Windows PowerToys update eliminates a bunch of annoying quirks

power user
(Image credit: Shutterstock / Ollyy)

The team behind the PowerToys utility suite for Windows 10 and 11 has pushed out a small but useful update to remedy a series of bugs.

According to the GitHub changelog, PowerToys v0.47.1 fixes a number of issues users have encountered since the last update, spanning three utilities.

The update fixes an annoying quirk whereby the Start menu pops up every time the user tries to access Shortcut Guide, as well as smoothing over similar problems with key combos for the PowerToys Run utility.

Finally, the update remedies an issue stopping FancyZone shortcuts from changing window layouts as intended, and another that was causing layouts to reset when a device fell asleep.

New PowerToys utilities soon?

PowerToys is an open source suite of tools for advanced Windows users, designed to help bypass certain settings and perform actions that are unavailable by default. It also gives people a wider range of customization options.

The utility library includes tools such as Color Picker, which copies color data from any running application to the clipboard, and Fancy Zones, which lets users create complex window layouts specifically suited to their applications (although the arrival of Windows 11 has diminished the usefulness of this particular tool somewhat).

Others, like Image Resizer and PowerRename, help Windows users perform common actions with greater ease and speed, maximizing productivity.

Although the latest PowerToys release is designed solely to rectify stability problems, and therefore doesn’t add to this portfolio, the forecast looks promising for those awaiting new utilities. According to a tweet from Clint Rutkas, who heads up the project at Microsoft, the team is “quickly approaching stability” and new toys are on the way.

It’s also now easier than ever to access the PowerToys suite. Until recently, the PowerToys download was available exclusively through package managers and the GitHub page, but the suite is now available to download directly from the Microsoft Store in Windows 11.

Joel Khalili
News and Features Editor

Joel Khalili is the News and Features Editor at TechRadar Pro, covering cybersecurity, data privacy, cloud, AI, blockchain, internet infrastructure, 5G, data storage and computing. He's responsible for curating our news content, as well as commissioning and producing features on the technologies that are transforming the way the world does business.