Windows 10 compares favorably with its predecessors not only in functional features, but also in the concept of customizing the main Start menu, which has undergone dramatic changes. Now it will be considered how to change the Start menu in Windows 10 and configure it for yourself. In addition to the main issues, attention will be paid to some critical errors and problems that may arise in the process of using some features of the tenth version of Windows.
How has Start changed in Windows 10?
Even a cursory glance at the menu opened by pressing the Start button allows you to immediately conclude that it combines the classic look and elements of the Metro interface, which appeared in Windows 8.
On the one hand, you can use the usual navigation, which, however, sorts programs exclusively in alphabetical order, on the other hand, on the right side there is a set of tiles for quick access to frequently used applications or programs that, according to developers, the user needs every day.
This approach does not suit all users, which is why they are trying to solve the question of how to change the Start menu in Windows 10. This can be done in several ways and in several main areas. If you wish, you can generally return to either the classic look (Windows 7) or use the same Metro interface (Windows 8).
Windows 10. Customizing the Start Menu: Add or Remove Items
Consideration of setting parameters for a more comfortable use of elements will begin with the simplest thing - adding and removing some elements in the main window.
In Windows 10, setting up the Start menu from this angle is done in the simplest way. To add an item, you need to find it in the list of programs and use the right click to call the context menu, in which when switching to additional parameters there is a line for attaching the application icon to the initial screen (after that the tile will appear in the corresponding location on the right). In order to remove the fixed element, you need to use the same right-click on the tile, but select the detach line.
Adjust window size and display items
For Windows 10, setting the Start menu also means changing the size of the called window. In the simplest case, you need to do the classic way by placing the cursor on the corner or on the edges of the window and pulling them to resize the window with the mouse while holding the left button.
There is another option for resizing. In Windows 10, the “Start” menu can also be configured when invoking personalization parameters (right-click on an empty spot on the screen with the appropriate line in the submenu selected). In the settings window, you need to select the start section and set the switch to display the full screen mode when the menu is called.
Here, if desired, you can enable or disable the visualization of recently installed or used programs, frequently used applications, etc.
Change the color scheme
It is not difficult to change the color scheme of the menu. In the same personalization section, a color string is selected, after which automatic selection is turned off. Further, in the presented palette, it remains only to indicate your color and apply the settings.
By default, the color will be set only on the tiles, but if you enable the display of color in the menu, the notification center and the taskbar, it will be set for all elements. In addition, followers of the Windows 7 interface can use the inclusion of a translucent display.
Disable tile updates
Menu notifications are good. However, many users are constantly annoyed by reminders, to put it mildly. They can be turned off.
To do this, you need to right-click on the tile to call up an additional menu and select from it the option to disable live tiles. After setting such parameters, annoying user notifications will no longer bother. For all categories of parameters, the question of how to save the Windows 10 Start menu settings is resolved quite simply - by the usual confirmation of the changes with the OK buttons. If desired, in the personalization section, you can save the selected scheme.
Back to Metro and Windows 7
For those who for some reason do not like the innovation, there is the possibility of returning to the old interfaces. As for the classic look, just go to it will not work. To do this, the menu will have to manually delete all the tiles. Only after that will the program section remain.
To return to the Metro interface, you need to apply the settings for the full screen display of the Start menu, as described above.
What to do if the Start menu does not work in Windows 10?
Now the saddest thing. When switching to the tenth version, for many users the start button stops working, and the menu does not open at all. In Windows 10, a critical error in the Start menu is corrected by several methods, the main of which are restarting the Explorer.exe process, which is responsible for the graphical interface of the system, using PowerShell tools, creating another account and editing the corresponding registry keys.
First, go to the "Task Manager" by pressing Ctrl + Alt + Del or enter taskmgr in the "Run" console and find explorer.exe in the process tree . Right-click on an additional menu and use the restart line. You can also use the button of the same name from the bottom right. But this method does not always help.
The problem may not only be that the Start menu does not work in Windows 10. Even the start button is inactive. In this case, you should turn to a system tool called PowerShell. You can find the executable file in the program folder, which is located in the System32 directory, but it’s better to do it easier by calling the service from the Run menu (powershell command) or by starting it in the same way from the Task Manager. It goes without saying that this operation should be performed exclusively with administrator rights.
Next, the line Get-appxpackage -all * shellexperience * -packagetype bundle |% {add-appxpackage -register -disabledevelopmentmode ($ _. Installlocation + “\ appxmetadata \ appxbundlemanifest.xml”)} is written in the console, and when the command completes, the menu itself will work.
If this option does not help, you can try to create another registration account with administrator rights, using the corresponding section of the standard “Control Panel”, access to which can be obtained in the quickest way by entering the control command in the Run console. Then you just need to enter the system just under it. But it is inconvenient.
Finally, you can bring the Start button and menu to life through the system registry called by the regedit command in the Run menu. Here you need to use the HKLU branch, in which we go down the folder tree through the SOFTWARE and Microsoft sections to the Explorer directory where the Abdanced folder is located. On the right is the EnableXAMLStartMenu key, the value of which should be changed to zero. If there is no such key in the list, first you need to create a DWORD parameter, and then give it such a name and set the corresponding value. After restarting the system, the problem will disappear.
Login without password
Now consider the question of how to log in to Windows 10 without a password. There are two options: entry at system startup and exit from sleep mode.
In the second case, the setting is made through the setting of the current power scheme, where you need to uncheck the item to require a password when exiting. As an add-on, you can also disable quick start, which can fix some problems of the system freezing.
But when you need to enter Windows 10 without a password at the system boot stage, you should use the disable requirement in the account settings called by the netplwiz command (the check box is unchecked).
You can use the system registry, where in the HKLM branch we find the Winlogon section, check the DefaultUserName entry for the username and the DefaultPassword parameter, where the current valid password is written. If there is no such key, you need to create a string parameter (String Value), give it the name DefaultPassword, then enter the password and confirm it. Then it remains to activate the administrator record (the AutoAdminLogon key is assigned a value of one).
Utilities for changing the Start menu and fixing problems
In principle, automated utilities can be used to change the appearance, configure startup components, or eliminate problems associated with it. Different kinds of starting tweakers can be used for the interface, and for fixing errors - a “native” program for configuring the Windows 10 Start menu from Microsoft, which can be downloaded on the company's official website. But in general, as can be seen from all of the above, the necessary actions can be performed independently.
What to give preference to? It seems better to use manual tuning, because programs for changing the interface work in the background and consume a significant amount of resources (loading the processor and RAM).