How to open the Control Panel in Windows 10

[JamieKavanagh]

The new Settings app within Windows 10 has made the basic tasks of working with a computer much easier for the average user. Yet for those of us who like to dig a little deeper, the Control Panel is still the place to be. Only there will you find the tools you need to fully manage your system. Here’s how to open the Control Panel in Windows 10.

Microsoft wants users to leave most of the system alone, so make the Settings app easy to get to while having buried Control Panel. Have no fear though as it is only ever a couple of clicks away.

Open the Control Panel in Windows 10
There are a couple of ways to access Control Panel.

Type or paste ‘control panel’ into the Search Windows box.

Or:

Ask Cortana to open it.

Or:

Right click the Start button and select it.

Or:

Press the Windows key and X to access the same menu.

Or:

From ‘This PC’ in Windows Explorer, click the gray side arrow next to the computer icon and select Control Panel.

Or:

Select Control Panel from the left pane of Explorer if you show all subfolders.

Once you’re into the Control Panel, if you look in the top right of the window and select ‘View by:’ you can choose how the elements are displayed. While the Category view may look nice, displaying by Large icons offers one click access to many more tools.

More Windows 10 help from Tom’s Hardware:
How to Perform a Repair Installation for Windows 10
How to stop wake timers in Windows 10
How to rebuild your icon cache in Windows 10

View all of our Windows 10 Tutorials