UNBLOG Tutorials - Page 17 of 142

Customizing the Start Menu and Taskbar in Windows 11 and 10 with Stardock Start11

Start Menu and Taskbar Customize in Windows 11 and 10

Stardock Start11 can visually customize the start menu and taskbar of Windows 11 and Windows 10 and enrich it with additional functions and enhanced features.

There are various layouts to choose from and it is possible. For example, to get a classic start menu in the style of Windows 7. Start11 even bring back missing functions from old Windows versions. Start11 version 1.47 is currently available as a free trial version.

Install Stardock Start11

Stardock Start11 can be deployed using the Windows Package Manager as follows. Open a command prompt with hit Windows+R to run cmd

Then ran the following command line.

winget install -e --id Stardock.Start11

Start11 works on Windows 11 and Windows 10 (32-bit/64-bit), but older windows versions are not supported. After installation, the software can be started as a 30-day trial version by providing a valid email address.

Make Windows 11 more individual

Start11 is primarily aimed at those users who are not satisfied with the Windows 11 start menu and would like the old Windows 10 or Windows 7 start menu back. After the start, the software offers four different design templates for this purpose. These can also be further adjusted and, for example, use a compact representation or a grid style.

Additional options to customize

Additional options make it possible to customize the color, transparency and other properties of the start menu. If you want, you can even change the start button. The taskbar can also be given a personal touch by changing the transparency, color, texture and size.

New Start11 Features

However, Start11 not only changes the Windows design, but also brings some useful functions with it. For example, it is possible to place the taskbar back at the top of the screen under Windows 11 and to expand the greatly reduced context menu. A separate search function promises better results than Windows own search and can also filter them by file type and search through file contents.

Start11 can be tested for 30 days free of charge and without any restrictions on the range of functions, after which the purchase of a license key is required. This costs around seven euros for activation on a device.

More alternatives

A similar tool is available with StartAllBack. It gives Windows 11 back the look of Windows 10 or Windows 7. The respective themes can be easily selected, which automatically customizes the start menu, taskbar, icons and command bar in Windows Explorer.

Install StartAllBack

Open a command prompt with hit Windows+R to run cmd

winget install startallback

Taskbar11 open-source tool

If you just want to move the taskbar to the top of the screen. Can do this with the open source tool “Taskbar11”.

The open-source tool can also remove unnecessary icons and optimize taskbar behavior on multi-monitor systems. Taskbar11 is currently available in version 6.0.

Taskbar11 does not require installation and can therefore be run directly after download. The prerequisite is of course Windows 11, so the software does not work with older versions of the operating system.

At the first start, a security warning may have to be confirmed by the Microsoft Defender Smart Screen (first click “More info” and then “Run anyway”).

Enable systemd on Debian 11 in WSL 2 to run as default Init-System. This guide will show how to enable systemd using services like mariadb and apache2 or docker and many others to work during a WSL session. This was tested on Windows 11 Build 22621, running Debian GNU/Linux 11 (bullseye) in WSL 2.

What is systemd?

systemd is a collection of programs, daemons, and libraries for Linux operating systems. Its central part is the systemd init process, which serves as the first process for starting, monitoring and terminating other processes.

Enable systemd on Debian in WSL 2

$ sudo vi /etc/wsl.conf

you can of course choose your favorite editor, for example instead of vi maybe nano is your editor of choice.

Edit the content below in the wsl.conf file.

[boot]
systemd=true

Next reboot the Debian in WSL session.

$ sudo reboot

you can also run the following command to terminate the Debian in the windows command prompt or in the powsershell.

C:\> wsl -t debian

where debian is the name of the wsl instance, replace it with your name.

to launch the debian use systemd in WSL ran the following command.

C:\> wsl.exe ~ -d Debian

the current status of wsl can be checked as follows.

C:\> wsl -l -v

the meaning of the parapeters are:
-l = Lists distributions
-v = Displays detailed information about all distributions

Now let’s see the status with show runtime status of units.

$ sudo systemctl status

Conclusion

In this guide, I’ll show you how to easily enable systemd on Debian to run as the default Init-System on WSL 2. This allows services like docker and apache2 or mariadb and many others to run during a WSL session. This was tested on Windows 11 Build 22621 running Debian GNU/Linux 11 (Bullseye) in WSL 2.

I found out that when Ubuntu is deployed in WSL 2, systemd is automatically enabled as the default init system. This allows like mariadb or docker and others services running in the Ubuntu WSL session.

a few more thoughts on systemd

The main criticism of systemd is its versatility. It violates the Unix philosophy of doing only one task, but doing it as well as possible. Systemd is also overly complex and error-prone. It is also criticized for having Google’s DNS and NTP server hard-coded as a fallback.

Debian systemd in WSL

The first processes start when booting, and Systemd already has a finger in the pie here in several ways. On the one hand, by controlling and organizing the entire boot process, on the other hand, by providing information later on how the started processes are doing.

systemd or System-V-Init

You have to decide for yourself whether you want to use systemd or the previous System-V-Init-Systems, but it’s useful to be able to choose one or the other and change it again at any time.

You might also be interested in these related post here.