Every time Microsoft releases a new version of Windows 11, it publishes an extensive changelog detailing new features, changes, fixes, and known issues. Sometimes, new updates contain undocumented features and experimental features that Windows Insiders discover on its own. The ability to disable all app icons in the notification area is one such unknown change.
Windows 10 and 11 allow users to show or hide app icons in the lower-right corner of the screen. If you have less free space, you can remove the app from the notification area or keep all the icons on the taskbar for added convenience. Plus, Windows Settings lets you choose which apps always sit next to the clock and which ones are hidden in the Overflow menu behind the button with an up arrow icon.
Windows 11 22H2 is an upcoming feature update for Microsoft’s latest operating system, and apparently has a third option: disable all icons in the notification area and remove the overflow menu. Users can find this new toggle key in the settings> > personalized taskbar > other system tray icons > the taskbar. Close the “Hide Icon Menu” option to remove all apps from the notification area. The Disable icon menu leaves only the default metrics: Clock, Volume, Battery, Network Connection, and Input Language.
Some might think that disabling the icon in the notification area would worsen the user experience because it removed some options like “Safe Pop-up Media” or OneDrive status indication. Also, if some applications do not appear in the lower right corner of the screen, you cannot close them.
However, users can still remove all unnecessary icons, leaving behind those that are most needed. In short, this new feature makes the taskbar a little cleaner without additional expandable menus. This is also a neat alternative to fixing the system’s bug of bringing back icons that were previously hidden in the taskbar.
It seems that Microsoft introduced the option to hide icon menus somewhere during the development of Windows 11 22H2. The original release of Windows 11 did not have such features, and the release notes for the development version did not mention it. Microsoft mentioned that the company does not have the option to resume the mobile taskbar. According to Windows engineers, this isn’t a significant feature, although it’s the most supported request in the Feedback Hub.