Microsoft wants to give Windows 10 a new start menu and a first look at it has already been granted. So far it has been assumed that users will receive the new start menu from the autumn 2020 update (read: Windows 10 20H2). You thought wrong: the new start menu is already being delivered to users. However: It can only be activated with a trick.
The conditions:
1) You must have already received and installed Windows 10 Version 2004 (i.e. Windows 10 May 2020 Update).
2) The recently released cumulative update KB4568831 must be installed on the computer, with which various bugs in Windows 10 Version 2004 are fixed and which we are reporting on here.
KB4568831 is the first non-security-relevant update for Windows 10 that Microsoft is delivering to users after the Corona break. First and foremost, the update fixes various annoying bugs, including problems related to network printers that no longer allow applications to access them. After installing the update, the build number of Windows 10 Version 2004 increases from 19041.388 to 19041.423. Which Windows 10 version and build number you are using, you can simply enter
winver
in the input field next to the start menu button. If build number 19041.423 is already displayed, then you have already received the update. Otherwise, call up Windows Update or install the update manually using this download in the Microsoft Update Catalog.
If all requirements are met, the new Windows 10 start menu can be activated via a registry entry. The easiest way: You create a text file with the following content
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlFeatureManagementOverrides 2093230218]
“EnabledState” = dword: 00000002
“EnabledStateOptions” = dword: 00000000
You save this file – in order to be able to find it more quickly – on the desktop with any file name. Important: The file extension must be “.reg”!
Note before we double click on the “reg” file: To be on the safe side, you should save the current state of the registry using a new restore point. To do this, enter “Create restore point” in the input field next to the start button. You can use this restore point to undo the changes in the registry later.
Now double click on the “reg” file, which will add the changes to the registry. Then Windows 10 (version 2004) must be restarted for the change to take effect.
After the restart, the new Windows 10 start menu is now activated and can be used. The start menu now adapts its colors more closely to the design and color scheme chosen by the user for Windows 10. The entries in the area on the right are no longer so visually dominated by the (colorful) tile design, the transitions between the colors are more fluid.
Here is the comparison of the old start menu (left) vs. new start menu (right):
And you see: Live tiles still exist, so they have not (yet) been completely abolished – despite numerous other rumors – and the user can still decide whether he wants to display a tile (if it supports it) with live content . The new icons of the Fluent system design that Microsoft is already delivering can also be seen everywhere. This can be recognized, for example, by the fact that folders are now displayed with the new icon in the start menu.
(PC world)