Windows Tool will be a new control panel that will collect all Windows 10 advanced management tools in one place. Microsoft has released it in the latest Insiders test release, Build 21354, and will release it in the final version of Windows 21H2.
Since the earliest versions of Windows, the operating system has included an ‘Administrative Tools’ control panel that contains a variety of shortcuts to many applications that are intended for advanced users to manage Windows and perform administrative tasks.
Considering that Microsoft is in the process of eliminating the classic Control Panel by moving its functions to the modern Windows 10 Settings app, it may come as a surprise that it has added a new panel. The idea is to reorganize the Windows administrative tools that surely have no place in a Settings that Microsoft wants for everyday use and lighter. Or they will be moved later to eliminate the control panel for good. We’ll see.
What Windows Tool will include
This new panel will include all the applications included in the ‘Windows Administrative Tools’ and others that are currently distributed in other parts of the system. In total there will be about 40 applications including among others:
Equipment Manager
- System Configuration
- Defragmenter and drive optimizer.
- Memory diagnostics.
- Registry Editor
- Resource and performance monitor
- Task scheduler
- Recovery unit
- Event Viewer
- Windows Defender
- PowerShell and Command Prompt
- Run command
- Quick Support
- Remote Desktop
The new panel will also include new features such as the recent Power Automate Desktop or others that may come in the future. Like the current Administrative Tools control panel, Windows Tool will be located both in the Control Panel and in the Start menu. It will also be possible to start from the application run or create a shortcut on the desktop with the following command:
explorer.exe shell ::: {D20EA4E1-3957-11d2-A40B-0C5020524153}
Windows Tool will be introduced for all users in the final version of Windows 21H2, the big update that we expect next fall.
As for the future of the Control Panel what to tell you. The general system management tool that has been with us since Microsoft bet on graphical interfaces is destined to disappear in favor of the “Settings” application. Microsoft considers it a legacy component and believes it should be transformed into a more modern tool in tune with the design and experience of Windows 10. Windows Tool is a rarity in that strategy, though we see it more as a way to reorganize administrative tools in one place.
