How-To

Customize Taskbar Settings on Windows 10

The Windows 10 Anniversary Update Taskbar settings feature a cohesive selection of options that modify its behavior slightly. Here’s a look at what’s changed.

The Windows 10 Anniversary Update migrates more classic desktop settings to the modern Settings app. The Taskbar is used to store open programs and shortcuts; which users can switch between using the mouse or your finger. You can organize icons by dragging and dropping them anywhere you like on the Taskbar. The latest renovation is the Taskbar settings, which features a cohesive selection of options for modifying its behavior. Let’s take a look.

Taskbar Settings in Windows 10 Anniversary Update

You can access the new Taskbar properties by right-clicking in the Taskbar then click Settings. Or, click Start > Settings > Personalization and the Taskbar tab.

Access Settings

As you can see below, many of the same settings previously available from the classic Taskbar properties have been added to the modernized Settings section. By default, the Taskbar is locked, which prevents it from changing location. Other options include moving the Taskbar location, auto-hiding, using smaller icons and more.

The features below are all controlled from this new Taskbar Settings section.

Old new taskbar

The Peek option is turned off by default. Desktop Peek was included in Windows 7 and lets you quickly preview the desktop by placing the mouse pointer at the right- corner of the screen. Just toggle it on if you want to use Peek.

Peek

You have the choice of using PowerShell for command line tasks. Toggle it on and it will hide the Command Prompt shell.

Command Shells fix 1 Command Shells 2

The Windows 10 Anniversary Update introduces badges, which provides quick notifications on Taskbar icons. For instance, you can see the amount of email in your mail or unread notifications within Action Center.

badges

If you like to keep the Taskbar at a different location, you can quickly click in the list box then choose to place it at the top, left or right of the screen.

Taskbar settings 2

You can also choose how your open applications display on the screen. If you prefer the classic Windows style, choose ‘When taskbar is full” from the list box. When selected, the entire label for the program is displayed, if a lot of programs are open, it will default to hiding them when it’s full.

labels

Peek - Copy

Options are provided for customizing the Notification area settings. You can learn more in our previous article about how to customize items displayed in the Notification Area. If you use a multiple monitor configuration, you can choose to have a Taskbar displayed on additional monitors and manage their behavior. Check out our previous article about working with multiple monitors.

Taskbar settings 3

Quick Customizations for the Taskbar

You can have quick access to your favorite programs and settings by pinning them to the Taskbar. Click Start > All Apps and right-click any of your favorite applications. Then click More and then Pin to Taskbar.

Pin to Taskbar

If you want to change the order of icons in the Notification area, click then drag it to where you want to have it displayed. Similar drag and drop actions can be applied to pinned icons on the Taskbar.

Pin to Taskbar 2

By default, on devices without active pen support, the Ink Workspace icon is not displayed. You can enable it. Right-click the Taskbar, then click “Show Windows Ink Workspace button.”

Pin to Taskbar 3

These changes are subtle, but they are welcome and demonstrate how Windows 10 is embracing its future as a service.

For more, check the articles linked below.

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Dave Burton

    September 9, 2016 at 9:32 am

    Thank you for this very useful article!

    Microsoft’s UI designers are such thoughtless jerks.

    Okay, I get that sometimes things need to change. If they want to move a feature from one place to another, that would be tolerable, IF they’d leave some breadcrumbs behind, in the old location, to tell us where to find it.

    When I right-click the taskbar, and “Properties” is suddenly missing, with no trace of where to find it, that’s just ABUSIVE. There should at least be an entry called “Properties has moved!” which, when clicked upon, would guide you to the new location (or even link to your article!).

    When I left-click the Start button, and “Control Panel” is missing, there should be an entry called, “Control Panel has moved!” Click or hover it and it should tell you, “Right-click the START button to find the link to Control Panel,” or something like that.

    Etc., etc., etc.

    Hey, Microsoft, EASTER EGG HUNTS ARE NOT FUN FOR GROWNUPS!

    And they wonder why they’re losing ground to Apple and Google.

    Jerks.

    • mic watkin

      September 1, 2017 at 3:20 pm

      Great article Andre . I have the same gripe with these changes and totally agree with you Dave . If after the entry called “XXXXX has moved” you then have the option of disabling that “XXXXX has moved” , entry once you are accustomed to the “xxxxx” change .

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