Windows 11
Installation
I installed it on two incompatible devices, using the
Universal MediaCreationTool wrapper to bypass the incompatibilities.
Progress
I have installed it on two devices by now. In both cases, the installation was
flawless.
Look and feel / User preferences
Windows 11 has the taskbar at the bottom, and doesn't allow QuickLaunch folders. Two preferences that can be overcome using third party tools.
Trial 1: OpenShell
- install !WinaeroTweaker
- in WinaeroTweaker, go to Windows 11 ► Enable Classic Taskbar
- also click 'Enable System Icons' and enable clock, network & sound
- install !OpenShell
- small icons & don't group icons: registry tweak:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
- small icons: "TaskbarSmallIcons"=dword:00000002
- don't group icons: "TaskbarGlomLevel"=dword:00000002
source:
https://www.reddit.com/r/windows/comments/odtoyp/am_i_the_only_one_who_wants_quick_launch_in/
issue:
Windows Explorer search box not accessible (see
https://github.com/Open-Shell/Open-Shell-Menu/discussions/745#discussioncomment-1446338)
Trial 2: !StartAllBack
https://www.startallback.com/
- free trial: 30 days
- license key:
- 1 PC: $4.99 (€4.30)
- 2 PCs: $8.99 (€7.75)
This seems to work seamlessly with Windows 11, not breaking the Windows Explorer search.
It has the following advantages:
- position the taskbar where you want: bottom, left, top, right
- add a quick launch bar
- ungroup taskbar items:
in the navpane of the app, choose Taskbar: then in the 'Tweak behavior and superpowers' section, next to Combine tasbar buttons, choose Never)
- classic context menus:
in the navpane of the app, choose Explorer: then in the Make it top notch' section, check the Classic context menus checkbox
Hide language bar
This requires two steps. Both are required to hide the language bar under all circumstances!
- classic Control Panel > Systeemvakpictogrammen > Turn system icons on or off
- Input Indicator: Off
Step 2: Language Bar: Hidden
- (modern) Settings > Time & language
- Typing
- Advanced keyboard settings
- in the Switching input methods section:
- enable Let met use a different input method for each app window
- enable Use the desktop language bar when it's available
- then click on the Language bar options link
- choose Hidden
- click Apply
source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNGMScAAFB0
Volume control !EarTrumpet app
In Windows 10, you were able to click the
Volume icon and then use the left/right arrow keys to lower/increase the volume. In Windows 11, this is no longer possible, making the Volume icon part of the
Quick Settings. The third-party app EarTrumpet made this possible again.
On my PC at the office, the default Volume icon returned after a couple of days, I suppose due to a domain group policy, so there the use of the EarTrumpet app has become superfluous…
Cascade windows
Trial 1: vbscript
If you rightclick the taskbar in Windows 10, you have the possibility to
Cascade windows.
The following .vbs script does the same…
set objShell = CreateObject("shell.application")
objShell.CascadeWindows()
… in Windows 10.
However, in Windows 11, nothing happens!
Nevertheless, the method is present in Windows 11. Issue the following PowerShell command:
New-Object -ComObject "Shell.Application" | gm | select Name, MemberType
Trial 2: FastKeys
https://www.fastkeysautomation.com/
- based on AutoHotkey
- free trial: 15 days
- personal license key: $19 (up to 3 computers)
Configuration:
- choose Shortcuts in the navbar on the left
- choose New (+) in the top right corner
- choose Command instead of Run in the blue colored top left corner
- click on the Library icon (booklet) in the black colored bar at the top
- choose Window in the Command section
- scroll down to Cascade Windows, select it and click on the Select button
- the following appears:
DllCall( "CascadeWindows", uInt,0, Int,4, Int,0, Int,0, Int,0 )
- position your cursor in the Shortcut field and press the desired shortcut key (e.g. Alt+C)
- click on OK
Trial 3: AutoHotKey
Create an .ahk script with the same command as the FastKeys command:
DllCall( "CascadeWindows", uInt,0, Int,4, Int,0, Int,0, Int,0 )
Using the
Ahk2Exe, you can convert the .ahk script to an executable. Afterwards, you can put a shortcut to this .exe file wherever you want.
Finetuning
VPN settings
In Windows 10, you could access VPN settings easily by clicking the
Network or the
Wi-Fi icon in the system tray / notification area. In Windows 11, the Wi-Fi icon only shows the available Wi-Fi networks, the Network icon opens the
quick settings panel, containing Night ligt, Focus assit, Project etc. If VPN isn't available here, you can add it.
The
Power icon also opens the quick settings panel.
On my Home PC, I don't have a wired network, so I don't have Network icon, neither have I a Power icont, so I cannot access the VPN settings using either icon. It is available through Settings (Win+I) > Network & internet > VPN, but that's rather cumbersome.
What I did, was adding the
Control Center icon to the system tray / notification area.
In a Windows Explorer window, go to
Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Notification Area Icons (Systeemvakpictogrammen)\System Icons and set the
Control Center to
On.
Issues
Windows 11 File Explorer Command Bar missing
Right after the upgrade to Windows 11, the File Explorer showed no Command Bar.
Using StartAllBack, I was able to choose the
Win10 Ribbon UI (from the Explorer section in the TOC), but whenever I chose Win11 Command Bar, it didn't appear.
Then I found this tip on
MAJOR GEEKS.
Apparently, the Win11 Command Bar was blocked, you can unblock it issuing the following registry tweak:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
; MajorGeeks.Com
; How to Restore the Classic File Explorer Ribbon in Windows 11
; Tutorial: https://www.majorgeeks.com/content/page/restore_file_explorer_11.html
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Shell Extensions\Blocked]
"{e2bf9676-5f8f-435c-97eb-11607a5bedf7}"=-
Afterwards,
restart Explorer.
Taskbar
- that the taskbar is at the bottom and can't be moved, okay, I can live with it
- that I can't add a QuickLaunch bar, okay, I can live with it, I'll use Pin to taskbar, but…
- nearly half (11 out of 24) of the items I'd like to pin to the taskbar, can't be pinned to the taskbar (Event Viewer, WinSCP, PSPad, IB Expert, MySQL Workbench, …)
Solution: StartAllBack
Icons
.bat / .exe files which I gave a custom icon, sometimes appear with a blank page icon.
Solution: move these icons from the network location to a local drive
Searching in Explorer
I can't put my cursor in the Search field if I launch the File Explorer throught the default shortcut.
Workaround:
- open the 'old' Control Panel: now the Search field is accessible, even if I move to 'regular' folders
Solution: use StartAllBack instead of OpenShell.
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