
- In the sub-keys, find the key ShellNew and remove it. This will remove the entry.
Adding an entry
- Navigate to the key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT and expand it.
- Look for the extension of the file-type you want to add to the menu. For example, if you want to add the entry “New XML Document”, find .xml .
- Right click on it and select New -> Key and name it ShellNew .
- In the right pane select New -> String Value . Name it NullFile and press enter.
If the above does not work (as it does sometimes on certain files on newer Windows versions), try the following:
- Navigate to C:\Windows\ShellNew and create a new file (with any name) with the extension of file-type you want to add. For example, if you want .xml :
- Go back to the registry editor where you created NullFile in step 4. In there, create another string value named FileName and set it to the path you created in step 5:
The file-type should now show up in the New Context Menu.
All information and images found here and here. Check links for further reading.
Today we are going to see how to edit the folders and applications in the Windows 10 Start menu list, so it is possible to sort it according to the user’s taste. Indeed, each newly installed program behaves differently. In fact, some create folders in the Start menu and others create shortcuts. It is therefore convenient to organize it. It is well known that Windows 10 has a Start menu customization section. However, it is not possible to edit the contents of the list. In order to organize these items, it is necessary to resort to the file explorer. Read on to find out how to do it.
How to edit the Start menu folders.
This is a simple procedure. Just open the Windows file explorer. With this in mind, you can click on the icon in the taskbar. Or press the Win+E combination.
Entering the Windows file explorer.
Next, it is necessary to go to a specific address. For this you need to do two steps. First, you must click on the address bar. This action causes the full address of the location to be displayed.
Clicking on the address bar.
Next, enter the following address in the search bar:
Next, press Enter to go to the selected selection. You will immediately access the list of folders and shortcuts in the start menu. As you can see, the items are displayed as they are in the Start menu. In addition, the system sorts them alphabetically. However, you can edit it to create or delete folders.
List of folders and shortcuts in the Windows 10 start menu.
Obviously, the only thing left to do is to organize it to your liking. That is to say, inside the folders there are the shortcuts. Then, it is possible to cut and paste them outside the folder. By doing so, you delete the folder and only the shortcut of the application will remain in the Start menu list. In the same way, it is possible to do the process the other way around. To organize all items in folders. Very well, in this way it is possible to edit Windows 10 Start menu folders and applications. This will give you another way to customize the system. See you later!
By Bryan Clark published 26 March 17
The File Explorer Ribbon is a handy tool, but it’s a bit over-populated. It’s not always easy, at a glance, to find what you’re looking for, or to change things you need. The Navigation pane is typically enabled by default, but if you’d rather hide it — or learn how to get it back after you hid it on accident — then we’ve got you covered.
1. Right click the Start menu and choose File Explorer from the available options.
2. Click the View tab atop the File Explorer ribbon to open your view options. The Navigation pane is on the left by default, but we’re going to hide it.
3. At the left, select Navigation pane, and and then click Navigation pane from the dropdown to remove the checkmark. From here, you’ve just disabled the left sidebar and moved the content over ever-so-slightly.
4. To show the Navigation pane, simply repeat steps one through three, this time ensuring the Navigation pane gets a check mark after clicking. If so, you should see the Navigation pane.
In this article, we’ll see how to Enable the Old Desktop right-click Context menu or Disable Windows 11 New Right-click Context menu.
The context menu is the Graphical user interface menu that appears while right-clicking on the mouse. This menu offers a limited set of options or choices depends on the application or operating system, Context menu can appear on any application that offers a lot of options for easy and efficient operation. In the windows environment, the context menu is accessed by right click on the mouse or by the menu key on the keyboard. Based on the application and operating system these options may vary, In windows, the Desktop context menu is very popular for giving refresh and creating new items. You can add or remove any apps are programs to this context menu.
In Windows 11 Insider Preview build there are lot of improvements and some new features have been added by Microsoft. The most notable feature of the Windows 11 Insider Preview build is the new right-click context menu. This is the menu that appears when you right-click on the Desktop, applications, drivers, folders. This new menu has a more open look, and it is inspired by Fluent Design. Most of the users are not adapted to this new Windows 11 right-click context menu. Particularly Microsoft hides the Refresh option from the right-click context menu. If you want to do refresh you need to right-click on the desktop and choose More items > Refresh. Most of the users thought that Microsoft removed the Refresh option from the context menu, because of the new design. If you are having the habit of right-clicking on the desktop and selecting the refresh directly, then get used to the new operation. If you want the classic Windows 10 right-click context menu, then this article will guide you to Disable Windows 11 New Right-click context menu.
Table of Contents
Disable Windows 11 New Right-click context menu:
To Enable Old Classic Windows Desktop Right-click context menu, we are going to use the Registry Editor Method. Follow the below-mentioned steps.
Note: Modifying the Registry is risky, and it causes irreversible damage to your OS Installation Follow the steps correctly. Friendly advice Before Modifying Registry Creating Restore Point is recommended.
Open the Run command by pressing Windows + R and type Regedit and hit enter. This command will open the registry editor console.
Now Navigate to the following Registry path.
Now from the left-hand side, Right-click on the 4 Registry key and choose New > key, and name it as 586118283.
Next from the left-hand side click on the 586118283 Registry key and from the right-hand side right-click on an empty area and choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and create the following DWORDs with respective names and Enter the value data as mentioned below.
“EnabledState”=dword:00000001
“EnabledStateOptions”=dword:00000001
“Variant”=dword:00000000
“VariantPayload”=dword:00000000
“VariantPayloadKind”=dword:00000000
To enter the value data, just right-click on DWORD and choose modify and enter the Value data as mentioned above and click on OK.
Close the Registry Editor and restart the system once. After the restart just right-click on the Desktop, now you can see the Classic desktop right-click context menu.
Using Registry File:
If you found any difficulties in using Registry Editor, then use this method. Just download the Registry File from the link given below.
Download the Registry file here .
And right-click on the Registry file and choose Merge. Click on Yes if you got any prompt. After the merging, just restart the system once and use the classic context menu.
The Right Click Context Menu gives you added functionality by offering you actions you can take with the item. It also lets you create new documents, folders, shortcuts, or items when you select the New context menu. But over time, you may realize that you don’t use most of the items in the New context menu, or you may wish to add some entries. We have already seen how we can add, remove, edit all the Context Menu items in Windows. In this post, we will see how you can edit, add or remove items from New Context Menu in Windows 11/10/8/7, using the Registry Editor or freeware to do it easily.
Edit or Remove items from New Context Menu
1] Using Registry Editor
To edit or remove items from New Context Menu, open the Registry Editor and navigate to the following key and expand it:
Look for the file-type New item which you would like to remove from the New context menu. If you want to remove New Word document, you will have to search for .docx key and expand it. Once you have done that you will have to delete the ShellNew key. This will remove the entry to create a new Word document from the new context menu.
To add an item or file type, search for the file type. Right-click on it and select New > Key and give it the name ShellNew.
Now in the right pane, select New > String Value, name it NullFile and set its value at 1.
2] Using Freeware
ShellNewHandler: You can also disable or remove items from New Context Menu easily using an open-source tool called ShellNewHandler. Simply download this portable tool and run it.
Uncheck the item you want disabled or removed and click Apply. The items will now no longer appear in your New context menu. To enable the item, simply check the box and click App.
New Menu Editor: Another freeware called New Menu Editor lets you remove as well as add new or different items to the New context menu easily.
You can download it from its download page on CNET. Remember to click on the small Direct download link there to download only the tool. To add items, select the items in the left pane and click on the Add or + button. To remove items, select items are shown in the right pane and click on the Delete or Thrash button. Do read its Help file for details.
Cleaning the New Context Menu will give you a smaller new menu by removing the items you do not want.
ShellNewSettings: This is another tool you can download.
Simply download and run the executable file. If you uncheck any given option in the application, it will remove that particular entry from the context menu. When you select any given option, it will add that particular entry back to the context menu.
Restore default NEW context menu items in Windows
If you wish to restore the entire New context menu to Windows 10 default, then first backup your Registry, create a restore point, and then download this registry fix from our servers. Extract its contents and click on the .reg file to add its contents to your Context Menu.
This post will help you if the New Text document item is missing from Context Menu in Windows.
Related posts that may interest you:
- See how you can add a new file type in the New Item of Explorer Ribbon Menu.
- Check this if your NEW context menu is missing in Windows.
- This post will help you if Context Menu freezes or is slow to open.
Brad Sams Senior News Editor Neowin @bdsams · Oct 16, 2014 10:10 EDT · Hot! with 14 comments
Microsoft added a new feature to the File Explorer with Windows 10 by adding the ‘Home’ button on the left side of the application. While the new area will likely help many users get to their frequently viewed content faster, we know that some of you do not want Microsoft tracking your recently modified content.
So, if you fall in the latter group, there is an easy way to remove the content from File Explorer. To clear this information, do the following:
- Right mouse click on the task bar.
- Click Properties.
- In the new window that opens up, click Start Menu.
- Under the privacy box, uncheck both items.
- Click Apply.
After doing this, your File Explorer ‘Home’ page will be cleared of the ‘Recent Files’ and ‘Frequent Folders’ areas. Seeing how simple this procedure is, Microsoft is accurately aware that they know their users do not want to have their clicks tracked locally.
There are other ways to remove this content using registry tweaks but as we learned recently, by modifying this content, it could block you from getting future updates for the Windows Insider program. And the functionality built in, we can’t see any reason why you would want to tweak the registry to achieve the same result.
Don’t like or use the Creative Cloud Files folder? Follow these steps to unpin or remove Creative Cloud Files folder from File Explorer sidebar in Windows 10.
When you install any new Adobe product, like Adobe XD or Adobe Photoshop, it automatically adds the Creative Cloud Files folder to the File Explorer’s sidebar. This folder is located within your home directory located in the C drive and is mainly used to store and sync your files with Adobe cloud.
If you store your files somewhere and don’t use Adobe Sync, then you can simply remove the folder and free up some real estate on the File Explorer sidebar. After all, the sidebar is for accessing folders and drives quickly and efficiently. Having a useless folder serves no purpose.
So, without further ado, let me show how you can remove creative cloud files folder in File Explorer in Windows 10.
Remove Creative Cloud Files Folder
Unfortunately, Adobe doesn’t offer any easy way to unpin the Creative Cloud Files folder. You need to make changes the Windows Registry Editor. Just follow the steps as is and you will be good.
Before proceeding, I strongly recommend you take a registry backup. The backup helps you restore the registry if anything bad happens or if you want the folder back.
1. First, open the registry editor by searching for “Registry Editor” in the start menu. Alternatively, you can also use the “regedit” run command.
2. Once the Registry Editor has been opened, select “Computer” on the left panel. Next, press Ctrl + F keyboard shortcut to open the Find tool. You can also select “Edit → Find”.
3. In the Find window, type “Creative Cloud Files” and click on the “Find Next” button.
4. The above action will search for that specific string and takes you to a folder inside the “HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT” folder.
5. On the right panel, double-click on the “System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree” value.
6. Type “0” in the Value Data field and click on the “Ok” button to save changes.
7. Close Windows Registry Editor and File Explorer if it is opened.
8. Re-open or launch the File Explorer and you will no longer see the Creative Cloud Files folder.
If you are still seeing the folder, the changes might not be applied properly. Reboot the system and the folder should disappear.
Since we’ve only unpinned the folder, you can still access it by going to “C:\Users\ \Creative Cloud Files”. So, even if you are using Adobe Sync feature, it shouldn’t hinder you.
If you ever want to get it back, simply go through the process again and type “1” in step 6.
Wrapping Up
That is all. It is that simple to unpin Creative Cloud Files folder in File Explorer in Windows 10. If you are stuck or need some help, comment below and I will try to help as much as possible.
Lawrence Abrams
- June 20, 2021
- 12:30 PM
- 4
With Microsoft getting ready to unveil the new Windows 11 operating system, we take a look at some of the new Registry hacks that can be used to customize your device.
A preview build of Windows 11 was leaked online last week, giving us a sneak peek at the new features Microsoft is bringing to its next generation of Windows.
These new features are user interface changes for the Taskbar, Start Menu, and other components unique to Windows 11.
Below we have gathered the new Windows 11 Registry keys that allow you to customize the behavior and appearance of the operating system’s new features.
It should be noted that other new Registry entries do not perform any observable behavior. This is likely due to the leaked Windows 11 build being an early preview without the latest Windows Feature Experience Pack, enhancing the operating ystem’s functionality.
We will update this list as new Registry hacks are discovered.
Switch back to the Windows 10 ‘Classic’ Start Menu
When the preview build of Windows 11 was leaked online, one of the most controversial changes was the new Windows 10 Start Menu.
With Windows 11, Microsoft did away with the Start Menu we associated with Windows and replaced it with a new one based on the now shelved Windows 10X.
While some people like the new Windows 11 Start Menu, many do not and wish they could switch back to the Windows 10 version.
The good news is that Microsoft has added a ‘Start_ShowClassicMode ‘ Registry value that allows you to enable what they call “Classic Mode” that uses the Windows 10 Start Menu.
To modify this registry value, you would create a DWORD 32-bit value named ‘Start_ShowClassicMode’ under the following path:
Possible DWORD 32-bit settings for the Start_ShowClassicMode value are:
0 = Use the new Windows 11 Start Menu
1 = Enable Windows 10 ‘Classic’ Start Menu
Windows 11 taskbar size
Windows 11 allows you to change the height and size of the icons on the taskbar via a Registry value named “TaskbarSi.”
When configuring the TaskbarSi value, you can specify whether you want to show a small, medium, or large taskbar, with each size illustrated below.
To modify this registry value, you would create a DWORD 32-bit value named ‘TaskbarSi’ under the following path:
Possible DWORD 32-bit settings for the TaskbarSi value are:
0 = Small
1 = Medium
2 = Large
Widgets icon visibility on the taskbar
Windows 11 has renamed the Windows 10 News and Interests feature into ‘Widgets’ and displays it as an icon on the taskbar, as shown below.
To control whether the Widgets button is visible on the taskbar, Microsoft introduced a new ‘TaskbarDa’ Registry value.
To modify this registry value, you would create a DWORD 32-bit value named ‘TaskbarDa’ under the following path:
Possible DWORD 32-bit settings for the TaskbarDa value are:
0 = Hidden
1 = Visible
Windows 11 taskbar alignment
Windows 11 now allows you to center or left align the Start button and pinned taskbar programs on the taskbar.
To control the alignment of the Windows 11 taskbar, Microsoft introduced a new ‘TaskbarAl ‘ Registry value.
To modify this registry value, you would create a DWORD 32-bit value named ‘TaskbarAl’ under the following path:
Possible DWORD 32-bit settings for the TaskbarAl value are:
0 = Left
1 = Center
Enable or disable the new Windows 11 Snap Assist flyout
Windows 11 introduces a redesigned Snap Assist feature where you can hover over the maximize button to see a flyout containing four predefined Windows snap layouts.
In Windows 11, you can now access four predefined Windows snap layouts by hovering your mouse cursor over the maximize button in an open window, as shown below.
Possible DWORD 32-bit settings for the EnableSnapAssistFlyout value are:
0 = Disable
1 = Enable
You need to restart Windows 11 or the Windows Explorer process for changes to this setting to take effect.
We’ve talked about File Explorer (Windows Explorer in Windows 7) several times before, and if you ask me it’s one of the most important parts of Windows to customize. Unlike a smartphone or tablet, you spend a lot of time diving into your PC’s file system and it’s worth it to get things organized just how you like it.
One good way to do that is to customize a folder’s column order—name, size, type, date modified, and so on—under the details view. It’s really easy to organize columns in the order you’d like instead of just using the defaults. In fact, you can even apply a particular column order that you create to most other folders on your system.
I’ll be showing how it’s done in Windows 10, but it works similarly in Windows 7 and 8.
Sorting downloads
Moving columns is as easy as a drag-and-drop.
Let’s say you wanted to have the date show up first in the downloads folder. Just click on Date at the top of the column, and then drag it to the left. If you wanted to put the date column last, you’d do the reverse.
If you then wanted to sort everything by date, single-click on the date column. Now all the files in the downloads folder will be sorted by date with the oldest items at the top. To reverse that order just click Date again.
This trick works for all columns.
Making a template
Now, let’s say you wanted to use a particular column setup from your downloads folder across all generic folders on your PC.
Windows offers five stadard templates for organizing File Explorer.
In Windows 10, click on This PC in the left-hand navigation column of File Explorer, then right-click on Downloads in the main window and select Properties from the context menu.
Click on the Customize tab and look under the first section that says “Optimize this folder for.”
The drop-down menu you see there consists of five options that are the standard layout templates for File Explorer. By default in Windows 10, the downloads folder uses the pictures template. Let’s change that to General items so that our downloads setup can affect most of our folders while leaving the standard Windows documents, music, and video folders untouched. You should also click the check box next to “Also apply this template to all subfolders.”
If you’ve already customized your downloads folder, unfortunately changing to General items will return all column headings to the standard general items template. Sort them again the way you like. For example, someone might prefer to see the file names first, followed by file size, then file type, and finally the date.
This setting allows you to change similar folders on the same system with one click.
Once it’s sorted, go to the File Explorer menu at the top and select View > Options > Change folder and search options. Under the View tab click Apply to Folders. A pop-up window will appear asking you to confirm the change to all folders of the same type (general items in this case). Click Yes and all your generic folders should now default to your pre-defined structure.
You can even switch other folders to your template by simply changing the template for that folder under Properties > Customize.
To revert back to the standard layout for all folders, go back to View > Options > Change folder and search options and under the View tab click Reset Folders.
The Quick Access menu is a useful feature in the Windows File Manager arsenal. What it does is save a handy shortcut to the recently opened files and folders on your Windows 10 and 11 computer. This makes it easy to reopen recently closed files and revisit recently closed or pinned folders. However, some users, citing privacy and security reasons, want to disable the Quick Access menu in Windows. Let’s find out how to do that.
Why Disable Quick Access Menu in Windows
The File Manager of the Windows operating system is one of the best in the industry. It is quick and easy to navigate. There are plenty of keyboard shortcuts that work inside and a handy sidebar that makes it easy to jump between drives and folders.
It is in the sidebar menu where you will find the Quick Access menu too. Think of it as a bookmarking feature and the symbol has been aptly chosen as ‘star’.
There are two reasons:
- Privacy – you don’t want your private or sensitive files and folders making it to the Quick Access menu in case someone is wathcing over your should.
- Clutter – too many folders in the Quick Access menu makes it cluttered and difficult to navigate.
How to Disable Quick Access Menu Logging
What we will do is instruct the File Explorer to not log and display recently opened files and folders in the Quick Access menu.
1. Press Windows+E to open the File Explorer window. By default, it opens in the Quick Access folder. Click on the three-dot menu icon and select Options.
2. In the pop-up menu that follows, under the General tab, uncheck Show recently used files in Quick access and Show frequently used folders in Quick access options.
3. Click on Apply to save changes.
Note: The above steps are for Windows 11. In case you are using Windows 10, the steps may differ slightly. You will need to click on File > Change folder and search options to find Folder Options.
How to Delete Recent Files/Folders from Quick Access Menu
You have disabled logging File Explorer history in the Quick Access menu so Windows won’t log new files and folders but what about activity that was already logged? You will still have to delete them.
We wrote a detailed post explaining how you can better manage or remove files and folders from the Quick Access menu in File Explorer. However, that’s a more selective process where you can choose to remove or keep recent folders in the Quick Access menu individually. But what if you want to clear all File Explorer history so that your recent files disappears from everywhere including the Start menu? Yes, Windows also displays them in Start menu. Surprise!
For that, go back to Folder Options like you did before and under the General tab, click on the Clear button.
How to Disable Quick Access Completely
The Quick Access menu itself is useful as it allows you to pin important folders. But if you want to completely remove it from the File Explorer sidebar, you can do that too.
1. Search for the Registry Editor in the Start menu and click on Run as administrator to open it.
2. Navigate to the folder structure below.
3. Right-click on the ShellFolder and select Permissions.
4. Click on the Advanced button in the pop-up that follows.
5. In the next pop-up, click on Change next to the Owner heading.
6. Now click on Advanced button.
7. Click on Find Now button.
8. You will see several entries at the bottom under Search Results. Select Administrators from the search results and then click on OK in each pop-up to save changes until you are back in the Registry Editor.
9. Double-click on the Attributes folder inside ShellFolder and change the Value data to a0600000.
Wrap Up: Disable Quick Access Menu
You get a lot of options and several ways to decide how the Quick Access menu functions, if at all, in the File Explorer. You can clear recent browsing history, pin/unpin folders, and instruct File Explorer to not log any activity. Neat.
Not happy with the default File Explorer that ships with Windows? Here are some third-party file managers for Windows you may like.
Gaurav Bidasaria
A tech enthusiast by passion, Gaurav loves tinkering with new tech and gadgets. He dropped out of CA in the final year to follow his love for consumer tech. He has extensive experience as a writer and has written how-to guides, comparisons, listicles, and in-depth explainers on Windows, Android, web or cloud apps, and the Apple ecosystem. He recently started working out but mostly, you will find him either gaming or streaming.
Microsoft’s UI changes to Windows continue
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Share All sharing options for: Windows 10 is getting new File Explorer icons as part of a visual overhaul
Microsoft is giving the File Explorer inside Windows 10 a visual overhaul with new icons. The software giant has started rolling out a test build of Windows 10 that includes changes to the system icons you’ll find in File Explorer, including the Recycle Bin, Documents folders, and devices like disk drives.
“Several changes, such as the orientation of the folder icons and the default file type icons, have been made for greater consistency across Microsoft products that show files,” says Amanda Langowski, Microsoft’s Windows Insider chief. “Notably, the top-level user folders such as Desktop, Documents, Downloads, and Pictures have a new design that should make it a little easier to tell them apart at a glance.”
The new Recycle Bin icon. Image: Microsoft
Perhaps daringly, Microsoft also notes that “and yes, the Recycle Bin icon has also been updated!” — a clear nod to some changes the company tried to make to the Recycle Bin in the past that didn’t go down well with Windows users.
These icon changes are fairly minor in the grand scheme of Windows, but they’re part of a broader effort inside Microsoft to modernize Windows. Microsoft unveiled new system icons for Windows 10 earlier this month, and the company previously updated some of its Windows 10 icons last year with colorful versions and also tweaked the Start menu to make it more streamlined.
Microsoft’s new File Explorer icons. Image: Microsoft
Microsoft is also planning a “sweeping visual rejuvenation of Windows,” codenamed “Sun Valley.” The company is expected to detail its visual plans and more about the future of Windows in the coming months as part of a dedicated news event.
The icon updates will arrive alongside some tweaks to the layout of File Explorer, too. Microsoft is adding additional padding between elements in File Explorer, and there will be a compact mode to return to the classic File Explorer mode. The updated view is a little more touch-optimized and complements the new icons.
OneDrive come preinstalled on your Windows 10. However, if you want to remove OneDrive from File Explorer, this guide shows you the easy steps to do so.
When you first use a Windows 10 device, you’ll find OneDrive is already installed and has added itself to your system’s File Explorer, which makes the service incredibly easy to use. However, if you want to disable OneDrive — or you find that having the program in File Explorer is unnecessary — then you might want to remove Microsoft OneDrive from File Explorer.
Aside from losing the quick access to your OneDrive folder, there is no major downside to removing it from the File Explorer. You will still retain all of the benefits that OneDrive normally provides, including the quick menu available by clicking the OneDrive icon in the system tray.
However, if you want to remove OneDrive because you are having problems using it, make sure to first read our OneDrive review as well as our full articles about what OneDrive is and how you can fix OneDrive sync issues in Windows 10 before you continue with this guide. These will make sure you can get the best cloud storage experience.
Removing OneDrive From File Explorer With the Registry
To remove OneDrive from the File Explorer without disabling it completely, you’ll have to edit the Windows registry. Because this can damage your Windows 10 installation, you should follow Microsoft’s guide to backing up the registry so you can restore it if there’s an issue.
To start, you’ll need to open the registry editor. The easiest way to do this in Windows 10 is to open the “run” command box by pressing the Windows key and “R” key, then type ”regedit” and click “OK.”
In the Windows registry editor, under “computer,” there will be a folder titled “HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.”
Within “HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT,” you will find a folder titled “CLSID.”
Find the registry entry titled “.” If you’re struggling to find it, press the “Ctrl” and “F” keys to open the “find” function, then paste in the string.
When you’re in the correct entry, check that the full folder path reads “Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\” to make sure you’re in the right place.
Inside the “” entry, find the file called “System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree” and double-click it to bring up the “edit DWORD” window.
In this window, change the entry under “value data” from the number one to a zero and click “OK.”
Now close the window and reopen File Explorer. OneDrive will no longer be in the sidebar.
How to Remove OneDrive From File Explorer in Windows 10: Edit the Registry
- Press the Windows key and “R” key to open the “run” box
- Type “regedit” into the run box and press “OK”
- Go to the entry “”
- Double-click on the file “System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree”
- Change the “value data” to the number zero and click “OK”
- Close the registry window
- Open File Explorer to make sure these steps have worked
Final Thoughts
When it comes to ease of use, OneDrive is one of the best cloud storage services, so it isn’t surprising that there is a way to hide the program. Despite the limited choices, removing OneDrive from the File Explorer is straightforward and won’t cause any damage when done correctly.
However, if you want a cloud storage option that doesn’t clutter the File Explorer and you aren’t willing to edit the Windows 10 registry, there are other online storage options. For example, providers like Sync.com and pCloud run within separate apps, so they don’t interfere with File Explorer.
Have you tried to remove OneDrive from the Windows File Explorer? How did it go? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. Thanks for reading.
10 thoughts on “How to Remove OneDrive From File Explorer in 2022”
I have windows 10 pro. I have used GPedit.msc method, but OneDrive is still in File explorer under users. I have also deleted in the environment variables. Any ideas? I HATE ONEDRIVE.
I hate it too. I am starting to hate microsoft. I have had it. Switching to Apple now.
I also hate OneDrive and Microsoft’s totally original approach to shamelessly copying Apple’s methods of force-feeding us stuff we don’t want. Also like the user before me, I can’t get rid of the pin in Explorer- in fact, the 018D… thing doesn’t even exist. This info must be outdated.
Yep microsoft turning into some sad & pathetic bullies which is not good
This registry key does not exist in my copy of Win 10. The are articles all over the web with the same instructions but they are useless.
Yes the reg key is not in my machine either. So I m guess im stuck with this stupid one drive which I hate. Microsoft turning into some dictator, what happened to freedom
I have the , went there, changed the 1 to 0, still have onedrive in explorer. Rechecked registry – the 1 did changeover to zero OK
I have the issue where I have removed Google Backup and Sync and Google Drive for desktop from my computer but I still see 2 Google Drives in my file explorer, though when you click on them it says they are unavailable because they don’t exist at that location anymore.
Do you know the reg setting to remove these?
I see a bunch of folders in the registry for google drive…can I just delete them all? 😀
Hi. I have much empathy with all who posted. I have searched the web on how to remove One Drive from File Explorer. I will say that your instructions are the clearest. Thank you for how you left all the steps in one neat ending! That’s nice.
As with all Big Tech, they are all encroaching on our privacy and freedoms. Every electronic has more & more grayed out permissions. I’m fed up with the Gulag aspect of these Big Techs. If there is a way to root our computer, please let us know! Thanks so much. I like your website.
I don’t want OneDrive, every u/grade message that appears increases my anger. Please devise a simple removal !
Change can be hard. If the Windows 11 aesthetic has you pining for the glory days of Windows 10, fear not. You can tweak Microsoft’s new Start menu or download an alternative.
The new Start menu in Windows 11 is off to a shaky start. Though it probably has its fans, many people have given its interface a thumbs down. If you’re one of them, though, you can do more than just complain about it.
Though the new Start menu isn’t as customizable as the one in Windows 10, there are ways to make it look and work the way you want. If that’s not enough, you may want to consider jumping ship to a Windows 11 Start menu alternative, like Start 11 and StartAllBack, to restore a more traditional Start menu and set the look, layout, colors, and other elements.
Welcome to the Windows 11 Start Menu
Before we change anything, let’s see what the default Windows 11 Start menu looks like. At the top of the menu, a search field lets you search for apps, files, and settings. The Pinned section shows apps that have been pinned; scroll up and down to see them all. To view a list of all your installed apps, click the All Apps button.
The Recommended section displays recently added and recently opened apps and files. Click the More button to see a longer list. Below this section is your profile icon, where you can change account settings, lock the PC, or sign out. The power button on the right lets you put Windows to sleep, shut down your PC, or restart it.
Change Recommended Apps and Files
If you want to change anything, head to Settings > Personalization > Start, where you can tell Windows to stop showing recently installed apps, frequently used apps, and recently opened items in the Start menu, App List, and elsewhere. Experiment with each of these three options to determine which ones to turn on and off. If you turn all three options off, the Recommended section of the Start menu will be empty.
Add Folders
You can add folders to the bottom of the Start menu from Settings > Personalization > Start > Folders. Turn on the switch next to any folder you wish to see next to the power icon. This way you can gain easy access to Settings, File Explorer, Documents, Downloads, and more.
Add and Remove Pinned Apps
You can tweak the menu further by removing, pinning, and moving specific apps under the Pinned section. Right-click an icon for an app and click Unpin from Start to remove the app from the Start Menu. You will find that the app remains in the App List.
If you wish to add an app to the Start menu, click All Apps to view all your installed apps. Right-click on an item not already in the Start menu and select Pin to Start.
Any apps added to the Pinned section can be moved to your liking. So if you use some more frequently than others, move them to the top of the Pinned section for easy access. Do this quickly by right-clicking the icon and selecting Move to Top. Or simply drag icons into place.
Realign the Start Button
You may have also noticed that the Start button is centered on the taskbar in Windows 11, which is different from its usual spot in the bottom-left corner of the screen. If you prefer the way it’s always been positioned, you can move the entire taskbar into place.
Open Settings > Personalization > Taskbar, then select the Taskbar behaviors option. Use the Taskbar alignment drop-down to change the icons from Center to Left. The Start button, along with the rest of the icons on the Taskbar, will reposition to the bottom left. For more on customizing the Taskbar, check out our guide.
Start Menu Alternative: Stardock’s Start 11
If you still don’t like the Windows 11 Start menu, consider downloading an alternative. A top choice is Stardock’s Start 11, which is still in beta but open to all. For a free, 30-day trial, click the Download the latest update link underneath the green Get the Beta button on the Stardock.com. After that, it costs $4.99 ($3.99 if you’re upgrading from a previous version) and includes 30 days of direct technical support, plus unlimited access to its tech support forums.
The program’s setup screen asks if you want your taskbar left aligned or center aligned. You can then choose a style of Start menu, such as Windows 7 style, Modern style, Windows 10 style, or Windows 11 style. If you prefer the classic two-column Start menu, go for Windows 7 style or Modern style. You can further tweak a style by clicking the down arrow next to it and selecting a compact or grid layout.
Go through the rest of the setup options to customize the Start button, taskbar, and search feature. You can set when and how the Start 11 menu appears from the Control tab. For example, you can tweak it so that clicking the Start button triggers the Start 11 menu but pressing the Windows key on your keyboard triggers the regular Windows 11 Start menu.
When finished, click the Start button to see your new Start menu. Right-click anywhere in the Start menu to modify it by deleting or renaming shortcuts and moving shortcuts to specific folders. You can also return to the Start 11 settings to change any options by right-clicking the taskbar and selecting Configure Start 11.
Start Menu Alternative: StartAllBack
Another good Windows 11 Start menu alternative is StartAllBack, which costs $4.99 ($1.50 if you’re upgrading from a previous version) after a 30-day trial. You’re first asked to choose your preferred two-column Start menu setup with such options as Proper 11, Kinda 10, and Remastered 7.
To further tweak StartAllBack, use the tabs on the left to edit the Start menu, taskbar, File Explorer, and more. When done, click the Start button to use the new menu. Right-click anywhere to delete, rename, or move specific shortcuts.
The context menu is the small window that popup when you right click your mouse. When you right click your mouse on a file/folder, the context menu will show a list of useful options for you to choose. The bad thing is, it is usually not configurable by default. For example, while keeping Firefox as the default browser, you want to open a particular Internet shortcut with Google Chrome. The current configuration of the context menu doesn’t allow you to do so.
Luckily there are several useful tools that allow you to edit your context menu.
1. CMenuEdit
CMenuEdit is a lightweight application (only 69kb in size) that allows you to customize the context menu of Windows Explorer.
The application comes in a zipped file. Once you have extracted the zip file, you will need to run the “install.bat” as administrator and it will install the necessary dll files to your system.
To use CMenuEdit, you just have to right click your mouse and choose “Properties”. You will see a Context Menu tab.
To add a new context entry, first click on the first icon to create a submenu, follow by the second icon to create a command. In the command field, you can specify the action such as open another program, select a file/folder, minimized or maxmized state etc.
Things that you can customize including the name of the submenu and command, add separators, brief description of the command/submenu, attach an icon and select, for a command, an external program, argumenus, working directory and window state.
2. ShellMenuView
ShellMenuView is different in that it does not allows you to add entry to your context menu. Instead it scans through your existing list of items in the context menu and display them in a window, you can then choose to enable/disable the entry in the context menu. This is useful for cleaning up your context menu.
The ShellMenuView application does not require any installation and it is fully portable. Simply unzip the file and run the .exe file.
To enable/disable the entry in the context menu, simply scroll down the list to find the entry, right click on it and select “disable/enable selected item”
3. FileMenu Tools
If you browse the FileMenu website, you will find very little documentation, but it is surprisingly a very useful (and user-friendly) tool for editing the context menu.
Once you have installed FileMenu Tools, you will have a new entry “FileMenu Tools in your context menu. In it comes with a series of useful commands.
To edit the items, you have to open up the FileMenu Tools application. Here is where you can enable/disable the list of commands in the FileMenu Tools context entry. Just place a check (or remove the check) to enable the command.
In addition, you can also add your new submenu and command. Similarly, you can specify actions such as open a program, copy to folders, delete specific files etc.
4. Fast explorer
Of all the context menu editors mentioned above, Fast Explorer is the best. It comes with a Windows Explorer interface that makes it easy for anyone to edit their context menu. In addition, it also comes with a registry bug that help you to clean up your context menu registry.
At the main screen, you can choose to add a static item or a submenu item. Static items are entries that appear when you right click on the mouse.
The center pane is for you to add new item while the right pane allows you to configure the item.
In addition, Fast Explorer is also able to detect and clean up orphaned context menu items or remove context menu items added by other applications or context menu extensions. This feature is very useful since it enables its users to clean up the context menu registry, without having to manually dig into the registry.
This should round up the list of context menu editor app. I am sure everyone has a different way of utilizing the app. Tell us about it in the comments.
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