Have iOS 16 questions? CNET has answers, from compatibility to best features.Put these 70-plus hotkeys in your toolkit to master Microsoft’s operating system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Microsoft rolled out its Windows 11 software update in September with a handful of new additions. Though many of the features and settings are still the same as they were on Windows 10, fresh add-ons include a few unique keyboard shortcuts to perform tasks faster and improve your overall productivity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Read more: Windows 11: How to Download Microsoft’s Latest OS<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this story we’ll cover the most important keyboard shortcuts for Windows 11, many of which carry over from Windows 10 and earlier versions of Microsoft’s operating system. That includes the basics, like copying highlighted items and undoing a previous action, as well as lesser known shortcuts, like snapping an active window into place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here’s a handy list of the most useful keyboard shortcuts for navigating Windows 11. And if you want to check out more on Windows 11, here are nine hidden Windows 11 features and how to make Windows 11 act more like Windows 10.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Windows 11 shortcut basics
\nTo start, here are the ones you’ll use most often.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ctrl + A: Select all items in a window.
\nCtrl + C or Ctrl + Insert: Copy selected or highlighted item (text, images and so on).
\nCtrl + V or Shift + Insert: Paste selected or highlighted item.
\nCtrl + X: Cut selected or highlighted item.
\nCtrl + Z: Undo previous action.
\nCtrl + Y: Redo action.
\nCtrl + N: When File Explorer is your current window, open a new File Explorer window with the same folder path as the current window.
\nWindows key + F1: Open “how to get help in windows” Bing search in default browser.
\nAlt + F4: Close the current app or window.
\nAlt + Tab: Switch between open apps or windows.
\nShift + Delete: Delete selected item permanently (skip the Recycle Bin).
\nStart menu and taskbar
\nYou can use these keyboard shortcuts to open, close and otherwise control the Start menu and the taskbar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Windows key or Ctrl + Esc: Open Start menu.
\nWindows key + X: Open the secret Start menu.
\nWindows key + T: Cycle through the apps (including pinned apps) on the taskbar.
\nWindows key + [Number]: Open the app pinned in the [number] position on the taskbar. For example, if you have Edge pinned in the first position on the taskbar and you click Windows key + 1, Edge will open. If the app is already open, a new instance or window will open.
\nWindows key + Alt + [Number]: Open the right-click menu for the app pinned in the [number] position on the taskbar.
\nWindows key + D: Show or hide desktop (Windows key + , will display the desktop briefly).
\nScreenshots
\nWindows 11 also has several ways to take a screenshot, including three different keyboard shortcuts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
PrtScn: Take a screenshot of your entire screen and save it to your clipboard.
\nWindows key + PrtScn: Take a screenshot of your entire desktop and save it to a folder on your computer.
\nWindows key + Shift + S: Open Snipping Tool menu to take a screenshot of only a section of your screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The desktop: Windows, Snap Assist and virtual desktops
\nThese shortcuts control how individual windows act on your desktop, including virtual desktops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Windows key + M: Minimize all open windows.
\nWindows key + Shift + M: Restore minimized windows.
\nWindows key + Home: Minimize all windows except the selected or currently active window.
\nWindows key + Up arrow: Maximize selected window.
\nWindows key + Shift + Up arrow: Maximizes the active window vertically while maintaining its width.
\nWindows key + Down arrow: Minimize selected window.
\nWindows key + Left arrow: Snap selected window to the left half of the screen.
\nWindows key + Right arrow: Snap selected window to the right half of the screen.
\nWindows key + Alt + Up: Snap selected window to top half of the screen.
\nWindows key + Alt + Down: Snap selected window to bottom half of the screen.
\nWindows key + Shift + Left arrow or Right arrow: Move selected window to the left or right monitor.
\nWindows key + Tab: Open Task view (virtual desktops).
\nWindows key + Ctrl + D: Add new virtual desktop.
\nWindows key + Ctrl + Right arrow: Move to the next virtual desktop (to the right).
\nWindows key + Ctrl + Left arrow: Move to the previous virtual desktop (to the left).
\nWindows key + Ctrl + F4: Close current virtual desktop.
\nThe Windows key
\nThese keyboard shortcuts use the Windows logo key to perform various tasks, such as launching both Windows and third-party apps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Windows key + A: Open the Action Center.
\nWindows key + S: Open Cortana in text mode, so you can type in the search bar. (Windows key + Q does the same thing.)
\nWindows key + C: Open Cortana in listening mode (similar to saying “Hey, Cortana”).
\nWindows key + E: Open File Explorer.
\nWindows key + F: Open the Windows 10 Feedback Hub.
\nWindows key + Ctrl + F: Search for PCs on a network.
\nWindows key + G: Open the Game bar.
\nWindows key + H: Open the Share sidebar.
\nWindows key + I: Open the Settings menu.
\nWindows key + K: Open the Connect sidebar (for connecting to new Bluetooth devices or Miracast).
\nWindows key + L: Lock your computer.
\nWindows key + O: Lock screen orientation.
\nWindows key + P: Open presentation or projection sidebar.
\nWindows key + R: Open the Run window.
\nWindows key + U: Open Ease of Access center.
\nWindows key + W: Open the Windows Ink Workspace for scribbling on tablets or touchscreen laptops.
\nWindows key + (+) or (-): Zoom in and out with magnifier.
\nWindows key + Esc: Exit magnifier.
\nThe F keys
\nThe F keys at the top of your keyboard can perform a number of actions when used with other keys, but they’re also useful on their own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
F2: Rename a selected item.
\nF3: Quickly search for files in File Explorer.
\nF4: Highlight the address bar in File Explorer.
\nF5: Refresh your active window.
\nF6: Cycle through elements (tab, buttons, search bar, etc.) in a window or your desktop.
\nAlt + F8: Show login password on the start screen.
\nF10: Activate the menu bar in the active window.
\nCommand Prompt
\nYou can use these keyboard shortcuts inside the Windows Command Prompt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ctrl + C or Ctrl + Insert: Copy selected text to the clipboard.
\nCtrl + V or Shift + Insert: Paste copied text inside the Command Prompt.
\nCtrl + A: Select all text on current line. (If the current line has no text, all text inside the Command Prompt will be selected.)
\nCtrl + Up or Down: Move screen one line up or down.
\nCtrl + F: Search Command Prompt via Find window.
\nCtrl + M: Enter Mark mode (allows you to select text with mouse). Once Mark mode is enabled, you can use the arrow keys to move the cursor around.
\nShift + Up or Down: Move cursor up or down one line and select text.
\nShift + Left or Right: Move cursor left or right one character and select text.
\nCtrl + Shift + Left or Right: Move cursor left or right one word and select text.
\nShift + Page Up or Page Down: Move cursor up or down one screen and select text.
\nShift + Home or End: Move cursor to beginning or end of current line and select text.
\nCtrl + Shift + Home\/End: Move cursor to beginning or end of screen buffer and select text and beginning or end of Command Prompt’s output.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Have iOS 16 questions? CNET has answers, from compatibility to best features.Put these 70-plus hotkeys in your toolkit to master Microsoft’s operating system. Microsoft rolled out its Windows 11 software update in September with a handful of new additions. Though many of the features and settings are still the same as they were on Windows … Continue reading “Windows 11 Keyboard Combos That Will Save You Time”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4069","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4069","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4069"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4069\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4070,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4069\/revisions\/4070"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4069"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4069"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tech-battery.com\/batteriesblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4069"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}