5 helpful Home windows 11 options I remorse not utilizing sooner

I’ve used Windows 11 for years, but I am nonetheless stunned by how typically I discover new features I did not find out about earlier than. To be truthful, Home windows 11 is kind of a complete desktop working system with many customization options and settings, so it is simple to miss some useful instruments and options hidden in its menus.

Whether or not you are new to Home windows 11 or have been utilizing it for some time, these options I’ve just lately began using have considerably boosted my productiveness and improved how I handle my PC, they usually may do the identical for you, too. These options are constructed into Home windows 11 and can be found without cost, so that you need not set up any further software program to start out utilizing them. My solely want is that I would discovered them earlier.

Clipboard historical past

Hold observe of the whole lot you’ve got copied to your clipboard

The primary function I wish to spotlight is known as Clipboard historical past. If you happen to do loads of copying and pasting every day — whether or not for messaging apps, emails, spreadsheets, or picture modifying — that is a straightforward strategy to hold observe of the whole lot you’ve got copied so you’ll be able to entry it later. I am unable to depend what number of occasions I’ve copied a picture or hyperlink to incorporate in my notes or ship to somebody, solely to overlook to truly do it after which lose it. So, Clipboard historical past has been a lifesaver and a precious productiveness device for copying a number of objects directly with out dropping any of them.

Clipboard historical past is not enabled by default in Home windows 11, so to activate it, go to Settings > Clipboard and toggle on Clipboard historical past. After doing that, press Win + V (win is the Home windows key), and your Clipboard historical past will seem, permitting you to click on on something you’ve got copied prior to now to recopy it. To clear your Clipboard historical past at any time, merely click on the Clear all button. If you wish to save a copied merchandise, click on the pin icon on it to pin it.

Storage sense

Routinely keep your machine’s storage

Subsequent up is Storage Sense, a built-in Home windows 11 device that robotically frees up disk area in your system drive (the C: drive) with out deleting any vital recordsdata. Storage Sense deletes objects similar to momentary system recordsdata, recordsdata in your Recycle Bin, and previous Home windows set up recordsdata. What I like about Storage Sense is that it automates all these duties for you, eliminating the necessity to ever run Disk Cleanup manually. It is sensible, easy, and it helps hold your PC freed from pointless recordsdata.

Relying in your PC setup, Storage Sense may already be enabled however not configured. To show it on and alter the settings, go to Settings > Storage and toggle on Storage Sense. While you click on on Storage Sense, a menu with numerous choices will seem, permitting you to customise when it runs and what it clears. By default, Storage Sense prompts solely when your system drive is low on area, however you’ll be able to change this to run weekly, every day, or month-to-month. I set mine to run as soon as a month as a result of I do not assume I am accumulating sufficient pointless recordsdata to justify every day or weekly runs.

Moreover, you’ll be able to configure it to robotically delete recordsdata out of your Recycle Bin. Once I checked mine, I nonetheless discovered recordsdata from 2024, so I set it to delete recordsdata from the bin after 60 days. You can too set Storage Sense to robotically delete recordsdata out of your Downloads folder as effectively, which is helpful for clearing out setup recordsdata you’ve got most likely downloaded for putting in apps and now not want.

Shake to attenuate

Tidy your desktop in seconds

This function is a nifty one, and when you have a behavior like mine of holding a number of Chrome situations open directly and operating a number of totally different applications concurrently, that is a straightforward strategy to reduce all of them immediately to clear up your display screen. The function is known as “Title bar home windows shake,” and it means that you can shake your presently energetic window to attenuate the whole lot behind it.

This function has been out there on Home windows since Home windows 7, when it was first launched as Aero Shake. I’ve discovered it to be a useful strategy to tidy up my desktop and have some enjoyable. Sadly, it is not enabled by default in Home windows 11. To activate it, go to Settings > Multitasking and toggle on Title bar window shake. Then, simply seize any window you wish to deal with, shake it, and all of the home windows behind will probably be minimized, saving you the difficulty of minimizing every one individually. It is each a time-saver and enjoyable to make use of; what’s to not love?

You may want a mouse linked to your laptop computer for this to work

If there’s one factor I always do on my PC, it is adjusting the system quantity, whether or not I am in a gathering, listening to music, watching a video, or taking part in a sport. This lesser-known function means that you can alter the quantity in your PC even quicker, while not having to press a button in your keyboard or open the short settings menu.

All it’s important to do is solely hover your mouse cursor over the quantity icon in your system tray and scroll up or down to boost or decrease your PC’s quantity. That is it. It is easy, but I’ve discovered it to be the quickest strategy to alter my system quantity on the fly. It is saved my eardrums a couple of occasions when a video or music is instantly performed at a particularly loud quantity. This function ought to work by default with out enabling any settings. Nevertheless, if you happen to encounter points with it, or it is not working, the issue can probably be resolved by going to Settings > Bluetooth & gadgets > Mouse and enabling Scroll Inactive Home windows When Hovering Over Them.

Enhanced Home windows Search

Discover any file in your PC quicker

Lastly, the final function I like to recommend enabling is Enhanced Home windows Search. It has saved me loads of time by serving to me discover recordsdata on my PC a lot quicker. By default, the Home windows Search index is ready to Traditional, which suggests Home windows Search solely seems for recordsdata in your Paperwork, Photos, and Music folders, in addition to your Desktop. So, if you happen to retailer recordsdata elsewhere in your PC, like on a secondary drive, Home windows Search will not discover them, which will be fairly irritating.

Fortunately, Enhanced Home windows Search fixes this downside as a result of enabling it permits Home windows Search to index all of the recordsdata in your PC, making the search function really helpful. To do that in your PC, go to Settings > Privateness & Safety > Search > Discover my Information. From there, swap the search index from Traditional to Enhanced. While you allow Enhanced, it is going to take a while for Home windows to index all of the recordsdata in your PC, particularly when you have 1000’s of recordsdata, so that you must be affected person because it does this. If you happen to’re on a laptop computer, I like to recommend plugging it in, as a result of it could possibly drain the battery whereas indexing.