Besides the officially announced changes, Windows 11 build 25201 includes a number of hidden gems. Being hidden from the eye of the user, there are new Rename this PC and date-time editor dialog boxes with touches of the new Windows 11 design. Let's review how to enable them.
Microsoft is fighting UI inconsistency since Windows 8. It was the first OS version to combine the classic Control Panel with the newer Setting app. But even in 2022 the Control panel is in its place. And the Settings app continues to refer to it. It often opens the legacy dialogs and applets.
In Windows 11, Microsoft moved a ton of options and settings to the Settings app. The app itself has been redesigned and re-organized to be more intuitive and simple. It really got better, although some problems still remain.
If you try to change the date and time in the stable Windows 11 version, you will deal with a dialog of a Windows 8 design. The same for the Rename this PC box. So in the latest Dev channel build Microsoft updated them with Fluent Design. They also follow the dark and light system theme. Here's how to access the newer user interface.
How to Enable New Rename this PC Dialog
- Open this GitHub page in your favorite web browser and download the ViveTool-0.3.1 zip file.
- Extract its contents to the c:\ViveTool folder.
- Right-click the Start button and select Terminal (Admin).
- In either Command Prompt or PowerShell tab of Terminal, execute the following commands, one by one.
c:\vivetool\vivetool /enable /id:38228963c:\vivetool\vivetool /enable /id:36390579
- Restart Windows 11 after seeing "Successfully set feature configuration" in the console.
- Open the Settings app (Win + I), and click Rename next below the PC name in the header area on the right. You will see the new dialog.
Well, feature-wise the updated dialog doesn't add anything new. However, it fits the overall design of Windows 11. It no longer features the solid background of the accent color, so it feels native to the Settings app. Here's how the current one looks:
Similarly, you can enable the new date-time editor.
Enable the new Change date and time dialog
- Download ViveTool from here and extract the ZIP archive to the C:\ViveTool folder.
- Press Win + X and select Terminal(Admin) from the menu.
- Press Ctrl + Shift+2 to switch to the Command Prompt profile, and type the following command:
c:\vivetool\vivetool /enable /id:39811196. - Restart Windows 11.
- Open Settings (Win + I) and go to Time & language > Date & time.
- If you have the Set time automatically option enabled, turn it off, and click Change. This will open the new Change date and time dialog.
Done.
The refined style of these two dialogs will eventually become available to everyone out-of-the-box. But currently it is a work in process, so Microsoft prefers to keep them hidden.
To undo the reviewed changes in build 25201, use the following commands.
To disable the new PC name dialog:
vivetool /disable /id:38228963vivetool /disable /id:36390579
To disable the new date-time picker:
vivetool /disable /id:39811196
Besides, ViveTool can be of help if you don't see the full-screen Widget pane after installing Windows 11 build 25201. Follow the steps in this guide to enable it.
Via PhantomOfEarth
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So those Windows 8-style modern dialog boxes were revamped while working on Windows 11/12 Dev Insider builds.