Do this now if you wish to retain Wordpad for the future.

Wordpad is a deprecated feature and shortly to be removed (already removed in latest Dev Version).

I find it handy when on other users pcs for creating quick letters etc.

I see lots of posts re. alternatives, but they are not needed as you can copy wordpad wherever you like,
Do this now if you want to retain it in future.

Just copy everything from folder c:\program files\Windows NT\Accessories to a new folder e.g. called Wordpad elsewhere and create a shortcut link to wordpad.exe.

A good place to store it is in the cloud e.g. onedrive so accessible from any pc.
It can even be stored on a usb flash drive or usb hard drive.

I have tested this on the latest Insider Dev version where it has been removed, and it works fine (until MS find some other way of disabling it).

cereberus said:

Wordpad is a deprecated feature and shortly to be removed (already removed in latest Dev Version).

I find it handy when on other users pcs for creating quick letters etc.

I see lots of posts re. alternatives, but they are not needed as you can copy wordpad wherever you like,
Do this now if you want to retain it in future.

Just copy everything from folder c:\program files\Windows NT\Accessories to a new folder e.g. called Wordpad elsewhere and create a shortcut link to wordpad.exe.

A good place to store it is in the cloud e.g. onedrive so accessible from any pc.
It can even be stored on a usb flash drive or usb hard drive.

I have tested this on the latest Insider Dev version where it has been removed, and it works fine (until MS find some other way of disabling it).

View attachment 87472

Click to expand...

Good one -thanks for the tip-- wordpad is often quicker and more convenient to use than a full blown program like Word (or its clones). I like word but many times e.g quick letters / documents it's so much easier to use and notepad doesn't do a lot of the things that wordpad can do,

BTW works on Canary build W11 pro for workstations and Win11 Enterprise plus Server 2022 and Server 2025 . In server 2022 it's still built in but same fate awaits it on Server 2025 download ISO from here :

Free and valid until september - great for learning and messing around with Windows Servers --good performer too -- the only program that won't run on it that I've got is Macrium Free -- but the standalone version runs --Office runs perfectly OK on it etc.

Cheers
jimbo

And..., pop a shortcut in the Windows Tools folder..., it's handy.

A note: I copied that Accessories folder to my NAS drive, navigated to wordpad.exe, double-clicked it and it worked.

I think that it would be more correct to copy (restore) both WordPad versions, in %ProgramFiles%\Windows NT\Accessories\ and %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Windows NT\Accessories\. Another, albeit very obsolete, is the Write starter, which also exists in two versions: %windir%\System32\write.exe and %windir%\SysWOW64\write.exe

If all the components are restored, the old-style shortcuts with links to WordPad or even Write (like documentation in RTF format) should open properly. However, need to set the defaults for RTF in Settings > Apps > Default apps. If someone has done this already, please add a note.

Write was the earlier version in WIndows 3.11 and earlier. The Win10 and Win11 iteration merely calls WordPad [similar to iexplore.exe calling up Edge]. The only issue with WordPad [lite version of Word] was that OEMs included the inexpensive Works with their new machines and WordPad didn't get the use it could have.

I'm running Windows 11, 24H2, and.... the path given in a post above takes me to an empty folder!

Somewhere, I got a script (batch file) that would install Wordpad into the newest OS's, but it's full of errors and does not work.
Maybe some Guru will come up with a new Script or batch file that can Install Wordpad into 24H2, for instance.
Yes, a word processor like Libre Office, can replace Wordpad, but I've used that program for 20+ years and I like the way it works and I'd like to be able to continue to use it.
I've always had a shortcut to Wordpad in my Task Bar.

TM

I simply saved the files from an old Build...