Microsoft PowerToys get new dashboard homepage and an surroundings variables editor



PowerToys is a hard and fast of utilities for energy customers to music and streamline their Windows experience for greater productiveness. Inspired through the Windows 95 generation PowerToys project, this reboot gives electricity customers with utilities to squeeze extra out of the Windows shell and customise it for his or her man or woman workflows.

What tools are blanketed in PowerToys?

Microsoft keeps adding utilities to the suite, but the 21 foremost tools are: Always on Top, PowerToys Awake, Color Picker, FancyZones, File Explorer Add-ons, File Locksmith, Hosts File Editor, Image Resizer, Keyboard Manager, Mouse utilities, Mouse Without Borders, Peek, Paste as Plain Text, PowerRename, PowerToys Run, Quick Accent, Registry Preview, Screen Ruler, Shortcut Guide, Text Extractor, and Video Conference Mute.

What is the motive of PowerToys?

PowerToys are smaller accessories or utilities that can beautify and customise your Windows revel in. Microsoft created PowerToys for energy customers searching out a piece extra personalization and tweakability.

What are the 2 most useful equipment in PowerToys?

PowerToys gives numerous available gear for particular use cases, however very popular ones are FancyZones, which helps you to rearrange your window format to run a couple of apps on one display screen, and PowerToys Run, which is a Spotlight-like launcher that consists of brief search for apps and documents in Windows.

Is Microsoft PowerToys loose?

Yes, PowerToys is loose and open-supply.

Does PowerToys paintings on Windows eleven?

PowerToys is like minded with Windows 10 and Windows eleven

Getting started out

To kick the tires on the primary two utilities, download the installer here. The predominant PowerToys carrier runs when Windows starts and a user logs in. When the carrier is running, a PowerToys icon seems in the system tray. Selecting the icon launches the PowerToys settings UI. The settings UI lets you enable and disable person utilities and affords settings for every software. There is likewise a hyperlink to the assist document for every application. You can proper click the tray icon to end the Power Toys provider.

PowerToys settings UI.Note that a few PowerToys functionality calls for running in an increased procedure. Elevation is required to interact with and manipulate windows from processes that have a higher set of rights than the modern-day person. This is why the PowerToys.Exe requests elevation while released.

If you locate insects or have tips, please open an problem within the Power Toys GitHub repo. The backlog for creating new utilities is right here. You can provide remarks at the backlog to indicate new ideas or a extraordinary priority order by using joining the backlog discussion in this difficulty.

Current PowerToy utilities

The presently to be had utilities include:

Crop And Lock

Crop And Lock allows you to crop a present day software right into a smaller window or simply create a thumbnail. Focus the target window and press the shortcut to start cropping.

Mouse Without Borders

Control a hard and fast of machines using the equal keyboard/mouse, percentage clipboard between the machines and transfer documents between the machines.

Peek

A gadget-wide software for Windows that lets in you to preview record content material with out the want to open multiple programs or interrupt your workflow. It gives a continuing and brief report preview enjoy for numerous report types, such as pics, net pages, Markdown documents, text documents, and developer files.

Always on Top

Always on Top permits you to pin windows on top of all other home windows with a short key shortcut (â Win Ctrl T).

PowerToys Awake

PowerToys Awake is designed to keep a pc wakeful without having to manipulate its power & sleep settings. This behavior may be beneficial when running time-consuming obligations, ensuring that the pc does not fall asleep or turns off its displays.

Color Picker

ColorPicker is a device-wide shade picking application activated with Win Shift C. Pick colours from any presently jogging utility, the picker mechanically copies the colour into your clipboard in a hard and fast layout. Color Picker also carries an editor that indicates a history of formerly picked colorings, lets in you to exceptional-track the chosen coloration and to duplicate distinct string representations. This code is based on Martin Chrzan's Color Picker.

FancyZones

FancyZones is a window manager that makes it smooth to create complex window layouts and fast position home windows into the ones layouts.

File Explorer accessories

File Explorer accessories enable preview pane rendering in File Explorer to show SVG icons (.Svg), Markdown (.Md) and PDF document previews. To enable the preview pane, choose the "View" tab in File Explorer, then pick out "Preview Pane".

Image Resizer

Image Resizer is a Windows Shell extension for quick resizing pictures. With a simple proper click on from File Explorer, resize one or many photos instantly. This code is based on Brice Lambson's Image Resizer.

Keyboard Manager

Keyboard Manager permits you to customize the keyboard to be greater efficient by remapping keys and creating your personal keyboard shortcuts. This PowerToy requires Windows 10 1903 (construct 18362) or later.

Mouse utilities

Mouse utilities upload capability to beautify your mouse and cursor. With Find My Mouse, quickly locate your mouse's position with a highlight that specializes in your cursor. This feature is based on supply code advanced by using Raymond Chen.

PowerRename

PowerRename permits you to perform bulk renaming, searching and changing file names. It includes advanced functions, which includes the use of normal expressions, concentrated on precise record types, previewing expected results, and the ability to undo adjustments. This code is based on Chris Davis's SmartRename.

PowerToys Run

PowerToys Run can help you seek and release your app instantly - just press the shortcut Alt Space and start typing. It is open supply and modular for additional plugins. Window Walker is now protected as well. This PowerToy calls for Windows 10 1903 (construct 18362) or later.

Shortcut Guide

Windows key shortcut guide seems while a person presses â Win Shift / (or as we adore to assume, â Win ?) and suggests the to be had shortcuts for the present day country of the computing device. You also can alternate this putting and press and keep â Win.

Video Conference Mute

Video Conference Mute is a brief way to globally "mute" both your microphone and digicam using â Win Shift Q while on a conference name, irrespective of the application that currently has focus. This calls for Windows 10 1903 (construct 18362) or later.

Languages

Currently, PowerToys is available in the following languages: Chinese (simplified), Chinese (traditional), Czech, Dutch, English, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Spanish, Turkish.

Community led and advanced inside the open

Our intention for the PowerToys venture is for it to be an extension of the Windows electricity person community and for it to offer the functionality those customers find maximum precious. Our backlog of utilities is on GitHub, and we inspire the network to offer remarks on the backlog in this issue. Each software has its very own characteristic backlog. You also can contribute to the Windows shortcut guide backlog and the FancyZones backlog. For new software suggestions, please create a brand new difficulty to discuss the concept.

Creating your personal PowerToys utilities

While commencing malicious program reviews, function tips, and comments on the backlog are all quite precious for this project, if you're one of the many electricity users which are also developers, you could make contributions without delay to the product.

When the PowerToys task changed into first introduced this spring, we didn't think the reception might be as enthusiastic because it has been. The project started out with simply an empty repo, with a roadmap and a place for strength users to offer guidelines and ideas. However, over 4000 customers starred the repo, showing a robust interest within the project. Given this enthusiasm, we're awaiting many builders will need to contribute to PowerToys, and we've made sure that the documentation, challenge architecture, and tools are prepared for the community to dive in.

Before getting commenced, it is profitable to read the contribution recommendations for the mission. After that, you should read the "Developer Guidance" segment of the PowerToys readme, which has a hyperlink to the brand new PowerToys utility Visual Studio template. Each utility is a .Dll, which is loaded with the aid of the PowerToys runtime and every application can offer settings to the PowerToys settings framework with a JSON blob. The settings UI takes this JSON and routinely creates a settings UI for the utility. More information on the settings format may be observed within the Settings spec.

What's New

• ssharpp29491 - The generalization of a fix for snapping popup home windows changed into causing many applications to now not be snappable via FancyZones. We're reverted that trade for this patch and we're going to investigate a better restore for a future release.
• ssharpp29465 - We've currently included extra methods for PowerToys Run plugin builders to encompass extraordinary facts kinds as extra options for their plugins, but those had been not being initialized efficaciously. Now they ought to be operating. Thanks @waaverecords!

Previous Release Notes:

• New application: An surroundings variables editor with the functionality to configure profiles that can be enabled/disabled. Thanks @niels9001 for the design and UI work that made this feasible!
• Settings has a brand new Dashboard domestic page, with short get entry to for enabling modules, short descriptions and activation strategies. Thanks @niels9001 for the design and UI paintings that made this feasible!
• Added a previewer to Peek that hosts File Explorer previewers to support each file kind that a machine is currently able to preview. For instance, which means that if Microsoft Office handlers are mounted, Peek can preview Office files. Thanks @dillydylann!

General

• Many typo fixes through the initiatives and documentation. Thanks @brianteeman!
• Refactored and stepped forward the logic throughout utilities for bringing a window to the foreground after activation.

Color Picker

• After activating Color Picker, it's now possible to cancel the consultation through clicking the right mouse button. Thanks @fredso90!

Environment Variables

• Added a brand new software: An environment variables editor that has the functionality to configure profiles that can be enabled/disabled. Thanks @niels9001 for the layout and UI work that made this feasible!
• Shows within the identify bar if it is walking as an administrator. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

FancyZones

• Fixed an trouble causing context menu pop-united states of americafrom a few apps to routinely snap to a sector. (This became a hotfix for 0.Seventy four)
• Applied the repair for the context menu pop-americato the logic that makes a decision which home windows can be snapped.
• Reworked the "Keep home windows in their zones" option to consist of the paintings location and turn it on through default, solving an incompatibility with the Copilot flyout.
• Fixed an difficulty inflicting windows to be snapped while moving to a exclusive virtual computing device.

File Explorer accessories

• Fixed an difficulty blocking some SVG files from being previewed successfully. (This turned into a hotfix for 0.74)
• Fixed crashes on invalid documents inside the STL Thumbnail generator.

GPO

• Added a global GPO rule that applies for all utilities unless it is overridden. Thanks @htcfreek!
• Added GPO rules to control which PowerToys Run plugins have to be enabled/disabled by using policy. Thanks @htcfreek!
• All plugins have to offer its plugin ID as static assets in its Main method.

Image Resizer

• Fixed wrong .Bmp report association in the registry. Thanks @meitinger!

Keyboard Manager

• Visually distinguish between the Numpad and regular length characters within the UI.
• This utility is now disabled by way of default on new installations, because it calls for user configuration to affect keyboard conduct.
• Fixed a typo inside the Numpad Subtract key in the editor.

Mouse Highlighter

• Removed the decrease restriction of fade delay and duration, to permit higher signaling of doing a double click on. Thanks @fredso90!

Mouse Jump

• The method now runs in the background, for a quicker activation time. Thanks @mikeclayton!

Peek

• Reported document sizes will now extra carefully healthy what is pronounced by way of File Explorer. Thanks @Deepak-Sangle!
• Added a previewer that hosts File Explorer previewers to support every document type that a machine is presently capable of preview. Thanks @dillydylann!
• Fixed an difficulty inflicting the preview of the primary report to be caught loading. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed displaying the previously previewed video file while invoking Peek with a brand new record. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Added the wrap and document formatting alternatives to the Monaco previewer. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

PowerRename

• Save data from the final run in a one of a kind record to avoid conflicting with changing settings within the Settings utility.

PowerToys Run

• Fixed a case in which the query wasn't being cleared after invoking a end result movement thru the keyboard. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Improved the shell choice option for Windows Terminal within the Shell plugin and advanced the backend code for adding combo field options to plugins. Thanks @htcfreek!
• The implementation of the mix field objects has modified amd is not backward well suited. (Old plugins might not crash, however the combo container putting isn't proven in settings ui anymore.)
• Added Unix time in milliseconds, constant negative unix time input and advanced blunders messages within the TimeDate plugin. Thanks @htcfreek!
• The PowerToys plugin lets in calling the new Environment Variables software. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Refactored and added guide to VSCodium Stable, VSCodium Insider and Remote Tunnels workspaces. Thanks @eternalphane!

Quick Accent

• Fixed characters that were eliminated from "All languages" due to the fact they had been no longer in any unmarried language. (This became a hotfix for 0.74)
• Added Asturian characters to the Spanish man or woman set. Thanks @blakestack!
• Added Greek characters with tonos. Thanks @PesBandi!

Registry Preview

• Fixed a parsing mistakes that crashed the Application. (This changed into a hotfix for 0.74)
• Fixed beginning document names with non-ASCII characters. Thanks @randyrants!
• Fixed incorrect parsing while the report contained an assignment with spaces around the equals sign. Thanks @randyrants!
• Fixed key transversal problems while a key become a substring of a determine key. Thanks @randyrants!

Runner

• Fixed the replace notification toast to reveal an Unicode arrow. Thanks @TheJoeFin!

Settings

• Added a new Dashboard home page, with brief access for allowing modules, quick descriptions and activation techniques. Thanks @niels9001 for the design and UI work that made this possible!
• Fixed a typo in the Hosts File Editor web page. Thanks @Deepak-Sangle!
• Added a lock icon to the flyout list of all modules while its enabled country is managed by coverage.
• The "All apps" list inside the flyout will now list all apps despite the fact that their enabled country is controlled through coverage.

Video Conference Mute

• Added an choice to allow for the toolbar to hide after a while passed. Thanks @quyenvsp!
• Added an choice to pick to mute or unmute at startup. Thanks @quyenvsp!
• Fixed an issue causing a cascade of mute/unmute triggers.

Documentation

• Updated the Group Policy documentation on analyze.Microsoft.Com, eliminated the Group Policy documentation from the repository and linked to the posted documentation on study.Microsoft.Com as an alternative.

Development

• Added task dependencies to the version venture and headers to avoid building errors. Thanks @johnterickson!
• Enabled Control Flow Guard inside the C tasks. Thanks @DHowett!
• Switched the release pipeline to the 1ES ruled template. Thanks @DHowett!
• Styled XAML files and brought a XAML Style checker to the answer, with a CI action to test if code being contributed is compliant. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Suppressed redundant midl document warnings in PowerRename.
• Add unit exams to FancyZones Editor. Thanks @garv5014, @andrewbengordon and @Cwighty!
• Improved the Default Layouts internal shape in FancyZones Editor. Thanks @garv5014!
• Fixed code problems to permit building in Visual Studio 17.8 Preview 4.

Previous release notes

• ssharpp28785 - After seeking to calculate the All Languages charset in Quick Accent by means of becoming a member of the charsets of all languages, we ignored that some characters had been no longer in any of the languages. This adds the ones characters to All Languages again.
• ssharpp28798 - Fixes a parsing issues while changing binary facts from the registry documents in Registry Preview.
• ssharpp28914 - Fixes FancyZones routinely snapping context menus on a few applications.
• ssharpp28819 - Fixes SVG Preview ignoring a few files with comments after we optimized the record parsing code.

Highlights

• Upgraded to Windows App SDK 1.Four.1, increasing stability of WinUI3 utilities. Thanks @dongle-the-system for starting the improve!
• Text Extractor became upgraded to its model 2.0, with a new overlay, table mode and extra Quality of Life upgrades. Thanks @TheJoeFin!
• Improved FancyZones stability, solving some layout resets and improving handling of newly created home windows on Windows 11.
• Fixed many silent crashes that were reported to Watson and the person's occasion viewer.

General

• Turning animations off in Windows Settings will now also turn them off in PowerToys.
• Upgraded the Windows App SDK dependency to at least one.Four.1. Thanks @dongle-the-gadget for the unique 1.Four.Zero improve!
• Show in the thumbnail label and application titles whilst going for walks as administrator. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Upgraded the Win UI Community Toolkit dependency to eight.0. Thanks @niels9001!

Awake

• Added down-sampled variations to the application's icon. Thanks @morriscurtis!

Color Picker

• After including a new color in the editor, the records will scroll the new shade into view. Thanks @peerpalo!

Crop and Lock

• Fixed a Crop and Lock crash that might occur when trying to reparent a window crashes the goal software. An mistakes message is proven as a substitute.

FancyZones

• Set the method and most important thread precedence to regular.
• Fixed handling newly created home windows on Windows 11.
• Fixed situations in which establishing the FancyZones Editor could reset the layouts.

File Explorer accessories

• Optimized CPU utilization for generating SVG thumbnails.
• Improved dealing with of Gcode Thumbnails, inclusive of JPG and QOI codecs. Thanks @pedrolamas!
• Better handled errors whilst sending telemetry, which had been inflicting suggested crashes.
• Fixed some thumbnails no longer being proven targeted like earlier than the optimization.

File Locksmith

• Shows documents opened by using methods with PID greater than 65535. Thanks @poke30744!
• Fixed a GDI object leak within the context menu which might crash Explorer.

Find My Mouse

• Added new activation strategies, which include by using hotkey. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

Hosts File Editor

• Ignore the default ACME sample entries inside the hosts file. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Improved store mistakes dealing with and introduced higher error messages. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Corrected a test for an errors when signaling the utility to start as administrator.
• Refactored the context menu. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed dialogs overlapping the name bar after the improve to Windows App SDK 1.4. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

Keyboard Manager

• Distinguish between the ordinary minus key and the numpad minus key.

Mouse Without Borders

• Fixed a crash whilst trying to restart the software.

Peek

• Using Peek on HTML documents will display a white heritage via default, similar to a browser's default conduct.
• Fix a white flash on Dark topic whilst switching document and stepped forward the improvement file preview detection and adjustments.

PowerRename

• Fixed a crash due to massive counter values on the brand new enumeration approach.

PowerToys Run

• It's now possible to pick which shell is utilized by the Shell plugin.
• A combobox alternative type was introduced to the plugin options.
• Fixed a computer virus inside the Calculator plugin that turned into causing decimal numbers to be misinterpreted on locales where the dot (.) person isn't used as a decimal or digit separator.
• Improved the Program plugin balance while it fails to load a program's thumbnail at startup.
• The use of Pinyin for querying some plugins can now be grew to become on in Settings. Thanks @ChaseKnowlden!
• Refactored option sorts for plugin and introduced quantity, string and composite kinds for use in the future. Thanks @htcfreek!
• Fixed the entry for trying to find Windows updates inside the Settings plugin. Thanks @htcfreek!

Quick Accent

• The "All languages" character set is now calculated by programmatically querying the characters for every to be had language. Thanks @dannysummerlin!
• Added é to the Norwegian and Swedish languages. Thanks @Aaron-Junker!
• Added a runtime cache to the "All languages" individual set, to most effective calculate accents as soon as in keeping with key.

Registry Preview

• Fixed focusing problems at startup.
• Improved the facts visualization to reveal information in a similar way to the Windows Registry Editor. Thanks @dillydylann!

Runner

• Fixed striking while a trojan horse record changed into generated from the flyout. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

Settings

• Improved the manner the OOBE window reacts to Windows topic trade.
• Fixed an issue that made it not possible to exchange the "Switch among home windows in the cutting-edge quarter" "Next window" shortcut for FancyZones.
• Fixed a crash while getting into a replica call for a shade in the Color Picker web page and improved smooth up whilst cancelling a shade edit. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

Text Extractor

• Text Extractor 2.0, with a brand new overlay, desk mode and extra Quality of Life improvements. Thanks @TheJoeFin!

Documentation

• SECURITY.Md become up to date from zero.0.2 to 0.Zero.9. Thanks @Aaron-Junker!
• Improved the README and main development record for clarity and completeness. Thanks @codeofdusk and @aprilbbrockhoeft!

Development

• Fixed PowerToys Run DateTime plugin exams that have been failing relying on locale, so that they can be run correctly on all dev machines.
• Fixed PowerToys Run System plugin assessments that were failing for positive community interfaces, in order that they may be run effectively on all dev machines. Thanks @snickler!
• Fixed a markdown bug at the GitHub /helped command.
• Switched construct pipelines to a new agent pool. Thanks @DHowett!
• New .Cs files created in Visual Studio get the header delivered automatically. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

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