How to bring back classic context menu on Windows 11 – Guide
Windows 11 brings a new UI with more prominence for improvements. It gives an impeccable and new yet recognizable plan. The main changes are apparent in the Start menu, context menus, taskbar, settings, and File Explorer.
The new right-click or current setting menu for File Explorer and the Desktop has been designed to be more straightforward, friendly to contact and prevent external applications from cluttering the menu with more options. It still includes the most commonly used options like Cut, Copy, Rename, Sort, Properties and Delete.
How to restore the old right-click menu in Windows 11
- The easiest way is to use the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. This update includes a new right-click menu that you can use to restore the old right-click menu.
- The manual method is more difficult, but it’s also the fastest way. You need to know how to open and close windows, and you also need to be familiar with the Windows 10 operating system.
- If you choose the manual method, it may take longer than using the Anniversary Update.
The difference between new and old context menu
With Windows 11, Microsoft has added a new context menu that follows the updated Fluent design language. It comes in a minimalistic design, has rounded corners, a transparent interface and design elements that follow the mobile interface. What’s noteworthy is that Microsoft has gone ahead and removed some of the traditional right-click menu options. For example, if you right-click on a file or folder, you won’t see the option to adjust the advanced sharing option or the option to create a shortcut right away. The problem gets worse when you want to use an action from a third-party app. For example, the new context menu does not show any actions from applications like WinZip or 7-Zip. You need to click “Show more options” to see the old context menu and then perform any custom 7-Zip action which takes a lot of clicks and defeats the purpose.
Microsoft removed basic options like cut, copy, paste, etc., and moved them to the top of the context menu. So users now need to follow a design suggestion (basically, relearn) to understand what each button means and does. While most users get used to the new context menu, I think older users will find it difficult to perform actions with the new right-click menu. So if you want to recover old and reliable Windows 10 context menu, follow our guide below.
- Open Winaero Tweaker and click on the “New” button.
- In the new window, select the “Windows 11” tab and then click on the “Options” button.
- Scroll down to the bottom and select the “Customize Windows 11” option.
- In the new window, select the “Advanced” tab and then click on the “Customize Windows 11” option again.
- Scroll down to the bottom and select the “Windows 10/11 Context Menu Settings” option. This will open a new window with all of your old context menu settings from Windows 10/11, including those that you changed in Winaero Tweaker! To restore them, just hit return in each of these windows and your old context menu will be restored!
Winaero Tweaker is a free program that can be used to improve your computer’s performance. After installation, it will need to be run as an administrator in order to work properly.
Then open the program and go to the “Windows 11” section in the left pane. Then go to “Classic Full Context Menus” in the Windows 11 section and enable the checkbox in the right pane.
After enabling the checkbox, you will see a “Restart Explorer” option at the bottom. Click on it.
Right-click on the desktop or any file and folder to get the old Windows 10 context menu. This is super easy, right?
If you want to revert to the old Windows 10 right-click menu, click the “Reset this page to defaults” option at the top and restart Explorer. You will get back the Flat UI and “Show More Options” button. ..
If you want a simpler way to access the old context menu in Windows 11, download this app called Windows 11 Classic Context Menu (Free). It removes the “Show more options” button and restores the full size Windows 10 style classic context menu in Windows 11. ..
If you like to manually tweak things on your Windows computer, this method is for you. You can restore the old right-click menu in Windows 11 by adding some registry values. Here it is how to go about it.
To open the Windows Registry, press the Windows 11 keyboard shortcut “Windows + R” and type regedit. ..
" HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon " " C:\WINDOWS\system32\winlogon.exe "
In the Key dialog box, type CLSID and click OK. In the right pane, double-click the newly created key and enter CLSID_LocalSystem into the Name field. Click OK to close the Key dialog box. ..
The string below is copied and renamed to “new_key” After that copy the string below and rename the new key. The string below is copied and renamed to “new_key” After that, copy the string below and rename it as “old_key”. Old_key: This is a test. ..
New -> Key
InprocServer32 is a Windows system file that stores important system information. It is used to run processes and to access other files on the computer.
Default in the right pane of the “InprocServer32” folder contains a file called “Default.dll”. Double-click this file to change its value.
In order to close Registry Editor and restart Windows Explorer, you can either restart your PC or close Registry Editor and restart Windows Explorer.
If you want to restore the Windows 11 context menu, you can delete the new registry key and restart your computer.
Final note
If you’re one of the millions of Windows 10 users who miss the classic context menu, fret not! There’s a way to bring it back. In this guide, we’ll show you how to restore the context menu on Windows 10, using a few simple steps. Whether you’re looking for a quick fix or want to customize your experience further, we’ve got you covered. So let’s get started! ..
