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Check out these three features you probably didn't know about PowerToys, in addition to its slew of tools. PowerToys has quietly become the Swiss Army knife of Windows 11. However, the best tools aren't always front and center. While many people may know about FancyZones, Color Picker, Peek, and PowerToys Run (being replaced by Command Palette), some capabilities are less known and sometimes buried deeper, unlocked only when you know where to look. After digging into this utility, I found three underrated features worth mentioning, including the ability to back up and restore your custom configurations, plugin support, and logs that always come in handy for troubleshooting problems. In this how-to guide, I'll show you the three (underrated) features available in PowerToys for Windows 11. Secret features available in the PowerToys app These are the three features you wish you had known sooner, which are most specific to the application and outside the regular set of features. 1. Backup and restore PowerToys includes a backup feature that allows you to save and load your custom configurations for the utilities, which can come in handy when switching computers, reinstalling the operating system, reverting to a previous configuration, or sharing your configuration with others. Usually, users miss this feature because they go directly into enabling and configuring the different tools that PowerToys has to offer. To set up a backup of your PowerToys configurations, use these steps: Open Start. Search for PowerToys and click the top result to open the app. Click on General. Click on "Back up and restore your settings." (Option) Click the Location button. (Image credit: Mauro Huculak) Select a folder location to store the backup. Quick tip: Select a folder in your OneDrive folder to allow you to restore settings across devices. Click the "Back up" button to create a backup. (Image credit: Mauro Huculak) Confirm the backup was created successfully under the "Backup information" section. Once you complete the steps, the app will create a backup of your PowerToys setup. If you want to restore your settings, you only need to click the "Restore" button. This option will only work if the settings are different from the configurations available in the backup. If you want to restore your configuration on another computer, make sure to set the backup location before clicking the "Restore" button. While the backup covers most settings, some utilities like "FancyZones" might have their custom layouts stored in specific files (for example, zones-settings.json in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\PowerToys\FancyZones). Although the built-in backup aims to include these, it's good to be aware of their manual location for advanced troubleshooting or if you're experiencing issues with specific utility settings after a restore. 2. Plugins In PowerToys, plugins extend the capabilities of PowerToys Run by providing specific functionalities that integrate seamlessly into its search bar. When you type into the PowerToys Run, various plugins interpret your input and display relevant results. Although the tool comes with its own extensions, you can always add more. For example, on GitHub, you can find the SpeedTest Plugin, which allows you to test your internet connection without having to open third-party websites. To install a third-party extension for PowerToys, use these steps: Open this GitHub page. Click the download button and save the package to your computer. (Image credit: Mauro Huculak) Quick tip: The developer offers downloads for x64 and ARM64 devices. As such, make sure to select the correct installer for your device. Open File Explorer. Open the location where you downloaded the package. Select the SpeedTest-x.x.x-xxx.zip file and click the Extract button. Click the Extract button. (Image credit: Mauro Huculak) Click the Up button in File Explorer. Right-click the SpeedTest-x.x.x-xxx folder and choose the Copy option. Copy and paste the following path in the address bar to access the "Plugins" folder and press Enter: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\PowerToys\PowerToys Run\Plugins\ Click the Paste button in the command bar. (Image credit: Mauro Huculak) Right-click the PowerToys icon in the Taskbar and choose the Exit option. Restart the PowerToys app. Once you complete the steps, you can invoke the tool from the PoweToys Run, which you can access from the System Tray or using the keyboard shortcut you may have assigned. The default shortcut is "ALT + Space." The PowerToys community offers several other plugins you can install and use with the feature. While the above instructions offer an example of how to install plugins, some plugins may have different instructions, especially those that extend the functionality of a specific software. It's important to note that the Command Palette is set to replace the PowerToys Run, but at the time I tested this feature, the third-party plugins weren't working with the Command Palette. 3. Logs PowerToys generates log files to help diagnose issues and provide information about its operations. You can typically find these logs in two locations. The first is the general PowerToys logs location inside the %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\PowerToys folder. Inside this folder, you'll often find subfolders named after specific PowerToys tools, such as FancyZones, PowerToys Run, Image Resizer, etc. Inside these subfolders, you'll find the actual "Logs" folder, which includes logs (usually .txt files) for that specific feature, often organized by date or version number. For low-privilege processes (like preview handlers), you can find the logs inside the %USERPROFILE%\AppData\LocalLow\Microsoft\PowerToys folder. This location is less common for general troubleshooting, but if you're experiencing issues with features that interact with File Explorer's preview pane, you might find relevant logs here. To access the logs, use these steps: Open Start. Search for Run and click the top result to open the app. (Option 1) Type the following path to open the general logs location and press Enter: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\PowerToys Open the folder for the feature and access the "Logs" folder. (Image credit: Mauro Huculak) (Option 2) Type the following path to open the less common logs location and press Enter: %USERPROFILE%\AppData\LocalLow\Microsoft\PowerToys Open the folder for a specific tool you're troubleshooting (such as PowerToys Run, FancyZones, etc.). Open the Logs folder. Right-click the log file and open it with Notepad. After you complete the steps, you can review the logs to troubleshoot any problem you may be facing with PowerToys. Do you know another secret feature of PowerToys (outside the long list of obvious tools)? Let me know in the comments. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of May): 2,377 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Microsoft PowerToys is a set of open source system utilities designed for power users, and developed by Microsoft for use on the Windows. These programs add or change features to maximize productivity or add more customization. PowerToys can be installed on Windows 10, and Windows 11. It is free and open-source software licensed under the MIT License and hosted on GitHub. Following last weeks PowerToys update, Microsoft has released patch release v0.91.1 to fix issues in v0.91 they deemed important for stability based on incoming rates. The previous release did not add any new features, but Command Pallete continues to receive improvements, some installer upgrades, a reworked UI for Keyboard Manager, and bug fixes. The fixes in v0.91.1 are as follows: #39494 - Command Palette: Fixed regression where it ran as admin instead of the current user when PowerToys was elevated; also resolved extension launch failures occurring only in admin mode. #39433 - Workspaces: Fixed regression where command-line options support was expected but missing when launching classic Win32 apps (e.g. Edge, Chrome). #39563 - Quick Accent: Fixed regression requiring activation key to be held simultaneously with the key during the "Input delays" period for accent selection; instead, only the key needs to be held after activation. You can download PowerToys from the Microsoft Store's PowerToys page. You must be using the new Microsoft Store which is available for both Windows 11 and Windows 10; on Github, or via WinGet Download PowerToys from WinGet. Updating PowerToys via winget will respect current PowerToys Run the following command from the command line / PowerShell: User scope installer [default] winget install Microsoft.PowerToys -s winget Machine-wide scope installer winget install --scope machine Microsoft.PowerToys -s winget You can download PowerToys 0.91.1 from GitHub or the Microsoft Store. If the app is already installed on your system, go to Settings > General and click "Check for updates." Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of April): 1,811 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

The May 2025 update for PowerToys is finally here. Version 0.91 is now available for download, offering users a wide range of improvements for existing modules. Sadly, there are no new tools in this update, as developers are currently focused on the recently launched Command Palette, a great launcher for Windows that, arguably, should be a native Windows 11 feature alongside some other things. Here are the update highlights: Here is the rest of the changelog with an absolutely massive list of improvements for Command Palette: Future PowerToys updates will bring more improvements to Command Palette, some installer upgrades, a reworked UI for Keyboard Manager, and bug fixes. You can download PowerToys 0.91 from GitHub or the Microsoft Store. If the app is already installed on your system, go to Settings > General and click "Check for updates." Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of April): 1,811 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

A third-party plugin for PowerToys' launcher turns it into your own, locally running AI chatbot, even if feels a little slow right now. AI is everywhere. We can't escape it, and for all the negativity one could consider, there are plenty of real-world use cases where AI can make the day go a little easier. Chatbots are one of the most common AI tools out there, but the likes of ChatGPT and Copilot rely on a connection to the cloud. This isn't the only way to use AI LLM's, though, with a range of easy to use tools now designed to bring the technology to our local machines. One of these combined with a third-party plugin for PowerToys Run — the best alternative to the Windows 11 Start Menu that you should absolutely try — creates a local AI chatbot accessible with a simple keyboard shortcut. There's a little work involved in getting it set up, and it's not particularly fast right now, but if nothing else, the proof of concept is excellent. I've tried it and created my own PowerToys Run AI chatbot, and it's an idea I can get behind. PowerToys + Ollama = local AI chatbot anywhere on your Windows 11 PC Ollama is a quick and easy way to install LLMs to use on your local machine. (Image credit: Windows Central) The PowerToys Run aspect of this is purely a front end. It makes use of a third-party plugin to interact with Ollama, which is the tool that will run the LLM. So you have to install both before you can try this. It's not terribly difficult, and the Ollama GitHub repo is a good place to start. You will need a supported AMD or NVIDIA GPU for best performance, though. Ollama is a CLI tool by default, meaning you'll need to be inside a terminal to use it. There are options you can use to add a GUI to it, but that's not necessary for what we're doing here. Once you have it installed, you'll want to download Llama 3.1, which the plugin is set up to use by default. Open PowerShell in a terminal window and enter: ollama pull llama3.1 Llama 3.1 isn't the latest version, but if you just want to try out the plugin with minimal effort, it's the one to download. You can change the LLM you use with the plugin, though, in the Plugins settings in the PowerToys app. Simply change it to whatever you'd prefer to use. For this, of course, you also need to have the plugin, called PowerToys-Run-LocalLLmm, installed. Simply download it from its GitHub repo and extract to the location on your PC where PowerToys Run plugins live. For example, on my PC, it followed this path: LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\PowerToys\PowerToys Run\Plugins After that, just make sure you quit and restart PowerToys to make it take effect. Easy to use, and a great example of how to integrate AI into using a Windows 11 PC I can't actually visit Bilbao for the Europa League final, but this setup gave me some tips on things to see if I could. (Image credit: Windows Central) To trigger your LLM of choice in PowerToys Run, you simply type llm and then your query afterwards. If it's a short answer, it won't take too long to generate. If it's longer, then you'll be in for a bit of a wait. As far as I can tell, this is because it prints the entire response at once. If you use Ollama in the terminal, you'll see it produced word by word. So the timings probably aren't much different, you just don't see anything happening. As such, your brain will tell you it's being slow. Which it kind of is, but not without reason. And naturally, your hardware will come into play. I have an RTX 5080 I can use Ollama with. Less powerful hardware will increase your wait, no doubts. The other issue you'll run into out of the box is that your response, if it's a lengthy one, will get cut off. The plugin doesn't provoke scrolling, so you'll need to manually make sure PowerToys Run has a bigger box. To make this plugin usable, you'll need to manually make your PowerToys Run results box larger. (Image credit: Windows Central) In the settings in the main PowerToys app, you'll need to increase the option labelled "Number of results shown before scrolling." This plugin still won't scroll, but it will give you a larger box for the results. The images in this post are with this setting at 10. The higher the number, the more space you'll have. If the result is still cut off, you can at least click the copy button to get the entire thing and then paste it into a text editor. Overall, though, this is exactly the type of setup I'd like to use on a daily basis on Windows 11. Microsoft makes PowerToys, why not get Copilot built in? It's being stuffed in everything else, after all. The point is more that PowerToys Run is a tool I use probably more than any other on Windows 11. Instead of taking me out of my workflow to use AI, this integrates it. With the added bonus that it's running locally, not in someone else's cloud. I can get right behind that. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of April): 1,811 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

PowerToys 0.90 is now available for download. The March 2025 update for everyone's favorite set of Windows utilities is here with the long-expected PowerToys Run v2 (now called Command Palette), improvements for Color Picker, variables support for New+, and more. Microsoft announced the upcoming release of Command Palette in late December 2024, promising a revamped user interface, a reworked extension model, and other changes requested or suggested by the community. Now, several months later, the promised module is finally available. Here are the release highlights: And here is the rest of the changelog: You can download PowerToys 0.90 from GitHub or the Microsoft Store. If the app is already installed on your system, go to Settings > General and click "Check for updates." Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of March): 1,357 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Microsoft is working on a new program called Command Palette for its open source PowerToys collection that will replace the Run module in the near future. PowerToys Run is a quick launcher for Windows that is invoked with the shortcut Alt-Space. You may use it to run programs quickly and for other tasks, including web searches, Shell commands, or finding files. Command Palette will expand the functionality. In fact, plans are to "eventually graduate [the module] out of PowerToys" to turn it into a standalone application. It should then work like other dedicated launchers for Windows, including Launchy, PinPoint, or Flow Launcher. As far as differences to PowerToys Run are concerned, there are some. Not all modules that Run uses have been ported at this stage. Most, including the option to run installed apps, search for files, or run web searches, are already integrated. The biggest change is the introduction of new extensions that expand the functionality. One of the major additions is support for winget, the Windows package manager. This allows you to install, uninstall, or update extensions directly from the Command Palette interface. Winget commands can be very useful. There is a command to upgrade all installed programs or to install Microsoft Store apps without using the Store. Another new feature of the redesigned launcher is the option to save bookmarks. The developer notes say that you may use them to save shortcuts to files, folders, and webpages as top-level commands. Whether that includes bookmarking commands remains to be seen, as this is not mentioned specifically. Closing Words The new application is not yet available. It remains to be seen how snappy it is going to be in comparison to existing launchers, especially once it is available as a standalone application and not as an integrated module of the PowerToys collection of Windows tools. The development progress is highlighted on GitHub. Just follow this link and you see the exact state of the new run module and launcher for PowerToys. Now You: do you use a launcher application on your systems? If so, which and why? Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of February): 874 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

For a while now, Microsoft has been working on updating the PowerToys user interface (UI) with the Fluent design to improve the consistency of the app such that it matches the overall Windows 11 theme, style, and feel. As such, Niels Laute, an engineer at Microsoft working on WinUI and PowerToys, proposed back in 2022 the following changes: Laute said that this UI redesign would help address various issues that had been reported. Early last year in January, Microsoft published a mockup of the redesigned Keyboard Manager. However, it has been well over a year now and the tech giant is still asking people for feedback on it and looking for ways to improve, and it doesn't seem like all that has changed since then. Perhaps the project may finally be approaching completion and Microsoft is gauging public reaction before releasing it. Kayla Cinnamon, a Senior Product Manager at Microsoft for PowerToys and Windows developer experiences, posted on her official X handle: Hopefully, it shouldn't be too long before Microsoft finally releases this. Speaking of releases, the latest PowerToys update released a couple of days ago brings a performance boost to the Always On Top (AoT) utility and fixes various bugs including one that wouldn't let users create shortcuts. You can check that in our dedicated piece here. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of February): 874 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Extracting just the audio from a video file is much easier with the latest addition to PowerToys. Microsoft's PowerToys has a new toy for power users to play with. The latest update to the app adds media transcoding support through Advanced Paste. The addition makes it possible to convert video and audio file formats when pasting content. The feature also supports stripping audio away from a video file, which can be quite useful. Specifically, the update to version 0.89.0 adds the following new paste functions, as outlined by contributor Ani (username drawbyperpetual) on GitHub: Transcode to .mp3 - Works against both audio and video files. Extracts the audio channel and saves it as an .mp3 file. Transcode to .mp4 (H.264/AAC) - Transcodes video files to use the H.264 video codec and AAC audio codec (if audio is present) and saves the streams to an .mp4 file. I mostly work with text these days, but back when I worked in local news, I often needed to grab just the audio from a video. Being able to extract the audio channel as an mp3 with a few clicks would have been a very welcome feature in my old newsroom. Being able to transcode video files to mp4 is also useful, since some videos are in formats that don't play nicely with certain devices. Below are the full release notes from GitHub for the latest update to PowerToys. PowerToys v0.89.0 Highlights Enhanced Advanced Paste by adding media transcoding support to convert different video and audio file formats! Thanks @snickler for your help! Fixed crashes when loading thumbnails after the .NET 9 update and resolved PowerLauncher.exe blocking other MSI installers from creating shortcuts! Fixed accessibility issues across FancyZones, Image Resizer, and Settings to improve screen reader support and clarity! Enhanced UI automation framework across modules and added new tests to cover manual checks, with more improvements coming! General Fixed an issue where updating PowerToys on Windows 11 did not properly update context menu entries, impacting New+, PowerRename, Image Resizer, and File Locksmith. Updated .NET Packages from 9.0.1 to 9.0.2. Thanks @snickler for this. Enabled compatibility with VS17.3 and later, for C++23. Thanks @LNKLEO for this. Advanced Paste Added media transcoding support to convert different video and audio file formats, improved UI layouts, refined clipboard handling, and integrated Semantic Kernel for smarter pasting. Thanks @snickler for your help! FancyZones Fixed accessibility by improving the text for monitors, ensuring clearer naming and help text for screen readers. Image Resizer Fixed issues with Width and Height fields in Image Resizer's Custom preset, ensuring empty values no longer cause errors, settings save correctly, and auto-scaling behaves as expected. Thanks @daverayment! Fixed accessibility by ensuring screen readers announce selected image dimensions in the combo-box for better navigation. Monaco Preview Fixed open link in default browser rather than Microsoft Edge. Thanks @OldUser101! Mouse Highlighter Fixed a highlight released on an Administrator window will start fading, instead of staying on the screen indefinitely until the mouse button is pressed again on an unelevated window. Mouse Without Borders Fixed an issue in service mode where copy-paste and drag-drop file transfers didn’t work, ensuring seamless file operations. Enabled GPO for enable/disable for Mouse Without Borders in Service Mode. Thanks @htcfreek for review and comments! Fixed code maintainability by refactoring the oversized 'Common' class in Mouse Without Borders into smaller, focused classes for better structure and clarity. Thanks @mikeclayton and thanks @htcfreek for review! PowerRename Supported negative value as Start value in regular expression, e.g. ${start=-1314} Enhanced RegEx help by adding $, ^, quantifiers, and common patterns for better usability. Thanks @PesBandi and thanks @htcfreek for review. PowerToys Run Fixed crashes when loading thumbnails after the .NET 9 update by disabling CETCompat. Fixed PowerLauncher.exe blocking other MSI installers creating shortcuts. Thanks @OneBlue! Fixed Run’s dark mode detection to work reliably, preventing issues with incorrect theme detection and ensuring a smoother user experience. Thanks @daverayment! Fixed list separator handling in Calculator, allowing functions with multiple arguments to work correctly across different locales. For example pow(2;3) would be replaced with pow(2,3). Thanks @PesBandi and thanks @htcfreek for review! Fixed angle unit conversions in the PowerToys Run calculator, allowing quick conversions between radians, degrees, and gradians. Thanks @OldUser101! Quick Accent Added ǎ, ǒ and ǔ to the IPA character set. Thanks @PesBandi! Added ` (backtick) and ~ (tilde) to the VK_OEM_5 character set. Thanks @xanatos! Added ς (final sigma) to the Greek character set. Thanks @IamSmeagol! Settings Enabled GPO for the "run at startup" setting. Thanks @htcfreek for review and comments! Fixed accessibility issue by allowing screen readers to announce the group name for secondary links in Settings pages, instead of reading link descriptions without context. Fixed an issue where the Color Picker shortcut was not displaying correctly in the Dashboard. Workspaces Fixed if a window was last placed on a disconnected monitor, it launches minimized and repositions within the main monitor's visible area when restored, instead of remaining off-screen and invisible. Fixed on ARM64 to correctly display icons for packaged apps by resolving path mismatches. ZoomIt Fixed warning C4706 and related error C2220 during build. Thanks @xanatos! Documentation Fixed runner-ipc.md doc on the broken link. Thanks @daverayment! Fixed the new plugin checklist by updating the target framework, removing duplicates, and improving statement organization. Thanks @hlaueriksson! Updated runner documentation to align with the latest code structure. Development Stabilized pipeline on ARM64 and forked build. Added fuzz testing for HostUILib, added as part of pipeline for OneFuzz. Fixed and improved UI-Test automation framework, and added new test cases for the FancyZones and Hosts module. Optimized Logger function as AOT compatible, improving performance by 18%. Made Common.UI and Setting.UI to be AOT compatible. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of February): 874 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Outside of the various native customization and tweaking apps Windows already comes with, Microsoft also offers PowerToys which brings with it various useful utilities like Advanced Paste, FancyZones, File Explorer add-ons, Registry Preview, and keyboard and mouse manager, among others. As the name itself suggests, PowerToys is meant for power users and Windows enthusiasts. The latest update, version 0.89.0, adds media transcoding support to Advanced Paste. Microsoft had teased the feature last month and it has finally landed today. Aside from the new media file conversion abilities in PowerToys, the new update also fixes a bug where the PowerLauncher EXE file would block the creation of shortcuts from other MSI (Windows Installer file). There is also an 18% performance boost for the Always On Top (AoT) utility thanks to optimizations to the logger function. The full changelog is given below: You can download the update, version 0.89.0, from its official GitHub repo here or from the Microsoft Store. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of February): 874 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

PowerToys Run is the tool I use the most on my Windows 11 PC every single day, and here are the reasons you should join me. I use a lot of different tools on my Windows 11 PC every single day, but there's one I use more than any other; PowerToys Run. Part of the excellent PowerToys suite (and if you're not using PowerToys yet, you're using Windows 11 wrong), Run is a launcher at heart, but so much more than that. It started out as a way to launch things on your PC. I started using it because not only did it mimic a keyboard-first launcher such as I use on Linux, but also because the Start Menu on Windows 11 is horrible. PowerToys Run has grown, though, and it's so much more than a way to launch apps with the keyboard. Here are seven other things you can do with it that make it a tool you simply have to use. 1. Windows Package Manager (winget) PowerToys Run will soon have official, native support for winget. (Image credit: Windows Central) I've been using a third-party plugin for PowerToys Run for a while that integrates the Windows Package Manager (winget). With this, I don't have to open the terminal to use winget to install new packages, simply trigger PowerToys Run and use the commands there. However, soon this feature will be natively available, and slightly better even than the third-party offering. I use winget for almost all of my software installation and updating on Windows 11, being part of PowerToys just makes it even more convenient and awesome. 2. Quick access to a calculator No need to launch the calculator application, just drop your numbers into PowerToys Run. (Image credit: Windows Central) Sure, Windows 11 has a calculator app. But with PowerToys Run, you don't even need it. By triggering the launcher and using =, you can enter calculations or even equations, should you need those, and it will solve it right in front of your eyes. It's definitely quicker and more convenient even than using PowerToys Run to launch the calculator app. 3. Executing terminal commands Just fire off a quick terminal command in PowerToys Run. (Image credit: Windows Central) Granted, this isn't like having a full terminal inside PowerToys Run, but it is useful for entering quick commands. For example, if I quickly want to jump into WSL and use a specific distro, I can enter it through PowerToys Run as below. > wsl.exe -d Fedora This will launch me straight into a terminal window, loaded into Fedora, ready to roll. Another neat little time saver for those of use who use the keyboard to do as much as possible in the course of the day. The only drawback here is that if you need elevated permissions, aka, Administrator, you can't currently execute such commands automatically through PowerToys Run. For this you need to use your mouse (the horror!) and select the option to run as Administrator. 4. Searching Windows Settings Fast and accurate Windows Settings searches through PowerToys Run are superior to using the Start Menu. (Image credit: Windows Central) Naturally, you can also do this to some degree through the Start Menu, but the whole purpose (at least in my case) of using PowerToys Run is replacing the Start Menu. By entering $ and then your search term, you're able to launch straight into the Settings app at the right place. I've actually found it to be more reliable, too, in finding some Settings options compared to the Start Menu. 5. File search It relies on keeping on top of indexing, but PowerToys Run is a nifty file search tool. (Image credit: Windows Central) This is depending on making sure you keep on top of your indexing, but PowerToys Run is fantastic at quickly locating files on your Windows 11 PC. It works in the same way as number four in this list, only you use ? instead, then type what you're looking for. It's lightning fast, too, and will respect any excluded folders you have set up in your Windows Settings regarding what gets indexed. 6. Quickly launching web addresses PowerToys Run has a quick and easy way to launch your favorite website. (Image credit: Windows Central) There is actually a command (//) to do this, but it also just works by typing a regular website. Simply launch PowerToys Run, enter your favorite website (windowscentral.com of course) and it'll automatically launch it in a new tab in your default browser. Again, you can do this in the Start Menu, but it'll always force you to open Microsoft Edge. PowerToys Run respects your choice of default web browser. So it's better. 7. Registry navigation As long as you know even roughly what you need to get at, this is so much simpler than poking about the Registry Editor. (Image credit: Windows Central) This isn't something I do a lot myself, but on the occasions I do go into the Windows Registry, I do it through PowerToys Run. Why? Because, like everything else it does, it's fast and easy. By entering : and then starting to type the Registry term I need, it'll start bringing up suggestions and then just quickly launch the Registry Editor into the right place. The Windows 11 Start Menu may look pretty, but it's cumbersome, and none of its 'features' actually make my life any easier on a day-to-day basis. I started using PowerToys Run initially to replicate the experience I could have on Linux, being a keyboard-first way to quickly move about the system. Hopeful it could remove the need to use the Start Menu. These are just seven things you can do with it, but there's still plenty more on the table. As it has grown, it's become more than just this, becoming an integral part of how I use Windows 11. I couldn't operate without it. The PowerToys suite is such an amazing creation, and if you're not using it, you're not using Windows to the best it can be. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of January): 487 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Windows Package Manager (winget) will be natively integrated into PowerToys Run at long last. I love the Windows Package Manager (also referred to as winget) so, so much. I also love PowerToys, they're my number one and two recommended Windows 11 tools you should be using. Now, finally, they are coming together as one. As revealed by Microsoft's Kayla Cinnamon, the PowerToys team is currently cooking up a delicious integration. With the new feature, you'll be able to search for and install packages via winget from within the PowerToys Run window. This isn't a completely new idea, I've previously covered a third-party plugin that offered similar functionality. The difference here, though, and it's an important one, is that it looks far simpler to use for those who aren't so familiar with winget. With the plugin I've been using, you still need to know basic winget syntax and type it out to execute the commands. With this official integration, it looks like all you'll need to do is search for what you want to install, and simply install it. No additional commands required. This is pretty huge, and yet one more reason to abandon using the Microsoft Store app or the web browser to get your software. Winget doesn't host anything, it merely runs from a manifest which tells the tool where on the internet to go and get the files needed. Even from the Microsoft Store, if that's where they live. Probably the only thing I don't like about using winget is the clunky syntax for installing packages. For example, on Ubuntu the command would be "apt install gimp" whereas on winget it's "winget install gimp.gimp." It's just not quite as intuitive. This new integration with PowerToys looks like it'll be super simple, and I'm looking forward to trying it out. Alas, there's no timeline on when it might be released, but the PowerToys team usuallu pushes out an update at least once a month, so hopefully it's not too far away. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of January): 487 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

You won't need to use a tool like Handbrake or ffmpeg soon to do quick transcoding thanks to PowerToys If there was one piece of software I would encourage anyone to run on Windows 11 it's PowerToys, and it just keeps getting better. The latest good news is another handy new feature coming soon, this time for transcoding audio and video files. Transcoding usually requires a dedicated tool, something like Handbrake or ffmpeg, but with this forthcoming update, you'll be able to do it within PowerToys Advanced Paste feature. The PowerToys team is truly one of the best inside Microsoft, and the fact it's also open source means the community can really make a difference and help shape its future, too. So what will this feature actually do? From the GitHub listing: Transcode to .mp3 - Works against both audio and video files. Extracts the audio channel and saves it as an .mp3 file. Transcode to .mp4 (H.264/AAC) - Transcodes video files to use the H.264 video codec and AAC audio codec (if audio is present) and saves the streams to an .mp4 file. More advanced users will still want to keep their regular tools, but for basic transcoding requirements, this looks excellent. Being able to drop a video or audio file into Advanced Paste and convert it to an MP3 or MP4 file is just super convenient. The feature is listed as in-progress but is expected to make it to the next PowerToys update, which we'd expect before the end of February. This isn't the only change coming to Advanced Paste, either: Paste actions are now cancellable via a cancel button - this is useful for media transcoding but also for other potentially long-running actions such as Paste with AI. Paste actions can now display their fractional progress via a progress-ring - this may be useful for other paste actions in future, but is for now only used by media transcoding. Honestly, if you're not using PowerToys at this point, you're using Windows 11 wrong. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of January): 487 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

In May 2024, Microsoft released Power Toys 0.81, a major update for the fan-favorite set of tools for Windows 10 and 11. The update introduced the AI-powered Advanced Paste feature, which helps users convert the copied text into something else. While the main focus of the tool is on developers, a future update will make Advanced Paste much more useful for other users. With the upcoming update, PowerToys Advanced Paste will let you transcode media files to different formats. For example, convert an audio or video file into an mp3 file or convert a video into an mp4 (H.264/AAC) while preserving bitrate, video dimensions, metadata, and more. The upgrade was announced by Clint Rutkas on X: In addition to media file support, a future Advanced Paste update will make it possible to abort actions, which is extra useful for long-running tasks. Also, the UI will display the progress of the current task so you can better understand how long it will take to complete. According to the pull request on GitHub, the updated Advanced Paste module should make it to the next PowerToys update, version 0.89, which should arrive later in February (Microsoft usually ships one major PowerToys update per month). Besides Advanced Paste, Microsoft is working on a big update for the Run launcher. In late December 2024, Microsoft announced PowerToys Run v2 with a revamped user interface, a reworked extension model with the ability for extensions to pick their render surface for a better user experience, and other community-driven changes. While Microsoft prepares all these neat features and upgrades, you can check out the details about the latest PowerToys update, 0.88, in our dedicated coverage. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of January): 487 RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

PowerToys Run is arguably one of the best utilities for Windows 10 and 11. It is a powerful launcher and search tool with plenty of customization, which is extra nice in light of Windows 11’s lackluster search. Soon, it will become even better. In a surprise holiday announcement, Microsoft revealed that PowerToys Run v2 is coming in 2025. The new version will bring a revamped user interface, a reworked extension model with the ability for extensions to pick their render surface for a better user experience, and other community-driven changes. Microsoft says it will reach out to PowerToys Run plugin developers to help them port their project to v2 to benefit from the improved features and new capabilities. You can check out early PowerToys Run v2 UI in the screenshots below: For now, there is no information on when exactly Microsoft plans to launch the revamped PowerToys launcher. All we have is “coming 2025.” Expect Microsoft to announce more details about PowerToys Run v2 in the near future. Meanwhile, you can check out what is new in the latest available PowerToys update, version 0.87, here. It introduced improvements for Workspaces, Advanced AI, and Mouse Jump and brought a new module for Windows 10 users. It also later received a update with a few additional stability fixes. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of November): 5,298 news posts RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Earlier this week, PowerToys released its new update, version 0.87.0, with new features related to Advanced Paste, added support for New+ on Windows 10, fixed some important bugs, and more. Earlier today, Microsoft released an update to the popular customization tool which fixes some major bugs and issues. The company had deemed these issues as "important" in regards to the application's stability since these were being frequently reported by users. In total the new update deploys three fixes that resolve problems related to PowerToys' Run on Windows 10, and a couple of crash fixes related to Advanced Paste and .NET 9. The full changelog is given below: You can download the update, version 0.87.1, from its official GitHub repo here or from the Microsoft Store. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of November): 5,298 news posts RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

The December 2024 update for PowerToys is here. The final release of 2024 brings some good news for Windows 10 users: the recently introduced New+ utility now works ok Windows 10. Also, there are improvements for Advanced Paste, Workspaces, Mouse Jump, and other utilities. Here are the update highlights: And here is the complete changelog: You can download PowerToys from the Microsoft Store or GitHub. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of November): 5,298 news posts RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Microsoft has a big new update for PowerToys users. Version 0.86 is now available for download with the promised module grouping for a tidier user interface, new capabilities for existing modules, such as Advanced Paste, and a lot of other changes. There are no new toys in 0.86, but the update still packs a lot of new stuff. Here are the update highlights: And here is the rest of the changelog: If you already use PowerToys, you can update it by heading to Settings > General and clicking the "Check for updates" button. Alternatively, get PowerToys 0.86 from the Microsoft Store or GitHub. With the next update, version 0.87, look out for two new modules: Sysinternals' Zoomit and File Actions Menu. Source Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of October): 4,832 news posts RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend

Microsoft frequently updates PowerToys for Windows 10 and 11, and those updates often add new utilities. By now, the list of available modules has grown to a pretty large size (23 in total, to be precise, as of version 0.85.1), and its vastness might overwhelm customers. Microsoft admits that PowerToys needs some organization, so it is working on grouping utilities. It also wants to hear what you think about it. A pull request to group items in the navigation pane inside PowerToys is not new—it was first opened almost two years ago when PowerToys had fewer utilities than it does today. It looks like developers are finally addressing the area with a bunch of mockups suggested on GitHub. In a nutshell, the general idea is to group utilities by categories, such as System Tools, Windowing & Layouts, Input/Output, File Management, and Advanced. At this point, the proposed variant is just a mockup, so things will likely change as the idea progresses. That is why Microsoft wants to hear your feedback. You can suggest stuff on GitHub or slide into Clint Rutkas' replies on X. In case you missed it, earlier this month, Microsoft released PowerToys 0.85 with a new utility (New+), the ability to change the app's language, and a lot of fixes for existing modules, such as the recently introduced Workspaces. What do you think about the proposed utility sorting in PowerToys? Do you believe there is a better way to do it? Share your thoughts in the comments. Source RIP Matrix | Farewell my friend Hope you enjoyed this news post. Thank you for appreciating my time and effort posting news every day for many years. 2023: Over 5,800 news posts | 2024 (till end of September): 4,292 news posts

A future PowerToys update may bring Windows 11 and 10 users a new module with quick and easy access to various commands and features. Called "File Actions," it would work by adding new context menu entries for selected objects, allowing you to generate checksums, copy or move files, create a new folder with the highlighted items, copy images to the clipboard, and more. Judging from the pull request on GitHub, the new tool is in its infancy, so you probably should not expect it in the next PowerToys release. Meanwhile, you can contribute by offering your ideas and suggestions on GitHub or X. Screenshots published by developers show a rough (very rough) concept of the module. Sadly, it seems that File Actions will work as a separate context menu invoked by a dedicated shortcut instead of integrating into Windows 11's native menus. According to the developer, context menus in Windows 11 are very limited, and adding a large number of entries will slow the already not-so-fast UI to the crawl. In case you missed it, Microsoft recently released PowerToys 0.78. The latest release added four new localizations and a number of fixes for existing tools. Besides File Actions, Microsoft is working on other improvements, such as a reworked keyboard manager and better update settings. You can download PowerToys from GitHub or the Microsoft Store. What do you think about an extra context menu with different actions? What features you would like to see there? Share your thoughts in the comments. Source

PowerToys 0.79 is now available for download. The latest release brings a few welcome changes, such as a redesigned Color Picker with Fluent UX, the ability to launch apps with keyboard shortcuts (spotted in development earlier in January), drive preview in Peek, and a lot of other improvements for existing utilities. What is new in PowerToys 0.79? Update highlights: And here is the rest of the changelog: The next PowerToys update, version 0.80, should bring additional stabilities and fixes, language selection, and more. You can download PowerToys from the Microsoft Store, GitHub, or via winget. Source

Advanced Paste with Local AI is on the way to PowerToys, though we don't know what it is yet. What you need to know Microsoft Build will run from May 21-23 and showcase several new AI features in the works. Among those features is "Advanced Paste with Local AI" for PowerToys. Microsoft has not detailed what the feature will do, but a page dedicated to the session is now online. PowerToys is a handy collection of utilities on Windows. The app will soon feature another tool, though we don't know exactly what is on the way. What we do know is that Microsoft will discuss the new feature at Build 2024, which runs from March 21-23 in Seattle, Washington. "Learn how PowerToys leverages AI through the use of AI backed APIs and on device ML models to power the new Advanced Paste feature," reads the session's description. The title of the session is "PowerToys Advanced Paste with Local AI." Clint Rutkas, lead for developer experience on Windows teased the new feature a bit more on X. "PowerToys will introduce a new feature at Build. [Craig Loewen] and [Nikola Metulev] will be chatting about the [feature,] what it does and the thought process behind it. That doesn't give us much more regarding what the feature does or how local AI will advance pasting. But the team that works on the feature seems excited about Advanced Paste. Metulev will also speak at a session titled "Use AI for "real things" in your Windows Apps" at Build 2024. "Why should you care about AI? Learn about what kind of problems AI can solve across the full spectrum of AI - all through demos, demos, demos," reads the session's description. "From what tech is out there and what real life problems can it solve in real apps, consideration around privacy, performance, responsible AI and more. All for the audience of an everyday Windows developer." Build 2024 will focus heavily on AI and the tech that makes artificial intelligence more useful on personal computers. What else to expect at Build 2024 Microsoft is expected to unveil the Surface Pro 10 in May and then discuss the AI capabilities of the device at Build 2024. (Image credit: Future) In many ways 2024 is the year of AI. When it comes to computing, it could also be the year of Windows 11 on Arm. So unsurprisingly, both of those categories will receive heavy focus at Build 2024. The first batch of Build sessions we discussed after the schedule came out were "Introducing the Next Generation of Windows on Arm" and "Designing for a brand new Windows AI feature." Similarly to the new PowerToys feature, Microsoft did not detail the brand new feature it teased or confirm details about the next generation of Windows on Arm. But unlike the new PowerToys feature, we have a good idea of what Microsoft will announce in relation to AI PCs and the specific new feature mentioned. There's a good chance that the new feature Microsoft will announce is "AI Explorer," which is an "advanced Copilot," according to our Senior Editor Zac Bowden. AI Explorer will let you search for any moment from your computer by using natural language. For example, you could ask the tool to find a list of restaurants a specific person likes, and then AI Explorer would find the conversation. "Today, we're showcasing brand-new features that allow users deeper interaction with their digital lives on Windows through advance AI features," says Microsoft in its page about the brand new feature. "Come discover how your apps can integrate with these experiences and increase user engagement and satisfaction." Microsoft is also expected to discuss the next generation of Windows on Arm. The tech giant has a special Windows and Surface event the day before Build, so there's a good chance Microsoft will talk about those devices during its developer-focused event. With Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite processor on the way and the Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 expected soon, there's a lot of excitement around Windows 11 on Arm. Windows 11 version 24H2 will ship to new Arm PCs first before rolling out to other devices later this year. Source

Microsoft is hosting its developer conference in May 2024, and you guessed it, it will be full of AI-related announcements. Even PowerToys is not immune to the ever-spreading AI features. A session schedule published on the official Microsoft Build website revealed that the company is working on something called "Advanced Paste with Local AI." There is not that much information about what exactly "Advanced Paste with Local AI" is supposed to be, but the session explanation says the following: Clint Rutkas, the lead of developer experience on the Windows team, confirmed that PowerToys is indeed about to get some AI treatment. Again, details are scarce, but Clint said the feature is "pretty neat." In addition, the Build conference will shed more details on other next-gen Windows features. Developer session descriptions mention "the next generation of Windows on Arm," "a brand-new Windows AI feature," and other intriguing things. A recent report revealed that Microsoft is pretty sure about its AI PCs powered by ARM chips, so expect to hear more about that at Build 2024. One description says about "new experiences for Arm-powered Windows" and apps that utilize "rich capabilities of the NPU." Some of those capabilities could be the rumored AI File Explorer. Microsoft is cooking a lot of stuff to showcase at its flagship developer conference, so expect plenty of news about multiple parts of Windows and how AI can supercharge them. The Build 2024 conference is scheduled for May 21-23, just one day after the special event, where the company is expected to announce new Surface devices for consumers. Source

PowerToys 0.80 is now available for download. The latest update introduces Desire State Configuration support, a newer version of Windows App SDK, WebP/WebM and audio support for Peek, and other changes for existing modules. Here are the update highlights: And here is the full changelog: You can download PowerToys from its GitHub repository or the Microsoft Store. Source

Following the big PowerToys 0.75 release on Monday, Microsoft pushed a quick bug-fixing update to resolve issues with two PowerToys modules—FancyZones and PowerToys Run. Windows apps should now snap correctly when using FancyZones, and PowerToys Run should initialize additional data types for plugin developers. What is new in PowerToys 0.75.1? In case you missed it, PowerToys 0.75 introduced two big changes: a new utility for editing environment variables (and profiles) and a new Dashboard home page, where you can quickly toggle on or off different modules, check their hotkeys, see what utilities are running, etc. You can check out full release notes in our dedicated article. PowerToys is available on Windows 10 and 11. You can download the app from the Microsoft Store, GitHub, or using winget (open Terminal and type winget install powertoys). As a reminder for users unfamiliar with the matter, PowerToys is a set of utilities to enhance your user experience. It includes an app launcher, File Explorer add-ons, multiple mouse tools, keyboard remapping, registry editor, hosts editor, screen ruler, text extractor, colour picker, and many more. PowerToys regularly gets updates with new utilities, and it is one of our favorite apps we recommend for every Windows 11 and 10 user. Source

PowerToys 0.75 is now available for download with a new utility, a brand-new Dashboard home page, and a massive list of fixes and improvements. The new tool lets you edit environment variables and turn off or on configurable profiles. As for Dashboard, it shows a list of all modules and lets you toggle them on or off quickly, preview their shortcuts, and perform other actions. What is new in PowerToys 0.75? Update highlights: Full release notes: The next PowerToys update will introduce language selection, allow Keyboard Manager to output arbitrary Unicode sequences, and bring redesigned colour Picker and PowerToys Run with Windows 11-like visuals. PowerToys is available on Windows 10 and 11. You can download the app from the Microsoft Store or GitHub. Source