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How to Hide
Anything in
Windows
Written by Akshata Shanbag
Published December 2015.
Read the original article here: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/hide-anything-windows/
This ebook is the intellectual property of MakeUseOf. It must only be published in its original form.
Using parts or republishing altered parts of this ebook is prohibited without permission from
MakeUseOf.com.

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Table of contents

A Few Points to Remember

On the Desktop

Charms Bar and Switcher

The Recycle Bin

Icons and Gadgets

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On the Taskbar

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The Taskbar

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System Tray Icons and Notifications

12

The Search Box

15

The Task View Icon

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The Start Button

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In the Start Menu

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System Defaults

17

Start Screen Tiles

18

Recently Openedand Most Used Programs/Files

18

Installed Apps inAll Programs/All Apps

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In File Explorer

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Files and Folders

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Recent Places, Recent Files

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File Extensions

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Assorted Items

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Hide Away!

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Microsoftgives you superpowers to makeanything on Windowsdisappear. Make use of them!

Recently, we showed you how to hide the Windows login screenand the annoying Get Office
notification. These are not the only Windows elements that you can send into hiding. With a few
tweaks here and there, you can concealtoolbars, icons, buttons, files pretty much anything that
youd like to keep out of your way. Well show you how to do that in this guide.

A Few Points to Remember

Before we begin, lets see how to access someimportant locations and settings that well refer to
more than once.
1. The context menu or right-click menu: Right-click any element in Windows to open up its
context menu. The contents vary based on the element you have clicked.
2. The Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog: Lets call this one taskbar properties for the
sake of clarity. To bring it up, right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and select
Properties from the context menu.

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3. The Personalization dialog: Right-click on an empty space on the desktop and click on
Personalize in the context menu to bring up this dialog. You can also open it via Control
Panel > Appearance and Personalization > Personalize.

4. The Folder Options dialog: Well call this dialog folder options. On Windows 7, you can bring
it up via Organize > Folder and search options in File Explorer.

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On Windows 8, 8.1, and 10, click on the View tab of File Explorer and then on Options at the far
right.

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Now lets move on to the actual work of banishing what you dont like from your Windows experience.
Heres how you hideelements from various sections of your PC.

On the Desktop
Charms Bar and Switcher
In theEdge UI that shipped with Windows 8 came a couple of confusing new features: the Charms
bar and the Switcher.
The Charms bar is nothing butan icon-driven menu that pops up when you move the cursor to
the top right or bottom right corner of the screen.

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The Switcher allows you to cycle through open applications and switch from the Modern
desktop to the classic oneby moving the cursor to the top left corner of thescreen.

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Can you makethese two annoying features less so? Sure! Go to the Navigation tab of taskbar
properties, uncheck the boxes next to the following options, and click on OK:
When I point to the upper-right corner, show the charms
When I click the upper-left corner, switch between my recent apps

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On Windows 8.1, youll also find the same options listed underSettings > PC and devices > Corners
and edges > Corner navigation.

"
This tweak renders the hot corners for the Charms and Switcher features inactive globally. You can
still use these features viakeyboard shortcuts: Win + C for the Charms bar and Win + Tab for the
Switcher.
If you want an easy way to disable both these features, try a third-party app like Winaero Charms Bar
Killer or Start8.
Maybe you have already installed the Classic Shell application to make Windows 8 suck less. In that
case, open the program, navigate to the Windows 8 Settings tab, and select the Allradio button
under Disable active corners.

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Touchpad users can also try disabling edge swipes via the UI settings provided by the touchpad
vendor.

The location of the edge swipe setting varies depending on the brand and model of your PC. Youll
most likely find this feature (or some variation of it) in the Mouse Control Panel or the settings section
from where you can tweak touchpad gestures.

The Recycle Bin

In Windows Vista you could just delete the Recycle Bin icon and be done with it. Microsoft decided
that you shouldnt have it so easy, so this is how it works now:
1. Open the Desktop Icon Settings dialog via Personalize > Change desktop icons (Win 7, 8, 8.1)
or Personalize > Themes > Related Settings > Desktop icon settings (Win 10).
2. Uncheck the box next to Recycle Bin.
3. Click on Apply and exit the dialog.

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As you can see from the image above, you can also hide or restore other desktop shortcut icons like
Computer, Control Panel, and Network from theDesktop Icon Settings dialog.

Icons and Gadgets

Desktop shortcuts to files, folders, and programs are easy enough to delete. Select a bunch of them,
click on Delete from the context menu, and confirm that you want to proceed with the deletion.
Remember, if youre deleting a file(or folder) whose icondoesnt have the tiny arrow symbol
that represents a shortcut, youre deleting the original file and not its shortcut.

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Not what you had in mind? Move that file to a safer location, so that you dont inadvertently delete
itfrom the desktop. You can still keepithandy as a desktop shortcut using theSend to > Desktop
(create shortcut)option from the files context menu.

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Did you know that you can toggle desktop icons o and on as and when you need them?To
do so, right-click on the desktop and underView, click on Show desktop icons.

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"
Windows 7 has afewgadgets like a clock, currency converter, and a calendar that you can display in
the sidebar via the Gadgets option from the desktops context menu.
If youwant to hide agadget thats visible in the sidebar, click on its Close button at the top right. Poof!
Its gone.

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If you dont use the gadgets feature at all and would like to keep it turned off, first click on Control
Panel > Programs > Programs and Features > Turn Windows features on or o to open the
Windows Features dialog. There, uncheck the box next to Windows Gadget Platform and click
on OK. Thats it!

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On the Taskbar
The Taskbar
Want more screen space? One way to get it is by setting the Windows taskbar to hide itself when
youre not using it. Open taskbar properties and under the Taskbar tab, checkthe box for Auto-hide
the taskbar. While youre at it, you might also want to uncheck the box next to Show Windows
Store apps on the taskbar to get rid of thetaskbar icons for Windows Store apps on Windows 10.

"

System Tray Icons and Notifications

A messysystem tray is an eyesore and can be quite the distraction if you dont controlthe
notifications it is set to show. Dont worry. You can make those notifications go away andhide
the icons behind a discreet popup.
Lets say you want to hide the Get Windows 10 (GWX) icon and its notifications. To do that in
Windows 7 through 8.1, first open up taskbar properties, and under the Taskbar tab, click on the
Customize button next to Notification:. This opens the Notification Area Icons section.

"

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Next, look for GWX in the icon list and selecttheHide icon andnotifications option from the
dropdown next to it. Thishidesthe GWX icon, but you can access it via the tiny arrow next to the
system tray. Also, you wont get notifications for GWX anymore.

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Youll have to select the Hide icon and notifications option one by one for every icon that you want
to hide.
With system icons, you can go one step further and turn them off instead of hiding them behind a
popup. Forthis youll have to click on Turn system icons on or o. On the next screen, select the
O option from the dropdown for every icon that you want to hide from the system tray.

"
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Note: If the dropdowns appear grayed out in the Notification Area Icons section, uncheck the box
next to Always show all icons and notifications on the taskbar.

"
On Windows 10, youll find the controls for taskbar icons, notifications, and system icons in a different
location: Settings > System > Notification and actions. Dont let theUI daunt you. It looks
different from what you have seen above, but the settings are well labeled and easy to figure out.

"
While youre fixing the system tray for your convenience, you can take advantage of these other
taskbar customization tricks as well.
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The Search Box

The global search box that comes bundled with the taskbar on Windows 10 is a handy feature that
we would recommend keeping. But if you want to hidethe search box, open the taskbars context
menu and click on Search > Show search box to toggle it off.
If you decide that you want to use the search feature after all, you dont have to stick with its huge,
unwieldy avatar. Keep it ready to use as a tiny search icon by selecting Search > Show search icon
from the taskbars context menu.

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The Task View Icon

If you have no use for the Task View button that links to a virtual desktop feature for multitasking, hide
its taskbar icon and get more space for open apps.All you have to do is click on Show Task Viewin
the taskbar context menu to toggle the icon off.

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The Start Button

The Modern UI version of the Start menucaused quite a furor when it first made an
appearance in Windows 8.Several users were not happy that Microsoft had decided to zapthe
much-loved Start button and Start menu from Windows 7.
The Start button did reappear in Windows 8.1, but not the classic Start menu.
Anyway, everyone has now accepted thatthe Start button and the Start screen are here to stay. Of
course, thats not to say that everyonessticking with these defaults. Many users prefer to hide the
Start button and restore the old Start menu using third-party apps like StartIsGone or Start8.You can
do the same.
Before you go ahead and hide the Start screen in favor of the classic Start menu, do explore the
context menu hidden behind the Start button. You might discover some useful options there.

"

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In the Start Menu

System Defaults
The Start Menu in its default avatarhas various options that you dont need to access on a
regular basis. You might even prefer to keep them accessible as desktop or taskbar shortcuts. In
suchcases, you can make the Start Menu more compact by getting rid of unused items.
To hide Start Menu entries, first navigate to the Start Menu tab of taskbar properties and click on the
Customize button there. This brings up the Customize Start Menu dialog where you can hide any
Start Menu listingby deselecting the checkbox next to it or selecting the Dont display this
itemradio button as appropriate.

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And heres how you can hack/hide various Start screen elements in Windows 10.

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Start Screen Tiles

If you find any of the Start screen tiles (on Windows 8 and above) distracting, you can turn it off
selectingUnpin from Start from its context menu.Want to keep the tile but dont want its dynamic
update feature? Click on the Turn live tile o option instead.

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Recently Openedand Most Used Programs/Files

The lists of recently added programs and your most used items (files and programs) can behelpful,
but theyre not everybodys favorites. If you dont want them displayed, its easy to turn them off
quickly.
On Windows 7, youll have to go the Start Menu tab of taskbar properties and uncheck the boxes
for:
Store and display recently opened programs in the Start menu
Store and display recently opened itemsin the Start menu and the taskbar
On Windows 8.1, youll find these options in the JumpLists tab of the taskbar properties.

"
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If youre on Windows 10, go to Settings > Personalize > Start and dragthe sliders for Show most
used apps and Show recently added apps to the left to hide these jumplists.
If you just want to stop a specific app from showing up in the Most Used (or Recently Added) list, try
this instead. Open that apps context menu from the Most Used section of the Start screen and click
on Dont show in this list.

"

Installed Apps inAll Programs/All Apps

For any app that youd like to stop from showingup in the list of installedprograms, you can
usuallyspecify that preference while youre installing the program. It often appears as a box that reads
Add Start Menu Shortcuts (or some variation of that). Uncheck that box to skipadding the
program to the Start screen or the Start Menu.

"
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If you have already installed the app, thats not a problem. OnWindows 7, you can select Delete from
the right-click menu of a programs Start Menu entry to delete that shortcut.
On Windows 8 and above, navigate to C:\ > ProgramData > Microsoft > Windows > Start Menu
> Programs and delete the apps Start screen entry from there.
Beware! Dont go about deleting anything that you arent sure youll be able to find again.

In File Explorer
Files and Folders
Theres more than one way to hide a file or folder in Windows. Lets take a look at some common
ones.
1. The default method:This involves opening a file or folders Properties dialog from its context
menu and checking the box next to Hidden. Make sure that you click on Apply to finalize the
change.

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To reveal all hidden files and folders, open folder options, and under the View tab, check the radio
button next toShow hidden files, folders, and drives.
2. The System files trick:The folder options setting to reveal hidden folders is no secret, which is
why hiding folders the usual way is less effective than you think it is. A better method is to disguise
sensitive files is by designating them as system files. Youll need to go to the command prompt for
that.

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Press Win + R, type cmd in the Run dialog that comes up, and hit Enter. At the command prompt,
type:
attrib +s +h "C:\...\TopSecretFile"
Replace the sample pathname given here with the pathname to the file that you want to disguise as a
system file, and hit Enter. Now that file stays hidden even when you show hidden files and folders.
You can reveal this file in two ways:
by typingthis in the Terminal
attrib -s -h "C:\...\TopSecretFile"
by unchecking the box next to Hide protected operating system files (Recommended) in Folder
Options > View, and hitting Apply, of course.

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3. Steganography:Steganography is the art of concealing messages in such a way that anyone who
isnt aware of thehidden message wont even realize that theres a message hidden, even if its in
plain sight.
Lets take a look ata popular steganography trick used to hide a text file within a JPEG image.
Begin by keeping these two files handy: the text file that you want hide and the JPEG image (say,
mask-image.jpg) behind which you want to hide the file.
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Add these files to a new folder on C: drive and compress that folder into a RAR archive, which well
call mask-archive. Youll need to use a third-party app like WinRAR or 7-Zip for creating the archive.
Now, open Command Prompt, typecd \and and hit Enter to navigate to the root directory
(assuming C: is the current drive at the prompt). Next, run this command:
copy /b mask-image.jpg+mask-archive.rar result-image.jpg

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Be sure to replace the sample filenames in the command with the corresponding file names from your
computer. Once you press Enter, youll find the new image (result-image.jpg) thats identical to maskimage.jpg, but bigger in size because ofthe secret text file it includes.
There are more ways to hide secret messages in pictures and other files. You bet its fun to explore
them all!
4. Encryption Software: Data encryption is a reliable way to protect your sensitive data from prying
eyes. It hides information in coded messages thatare difficultto decipher unless you have the key to
decrypt them.
The top choice for encryption on Windows TrueCrypt is no longer around, but there are some
decent Windows disk encryption alternatives floating on the web. Some of them have limited choices
for encryption algorithms. Some others do not have an encryption feature for individual files and
folders. Youll need to explore a few program options to get the features your need.

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Recent Places, Recent Files

Files that you have opened recently and locations that you visit frequently are accessible via the
Recent Places section of theExplorer sidebar i.e. the Navigation pane. If youre on Windows 10,youll
find similar data listed underQuick Access in the sidebar.
As you continue to use Windows day after day, these sections get cluttered super quick. To stop
Quick Access from accumulating data on Windows 10, you need to uncheck the boxes next to the
following options in Folder Options > General > Privacy:
Show recently used files in Quick Access, and
Show frequently used folders in Quick Access
Youll also need to click on the Clear button in the same section to clear out the data that Quick
Access has gathered so far.

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On Windows 7, 8, 8.1, have youset recently opened items to stop from showing up in the Start menu
as we discussed above (under In the Start Menu)? Then you dont need further tweaks because that
one ensures that the Recent Places section doesnt gather new data.

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File Extensions
To hide file extensions, youll need to navigate to folder options again. This time, look for the Hide
extensions for known file types checkbox and check it. After you click on Apply, filenames in
Explorer will show up sansthe corresponding extension.

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Assorted Items
On Windows 7, you can hide the menu bar from Organize > Layoutand bring it up as and when you
need it by pressing the Alt key.

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The View tab of the File Explorer ribbon in Windows 8 and above allows you to hide/display various
Explorer items like the Navigation pane, the Preview pane, and item checkboxes. On Windows 7,
youll find these settings either in folder options or under Organize > Layout.
If you want to hide some of the options available on the Quick Access Toolbar, the quickest way to do
that would be by clicking on the arrow to the right of the toolbar icons, and clicking on eachitem to
toggle it off.

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Hide Away!
Getready totuck awayall those Windows annoyances that have been nagging you. As you
digdeeper and deeper into the Windows settings that we have demonstrated above, youll stumble
across various otherlittle-knownoptions, such as this gem of a feature thats hidden in plain sight.
The items that we have listed hereare just some of the surface elements that you can hide in
Windows.
If youre willing to risk tacklingthe Windows registry,theres a lot more that you can push
out of sight from Control Panel applets to user accounts on the login screen to the Libraries
section in File Explorer.And isnt that the best thing about Windows? Thatit allows you to tweak every
last detail to your liking? We think so.Although we must admit that Microsoft is tightening the reins
and locking down more features with every new version of Windows.
Are you content leaving all settings as they werewhen you installed Windows?Or do you
like to hideevery last icon and feature that annoys you? Tell us how you preferyour
Windows installation to be!

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