Personalization Add or Remove Pin to Quick access Context Menu in Windows 11


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This tutorial will show you how to add or remove the Pin to Quick access context menu for your account or all users in Windows 11.

Quick access in the navigation pane of File Explorer (Win+E) allows you to quickly access and view your pinned locations, frequent folders, and recent files from one location in Quick Access.

You can Pin to Quick access and Unpin from Quick access items. These locations include local and network files files (build 22557), folders, drives, libraries, OneDrive, This PC, Recycle Bin, etc...

Starting with Windows 11 build 22593, Quick access is now called Home. The name Quick access has been repurposed for the pinned/frequent Folders section and Pinned files is now called Favorites to align with Office and OneDrive. Recent and pinned files displayed in Home are now searchable using the search box in File Explorer even if they are not local files, so you can find Office files recently shared with you.



Contents

  • Option One: Add or Remove "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for Current User
  • Option Two: Add or Remove "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for All Users


EXAMPLE: Quick access and "Pin to Quick access" context menu

Pinned_to_Quick_access_in_File_Explorer.webp
Pin_to_Quick_access_context_menu.webp





Option One

Add or Remove "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for Current User


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


 2. Add "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for Current User

This is the default setting.


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

Add_Pin_to_Quick_access_to_context_menu_for_current_user.reg​


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

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Drive\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Folder\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Network\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-


 3. Remove "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for Current User

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

Remove_Pin_to_Quick_access_from_context_menu_for_current_user.reg​


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

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Drive\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Folder\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Network\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""

4 Save the REG file to your desktop.

5 If you have Smart App Control turned on, you will need to unblock the downloaded REG file.

6 Double click/tap on the downloaded REG file to merge it.

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

8 You can now delete the downloaded REG file if you like.




Option Two

Add or Remove "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for All Users


You must be signed in as an administrator to use this option.


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


 2. Add "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for All Users

This is the default setting.


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

Add_Pin_to_Quick_access_to_context_menu_for_all_users.reg​


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

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Network\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Drive\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Folder\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Network\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=-


 3. Remove "Pin to Quick access" Context Menu for All Users

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

Remove_Pin_to_Quick_access_from_context_menu_for_all_users.reg​


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

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Network\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""

4 Save the REG file to your desktop.

5 If you have Smart App Control turned on, you will need to unblock the downloaded REG file.

6 Double click/tap on the downloaded REG file to merge it.

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

8 You can now delete the downloaded REG file if you like.


That's it,
Shawn Brink


Related Tutorials

 

Attachments

Last edited:
Click to expand...
streetwolf said:
I tried another reg update I found here: Show or hide Pin to Quick access in context menu in Windows 11 This placed the P2QA on the main menu. The Add reg file from you did not. Perhaps you want to compare yours with the one at the link I included to see if there is a difference. If they are the same then I can't explain why yours didn't work when I used it.
Click to expand...

The REG file contents are identical to the one here, so I'm not sure why one would work and not the other. :what:
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self build
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING (11GB GDDR5X)
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G75 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3 wall mounted
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Amazon Basics Wired Full Keyboard MD005
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 4
    Internet Speed
    2 Gbps Download and 100 Mbps Upload
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Surface Laptop 7 Copilot+ PC
    CPU
    Snapdragon X Elite (12 core) 3.42 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB LPDDR5x-7467 MHz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15" HDR
    Screen Resolution
    2496 x 1664
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD
    Internet Speed
    Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender
Interesting. When I ran yours I only got the Pin to QA on the show more options menu. Now I get it on both the main and the show more menu. Who knows what went wrong when I tried yours. Chalk it up to another computer mystery.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    13th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-13900K
    Motherboard
    ASUS Maximus Hero Z790
    Memory
    Corsair 2x32GB @ 6600
    Graphics Card(s)
    PNY RTX3080 TI
    Sound Card
    Realtek on motherboard.
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Corsair 4k, BenQ 4k.
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
i will try
thanks
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    window 11 home
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inc.
    Motherboard
    Enhanced (101 - or 102-key)
Which if any of these registry entries if deleted or modified, will prevent "Pin to Quick Access" from showing on the Recycle Bin context menu?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Asus
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung T45F
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1200
    Hard Drives
    Samsung Evo SSDs and Western HDDs
    Keyboard
    IBM Model M
    Mouse
    Bornd
    Antivirus
    Windows and MBAM Premium
  • Operating System
    Win 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Thinkpad
highstream said:
Which if any of these registry entries if deleted or modified, will prevent "Pin to Quick Access" from showing on the Recycle Bin context menu?
Click to expand...


Option #2 WILL prevent it from showing on the Recycle Bin.
That's the best part about this tutorial. :-)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦26200.8655 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦25H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 5302)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Total Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 15 years?
highstream said:
Which if any of these registry entries if deleted or modified, will prevent "Pin to Quick Access" from showing on the Recycle Bin context menu?
Click to expand...

Hello, :alien:

Option two should remove it, but it will be from all context menus and not just from the Recycle Bin.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self build
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING (11GB GDDR5X)
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G75 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3 wall mounted
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Amazon Basics Wired Full Keyboard MD005
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 4
    Internet Speed
    2 Gbps Download and 100 Mbps Upload
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Surface Laptop 7 Copilot+ PC
    CPU
    Snapdragon X Elite (12 core) 3.42 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB LPDDR5x-7467 MHz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15" HDR
    Screen Resolution
    2496 x 1664
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD
    Internet Speed
    Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender
Try just the third registry edit in Option #2.
I'm guessing here. :-)


I know the entire registry patch in option 2 will do it... but as @Brink said, it will remove it everywhere.

For me that doesn't matter, because I removed Quick Access too.

www.elevenforum.com

Add or Remove Quick Access in File Explorer Home in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to add or remove the Quick access section in File Explorer Home for all users in Windows 11. Starting with Windows 11 build 22593, Quick access in File Explorer (Win+E) is now called Home. The name Quick access has been repurposed for the pinned/frequent Folders...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com



This might also be of interest to you...

www.elevenforum.com

Windows 11 Tweaks - Leader Board.

These are tweaks I've seen asked for... many times. They are collected here for easy access. All of these and more can be found in the Eleven Forum Tutorials Make sure to read the "notes" in the various tutorials. At the bottom of the first post in all the "tutorials", there are links to...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦26200.8655 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦25H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 5302)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Total Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 15 years?
Brink said:
Code: 
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shell\pintohome]
Click to expand...


This key doesn't appear in 25H2, and I suspect not in earlier versions. It doesn't make sense to pin files to quick access. So it should be removed from the restore reg file.

As for the others, I'd favour adding ProgrammaticAccessOnly rather than deleting the entire key. You might consider using Extended instead, which would require shift right click to be visible. Adding either value can be done via HKCU\Software\classes, so is also available to non-admin users.

Code: 
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\pintohome]
;"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""
"Extended"=""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Network\shell\pintohome]
"ProgrammaticAccessOnly"=""
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 25H2 Pro Build 26200
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI PRO ADL-U Cubi 5 (MS-B0A8)
    CPU
    i3-1215U
    Memory
    8GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony 43" 4k TV
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    250GB NVMe M.2 PCIe Gen 3 SSD
    PSU
    External 65W
    Case
    Mini PC
    Browser
    FireFox
    Antivirus
    MS
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 25H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 3070 SFF
    CPU
    Intel i3-9100
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell S2721
    Screen Resolution
    3840 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 500GB nvMe
    Case
    Dell small form factor
    Keyboard
    Cherry mechanical (Blue)
    Mouse
    Microsoft
    Antivirus
    MS Defender
Thank you @Skeptic Mike. I like that method much better. Tutorial now updated. :shawn:
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self build
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING (11GB GDDR5X)
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G75 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3 wall mounted
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Amazon Basics Wired Full Keyboard MD005
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 4
    Internet Speed
    2 Gbps Download and 100 Mbps Upload
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Surface Laptop 7 Copilot+ PC
    CPU
    Snapdragon X Elite (12 core) 3.42 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB LPDDR5x-7467 MHz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15" HDR
    Screen Resolution
    2496 x 1664
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD
    Internet Speed
    Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender
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