Manage Windows 10 Start and taskbar layout

Applies to

• WindowsВ 10, Windows Server 2016 with Desktop Experience, Windows Server 2019 with Desktop Experience

Organizations might want to deploy a customized Start and taskbar configuration to devices running WindowsВ 10 Pro, Enterprise, or Education. A standard, customized Start layout can be useful on devices that are common to multiple users and devices that are locked down for specialized purposes. Configuring the taskbar allows the organization to pin useful apps for their employees and to remove apps that are pinned by default.

Taskbar configuration is available starting in Windows 10, version 1607.

Start and taskbar configuration can be applied to devices running Windows 10 Pro, version 1703.

For information on using the layout modification XML to configure Start with roaming user profiles, see Deploy Roaming User Profiles.

Using CopyProfile for Start menu customization in Windows 10 isn’t supported. For more information Customize the Default User Profile by Using CopyProfile

Start options

Some areas of Start can be managed using Group Policy. The layout of Start tiles can be managed using either Group Policy or Mobile Device Management (MDM) policy.

The MDM policy settings in the table can also be configured in a provisioning package using Policies > Start. See the reference for Start settings in Windows Configuration Designer.

The following table lists the different parts of Start and any applicable policy settings or Settings options. Group Policy settings are in the User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Start Menu and Taskbar path except where a different path is listed in the table.

Start	Policy	Local setting
User tile	MDM: Start/HideUserTile Start/HideSwitchAccount Start/HideSignOut Start/HideLock Start/HideChangeAccountSettings Group Policy: Remove Logoff on the Start menu	none
Most used	MDM: Start/HideFrequentlyUsedApps Group Policy: Remove frequent programs from the Start menu	Settings > Personalization > Start > Show most used apps
Suggestions -and- Dynamically inserted app tile	MDM: Allow Windows Consumer Features Group Policy: Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Cloud Content\Turn off Microsoft consumer experiences Note: This policy also enables or disables notifications for a user’s Microsoft account and app tiles from Microsoft dynamically inserted in the default Start menu.	Settings > Personalization > Start > Occasionally show suggestions in Start
Recently added	MDM: Start/HideRecentlyAddedApps Group Policy: Computer configuration\Administrative Template\Start Menu and Taskbar\Remove «Recently Added» list from Start Menu (for Windows 10, version 1803)	Settings > Personalization > Start > Show recently added apps
Pinned folders	MDM: AllowPinnedFolder	Settings > Personalization > Start > Choose which folders appear on Start
Power	MDM: Start/HidePowerButton Start/HideHibernate Start/HideRestart Start/HideShutDown Start/HideSleep Group Policy: Remove and prevent access to the Shut Down, Restart, Sleep, and Hibernate commands	none
Start layout	MDM: Start layout ImportEdgeAssets Group Policy: Prevent users from customizing their Start screen Note: When a full Start screen layout is imported with Group Policy or MDM, the users cannot pin, unpin, or uninstall apps from the Start screen. Users can view and open all apps in the All Apps view, but they cannot pin any apps to the Start screen. When a partial Start screen layout is imported, users cannot change the tile groups applied by the partial layout, but can modify other tile groups and create their own. Start layout policy can be used to pin apps to the taskbar based on an XML File that you provide. Users will be able to change the order of pinned apps, unpin apps, and pin additional apps to the taskbar.	none
Jump lists	MDM: Start/HideRecentJumplists Group Policy: Do not keep history of recently opened documents	Settings > Personalization > Start > Show recently opened items in Jump Lists on Start or the taskbar
Start size	MDM: Force Start size Group Policy: Force Start to be either full screen size or menu size	Settings > Personalization > Start > Use Start full screen
App list	MDM: Start/HideAppList	Settings > Personalization > Start > Show app list in Start menu
All Settings	Group Policy: Prevent changes to Taskbar and Start Menu Settings	none
Taskbar	MDM: Start/NoPinningToTaskbar	none

In local Settings > Personalization > Start, there is an option to Show more tiles. The default tile layout for Start tiles is 3 columns of medium sized tiles. Show more tiles enables 4 columns. To configure the 4-column layout when you customize and export a Start layout, turn on the Show more tiles setting and then arrange your tiles.

Taskbar options

Starting in Windows 10, version 1607, you can pin additional apps to the taskbar and remove default pinned apps from the taskbar. You can specify different taskbar configurations based on device locale or region.

There are three categories of apps that might be pinned to a taskbar:

Apps pinned by the user

Default Windows apps, pinned during operating system installation (Microsoft Edge, File Explorer, Store)

Apps pinned by the enterprise, such as in an unattended Windows setup

We recommend using the layoutmodification.xml method to configure taskbar options, rather than the earlier method of using TaskbarLinks in an unattended Windows setup file.

The following example shows how apps will be pinned — Windows default apps to the left (blue circle), apps pinned by the user in the center (orange triangle), and apps that you pin using XML to the right (green square).

In operating systems configured to use a right-to-left language, the taskbar order will be reversed.

Whether you apply the taskbar configuration to a clean install or an update, users will still be able to:

• Pin additional apps
• Change the order of pinned apps
• Unpin any app

In Windows 10, version 1703, you can apply an MDM policy, Start/NoPinningToTaskbar , to prevents users from pinning and unpinning apps on the taskbar.

Taskbar configuration applied to clean install of Windows 10

In a clean install, if you apply a taskbar layout, only the apps that you specify and default apps that you do not remove will be pinned to the taskbar. Users can pin additional apps to the taskbar after the layout is applied.

Taskbar configuration applied to Windows 10 upgrades

When a device is upgraded to Windows 10, apps will be pinned to the taskbar already. Some apps may have been pinned to the taskbar by a user, and others may have been pinned to the taskbar through a customized base image or by using Windows Unattend setup.

The new taskbar layout for upgrades to Windows 10, version 1607 or later, will apply the following behavior:

• If the user pinned the app to the taskbar, those pinned apps remain and new apps will be added to the right.
• If the user didn’t pin the app (it was pinned during installation or by policy) and the app is not in updated layout file, the app will be unpinned.
• If the user didn’t pin the app and the app is in the updated layout file, the app will be pinned to the right.
• New apps specified in updated layout file are pinned to right of user’s pinned apps.

Start layout configuration errors

If your Start layout customization is not applied as expected, open Event Viewer and navigate to Applications and Services Log > Microsoft > Windows > ShellCommon-StartLayoutPopulation > Operational, and check for one of the following events:

• Event 22 is logged when the xml is malformed, meaning the specified file simply isn’t valid xml. This can occur if the file has extra spaces or unexpected characters, or if the file is not saved in the UTF8 format.
• Event 64 is logged when the xml is valid, but has unexpected values. This can happen when the desired configuration is not understood, elements are not in the required order, or source is not found, such as a missing or misspelled .lnk.

App tiles disappeared from windows 10 start menu

The tiles have disappeared from my Windows 10 Start menu

We appreciate your interest in Windows 10.

Sorry for the inconvenience caused to you.

Before proceeding, we need more information to help you better.

1) Have you made any changes prior to the issue?

2) Which tiles have disappeared from Start menu?

Kindly follow the below methods and check if it helps.

Method 1:

Open the Task manager. Here’s a tip: Press CTRL+Shift+ESC.

Click File > Run New Task.

Make sure you have a check mark beside “Create this task with administrative privileges”

Type Powershell

Type the following in the Powershell prompt:
$manifest = (Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.WindowsStore).InstallLocation + ‘\AppxManifest.xml’ ; Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register $manifest

Close the Powershell window.

Reboot the computer and check if it helps.

If the issue persist, follow the below method.

Method 2:

Press ‘Windows + X’ Keys on the keyboard.

Click on ‘Command Prompt (Admin)’ to bring up an elevated command prompt.
Note : Click ‘Yes’ if it prompts for permission.

In the command prompt type in the following commands one by one and then press Enter .

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Scanhealth

DISM.exe /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth

sfc /scannow

Note: If you are not able to repair some files after performing SFC scan, I suggest you to refer to the point 3 “ Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them. Details are included in the CBS.Log %WinDir% \Logs\CBS\CBS.log”. Under the section “ Run the System File Checker tool (SFC.exe)” to repair the corrupted files after performing SFC scan.

Use the System File Checker tool to repair missing or corrupted system files

I hope the above information helps. Kindly let us know if you need any further assistance with Windows. We are glad to assist you.

How to create custom Windows 10 Start menu tiles

Microsoft allows app developers, game makers, and website owners to create custom tiles when you pin one of their products to the Start menu. Sadly, the way some of these tiles look is just plain ugly. But what if you could get more control over the appearance?

WinTileR is a cheap app for Windows 10 that allows you to customize the way your tiles look and function on the OS. It costs just $0.99 and comes with a free trial to help you decide whether or not to pick it up. Here’s how it works.

WinTileR app and plugin

After grabbing WinTileR from the store, it will prompt you to download an .exe plugin that helps the tiles communicate with programs on your computer. You’ll still be able to create tiles without this, but they won’t be able to launch programs as expected. Once you have installed the plug-in, select «Done.»

How to create a custom tile

To get started creating your own tiles, follow these steps:

In WinTileR, select Programs to set up a new tile.

Select Select File and browse for the app you want to create a tile for.

Click the tile boxes on the right to add the tile images you want.

• You can customize additional options, such as setting a background color, the name of the tile, and conditions for displaying the name of the tile on the left.

Once you are satisfied and have added images for each tile size, select Pin to Start menu.

You should see your shiny new tile appear on the Start menu, complete with executable functionality from installing the plugin. From WinTileR’s main menu, you can also perform the same tile creation for websites, folders, and music. Sadly, WinTileR’s Steam integration feature for creating tiles for your PC games seems to be broken as of writing. I’ve found it quite hard to find custom Windows 8.1 or Windows 10-style tiles on the internet, since many apps that previously worked for creating custom tiles have fell into disrepair with subsequent Windows updates.

Your thoughts?

Do you create custom Windows 10 Start menu tiles? What do you use? Share your thoughts in the comments.

We may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.

Halo: MCC’s live service elements make it better, not worse

Halo: The Master Chief Collection is more popular than ever, but some fans don’t agree with the live service approach 343 Industries has taken with it. Here’s why those elements are, at the end of the day, great for the game and for Halo overall.

Microsoft’s Surface Duo is not ‘failing up’

Microsoft announced this week that it was expanding Surface Duo availability to nine new commercial markets. While Surface Duo is undoubtedly a work in progress, this is not a sign of a disaster. It’s also doesn’t mean that Surface Duo is selling a ton either. Instead, the reason for the expansion is a lot more straightforward.

Here’s what you can do if Windows 10 update KB5001330 is causing issues

In this guide, we’ll show you the steps to get rid of the update KB5001330 to fix profile, gaming, and BSoD problems with the Windows 10 October 2020 Update and May 2020 Update.

These are the best PC sticks when you’re on the move

Instant computer — just add a screen. That’s the general idea behind the ultra-portable PC, but it can be hard to know which one you want. Relax, we have you covered!