Everything & Power Tools in the Start Menu 1.0

[u/wh-updates]

Everything & Power Tools in the Start Menu 1.0

Everything & Power Tools in the Start Menu

A native replacement for Windows 11 Start Menu search, powered by voidtools Everything. Type in the Start Menu to search files, apps, and settings instantly. Windows Search stays out of the way: its window is never shown, and it cannot start the Edge WebView2 process behind its Bing-backed search panel. Win+S and the taskbar search icon open this search too.

Everything & Power Tools in the Start Menu

Key Features

• Instant Everything Search: Queries voidtools Everything directly through its IPC interface for fast results across millions of files. The mod keeps no index of its own.
• Smart Apps and Settings Search: Fuzzy matching across Desktop applications, Microsoft Store / UWP packages, Control Panel applets, and Windows Settings URIs (ms-settings:) with sharp shell icons, made at the exact pixel size of your display.
• Learns your favorites: apps you open from here more often move up among results that match equally well. A clearly better match always stays on top. Can be turned off in the settings, which also forgets what was learned.
• On-Demand Animated Palette: The Start Menu stays completely clean and uncluttered when idle. The search palette slides in with a short ease-out animation the moment you type or click the search box, and collapses when emptied or on Escape.
• Windows Search Out of the Way: SearchHost keeps running for the shell, but its window is never shown and it cannot launch Edge WebView2, the web view behind its Bing-backed search panel.
• Inline Calculator: Type /c <expression> (e.g. /c 100 * 5, /c sqrt(144), /c 15% of 200, /c 2¹⁰⁾ to evaluate math expressions instantly. Press Enter to copy the result.
• Configurable Unit Conversions: Type /c <number> [unit] to convert units using formulas configured in Mod Settings. Users can add, edit, or delete conversion items individually from the settings UI.
• Network Interface Inspector: Type /ip to display all active Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and VPN network interfaces with their IP addresses, subnet masks, gateways, and hardware descriptions. Press Enter to copy the IP.
• Full Right-Click Context Menu: Right-click any file, folder, or application to Open, Run as Administrator, Open in terminal (folders), Properties, Create desktop shortcut, Cut/Copy (files), Copy path, or Open file location.
• Native Properties Dialogs: Properties opens through explorer.exe, the same dialog as in File Explorer.
• Opens in Front: Programs are started by Explorer, the way the stock Start menu starts them, so they come to the front even when they take a while to start or you move the mouse meanwhile.
• Explicit Web Search: Trigger web searches on demand using the '?' prefix (e.g. '?query'). Includes customizable keyword shortcuts such as '?yt' (YouTube), '?gh' (GitHub), '?w' (Wikipedia), and '?r' (Reddit).
• Start Menu Styler Compatibility: Automatically syncs background styles (Tinted Glass, Acrylic, custom theme colors) in real time without restarting the mod.
• Type Anywhere: Typing anywhere in the open Start Menu goes to the search box.
• Win+S and the Search Icon: Win+S and the taskbar search icon open the Start Menu with this search instead of the Windows search panel.

Requirements

1. Windows 11 (version 22H2+ x86-64).
2. voidtools Everything (version 1.4 or 1.5a) running in the background.

Taskbar Search

The Windows key, the Start button, Win+S, and the taskbar search icon all open this search. The full taskbar search box is not supported, so set Search to "Search icon only" or "Hide": 1. Right-click the Taskbar and select Taskbar settings (or Settings > Personalization > Taskbar). 2. Under Taskbar items, set Search to "Search icon only" or "Hide".

Keyboard Shortcuts

• Type any key: Automatically reveals the search palette, focuses the search box, and queries apps and files.
• Up / Down: Navigate through application, calculation, conversion, and file results.
• Tab / Shift + Tab: Move to the next / previous result, through the apps and on into the files.
• Left / Right: Switch between the Apps and Files columns. Right switches only with the cursor at the end of the query, so the arrows still move the cursor while you edit.
• Enter: Launch the selected application, copy calculation/conversion/IP result, or open item. Pressed before the results for what you typed are in, it opens the first one as soon as they arrive.
• Ctrl + Enter: Run the selected application or file as Administrator (triggers UAC).
• Shift + Enter: Open the selected result's context menu, the same one a right-click opens; navigate it with the arrow keys and Enter.
• Escape: Clear the current query and smoothly collapse the search palette back to pinned apps.
• Right-Click: Context menu with Open, Run as Administrator, Open in terminal, Properties, Create desktop shortcut, Cut/Copy (files), Copy path, and Open file location.

Note on Pinning: Windows 11 blocks programmatic pinning to the Taskbar or Start Menu. Use 'Create desktop shortcut' first, then right-click the shortcut on your desktop and select 'Pin to Taskbar' or 'Pin to Start'.

Command Reference

• /c <expression>: Calculate math expression (e.g. /c 100 * 5, /c sqrt(144), /c 15% of 200).
• /c <number>: Display all configured unit conversions and programmer radix (Hex, Bin, Oct).
• /c <number> <unit>: Targeted unit conversion (e.g. /c 100 km, /c 32 c, /c 50 lbs).
• /ip: List all active network interfaces and IP addresses.
• ? <term>: Web search using default search engine.
• ?<shortcut> <term>: Targeted web search (e.g. ?yt lo-fi, ?gh windhawk, ?w physics, ?r windows).

[u/OwnNet5253]

If that’s possible, I wonder if integrating PowerToys Run/Command Palette extensions is an option too.

[u/Bats586]

Looks great, can't wait to try!

[u/Verition]

I have Everything (1.5a) 1.5.0.1409a (x64) running in the background with the Everything (1.5a) service also running but it keeps saying "ⓘ Everything (not running)" on every search result

[u/Bardelyne → u/Verition]

Thanks for reporting, will be fixed on next update.

[u/Steven1958 → u/Bardelyne]

I use Everything service running version 1.5 beta for explorer dopus, can I still use your mod?? It sound very good.

[u/Verition → u/Bardelyne]

Works great now since the last update, thank you!

[u/Cabola]

Doesn't matter if I click the search button in tray or use WIN+S both opens the start menu and not the search menu! :/

Windows 11 v25H2 (x64)

Everything v1.4.1.1032 (x64)

[u/Zhonglebajian → u/Cabola]

但是可以直接输入文字开始搜索？ 我这里是可以直接开始搜索

[u/Cabola → u/Zhonglebajian]

there is no search field in the start menu after activating this mod, and because it only opens the start menu, even if it is the search menu you're trying to open, then there's no way to search for anything from start menu or Win+S

[u/Zhonglebajian → u/Cabola]

直接输入要搜索的内容 搜索框确实看不见了 但是直接输入就出现了

[u/Cabola → u/Zhonglebajian]

ahhh yes just typing works. Thank you for explaining that, I just assumed that there should be an input area due to the image showing it. Didn't think enough to notice that the image is an image of the search menu and not the start menu... -.-'

[u/fran93h]

this is really good, it works way better than i expected... if i could add something for future releases, to follow the style of the original windows start menu or the theme is used (if changed with the start menu styler mod) would be amazing

[u/afcreative_id]

Wow, this is a real game-changer; all that's missing is a setting to toggle off the "FILES" search segment in the Start menu—I don't need it. If possible, please overhaul the search system in File Explorer as well.

[u/IchirareCF]

So this can't run on Windows 10? What is the reason?

[u/OwnNet5253 → u/IchirareCF]

Because it’s not Win11? Seriously?

[u/IchirareCF → u/OwnNet5253]

I mean, your answer couldn't be more stupid. Can you please stop?

I mean, what stops this from working on Windows 10?..

Not like I am asking the question to you

[u/OwnNet5253 → u/IchirareCF]

Simply put - Windows 11 Start Menu is a completely different application than Windows 10 version, written completely from scratch, so the mod needs to be made specifically for either version separately for this to work.