In summary:
- A Microsoft developer accidentally leaked footage of Windows 11’s upcoming movable taskbar feature on April 1st, revealing long-awaited customization options.
- PCWorld reports the feature allows users to reposition the taskbar to any screen edge, with app icons adapting but the search bar disappearing on sides.
- This highly requested enhancement will likely be accessible through Windows Settings rather than debug menus when officially released.
An important new feature has been in the works for Windows 11 for some time now: the ability to freely reposition the taskbar. On April 1st, a Microsoft developer then published a video for the first time showing the freely movable taskbar—only to delete it again shortly afterwards.
This was not an April Fool’s joke, but likely an oversight. Windows Latest spotted the developer’s post and saved it before it was deleted, allowing us to get a first glimpse of the new movable taskbar.
Via a debug menu, the Microsoft developer accesses several options for moving the taskbar: the classic position at the bottom of the screen, at the top, or on the right or left sides. With a single click, the taskbar moves to the desired location and is anchored there.
In the final version, this feature likely won’t be accessed via this menu but instead selected via Windows Settings. In the video, this method was included solely for testing purposes.
Once the taskbar is moved, its app icons immediately adjust to the new position. However, if the taskbar is positioned at the right or left edges of the screen, the search bar disappears. In these positions, search can only be accessed by clicking the magnifying glass icon.
The ability to customize the taskbar is just one of many steps Microsoft is taking to make the look of Windows 11 more modern and appealing. However, the final version could look different than what we see here.
By the way: If you’re using Windows 11 Home, you’re missing out on the many benefits of Windows 11 Pro. To learn more, see our comparison of Windows 11 Home and Pro. If you want to upgrade, snag it for cheap in the PCWorld Software Store: now just $59 instead of $99.
When will the new taskbar be available?
It’s not yet known when Microsoft will release the feature to move the taskbar. Apparently, the whole thing is still in testing phase and wasn’t actually intended for the public, as the video is no longer online.
We suspect that Microsoft will nevertheless announce more about the planned rollout in the coming weeks.
Further plans for the Windows taskbar
In addition to being able to move it, Microsoft is also working on another feature requested by the Windows community: a taskbar that can be resized. So far, in Windows 11, it’s only possible to scale the icons of the various applications but not the taskbar itself.
This change is also currently being tested internally at Microsoft. After the movable taskbar, we could soon see this new feature as well.
This article originally appeared on our sister publication PC-WELT and was translated and localized from German.
Author: Laura Pippig, Staff Writer, PC-WELT
Laura is an enthusiastic gamer as well as a movie and TV fan. After studying communication science, she went straight into a job at PCMagazin and Connect Living. Since then, she has been writing about everything to do with PCs and technology topics, and has been a permanent editor at our German sister site PC-WELT since May 2024.