Solved Reduce options in "Shoe More Options" context menu

Hi all,
first, I hope this is the right spot ... could also be under customizations ...?

I seem to run in circles as all attempts googled are misunderstood and missing the actual point.
What I want to do is:
- reduce the entries / options in the "Show More Options" context menu when right clicking.
- I do NOT want to remove the "Show More Options" option all together / remove from the regular / short context menu at the bottom.

- I like the "Show More Options" list and use it exclusively, even if it adds another click ...
especially foe the "Move To Folder" and "Copy To Folder" hack I added. Very important to me!!
I definitely don't want to miss these!!!

- I just want to remove some of the entries, especially put there by 3-rd party apps I installed, e.g. VLC Media Player, Revo Uninstaller, Adobe Bridge, etc., ... want to shorten the list.

Yet nobody seems to understand and all suggestions and answers come back as "How To Remove Show More Options" entry at the bottom.

I also want to point out that I want to keep both lists/menus and don't mind having to click one more time (or Shift-right-click) to see the long list ... since e.g. "Compress To" is missing in the long list.
I also checked out some small programs that claim to let you customize the context menu but ... to no avail.
Suggested hacks in the registry never show these 3-rd party entries (or I look in the wrong places...?)

To summarize:
I want to keep everything as is ... only declutter / delete some of the 3-rd party entries in the "Show More Options" menu.
(or a couple of Windows ones I never use, e.g. 'Include in Library', 'Give Access To', 'Restore previous version', 'Pin to Quick Access' ...)

Thanks for any suggestions.

Hi, firstly you should have been looking here, it took me 5 min to find the following links.
As for the 3rd party entries, I’ll get back to you if someone else doesn’t

Sualk said:

Move To Folder and Copy To Folder

Click to expand...

Sualk said:

Give Access To

Click to expand...

Sualk said:

Restore previous version

Click to expand...

Sualk said:

Pin to Quick Access

Click to expand...

Maybe one of the reasons you had no success searching for stuff is that you’re not providing short & concise questions or the right info.
For instance, you post in here and claim you’ve tried 3rd party apps but didn’t list any of them.

Sualk said:

I just want to remove some of the entries, especially put there by 3-rd party apps I installed, e.g. VLC Media Player, Revo Uninstaller, Adobe Bridge

Click to expand...

So as I have no idea what you have tried, here are a couple of options to look at:

1. Use a Shell Extension Manager​

The easiest and safest method is with a tool such as:

• ShellExView (free, portable)
• Autoruns (from Microsoft Sysinternals)

Steps with ShellExView:

1. Download and run ShellExView as administrator.
2. Sort by Type and look for:
   • Context Menu
   • Drag & Drop
3. Find entries for VLC, Revo Uninstaller, Adobe Bridge.
4. Right-click > Disable Selected Items.
5. Restart Windows Explorer (Ctrl + Shift + Right-click taskbar > Exit Explorer, then reopen) or reboot.

2. Edit the Registry Directly (Manual Control)​

Always back up your registry before making changes.

Backup Instructions:
Press Win + R, type regedit, then:
File > Export > Save your backup somewhere safe.


Most context menu entries from classic apps live in these registry paths:


Steps to Clean Up Context Menu Entries:

1. Open the Registry Editor (Win + R > regedit)
2. Navigate to each of the keys listed above.
3. Look for folders with names like:
• VLC
• Revo Uninstaller
• AdobeBridge
4. For each folder:
• Right-click > Export (to back it up)
• Then > Delete the folder
5. Restart Windows Explorer to apply changes:

@Sualk you can use CCleaner to add or remove some context menu items.

oldschool said:

@Sualk you can use CCleaner to add or remove some context menu items.

Click to expand...

Very true, I forgot about that

Sualk said:

What I want to do is:
- reduce the entries / options in the "Show More Options" context menu when right clicking.

Click to expand...

This is a search terms issue. If you include "Show More Options" in your search you won't find what you are looking for. The third party additions are those that you would get under Windows10, and information on how to manage them won't mention "Show More Options".

e.g If you search for "Adobe bridge" context menu, you should find something useful.

There are a number of different methods for suppressing context menu items, so make notes about what you do, and save any registry entries before you delete them.

You should be able to find tutorials on this site for removing any windows provided context menu items.

Ask again if you want more information on how context menus work, and how to manage them without admin rights.

Thanks, all, for the replies.
First, the links for removing 3 windows options worked great (with the provided downloadable registry hacks). This already made the list shorter and got rid of stuff not important to me.
"Include in Library" would be another one I would want to get rid of since I have my C drive exclusively for the system and all personal files / folders are on D drive in newly created / similar folders .. so, I have no personal files on C drive / in Library. I also eliminated all Library folders and others from the Navigation pane. Anyways, is there a location or hack/script to eliminate "Include in Library"? (if save to do so)

In regards to 3rd-party options in the menu:
I did have some success through you but also want to mention other methods I found out about in the mean time.
First, I eliminated the Revo entry by going into Revo preferences where you can uncheck "show in the context menu".
I guess that's always the simplest way of doing it ... if possible.
VLC did not have such option, unless you uninstall and untick being included in the context menu during reinstall.
But I found a way by manually changing the registry:
Find the location of e.g. "Play with VLC" > create a new string value > rename to "LegacyDisable" > set value to "1" ... VLC gone in the menu!
I guess this is the way for being able to re-enable if desired ... as opposed to completely delete the registry key.
Please tell me if I'm wrong.

However, in none of the 3 mentioned locations under Hkey_Classes_Root could I find anything about Adobe Bridge, nor in Bridge preferences.
But I can live with that.
I will, though, from now on always watch out for opting out of listing in explorer menu when installing something.

So, at this point my menu list is much shorter and for me the problem is solved.
I hope that the conversation provides some help for others if needed.

Thanks everybody

PS: my apologies ... I found the thread for removing "Include In Library" ... should have searched the forum more and better in the first place!
"Include In Library" gone!