Hate Windows 11? Here's How You Can Make It Work More Like Windows 10

15 hours ago

I wrote nan original type of this station erstwhile Windows 11 was still little than a twelvemonth old, aft reference a ton of feedback from early adopters. I didn't person to walk a batch of clip successful support forums and different organization sites to perceive a dependable watercourse of disapproval from group who were irritated by nan changes Microsoft made successful nan Windows 10 personification interface they had grown comfortable with.

Enough clip has passed since nan original Windows 11 merchandise that immoderate of those changes person go 2nd nature. Over that time, I've noticed that those complaints person mellowed somewhat, but location are still plentifulness of group who would for illustration nan old, acquainted interface.

Also: Your complete Windows 11 upgrade guide

This isn't a unsocial phenomenon, of course. Every caller type of Windows brings retired its stock of antagonistic reactions from group who wonderment why Microsoft felt it basal to alteration things up for nary evident reason. Windows 11, however, seems to person kicked that guidance up to, uh … 11, particularly pinch nan determination to region immoderate features that powerfulness users took for granted.

The guidelines of nan problem is Microsoft's determination successful Windows 11 to discard a immense magnitude of bequest codification and rewrite cardinal features, including nan taskbar, nan Start menu, and File Explorer. The aged codification successful galore cases dated backmost to nan Windows 95 era, and I americium judge location are programme managers who person agonized complete PowerPoint decks to explicate conscionable why those rewrites make consciousness from an architectural constituent of view.

Also: 7 speedy ways to make Windows 11 little annoying correct now

The bully news is that Microsoft has responded to immoderate feedback pinch fixes that reside immoderate of nan astir salient complaints. For annoyances that aren't yet resolved, location are often workarounds. In addition, there's a thriving organization of developers building utilities to reconstruct nan features Microsoft took away.

Feedback leads to (a few) fixes

With nan thief of 2 large characteristic updates (and immoderate smaller changes delivered arsenic portion of monthly update packages), Microsoft has tweaked immoderate of those creation changes truthful they're nary longer rather arsenic annoying. Version 22H2, for example, restored nan Task Manager action to nan shortcut paper that appears erstwhile you right-click nan taskbar. It besides removed nan floating hunt barroom and improved nan Search options connected nan taskbar.

Also: This hidden Windows 11 mounting adds an 'End task' action to each task connected your taskbar

More recently, File Explorer sewage a much-needed creation alteration successful Windows 11, type 24H2. The Cut, Copy, Paste, Rename, Share, and Delete icons successful nan right-click discourse paper now see labels that make them easier to identify.

If you can't get utilized to nan taskbar and Start fastener being successful nan halfway of nan screen, you tin move them backmost to nan near side. But nan azygous astir upvoted feedback point for Windows 11 is nan action to move nan taskbar from its location connected nan bottommost of nan show to nan apical aliases either side, arsenic you could successful erstwhile Windows versions, and there's nary motion that Microsoft is moving connected adding that feature.

And past there's nan Start menu, which is astir apt nan 2nd biggest root of complaints. Windows Insiders are currently testing a awesome redesign of nan Start menu that should get precocious this twelvemonth aliases early successful 2026 for nan wide public. You still can't resize nan Start menu, but you now person nan expertise to scroll quickly done each installed apps successful category, grid, aliases database views, without having to usage a abstracted menu. Here's what that looks for illustration connected my Windows Insider trial system.

There's a shortcut for that

In immoderate cases, nan hole for communal annoyances is to study a keyboard shortcut. Are you bugged by File Explorer's new, streamlined shortcut menus, which require an other click to get to nan complete menu? Microsoft added a Show More Options shortcut, but there's a shortcut that lets you skip nan other steps: Hold down nan Shift cardinal arsenic you right-click.

And what astir nan determination to region nan ribbon from File Explorer? That makes it much difficult to show aliases hide nan Detail pane and nan Preview pane, which are now buried 3 menus deep: View > Show > Details Pane/Preview Pane.

Also: My favourite keyboard shortcut of each clip (and it useful connected each browser)

There's a shortcut for that, too: Alt+P to show aliases hide nan Preview pane, and Alt+Shift+P to do nan aforesaid pinch nan Details pane. After you've utilized those shortcuts a fewer times, musculus representation takes over.

Do you find nan caller widgets characteristic annoying? It's easy capable to hide them. Go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar and flip nan Widgets move to nan Off position. (You tin ever make nan Widgets pane look by utilizing its keyboard shortcut: Windows cardinal + W.)

But immoderate Windows 11 annoyances don't person an easy fix. If you want to move nan taskbar to nan apical of nan show aliases threat it to either side, you're not going to find a solution successful nan charismatic Settings app. That's wherever those third-party apps travel successful handy.

Third-party customization apps

With nan correct tools, you tin undo Microsoft's changes and move nan Windows 11 interface into thing much familiar, moreover reworking nan Start paper into its Windows 7 appearance. Before you get started, though, see nan imaginable complications you're letting yourself successful for if you take 1 of these options.

Also: 6 things I ever do aft mounting up Windows 11 - and why you should too

Because these utilities are attempting to return complete functions that are usually handled by nan operating system, there's nan anticipation that 1 of Microsoft's monthly updates will origin nan installed type to extremity moving decently until nan developers merchandise an update of their own.

There's besides a consequence they'll beryllium detected arsenic malware, which could forestall them from moving decently aliases could artifact Windows itself from updating. That already happened past year with 2 celebrated customization tools.

If you're OK pinch those caveats, I tin urge these 4 options, 2 of which are wholly free:

ExplorerPatcher: This free, unfastened root task lets you switch nan Windows 11 taskbar pinch nan Windows 10 version, disable nan Windows 11 discourse paper and bid barroom successful File Explorer, and tweak nan Start paper and hunt box. There's a afloat database of features successful nan project's wiki.
Open Shell: Longtime Windows users mightiness retrieve a inferior programme called Classic Shell, whose original intent was to reconstruct nan Start paper to Windows 8. That task was abandoned years ago, but a group of volunteers picked up nan codebase and turned it into nan free Open Shell. Its biggest declare to fame is nan expertise to reconstruct nan Windows 7 Start paper and nan Windows Explorer toolbar.
Start11: This commercialized merchandise from Stardock offers a 30-day trial; aft that, you'll request to pony up $6 for a azygous instrumentality aliases $15 for a licence that useful connected up to 5 devices. Its customization options let you to switch nan Windows 11 Start paper pinch nan Windows 7 aliases Windows 10 version, move nan taskbar to nan apical of nan display, reconstruct nan taskbar discourse menu, reconstruct nan ribbon to File Explorer, and overmuch more.
StartAllBack: The bold committedness of this commercialized instrumentality ($5 for a azygous device, pinch discounts for further installations) is to "unsweep [the] classical UI from nether nan rug." The database of tweaks includes nan expertise to resistance and driblet items onto taskbar icons, improvements to Start, File Explorer, and discourse menus, and "lightweight styling and UI consistency." Like Start11, it offers a 30-day free trial.

Is location thing connected your Windows 11 annoyance database that Microsoft hasn't addressed? Leave a statement successful nan comments and let's spot if we tin find a solution.