Recommended settings

Recent and commonly used settings

Personalize your device

Quickly access settings to personalize your device

Microsoft account

Should details of any connected Microsoft accounts

Display

Brightness & colour - configure HDR (High Dynamic Range) for monitors which support it, and enable Night light to help block blue light

Scale & layout - adjust scale, display resolution, display orientation (portrait/landscape) and configure multiple monitors

Sound

Output - choose where to play sound, adjust volume, pair new devices

Input - choose a device for recording / speaking, pair new devices

Advanced - troubleshoot audio problems

Notifications

Choose what alerts and notification messages you receive i.e. email alerts, alarms, reminders, tips and from which apps

Focus

Configure what notifications you would like to hear and when, so you can stay focused when working or turn off / have less notifications during the night or when playing games

Power / Power & battery

Choose when your computer should automatically turn off the screen or put the computer into sleep mode

On laptops / tablets you will see current battery level, battery usage and can configure battery saver

Storage

See how much disk space is being used and what is using it

Configure default locations for saving of data

Configure what folders will be synced to OneDrive

Nearby sharing *

Allows you to enable nearby sharing which allows you to share files, photos and links with other Windows devices which are nearby

You can also choose where you wish received files to be stored

* only shows if you have Bluetooth or WiFi

Multi-tasking

Change settings relating to Snap (allows you to arrange windows/apps by dragging them to edge of the screen) and Multiple desktops

Also allows you to choose how many of your Microsoft Edge tabs appear when using Alt + Tab

You can also enable Title bar shake so shaking a windows title bar minimizes all other apps

Activation

Check activation state of you Windows 11 license / subscription and change product key

Troubleshoot

Access troubleshooters to automatically diagnose and fix common problems

Recovery

Reset this PC - allows you to reset back to factory settings (this should only be used if all other repair options have been tried), you can choose whether to remove apps, settings and data or just apps and settings

Go back - can be used for a limited time after updating to a new version to go back to the previous version

Projecting to this PC

Allows you to project your Windows phone or other devices to this screen and use its keyboard, mouse and other devices - for devices which support Miracast

Remote Desktop

Enable remote desktop which allows you to connect to and control this device from other devices on your network (e.g. phone, tablet, laptop etc)

Clipboard

Clipboard history - if enabled then multiple items can be stored at once in your clipboard

Sync across your devices - if enabled allows you to copy / paste text from one device to another - as long as you are signed into both using same account

Clear clipboard data

About

Shows information about your computer such as name, version, and device specifications such as amount of RAM, processor type etc

Bluetooth

Enable and configure bluetooth

Devices

Add and configure mouse, keyboard, pen, audio, displays, docks and other connected devices

Printers & scanners

Shows list of all installed scanners and printers

Phone Link

Allows you to instantly access text messages, photos and more on your Android device

Cameras

Add and configure cameras, change default image settings

Mouse

Change mouse settings such as changing primary button for left handed users

Touchpad *

Settings for taps, gestures, scrolling and zooming

* only shows on laptops and devices with touch / trackpads

Touch *

Enable touch gestures

* only shows on devices with touchscreens

Pen & Windows Ink

Configure Pen/Stylus and Windows Ink devices and settings

AutoPlay

Choose what happens when you insert a memory card or plug in a removable drive

USB

Change USB device settings

WiFi

Allows you to manage existing wireless network connections and to connect to a new wireless network

Ethernet

Shows connection status and allows you to change settings such as profile type, IP address details etc

Enable metered connection if using a connection which has data limits

VPN

Add and configure a VPN (Virtual Private Network), mainly used by businesses to allow staff to connect into work resources from home

Mobile hotspot

Allows you to share your internet connection with other devices by setting up a wireless hotspot

Flight mode

Turn off all wireless and bluetooth connections - useful on a laptop or tablet in areas where wireless is not allowed i.e. airplanes, hospitals or other restricted areas

Proxy

Configure a proxy server for ethernet or wireless connections - mainly used in businesses rather than for home use

Dial-up

Settings to allow access to internet/network using a dial-up connection - not used much nowadays as most people have broadband connections

Advanced network settings

View all network adapters

See data usage and connection properties

Reset network adapters to factory settings

Background

Set background to photo, colour or choose a slideshow

Adjust contrast

Colours

Choose colour mode - dark or light or custom

Enable transparency effects

Choose Accent colour

Themes

Change theme settings - themes consist of a combination of backgrounds, color schemes, sounds and cursors

Dynamic Lighting

Manage all dynamic lighting devices, control brightness and colour effects

Lock screen

Choose a background image for your lockscreen

Choose which apps you wish to show on lockscreen e.g. calendar, mail, weather

Text input

Adjust touch keyboard size

Choose theme for keyboard

Voice typing

Emoji and more

Start

Customize whether to show recently used apps and most used apps

Choose whether to show recently open items in Start, Jump Lists and File Explorer

Choose which folders (icons) appear on bottom of Start Menu e.g. Settings, File Explorer, Documents, Pictures etc

Taskbar

Choose which buttons appear on your taskbar e.g. search, chat, widgets, task view

Choose which icons appear in the taskbar corner - all other items will appear in the overflow menu

Fonts

View all fonts available on your device

Add additional fonts

Device usage

Select all the ways you use your device to personalize tips, ads and recommendations that are shown

Installed apps

Shows all installed programs (apps) and how much space they used

Allows you to remove (uninstall) apps from your computer

Advanced app settings

Choose where to get apps, archive apps and uninstall updates

Default apps

Select your default apps per file type or application

Offline maps

Allows you to download maps to use offline (i.e. when you don't have an internet connection available) and update maps

You can also choose where you wish to store offline maps

Optional features

View installed optional features and add additional features

Apps for websites

Allows you to change which apps are configured with certain websites e.g. the Groove Music app links to the Microsoft Music website

Video playback

Change video settings for apps that use Windows video playback platform

Startup

Change what apps are started automatically when you login

Your info

Shows details on the currently logged in user and allows you to access your Microsoft Account to see billing info, family safety settings, subscriptions etc

Allows you to change your user account picture

Email & accounts

Configure accounts for email, contacts and calendar apps, as well as accounts used by other apps

Sign-in options

Change how and when you sign-in to your computer i.e. using a Password, PIN, fingerprint or facial recognition

Family

Configure additional accounts for other users and family members, allows you to configure time limits, and allow/block websites and apps for your kids

Windows back up

Configure what folders will be synced to OneDrive

Other users

Direct access, work or school users, kiosk access

Access work or school

Organisation resources like email, apps and network

Passkey settings

Use your face, fingerprint or PIN to sign into apps and websites

Date & time

Change date/time, select time zone, and choose if you want date/time set automatically depending on location

Language & region

Choose your country or region, and configure regional specific settings such as how dates are shown

Change Windows display language, and add additional languages

Typing

Show text suggestions when typing

Automatically highlight or correct misspelt words

Change keyboard language

Change text cursor colour, size and thickness

Speech

Choose language used for speech recognition, what voice is used for speaking and configure your microphone

Game bar

Control how game bar opens and recognizes your game

Captures

Allows you to capture screenshots and video clips whilst playing games

Set recording preferences and save location

Game Mode

Game Mode allows users to get improved performance for gaming from their hardware by prioritizing CPU and GPU resources to optimize frame rate, and minimizing background service and activities

Vision

Text size for Windows and apps

Visual effects such as scrollbars, transparency, animations and notification timeouts

Mouse pointer colour and size

Text cursor appearance and thickness

Magnifier

Colour filters for colour-blindness

Contrast themes for low vision and light sensitivity

Narrator and braille

Hearing

Audio notifications

Captions

Interaction

Speech

Keyboard features such as sticky keys, filter keys, toggle keys and on-screen keyboard

Mouse keys, speed and acceleration

Eye control and text to speech

Security

Window Security e.g. antivirus, browser, firewall and network protection

Find my device

Windows permissions

Advertising permissions

Online speech recognition

Inking & typing personalization

Diagnostics & feedback

Activity history

Search Permissions and indexing

App permissions

Location, Camera, Microphone, Voice activation, Notifications, Contacts, Calendars, Phone calls, Call history, Email, Tasks, Messaging, Radios, App Diagnostics, Documents, Downloads, Screenshots & more

Check for updates

Check for and install the latest available updates

Pause updates

Pause all updates for 1 week

Update history

Shows history of all updates installed

Advanced options

Choose whether to receive update for other installed Microsoft products

Metered connection settings

Restart notification

Active hours - choose times you don't want to be disturbed by updates and restarts

Optional features

Delivery optimization

Recovery options such as Go back and Reset this PC