How to enable 'Never Combine taskbar buttons'. Windows 11 ?

[hoanglongson]

Hi @all
I did not find this function 'Never Combine taskbar buttons'. How can this function be found and enabled in windows 11?
I can't work with multi-tab on windows 11.

Thank you!

[#2]

@StevenO59 

You are absolutely right, I can only add to this:

Microsoft needs to realize its  own versatility. Windows can be used for simple desktop work for simple users (like MacOS), but it can also be an extremely productive platform, and Microsoft seems to have forgotten that. I think that the bulk of Microsoft's customers use Windows for the latter. Home users usually have other devices: phones, tablets, Chromebooks, Apple devices, but when it comes to productivity, Windows is king.

Where I work, everyone has a triple monitor setup: Laptop + 2 screens.

And I mean everyone: Developers, designers, account managers, accounting, support.

I've got 4 screens at home (3 screens + laptop), my partner has 3 screens.

4 screens, 4 taskbars... Do you have any idea how much taskbar space I have that's now wasted?

I don't see why that option has been removed. I can understand you want to merge it on small screens, but this was already possible.

It seems like Microsoft wants to make it more like Apple or something.

Apples are just not productivity machines, I'm sure they exist, but have you ever seen a dual or triple monitor setup on an Apple?

So Microsoft, you don't have to make it look like an Apple. Be better than that!

[#3]

@Indypendence great reply, please tell Microsoft that here as well as @Mad_Cat has instructed:

https://insider.windows.com/en-us/feedbackhub/fb?contextid=215&feedbackid=70fc827b-26fd-48f7-8853-af...

Click on "login", log in, and then search for "Ungroup Taskbar". Then selected the topic "Update the Windows 11 taskbar to support never combining app icons and showing labels" and clicked on "upvote" and leave feedback.

[#4]

@Indypendence 

49" Wide screen monitor for work....Talk about wasted taskbar real estate...

[#5]

@joered Go into Taskbar settings (right click on the taskbar), under Taskbar behaviors, change the alignment to the left.

[#6]

@Smertz74 Understood but that doesn't solve anything with combining taskbar buttons. Appreciate it though.

[#7]

106K+ views of people interested in fixing the Windows 11 taskbar grouping.

This is a pretty significant UX and productivity killer. You may not be an Apple iOS Podcasts user, but many people didn't like what they did to it past iOS 10.3.3. Many people complained. That did not stop them from keeping it FUBARed to this day and it to this day a screwed up UX but also has become a dysfunctional app. Many people used the feedback tool for Apple for them to fix it or restore simple and very useful functionality. Some 5 years later, it's still FUBARed. I guess for some, if it's working well, they feel they'll look bad.

Many people life and work in front of their computer, many can't go outside and are disabled. Many people make their living with a computer. It's what they use to program, draft, design, and provide support with. On their Windows computer. They see the world and interact with the world through their computer. Anything like this that detracts and reduces productivity is a pretty major thing. This isn't Calculator or Paint, it's the main Windows UX that people interact with.

Aren't we all glad our trillion-dollar companies FUBAR things up unnecessarily, don't listen to us when we ask nicely for them to make a simple adjustment, fix something they screwed up and we pay for?

[#8]

@jasoncal84 

Agreed. This is absolutely bonkers. Why even remove? That's an intentional decision to hobble your own OS. What are you gaining, Microsoft?? 

[#9]

Microsoft engineers must not use Windows 11 themselves, cause I can't think of anyone that can use the combine taskbar buttons function and be productive.

[#10]

Indeed. To arbitrarily remove a feature that so obviously facilitates productivity says a great deal about the work ethic of said engineers. When they're more concerned about look and feel than actually getting their job done, it explains a lot.

[#11]

@MarcusD2125  Spot on sir.  Judging from the TV commercials, it seems Micro$oft is targeting the gamers / casual users for Win11 and the people who do actual work be damned...otherwise this would've been addressed by now.

[#12]

I've just finally been offered my copy of Windows 11 - and I am impressed, I am happy, it is very nice, it is new, it is feature rich, new tech, etc etc. But but but...COMBINED WINDOWS that we cannot ungroup !??

Like...come on dear Microsoft, I have literally been UNGROUPING windows for prolly 2 decades, I do not even remember ! I never got used to it, I cannot function properly with it, I am 3x slower with that feature, I already suffer ADHD and I really cannot cope with my WINDOWS GETTIN COMBINED INTO GROUPS WHICH'S CONTENT I CANNOT POSSIBLY REMEMBER AND KNOW ALL THE TIME !!!

I mean....folks...I would like to know what was the thought process behind this decision ?? It is seriously fascinating! As a scientist I find it impressively fascinating!

So, with the grouping feature...and 10-20 open windows, terminals, etc...all grouped in, what, like often just 3-4 types of windows...we should be able to precisely know BY HEART in which group is the particular window that we need at any particular moment. Or we have to alt+tab, WIN+tab, shift+tab, etc. and search and nail it. Is that...does anyone consider it a rational decision?

BRING THORAZINE !!

This is the first time I am making a fuzz regarding a Microsoft Windows feature, honestly. There should be an urgent quality of life patch addressing this issue - distributed globally as soon as YESTERDAY!

Please forgive my tone - I love you all at Microsoft and wish you the best New Year ever!

[#13]

You are spot on with this @milanputnik

[#14]

Have you received the update yet? I still don't have the option of Never Combine Taskbar Buttons. It really sucks...

[#15]

As others have said, while this really SHOULD be available as an option out of the box, using Explorer Patcher worked great for me, even gives a GUI to change additional settings once it's setup. You can ungroup taskbar buttons on all monitors, show the clock on all monitors, even make the taskbar and icons smaller again. I have mine sent to align left and also use Open Shell as my Start Menu so have had no issues with that either.

For reference again, Explorer Patcher:
https://github.com/valinet/ExplorerPatcher/blob/master/README.md

Open Shell:
https://github.com/Open-Shell/Open-Shell-Menu/blob/master/README.md

[#16]

If you follow this video you should be back in business: https://youtu.be/HJu5HWjy7lg

Hopefully they get this fixed on their own soon! I tried working without it for a couple months but wasn't nearly as productive as using the "Never Combine" option.

Best of luck everyone!

[#17]

@Mousefluffyour "help" ruined my computer, the window button wasnt working and I was lucky that I was able to uninstall windows11 for me to fully be able to use my computer again... also the buttons that appear are not useable, so you didnt really solve the problem.

[#18]

132,000 views on this topic (and I've just signed up specifically for this issue too), so clearly there's more than a few people interested in NOT COMBINING separate windows on the taskbar!

I can't work like this! I used to be able to switch from different windows quickly and easily, but now I have to guess which window I'm working on by waiting and hovering over a single icon.

Did the MS engineers not use Windows 11 at all? Any power user would have quickly seen the folly in 'force combing' them like this. To not even have an option to uncombine is very short sighted indeed.

FIX THIS PLEASE!

[#19]

I am also suffering from this, does Microsoft have any plans to get this feature back in future?

[#20]

Any movement on this as a consideration to get us out of this hell???

[#21]

I second that.  This is killing me on how much it slows everything down.  Where is the fix to ungroup these icons?  @joered