Download PowerToys 0.57.0

Microsoft has released version 0.57.0 of PowerToys. The PowerToys are a collection of small programs for power users. There were PowerToys for Windows 95 and Windows XP and since mid-2019 Microsoft has also been developing a version for Windows 10 and higher. The PowerToys currently consist of wake† Color Picker† FancyZones† File Explorer Add-ons† Image Resizer† Keyboard Manager† PowerRename† PowerToys Run† Shortcut Guide and the Video Conference Mute† The changelog for this release shows the following changes and improvements:

Highlights

• PowerToys Run quality pass. Old standing issues were re-evaluated and fixed.
• Additional features and improvements were added to existing PowerToys Run plugins.
• New plugin for time and date values/information in PowerToys Run.
• the PowerToys Run documentation is also receiving a required update.
• We’re registering svgs as a picture kind when SVG Thumbnails are enabled so they appear when searching for pictures in File Explorer.
• We’ve disabled PDF preview by default, given its incompatibilities with Outlook and that Edge is now being registered for previewing PDF files on Windows 10 too.
• From a coding quality point of view, every project now has code analyzer active.
• A double click on the tray icon is needed instead of single click to open settings.

Always on Top

• New sound for Always on Top activation.

wake

• Fixes for the system tray icon.
• Temporary duration presets are now configurable.
• Fix for an issue causing Awake to not be closed properly.

ColorPicker

• It’s now possible to delete multiple colors from history and also export them to a file.
• The CIEXYZ format has increased precision.
• Performance improved by reducing the use of low level keyboard hooks.

FancyZones

• Fixed a bug where the same layout applied with different configurations to different screens would reset to a single configuration. (This was a hotfix for 0.56)
• When snapping windows with rounded corners on Windows 11, set the correct corner preferences to avoid gaps between zones.
• Fix for canvas layout resetting due to resolution changes.

file explorer

• Additional markdown file extensions added for Markdown Preview.
• Svgs are now registered as a picture kind on Windows.
• Added a text wrapping setting and copy context menu to dev file preview.
• Pdf file preview and thumbnails are now disabled by default, due to incompatibility with Outlook and an appropriate warning is shown in Settings.

mouse utility

• Find my mouse has a new setting to specify a minimum distance for activation. (This was a hotfix for 0.56)
• Fix for the bug causing the task bar to be hidden behind other windows when a mouse utility was active.
• Fix for the bug causing shortcuts set on icons to not activate when a mouse utility was active.
• Fixed a slight offset in Mouse Pointer Crosshairs when it’s configured with an odd thickness.

PowerToys Run

• New plugin for time and date values/information.
• WindowWalker now has a tooltip, additional features like killing the process and closing the window, additional settings and improvements.
• Unit converter now accepts additional ways of writing feet and gallon. Also interprets as either imperial or US gallons depending on current culture.
• Unit converter now accepts meter for meter.
• Localization for Web Search and Unit Converter (not including units) has been enabled.
• Localization for Windows Terminal has been enabled. (This was a hotfix for 0.56)
• Calculator now tries to always interpret the dot (.) symbol as a decimal separator, despite configured culture, to meet expectations.
• Calculator now handles trailing zeroes on hexadecimal numbers correctly.
• System commands plugin can now show the local ip and mac addresses.
• Folder plugin has improved results, with improved tooltips.
• Windows settings plugin has added entries for Screen Saver and Connect Wiring Display Panel.
• Plugins can now show descriptions for their configurations in settings.
• Fix for the focus issue when calling PowerToys Run for the first time after login and after returning from some windows.
• Fix for a bug on Program when creating a shortcut.
• Validated that upgrading to .net framework 6 fixed the error appearing when shutting down the system with PowerToys Run running.

Video conference mute

• Newly added microphones are now updated and tracked by VCM.

Settings

• What’s new button in the bottom with a new look, with a couple more UI tweaks.
• Fixed a bug causing Settings not to open when a racing condition caused Keyboard Manager settings to not be read correctly.
• To open settings from the tray icon a double click is needed instead of a single click.
• Fix for a bug which would cause checking for updates to run indefinitely.
• When auto-updating, pass a flag to avoid restarting without being prompted.

Installer

• Dependencies installers are now executed with /norestart to avoid unprompted restarts. (This was a hot fix for 0.56).
• Upgraded .net framework dependency to 6.0.3.
• Installer logs are now saved where they can be collected and sent by the bug report tool.
• Reverted changes to start with proper elevation and when installed under a different user since those changes ended up causing more issues where PowerToys would start running with the wrong user.

Development

• OOBE code refactor to have all module information in XAML, like in Settings.
• Every project now has analyzers turned on and warnings fixed.
• New patterns added for code spell-checking and stale entries removed.
• Additional logging has been added to Fancy Zones and PowerToys Run.
• A new CI release build will not be triggered if all that was changed was just documentation.
• Fixed a racing condition causing flaky build errors when building PowerRename.
• Centralization of common csproj/vcxproj settings underway.