Windows 10 has a lot of hidden shortcuts that you can use for various purposes. Accessing these options can be a bit complicated for the average user.
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Win10 All Settings is a freeware tool that simplifies the task greatly.
The program is available as an EXE, but the 426KB file is in fact portable. Run it and left click on the system tray icon that appears. It opens a window with over 200 options in it, that is Windows 10 God Mode. This is how the settings are categorized:
Administrative Tools
AutoPlay
Backup and Restore
Color Management
Credential Manager
Date and Time
Devices and Printers
Ease of Access Center
File Explorer Options
File History
Fonts
Indexing Options
Internet Options
Keyboard
Mouse
Network and Sharing Center
Phone and Modem
Power Options
Programs and Features
Region
RemoteApp and Desktop Connections
Security and Maintenance
Sound
Speech Recognition
Storage Spaces
Sync Center
System
Taskbar and Navigation
Troubleshooting
User Accounts
Windows Defender Firewall
Windows Mobility Center and Work Folders.
Right-click on the Win10 All Settings icon to access a context menu. There are plenty of other options here which you can tinker with.
The first option is Classic Personalization. It opens a new window with various settings to customize the appearance of Windows. Use the toggles to enable/disable Light and Dark mode for Windows apps, switch between the Light and Dark Theme, Colored Title Bar for programs, make the Taskbar Transparent, and or Colorize the Start Menu. The last option also affects the taskbar.
Back to the Win10 All Settings menu, there is a shortcut for God Mode which is functionally the same as the tray icon's left-click behavior.
Moving on to the next element, Control Panel. The options in this menu are identical to the one in Windows' legacy Control Panel.
The Admin Tools menu has shortcuts for the following system programs:
Component Services
Computer Management
Defragment and Optimise Drives
Disk Cleanup
Event Viewer
iSCSI Initiator
ODBC Data Sources
Performance Monitor
Registry Drive
Registry Editor
Resource Monitor
Services
System Configuration
System Information
Task Scheduler
Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security on Local Computer, and
Windows Memory Diagnostic
Access all options from the Windows 10 Settings app quickly from the program' Windows Settings menu: Accounts, Apps, Devices, Ease of Access, Gaming, Network and Internet, Personalization, Privacy, System, Time and Language, Update and Security. The Recent Items and Most Used menus in the application, contain the shortcuts which were opened recently and the ones that you used often.
Win10 All Settings has a few options that allows you to modify its appearance and functionality. The "clicked item" setting changes the left-click behavior, you can choose from the following shortcuts: God Mode, Control Panel, Windows Settings and Classic Personalisation.
I changed it to the Control Panel, since there is already a menu item for God Mode. The other options in the page can be used to adjust the menu height, set the Control Panel View, the program's theme, toggle the classic font style, color icons, panel position, delete history items.
The menu style is customizable and has the following options: Simple Windows Settings menu, Simple Control Panel Menu. Don't want the admin tools menu or history menu? Disable them with a click. The application can optionally be enabled to start with Windows. The Tools menu in Win10 All Settings has handy shortcuts for the Classic Color Panel, Command Prompt, Powershell, Windows Explorer, Classic Power Off (shutdown menu).
One option that stands out is the "Create God Mode icon", it places a shortcut on your desktop that allows you to open the God Mode options with a single-click. This is great, because you don't need to run the program to access God Mode.
Though Win10 All Settings is a Windows 10 program, the developer says that it works on Windows 7 and 8 with limited options. Even if you're not interested in the advanced options of God Mode, you may find the Windows Settings and Control Panel menus to be particularly useful for quickly opening specific tools.
You must be on long term branch? Defaults program applet takes you to the crappy one in settings. System applet now takes you to the crappy about in settings.
Another way to get God Mode is to enable a tweak in Winaero Tweaker that adds Control Panel to the Desktop’s context (right-click) menu. When you select the Winaero-added Control Panel, you get a submenu with Categories, Large Icons, and All Tasks. All Tasks is God Mode.
I re-created my special “standalone” God Mode folder as “All Tasks.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}”, just to get a consistent window title when launching it with either the special folder or the Winaero context menu. (Why court confusion?)
It looks like you can’t make shortcuts to the special folder, so I copied some AutoHotkey code from a post somewhere — generally the only way I can get my AutoHotkey scripts to work without spending hours! — and used it make a script that loads the folder. I was then able to create shortcuts to the script.
I also made an AutoHotkey keyboard shortcut that launches the special folder, using the same code. On my computer, Winkey+i launches Settings (the Windows default), Shift+Winkey+i launches the Control Panel (a custom AutoHotkey mapping), and Ctrl+Shift+Winkey+i launches God Mode (another custom AutoHotkey mapping). I’m not great at remembering keyboard shortcuts, but I *can* remember that particular trio.
Finally, I use Open Shell, and I customized the Open Shell Start Menu to put a new entry link to my special All Tasks folder, right under Settings and Control Panel. (You have the option of displaying it as a link to the folder or as a scrollable menu … that goes on forever. ;-)
It’s a nice setup, but I must say it was kind of a time-sucking hassle and I wouldn’t want to have to do it all over again from scratch. In short, “Win10 All Settings” seems like it might be a *lot* more convenient.
Anyone figure out how to reverse Microsoft’s idiotic changes to the control panel? I would like control panel to stop redirecting me to that useless settings app. Would be nice to port back everything the way it was in Windows 7/8.
You can just make your own shortcut instead of installing yet more third party software to facillitate built in windows functions.
Enable God Mode in Windows 10
#1 Make sure your system account has administrative privileges
#2 Right-click (anywhere really) and choose New > Folder
#3 Name the folder: GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C} and hit enter/return to make it stick
Windows 10 would be a lot less ugly if Microsoft return the transparency/blur to the window title bars as well as going back to rounded corners of windows in general. Seems like they’re already doing it with Edge and their most up-to-date apps so there is hope that core Windows 10 will follow soon.
I’ve managed to turn my Windows 10 into the more beautiful Windows 7, but it’s just not as easy to customize it as it was back in the XP/7 day where you can just patch uxtheme.dll and download a visual style from DeviantArt.
1. StartIsBack++ for the Start Menu, the skin comes built-in
2. UxThemePatcher for being able to install custom themes
3. These Win7 themes for Win10 deviantart.com/sagorpirbd/art/Aero-7-Themes-for-Win10-Final-523979941
If malware uses God mode to help it accomplish its job then its also able to accomplish its job without the help of God mode.
Was it not a security risk to enable God Mode? https://securityintelligence.com/news/windows-god-mode-may-be-the-answer-to-malwares-prayers/
You must be on long term branch? Defaults program applet takes you to the crappy one in settings. System applet now takes you to the crappy about in settings.
Another way to get God Mode is to enable a tweak in Winaero Tweaker that adds Control Panel to the Desktop’s context (right-click) menu. When you select the Winaero-added Control Panel, you get a submenu with Categories, Large Icons, and All Tasks. All Tasks is God Mode.
I re-created my special “standalone” God Mode folder as “All Tasks.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}”, just to get a consistent window title when launching it with either the special folder or the Winaero context menu. (Why court confusion?)
It looks like you can’t make shortcuts to the special folder, so I copied some AutoHotkey code from a post somewhere — generally the only way I can get my AutoHotkey scripts to work without spending hours! — and used it make a script that loads the folder. I was then able to create shortcuts to the script.
I also made an AutoHotkey keyboard shortcut that launches the special folder, using the same code. On my computer, Winkey+i launches Settings (the Windows default), Shift+Winkey+i launches the Control Panel (a custom AutoHotkey mapping), and Ctrl+Shift+Winkey+i launches God Mode (another custom AutoHotkey mapping). I’m not great at remembering keyboard shortcuts, but I *can* remember that particular trio.
Finally, I use Open Shell, and I customized the Open Shell Start Menu to put a new entry link to my special All Tasks folder, right under Settings and Control Panel. (You have the option of displaying it as a link to the folder or as a scrollable menu … that goes on forever. ;-)
It’s a nice setup, but I must say it was kind of a time-sucking hassle and I wouldn’t want to have to do it all over again from scratch. In short, “Win10 All Settings” seems like it might be a *lot* more convenient.
I haven’t bothered with God mode in the past, but will try it with this app. Looks easy to use.
Does God allow you to turn off Win10 tracking?
@jern:
“Does God allow you to turn off Win10 tracking?”
No. For that, you must summon Cthulu. ;-)j
Anyone figure out how to reverse Microsoft’s idiotic changes to the control panel? I would like control panel to stop redirecting me to that useless settings app. Would be nice to port back everything the way it was in Windows 7/8.
Not sure what you are reffering to there. I clicked on several items in the classic control panel and they all still open classic windows.
You are opening “C:\WINDOWS\System32\control.exe” yes?
Right-click on the desktop and create a new folder and call it …
“GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}”
(without the quotes)
Now click on that folder. Magic.
@Dave; yes you can but not as easy to use as that exe
Yes, it is easier to let others do things for you.
or….
You can just make your own shortcut instead of installing yet more third party software to facillitate built in windows functions.
Enable God Mode in Windows 10
#1 Make sure your system account has administrative privileges
#2 Right-click (anywhere really) and choose New > Folder
#3 Name the folder: GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C} and hit enter/return to make it stick
Took me all of ten seconds to do your 1, 2, 3 and now I have God Mode on my desktop.
Thanks, Dave!
Yes, very limited options on Windows 7/8: https://www.wintools.info/images/win10settings/limited-functions.jpg
However, I might take a look at it later for Windowd 8.1 since I notice God Mode is still an option.
Windows 10 would be a lot less ugly if Microsoft return the transparency/blur to the window title bars as well as going back to rounded corners of windows in general. Seems like they’re already doing it with Edge and their most up-to-date apps so there is hope that core Windows 10 will follow soon.
I’ve managed to turn my Windows 10 into the more beautiful Windows 7, but it’s just not as easy to customize it as it was back in the XP/7 day where you can just patch uxtheme.dll and download a visual style from DeviantArt.
https://i.imgur.com/GUkb18Q.png
https://i.imgur.com/ptpmL9q.png
That looks beautiful, how can i replicate it?
You need a few things:
1. StartIsBack++ for the Start Menu, the skin comes built-in
2. UxThemePatcher for being able to install custom themes
3. These Win7 themes for Win10 deviantart.com/sagorpirbd/art/Aero-7-Themes-for-Win10-Final-523979941