Microsoft has overhauled the Settings app in Windows 11, introducing a new sidebar interface, richer icons, better navigation, integration with Bing for more accurate search results, and support for dark colors.
The mode is moderately optimized. In Sun Valley 2, Microsoft will focus on making adjustments to the features that are most likely to be introduced with user feedback.
Currently, the Settings application used in Windows started with Windows 8, which was released 9 years ago. It was also called “PC settings” at the time and was aimed at replacing the Control Panel in future versions of Windows. With the launch of Windows 10, Microsoft added more options, and “PC settings” was renamed to Settings.
Microsoft promises that it will migrate all options in Control Panel to Settings in the future. It’s unclear when the migration will be complete, but we do know that the control panel is here to stay until its replacement is fully developed.
After the release of the Creators Update, Microsoft decided to migrate some settings every year instead of migrating completely. With the release of Windows 11, this migration strategy seems to be back in the fast lane.
Storage Spaces
As part of Sun Valley 2, Storage Spaces has now been migrated into Settings, with a new interface built on top of the company’s WinUI. Storage Spaces is a feature that can help protect your data from drive failure by keeping a copy of your files on a second drive connected by the user.
Now you can easily manage the feature directly from the Settings app, the existing Storage page of the Control Panel will automatically open the above page.
Introduce “Sustainability Management” in the Settings app
Microsoft is introducing a new section within the Settings app called “Sustainability” which will allow users to optimize the energy consumption of their device.
Based on the results of the optimization scan, Microsoft will provide users with ecological recommendations to help the device save energy. Settings The app will also include a menu to manage advanced eco-advice, but it’s still unclear how this feature will work.
Set the title area
Microsoft will use the top area of the Settings app to display additional information. For example to display the time in the “Time and time zone” settings
Easier to manage notifications in the Settings app
In the Settings app, the Notification Priority feature will get its own section. As you can see in the screenshot below, these options will now appear separately in settings as Microsoft wants to reduce clutter and help users easily discover the features they want.
Focus Assist
Additionally, Microsoft is renaming “Focus Assist” to “Focus” as the feature has progressed over time and more improvements are expected in the Sun Valley 2 update.