Windows 10 is overwhelmingly the most popular desktop operating system on the planet, with the software now installed on over 1 billion devices.
However, its complexity means there are plenty of features that aren’t always obvious, even to tech enthusiasts.
With so many people relying on the Windows 10 to remain productive at home in the past few, a few extra tricks can go a long way. Here are ten ways to improve your workflow that you might not know about.
Task View
Task View acts as a multitasking hub on Windows 10, offering the ability to manage all open windows and launch virtual desktops.
There’s a dedicated button on the taskbar by default, although it’s more commonly triggered by the Windows Key + Tab shortcut.
See more information in our in-depth guide to How to use Task View on Windows 10.
Timeline
A feature within Task View, Timeline acts as a comprehensive history of all the Windows you’ve had open on your device, with the ability to quickly pick up a project from weeks ago.
This may not be turned on by default when you launch Task View, but you should be prompted to turn it on. If not, head to Settings > Privacy > Activity history and ensure ‘Let Windows collect my activities from this PC’ is turned on.
An early 2019 update now means your Google Chrome history can be synced too. Just make sure you download Microsoft’s ‘Web Activities’ extension and sign in.
See more information in our guide to Timeline in Windows 10.
Clipboard history
You might have seen a message saying something has been saved to your clipboard on Windows 10, but where does it all go?
While hitting CTRL + V will only paste the most recent thing you copied, Clipboard history will display the last 25 items, across both text and images. It’s available via the Windows Key + V shortcut.
You can also enable a cloud clipboard, where items you paste on one device can be available on another, provided they’re both signed in to the same Microsoft account. Just head to Start > Settings > System > Clipboard and ensure both ‘Clipboard history’ and ‘Sync across devices’ are turned on.
See more information in our guide to how to use Windows 10 clipboard history
Storage sense
Windows 10 can free up space on your hard drive automatically via a feature called Storage sense.
It works by regular deleting files that you don’t use but are clogging up your device, such as the Recycle Bin and Downloads folder. These temporary files are no longer required by your PC, so can be regularly deleted for you.
To activate, head to Settings > System > Storage and ensure Storage Sense is turned on. From here, you have options to choose how often it runs, as well as allowing content that’s already in the cloud to be deleted.
Dynamic lock
As is the case with many modern devices, Windows 10 can be set to automatically lock when a trusted device is taken out of range.
It’s known as Dynamic Lock, and you’ll need Bluetooth on both devices to have Bluetooth turned on.
Firstly, you’ll need to pair your phone and Windows 10 PC. Go to Devices and printers and click ‘Add a device’. A quick search should find your phone, so just click to pair the two.
Then, you’ll need to turn on Dynamic Lock itself. Go to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options and click the box which says ‘Allow Windows to detect when you’re away and automatically lock the device’.
AirDrop for Windows?
AirDrop is an incredibly popular way of sharing files and other documents between Apple devices. There is an equivalent feature on Windows 10, although of course information can only be shared across PCs.
It’s known as Near Share, and can easily be enabled in Settings. Just go to Start > Settings > System > Shared Experiences and ensure the ‘Share across devices’ option is turned on. You have a choice here between any Windows 10 PC that’s nearby, or just those linked to your Microsoft account, although both devices will need to have Bluetooth turned on for it to work.
It primarily works across File Explorer and Microsoft’s Edge browser, where it’s an option within the Share tab/button.
The device receiving the information will then get a ‘Received from ….’ notification, and clicking on this will access the shared information.
Windows Reliability Monitor
Wish you knew ahead of time when something was about to go wrong with your PC?
The Windows Reliability Monitor can go some way to helping keep everything in check. Just type ‘Reliability’ into the search bar on the taskbar and select the option which says ‘View reliability history’.
This will give you an overview of the stability history of your device, with any Xs or !s indicating an area that needs attention.
Power user settings
A dedicated menu for power users has been around for years, but it remains incredibly useful.
A simple right-click of the Start Menu (Windows icon in the bottom left of your screen) will bring up plenty of additional options. Device Manager, Task Manager, Event Viewer, Disk Management, and PowerShell can all help improve the performance of your PC.
God mode?
However, there is another hack that gives you extensive control over your Windows PC, hence the name ‘God mode’.
To activate it, create a new folder on your desktop and rename it to the following: God Mode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}
You can replace the ‘God Mode’ name if you prefer, but just ensure it’s before the first bracket. Hit enter and the icon will automatically change to that of the Control Panel, and double clicking will take you to a menu full of customisation options.
A version of this story originally appeared on our sister site, PC World. You may also be interested in how to create scheduled tasks on Windows 10.
Author: Anyron Copeman, Senior Staff Writer
As the resident expert on Windows, Senior Staff Writer Anyron’s main focus is PCs and laptops. Much of the rest of his time is split between smartphones, tablets and audio, with a particular focus on Android devices.