You have probably already noticed that more and more innovations appear in Windows 11 Insider builds for the Dev channel, some of which are available immediately to all users, some are undergoing A / B testing, and some are at the development stage and are hidden from prying eyes. Build 25309, which was released the day before, was no exception, and in this article you will find instructions for enabling most of the new features.
New volume mixer
The new volume mixer first appeared in Windows 11 Build 25281, but at that time it was hidden from prying eyes, since work on it had not yet been completed. However, we have already published the instructions for turning it on on the website, and since then it has not changed.
The new volume mixer has become part of the Quick Actions menu on the taskbar. With it, you can adjust the volume of each running application. To quickly open the mixer, you can use the combination WIN + CTRL + V.
- Download the ViVeTool utility by this link. This is a new version of ViveTool 0.3.2, details of which we have covered in our material.
- Unpack the downloaded archive to any place on your computer (for example, you can create a ViVeTool folder in the root of the C: drive and place the files there).
- Open a command prompt as an administrator (for example, by typing CMD in the search and selecting the appropriate item).
- In the command line, navigate to the folder with ViVeTool using the command cd /d , then press Enter. For example:
cd /d "C:\ViVeTool"
- Enter command
vivetool /enable /id:42106010 /store:both and press Enter.
- Make sure that the command line shows the message “Successfully set feature configuration”
- Restart your computer to apply the changes.
To disable the function, use the command:
vivetool /disable /id:42106010 /store:both
Explorer based on the Windows App SDK
Not too long ago, Microsoft confirmed that it was working on a new version of File Explorer based on the Windows App SDK and WinUI 3. It soon appeared in Insider builds of Windows 11, but was unstable, so it was not surprising that it was also hidden. You could also find instructions for enabling it on our website, but we strongly discouraged using it on the main computer, as the consequences were unpredictable.
Under the spoiler you can find a new instruction. If after rebooting the operating system in the “Explorer” you see a button with a pizza icon, then you have succeeded.
- Download the ViVeTool utility by this link. This is a new version of ViveTool 0.3.2, details of which we have covered in our material.
- Unpack the downloaded archive to any place on your computer (for example, you can create a ViVeTool folder in the root of the C: drive and place the files there).
- Open a command prompt as an administrator (for example, by typing CMD in the search and selecting the appropriate item).
- In the command line, navigate to the folder with ViVeTool using the command cd /d , then press Enter. For example:
cd /d "C:\ViVeTool"
- Follower type the following commands, pressing Enter after each one:
vivetool /enable /id:40729001 /store:bothvivetool /enable /id:40731912 /store:bothvivetool /enable /id:41969252 /store:bothvivetool /enable /id:42922424 /store:both
- Make sure that the command line shows the message “Successfully set feature configuration”
- Restart your computer to apply the changes.
To disable the feature, use the following commands:
vivetool /disable /id:40729001 /store:bothvivetool /disable /id:40731912 /store:bothvivetool /disable /id:41969252 /store:bothvivetool /disable /id:42922424 /store:both
“Gallery” in the new “Explorer”
Microsoft is also working on a Gallery section for the new File Explorer based on the Windows App SDK. In the new assembly, it looks better than before.
- Download the ViVeTool utility by this link. This is a new version of ViveTool 0.3.2, details of which we have covered in our material.
- Unpack the downloaded archive to any place on your computer (for example, you can create a ViVeTool folder in the root of the C: drive and place the files there).
- Open a command prompt as an administrator (for example, by typing CMD in the search and selecting the appropriate item).
- In the command line, navigate to the folder with ViVeTool using the command cd /d , then press Enter. For example:
cd /d "C:\ViVeTool"
- Enter command
vivetool /enable /id:41040327 /store:both and press Enter.
- Make sure that the command line shows the message “Successfully set feature configuration”
- Restart your computer to apply the changes.
To disable the function, use the command:
vivetool /disable /id:41040327 /store:both
Notifications about important actions in the Start menu
A rather dubious change, but maybe you want to test it yourself. Now the account menu in Start will display a notification indicator and a suggested action inside the called menu, for example, to remind you to back up. There are several options for the display text for actions, so there will be several commands in the instruction.
- Download the ViVeTool utility by this link. This is a new version of ViveTool 0.3.2, details of which we have covered in our material.
- Unpack the downloaded archive to any place on your computer (for example, you can create a ViVeTool folder in the root of the C: drive and place the files there).
- Open a command prompt as an administrator (for example, by typing CMD in the search and selecting the appropriate item).
- In the command line, navigate to the folder with ViVeTool using the command cd /d , then press Enter. For example:
cd /d "C:\ViVeTool"
- Type one of the following commands and press Enter:
- Option 1:
vivetool /enable /id:36435151 /variant:1 /variantpayloadkind:1 /variantpayload:737 /store:both
- Option 2:
vivetool /enable /id:36435151 /variant:1 /variantpayloadkind:1 /variantpayload:993 /store:both
- Option 3:
vivetool /enable /id:36435151 /variant:1 /variantpayloadkind:1 /variantpayload:1121 /store:both
- Make sure that the command line shows the message “Successfully set feature configuration”
- Restart your computer to apply the changes.
To disable the function, use the command:
vivetool /disable /id:36435151 /store:both
Additional recommendations in the “Start”
This feature allows you to display tips, shortcuts, new apps, and other items in the Featured area of the Start menu.
- Download the ViVeTool utility by this link. This is a new version of ViveTool 0.3.2, details of which we have covered in our material.
- Unpack the downloaded archive to any place on your computer (for example, you can create a ViVeTool folder in the root of the C: drive and place the files there).
- Open a command prompt as an administrator (for example, by typing CMD in the search and selecting the appropriate item).
- In the command line, navigate to the folder with ViVeTool using the command cd /d , then press Enter. For example:
cd /d "C:\ViVeTool"
- Enter command
vivetool /enable /id:42916428 /store:both and press Enter.
- Make sure that the command line shows the message “Successfully set feature configuration”
- Restart your computer to apply the changes.
To disable the function, use the command:
vivetool /disable /id:42916428 /store:both
Auto Color Management (ACM)
Auto Color Management (ACM) technology is designed to provide hardware-accelerated system-level color management. Insiders on the Dev channel can now enable ACM for any supported SDR display so that all colors in all Windows applications are rendered accurately and consistently.
To enable the feature, go to “Options” -> “Display” -> “Advanced Display Options”select the desired display and activate “Auto Color Management for Applications”.
- Download the ViVeTool utility by this link. This is a new version of ViveTool 0.3.2, details of which we have covered in our material.
- Unpack the downloaded archive to any place on your computer (for example, you can create a ViVeTool folder in the root of the C: drive and place the files there).
- Open a command prompt as an administrator (for example, by typing CMD in the search and selecting the appropriate item).
- In the command line, navigate to the folder with ViVeTool using the command cd /d , then press Enter. For example:
cd /d "C:\ViVeTool"
- Enter command
vivetool /enable /id:36371531 /store:both and press Enter.
- Make sure that the command line shows the message “Successfully set feature configuration”
- Restart your computer to apply the changes.
To disable the function, use the command:
vivetool /disable /id:36371531 /store:both
New touch keyboard settings
This setting replaces the “Show touch keyboard when no keyboard is connected” option in the “Settings” -> “Time and language” -> “Input” -> “Touch keyboard”. The new drop-down menu includes three options to define when you want the touch keyboard to launch when you click on an editable field.
- Download the ViVeTool utility by this link. This is a new version of ViveTool 0.3.2, details of which we have covered in our material.
- Unzip the downloaded archive to any place on your computer (for example, you can create a ViVeTool folder in the root of the C: drive and place the files there).
- Open a command prompt as an administrator (for example, by typing CMD in the search and selecting the appropriate item).
- In the command line, navigate to the folder with ViVeTool using the command cd /d , then press Enter. For example:
cd /d "C:\ViVeTool"
- Enter command
vivetool /enable /id:37007953 /store:both and press Enter.
- Make sure that the command line shows the message “Successfully set feature configuration”
- Restart your computer to apply the changes.
To disable the function, use the command:
vivetool /disable /id:37007953 /store:both
Create ReFS Partitions
Build 25290 introduced the ability to create partitions in the ReFS file system for the first time. This feature is currently hidden, but it can be manually enabled using ViVeTool.
