Personalization Add Control Panel to Desktop Context Menu in Windows 11


Control_Panel_banner.png

This tutorial will show you how to add "Control Panel" to the Desktop context menu for all users in Windows 10 and Windows 11.

The Control Panel Desktop context menu allows you to quickly open the Control Panel in either the Category view, Icons view (large or small), or All Tasks (God Mode) on demand.

You can use Control Panel to change settings for Windows. These settings control nearly everything about how Windows looks and works, and you can use them to set up Windows so that it's just right for you.

While you must be signed in as an administrator to add or remove the "Control Panel" context menu, all users can use the context menu if added.


The Control Panel is in the process of being deprecated in favor of the Settings app, which offers a more modern and streamlined experience.

While the Control Panel still exists for compatibility reasons and to provide access to some settings that have not yet migrated, you're encouraged to use the Settings app, whenever possible.



EXAMPLE: Control Panel context menu

In Windows 11, you will need to click/tap on Show more options first by default, then click/tap on Control Panel.


Show_more_options.png
Control_Panel_context_menu.png

Control_Panel_category_view.png
Control_Panel_large_icons_view.png
Control_Panel_all_tasks.png




Here's How:

1 Do step 2 (add) or step 3 (remove) below for what you want.

2 Add "Control Panel" Desktop Context Menu

A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below, and go to step 4 below.​

Add_Control_Panel_to_desktop_context_menu.reg​


(Contents of REG file for reference)
Code: 
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel]
"MUIVerb"="Control Panel"
"SubCommands"=""
"Icon"="imageres.dll,-27"
"Position"="Bottom"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel\shell\001menu]
@="Category view"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel\shell\001menu\command]
@="explorer.exe shell:::{26EE0668-A00A-44D7-9371-BEB064C98683}"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel\shell\002menu]
@="Icons view"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel\shell\002menu\command]
@="explorer.exe shell:::{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel\shell\003menu]
@="All Tasks (God mode)"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel\shell\003menu\command]
@="explorer.exe shell:::{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}"

3 Remove "Control Panel" Desktop Context Menu

This is the default setting.


A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below, and go to step 4 below.​

Remove_Control_Panel_from_desktop_context_menu.reg​


(Contents of REG file for reference)
Code: 
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DesktopBackground\Shell\ControlPanel]

4 Save the .reg file to your desktop.

5 Double click/tap on the downloaded .reg file to merge it.

6 When prompted, click/tap on Run, Yes (UAC), Yes, and OK to approve the merge.

7 You can now delete the downloaded .reg file if you like.


That's it,
Shawn Brink


Related Tutorials

 

Attachments

Last edited:
Click to expand...
Although Control Panel is in the process of being deprecated in favor of the Settings app, I find Control Panel far more useful for the utilities I routinely use to manage Windows. When you select Windows' new "Settings" tool, it initially displays barebones Material icons for about a dozen major categories of tools as well as a search bar. To me, this is infinitely less useful than Control Panel which displays ALL of your control panel choices and gives context menu descriptions when you hover over them and additional options if you right click on them. Of course, many Control Panel applets are not useful or rarely used. (I don't think I have ever opened the Region in more than two decades of using Windows because you set that when you first setup Windows). So I removed more than a dozen of these applets. In addition, I used Brink's "Personalize classic Context Menu" guide to reassign several applets to other locations (the mouse app, for example, I moved to a custom desktop "Personalization" menu that I access by right clicking on the desktop). The default Windows Control Panel and my custom Control Panel are shown, below:

As I added more items, Control Panel became more complicated to manage until I recently added a very useful tweak. I added a context menu entry, that opens the registry key of my custom Control Panel entries when I right click on them. As a result, I can easily change icons, rename the applet or make other changes without having to search through my registry or modify the registry script I used to install apps to Control Panel. Below is an annotated description of the main control panel applet. Just modify the program and icon paths to install your own applet. I have included both the CP_Guide.html.txt and Custom_CP.reg.txt files needed to add the registry guide to your Control Panel. (You will need to remove the ".txt" extension from both files to make them functional). Make a backup of your registry and double-check your work, as I am not liable for your computing experience.
 

Attachments

  • custom_CP.webp
    custom_CP.webp
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  • default_CP.webp
    default_CP.webp
    143.6 KB · Views: 2
  • Custom_CP.reg.txt
    Custom_CP.reg.txt
    4.7 KB · Views: 26
  • CP_Guide.htm.txt
    CP_Guide.htm.txt
    98.7 KB · Views: 29
  • CP_GUIDE.webp
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    171.1 KB · Views: 2
Last edited:

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