HOW TO REPLACE THE START MENU IN WINDOWS 11

How to Replace the Start Menu in Windows 11

Get a more compact Start menu with greater information density.

Windows 11 has some interesting new features, but its UI is polarizing. If you're like me, you want to play around with the new operating system, but don't like its version of the Start menu because it takes much more screen real estate.  In the first preview build of Windows 11, you were able to tweak a registry setting and get back Windows 10's Start menu, but Microsoft killed that option with the first major update.

Fortunately, with a third-party app and possibly a registry tweak, you can get a different style of Start menu that's closer to the look and feel of Windows 7 than Windows 10 and gives you lots of options. There are a few different utilities out there but I tested with the two most popular: Open-Shell (formerly Classic Shell), a free open-source app, and Stardock's Start10, which costs $5 and has a more polished and Windows 10-like look. Both worked, though Start10 had a bug where its Start button wouldn't appear unless I made a change in the registry that would brand back a classic taskbar look (more on that later). 

Below, I'll show you how to replace the Windows 11 Start menu with either of these third-party utilities and make sure they appear in the right place.

Left Aligning the Taskbar Icons

To use any of the current Start menu utilities, you need to align your taskbar icons to the left. Both programs' buttons try to appear in the lower-left corner of the screen, so by shifting Windows 11's native button to that location the third-party one appears on top of it.

Also, if you don't install any third-party utilities, you may still want to put your icons on the left, because that gives Windows 11 a much more traditional feel than it has by default. 

To shift your taskbar icons to the left:

1.  Right click on the taskbar and select Taskbar settings.

2.  Open the Taskbar behaviors menu.

3.  Select "Left" from the Taskbar alignment menu. 

Using Open Shell

Open Shell is a free, open-source utility that gives you a Windows 7-style Start menu and a ton of options for customization. The picture below shows what Open Shell looks like. It also has its own built-in search box. 

Getting started with Open-Shell is as easy as downloading the latest version from Github and installing it. Just make sure you choose the right Start button icon. Open-Shell gives you a choice of a couple of Start buttons or the option to upload your own image. However, I found that the custom button images I uploaded were often invisible or parts of them were invisible until I clicked on them.

Your Start button icon appears on top of the Windows 11 Start button, but if the one you choose doesn't completely cover it and you click an uncovered part, it will launch the Windows 11 Start menu. 

In Open Shell, clicking outside the Start button, gives you the Windows 11 Start menu

The most reliable Start button icon is the default "Aero" button which is a circular shell icon. On our PC, it covered the complete Windows 11 Start button, but if I clicked in the blank space to the left of it rather than directly on the button, I still get the Windows 11 Start menu. The larger, rectangular Start button can solve that problem, but it may cover over parts of your other icons.

Another possibility is to uncheck Replace Start Button in Open-Shell's options menu and use the classic taskbar hack (see below) and then you'll get a clickable, Windows 10-style Start button.

Using Start10 and startisBack++

Stardock's Start10 is a bit more polished-looking than Open Shell, though it costs $4.99 after a 30-day trial and, as of this publication time, it only works if you enable the classic taskbar (see below). Start10 also has a "Windows 10 style" Start menu that promises the Windows 10 look and feel, complete with tiles. However, as of this writing, only the "Windows 7 style" and "Modern style" modes work. Presumably, Stardock will fix this at some point. The good news is that, with Start10, you can use the actual Windows 10 Start button icon if you want.

Below is a screenshot of how Start10 looks in Modern style. There's also a built-in search menu that works really well for finding your apps.

After you download and install Start10. you can set the style and control lots of fine details like the size of the icons and how many columns you have. On the Style tab, you can set the Start button icon and we strongly recommend going with the Windows 10 icon.

StartIsBack++ is very similar to Start10, but it's $1 cheaper and doesn't have a (non-working) Windows 10 look-a-like option. With StartIsBack++, you can successfully choose one of the built-in Start menu options, like this shamrock icon, and it will cover over the Windows 11 Start button, but if you right click on it, it will lock up. So your best bet is still to enable the classic taskbar (see below).

Enabling Classic Taskbar

In order to get Start10's button to appear and be clickable at this point (perhaps in the future this will change), you need to enable the classic taskbar in the Registry. This taskbar looks and feels a little bit more like the Windows 10 taskbar and has a Search box and a Task View button. 

However, neither of these works. The Search box does absolutely nothing when you click on it and the Taskview, in my experience, almost always crashes, causing icons even of open apps to disappear temporarily, so in other words, don't click it , or better yet, hide it, which we'll show you how to do.

1.  Open Regedit. You can launch it by hitting Windows + R and typing "regedit." Click Yes if prompted.

2.  Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Shell\Update\Packages.

3.  Create a new DWORD (32-bit) value by right clicking in the right window pane and selecting New->DWORD (32-bit) Value.

4.  Rename the value to UndockingDisabled.

5.  Set UndockingDisabled to 1.

6.  Close regedit and restart Windows 11. The classic taskbar will be there, but you'll notice on the left side that the clock, audio and networking icons are missing. 

7.  Launch the notification icons control panel by hitting Windows key + R and entering shell:::{05d7b0f4-2121-4eff-bf6b-ed3f69b894d9} then hitting Ok.

8.  Click "Turn system icons on or off." 

9.  Toggle Clock, Volume and Network to On. The icons will now appear on the left side of the screen.

10.  Hide the "Task view" icon (optional). Since this function tends to crash, I recommend hiding the button by right clicking on the taskbar, selecting Taskbar settings and toggling Task view to off.

11.  Hide the search box (optional). Since the search box doesn't actually work, your best bet is to hide it by using Regedit to navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search and setting SearchTaskbarMode to 0 and then restarting Windows. The good news is that the Start menu replacements have their own search boxes built in.

In the end, you will have a taskbar that works with Start10 and looks a bit more Windows 10-like. You'll also have right-click, jumplist menus that look like Windows 10 and have all the options on them, as opposed to the Windows 11 menus that only a show a maximum of 7 options. That may be reason enough to make this tweak, even if you don't plan to use Start10.

 

Cheers!!!

Edited By AdeDanCompTech

WINDOWS 11 TPM 2.0 ERROR FIX, BYPASS METHOD, WHAT IS TPM 2.0

Windows 11 TPM 2.0 Error Fix, Bypass method, What is TPM 2.0

How to fix Windows 11 TPM 2.0, and others are answered on this page. It is really a headache for Windows users who want to upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11. The new setup requires TPM 2.0 enabled on your PC. In this article, we are jumping into various solutions for TPM-related problems.

What is TPM 2.0

TPM Stands for Trusted Platform Module. Right now TPM 2.0 is the more recent version of the Trusted Platform Module and it has a clear purpose to serve. It performs the hardware-based cryptographic Operation to increase the security for encryptions and to avoid malicious attacks on the boot process and hardware of the computer.

For now, TPM has two versions; 1.2 and 2.0. TPM 2.0 is more secure than 1.2 and this is the reason Windows 11 need TPM 2.0. If your device does not have an inbuilt TPM 2.0 chip, you can purchase it separately from the nearest store. If your Intel and AMD processor is more older than 5-7 years, it should support the installation of Windows 11.

Windows 11 TPM 2.0 Requirement

Windows 11 upgrade is available for free for every user but you need particular hardware to install Windows 11 into your device. TPM 2.0 is one of those things which you need to sure of before installing Windows 11. Now the question arises whether your PC already has a TPM 2.0 chip installed.

TPM 2.0 is just a security feature that Microsoft has made compulsory for Win11. If you have bought your laptop after the year 2015, chances are your laptop already has TPM 2.0 installed. Just having a TPM 2.0 chip is not enough, you will have to enable it before installing Windows 11 into your PC or Laptop.

How to Enable TPM 2.0 on Windows 11

You will have to enable TPM 2.0 from the BIOS of your computer. You can do so by changing some settings into BIOS and reboot your system.

Click Here to know how to activate TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot

There are multiple ways to fix the TPM 2.0 error in Windows 11 installation.

1.  Enable TPM 2.0 if your system has a TPM chip but is not enabled yet.

2.  Follow the steps given below to bypass the TPM 2.0 requirement in Windows 11.

Windows 11 TPM 2.0 Bypass

If you don’t have TPM enabled and you want to bypass TPM 2.0 while installing Windows 11, we have provided just the solution for that. How to Bypass Windows 11 TPM 2.0 error is the question that everyone is asking now. Follow the below given steps to bypass the TPM 2.0 requirement in Windows 11.

*  Install Windows 11 using the ISO file or Windows 11 Insider Program. If your PC does not have TPM 2.0 enabled, it will show an error as shown below.

*  When this error comes up, Press Shift+F10 and a command prompt will be launched. Now type regedit in the command prompt and press enter button to launch the Windows Registry Editor.

*  Now As Windows Registry Editor is opened, go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup  now right-click on the Setup key and then select Nee >Key.

*  Now Prompt will show, Enter LabConfig and press Enter.

*  Now right-click on the LabConfig key and select New > DWORD  (32-bit) value and create a value named BypassTPMCheck, and set data to 1.

*  Next, Create the BypassRAMCheck and BypassSecureBootCheck values and set data to 1. It should look like the image shown below.

*  Now as you have created the three values in the last step, close the registry editor.

*  Now type exit in the command prompt and hit enter.

*  Now click on the back button on the prompt where it says that Your PC can’t run Windows 11.

*  Now you will be taken back to the page where you have to select the version of Windows 11. Press Next and your Windows 11 TPM 2.0 will be bypassed.

Note: Doing so can affect the performance and stability of Windows 11. So do it at your own consciousness.

 

Cheers!!!

Edited By AdeDanCompTech

WINDOWS 11: FOUR NEW KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS YOU MUST LEARN

Windows 11: Four new keyboard shortcuts you must learn

If you are already using Windows 11, these are the new shortcuts you need to learn.

On Windows 11, you can always use the mouse to navigate and handle applications and features, but keyboard shortcuts help you to perform actions faster using a single press of multiple keys, saving you clicks and time.

Although you can use all the Windows 10 shortcuts on Windows 11, the new version of the OS introduces several new keyboards shortcuts to give you quick access to new features, including Quick Settings, Notification Center, Widgets, and Snap layouts.

In this Windows 11 guide, we will look at several new keyboard shortcuts to help you improve productivity.

Windows 11 new keyboard shortcuts

Here are the new keyboard shortcuts for Windows 11:

*  Windows key + A keyboard shortcut opens the Quick Settings flyout.

The Quick Settings is part of the new Action Center experience that now breaks the interface into two flyouts (Quick Settings and Notification Center). The menu includes the most common settings, such as volume, brightness, wireless, Bluetooth, Focus Assist, etc.

If you play audio or video with Microsoft Edge, the Quick Settings will also show new media controls above the flyout.

*  Windows key + N keyboard shortcut opens the Notification Center flyout.

The Notification Center is also part of the new Action Center experience, and it includes all your notifications and a full-month calendar view.

*  Windows key + W keyboard shortcut opens the Widgets interface.

On Windows 11, Widgets is a new feature similar to "news and interests" for Windows 10. It features a bunch of cards with different types of information, such as weather, news, sports, stocks, traffic, and you can even display Microsoft To-Do lists and more.

In addition to the keyboard shortcut, you can also click the icon that Microsoft is placing by default in the taskbar.

*  Windows key + Z keyboard shortcut opens the Snap layouts menu.

Snap layouts is a new feature part of the Snap assist experience that introduces a menu when hovering over the maximize button with different grids to snap windows with different layouts. Once you select a position for the app, Snap assist will guide you to continue positioning windows in the remaining zones. Depending on the display size, you may see four or six different grids in the menu.

Cheers!!!

Edited By AdeDanCompTech

HOW TO ACTIVATE TPM 2.0 AND SECURE BOOT IN WINDOWS 10

How to activate TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot in Windows 10

Running your Windows 10 PC with TPM and Secure Boot active is a prerequisite for Windows 11. You can activate the security protocols now with a few settings changes.

While the most obvious changes coming with the release of Microsoft Windows 11 involve new graphics and an updated user interface, the more important changes and the driving force behind Microsoft's strategy, involve operating system security. Malware, particularly ransomware and the associated criminal activity, are a scourge to computer users everywhere and it must be stopped. Windows 11 will attempt to turn the tide with new hardware and virtualization-based security features.

However, it is noteworthy that many of the default features being deployed in Windows 11 are available as options in Windows 10. In some cases, getting these more advanced levels of security is just a matter of turning them on. In other cases, your PC's hardware may be too old to handle the new security requirements. In some cases, especially if your PC was purchased in the past few years, these advanced security settings may be installed and active in the background right now.

Activate TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot in Windows 10

Trusted Platform Module 2.0 (TPM 2.0) and Secure Boot have both been around for a few years and most new Windows 10 computers will be running the security protocols by default. The technology combines special motherboard hardware in the form of chipsets with cryptographic security protocols to prevent malware from running before the Windows 10 operating system starts to boot.

To see if your PC is operating under TPM 2.0 security protocols, right-click the Start Menu button on the Windows 10 desktop and select Device Manager from the context menu. Scroll down to the Security devices item in the list and expand it, as shown in Figure A.

Figure A

The example PC is new so, TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot is installed and active by default. There are two possibilities for an older computer that does not list the protocols in Device Manager: 1) TPM is turned off or 2) TPM is not supported.

Unfortunately, in a case where TPM 2.0 is not supported, there is little recourse. The only real solution is the purchase of a new computer, which is what Microsoft is trying to accomplish with the development of Windows 11. Older PCs are inherently less secure and need to be replaced if security is a priority—which it should be.

If TPM 2.0 is merely inactive, we can fix that by making some configuration changes. However, the first step is a little more complicated than typical.

Because TPM 2.0 and the Secure Boot protocols are hardware based and reside on the motherboard, the settings are buried deep in the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface BIOS menus. That means you will have to access UEFI before Windows 10 boots. Each motherboard has its own way of doing this and its own set of menus, so we cannot be specific about where the settings are located other than to suggest under a tab or section labeled "security."

Once the hardware is activated through the UEFI and Windows 10 has completed its boot process, open a command prompt (Windows Key + R) and type this command into the dialog box:

tpm.msc

This utility application, shown in Figure B, will allow you to activate TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot for your Windows 10 personal computer.

Figure B

To see the specific details regarding your implementation of TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot, you will have to navigate to the Security processor details screen, which is buried deep in Windows 10 Settings. Click the Start Menu, select the Settings item (Gear icon), and then select Update & Security. In the left-hand navigation bar, select Windows Security and then click Device security from the list in the right-hand screen. Finally, select the Security processor details link to reveal the screen shown in Figure C.

Figure C

From this screen you can see your chip specifications and check TPM version and status. There is a link to troubleshoot problems, but the only solution offered is to clear TPM back to factory settings.

Just like the upcoming Windows 11, TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are now on by default for your Windows 10 personal computer. Your PC is now more secure than it was before. The ability to run your PC with TPM active is also one of the major specifications of Windows 11. If your PC cannot run TPM in Windows 10, Microsoft will not update your computer to Windows 11—at least not automatically.

Cheers!!!

Edited By AdeDanCompTech