Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)


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Microsoft puts various experimental features in Windows 10 to test their functionality but sometimes the company doesn't activate these features because these features might not be complete and can cause problems to users. On the other hand, sometimes new features are enabled to replace old features but Microsoft also keeps the old features in the OS hidden from users.

Most of the times these new and old features can be enabled or disabled using various Registry tweaks which are applied using Registry Editor tool.

Instead of creating separate articles for all of them, we decided to put them together in this exclusive topic for your reading convenience. So without wasting time lets start the tutorial:

  • STEP 1: Press WIN+R keys together to launch RUN dialog box or you can open it using WIN+X menu.
  • STEP 2: Now type regedit in RUN dialog box and press Enter. It'll open Registry Editor.
  • STEP 3: Now go to following keys and change mentioned DWORD values to enable/disable Windows 10 features:

Show Seconds in Taskbar Clock

With the help of this interesting registry tweak, you can enable seconds display in the Clock present in notification area (system tray) of Taskbar as shown in following screenshot:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

In right-side pane, create new DWORD ShowSecondsInSystemClock and set its value to 1, then restart, log off or restart Explorer as given here to take effect and now taskbar Clock will start displaying seconds.

If you want to remove seconds display in Taskbar Clock, delete the DWORD ShowSecondsInSystemClock.

Increase Taskbar Transparency Level

By default, Windows 10 Taskbar comes with Aero glass transparency effect but the transparency level is not very high. With the help of following Registry tweak, you can increase transparency level of Windows 10 Taskbar and can add extra clear transparency effect to the Taskbar:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

In right-side pane, create new DWORD UseOLEDTaskbarTransparency and set its value to 1 and then restart, log off or restart Explorer as given here to take effect and it'll make Windows 10 Taskbar more transparent.

If you want to restore Taskbar default transparency level in future, delete the DWORD UseOLEDTaskbarTransparency.

Disable Login Screen Background Image

Microsoft has put the new "Hero" wallpaper as the background image of Login Screen in Windows 10. Interested people can disable or remove it using following method:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System

In right-side pane, create new DWORD DisableLogonBackgroundImage and set its value to 1 and then restart your computer and it'll remove the background image from login screen.

If you want to restore Login Screen background image in future, delete the DWORD DisableLogonBackgroundImage.

Enable Hidden Secret Dark Theme Mode

Windows 10 comes with a hidden secret Dark theme mode which can be unlocked and tested in modern (Metro) apps:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Themes\Personalize

In right-side pane, create a new DWORD AppsUseLightTheme and leave its value to 0. That's it. Now you can enjoy dark UI in all modern apps including Settings app.

To restore default UI, delete the new DWORD AppsUseLightTheme.

NOTE: In previous testing builds of Windows 10, the DWORD was actually SystemUsesLightTheme which was replaced with AppsUseLightTheme in final version of Windows 10.

UPDATE: Now this dark theme feature is officially available in Settings app.

Disable New Volume Control UI and Restore Previous UI

Microsoft has added a new horizontal UI for volume control slider in Windows 10 which is shown when you click on the Sound icon in Taskbar notification area. If you don't like the new UI, you can restore previous vertical volume control slider using following method:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\

Create a new key MTCUVC under CurrentVersion key. Now in right-side pane, create new DWORD EnableMtcUvc and set its value to 0.

If you want to restore new volume control UI, delete the DWORD EnableMtcUvc.

Disable New Network Flyout UI and Restore Previous UI

Microsoft has added a new fly-out for Network icon in Taskbar notification area. If you don't like the new UI, you can restore previous Windows 8/8.1 style Network sidebar using following method:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Control Panel\Settings\Network

Now take ownership of Network key with the help of this guide. Then, in right-side pane, change the value of DWORD ReplaceVan to as following:

0 - Default flyout.
1 - To open Network Settings window.
2 - To show Windows 8/8.1 style Network sidebar.

Disable New Tray Clock and Calendar UI and Restore Previous UI

You can use following method to disable the new Modern (Metro) style Clock and Calendar UI and restore good ol' classic Date/Time UI in Windows 10 Taskbar Notification Area (aka System Tray):

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ImmersiveShell

In right-side pane, create a new DWORD UseWin32TrayClockExperience and set its value to 1. That's it. It'll immediately disable the new Clock and Calendar UI and restore classic UI in system tray.

If you want to restore new Clock UI, delete the new DWORD UseWin32TrayClockExperience.

Disable New Battery Fly-out and Restore Previous UI

You can use following method to disable the new Modern (Metro) style Battery fly-out and restore good ol' classic Battery info UI in Windows 10 Taskbar Notification Area (aka System Tray):

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ImmersiveShell

In right-side pane, create a new DWORD UseWin32BatteryFlyout and set its value to 1. That's it. It'll immediately disable the new Battery fly-out and restore classic UI in system tray.

If you want to restore new Battery fly-out, delete the new DWORD UseWin32BatteryFlyout.

Disable New Action Center Sidebar and Restore Previous UI

Microsoft has updated Action Center (or Notification Center) UI in Windows 10. Now it opens as a sidebar and contains new quick action switches. Following method will allow you to disable this new UI and restore previous fly-out UI of Action Center:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ImmersiveShell

In right-side pane, change value of UseActionCenterExperience DWORD to 0, then restart, log off or restart Explorer shell process to take effect and it'll disable the new Action Center UI.

If you want to restore new UI, change value of UseActionCenterExperience DWORD to 1 again.

Completely Disable Action Center in Windows 10

If you don't like the new Action Center in Windows 10, you can disable it using following method. In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer

In right-side pane, create new DWORD DisableNotificationCenter and set its value to 1. Restart, log off or restart Explorer shell process to take effect and it'll completely disable Notifications and Action Center in Windows 10. If you want to re-enable it, delete the new DWORD DisableNotificationCenter.

Activate New Experimental Login Screen

Microsoft has put a new experimental Login Screen in Windows 10 builds which is not enabled by default. It features new rounded user pictures (avatars) along with a few other UI changes.

You can activate it using following method:

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI\TestHooks

In right-side pane, change value of Threshold to 1. That's it. It'll immediately enable the new login screen. If you want to restore default Login Screen, change value of Threshold to 0 again.

NOTE: This new login screen is under development and contains many bugs, that's why its not enabled at the moment. Some people have faced problems after enabling this new login screen such as not able to log into Windows after restart or a clean boot.

Disable New Xaml Start Menu and Enable Previous Start Menu

Microsoft has replaced previous Windows 10 Start Menu with a new one in the latest Windows 10 build 9926 which is a little bit buggy and can't be resized. Luckily, the old Start Menu still exists in the OS. Interested people can enable the old resizable Start Menu in Windows 10 using following method:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

In right-side pane create a new DWORD EnableXamlStartMenu and leave its value to 0. Restart, log off or restart Explorer shell process to take effect and enjoy the old Start Menu in Windows 10.

This tweak will also enable previous Start Screen and you'll also be able to switch between Start Menu and Start Screen again using Taskbar Properties using Settings -> Personalization -> Start menu. To restore the new Start Menu, delete the new DWORD EnableXamlStartMenu.

Enable Jump List Feature in Windows 10 Start Menu

You can use following trick to enable jump list feature in Windows 10 Start Menu:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

In right-side pane create a new DWORD EnableXamlJumpView and set its value to 1. Restart your computer to take effect and enjoy jump lists in Start Menu of Windows 10.

To remove jump list feature from Start Menu, delete the new DWORD EnableXamlJumpView.

Disable New Windows Update UI and Enable Previous UI

Microsoft has also updated Windows Update UI in the Windows 10 build 9926 and some people are facing problems with this new UI. Interested people can disable this new Windows Update UI and bring back the old UI using following method:

Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks (Windows 10)

In Registry Editor, go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsUpdate\UX

In right-side pane, change value of IsConvergedUpdateStackEnabled DWORD to 0. That's it. It'll immediately disable the new Windows Update UI.

If you want to restore new Windows Update UI, change value of IsConvergedUpdateStackEnabled DWORD to 1 again.

Download Ready-Made Registry Files

For your convenience, we are also providing ready-made Registry scripts to do the task automatically. You'll not need to open Registry Editor and change values. You just need to download following ZIP file, extract it and then run the given .REG files to enable/disable Windows 10 features:

[wpfilebase tag="file" id="241"]

Extra Registry scripts are also present in the ZIP file to restore default settings.