Classic Shell Overview

During the announcement of Windows 10 Microsoft company announced the long-awaited return of the Start menu. With the release of the first test releases of the operating system, it became obvious that the returning “Start” is something new, representing a hybrid of the tiles from Windows 8 and the two-column “Start” from Windows 7.

I liked the new start menu and I’m not going to give it up, as I said right after. In the G8, the Start menu existed nominally and a button in the taskbar was only required for a right click. Now the menu and button are back in action.

This is what the Start menu looked like immediately after the update.

Conservative-minded citizens continue to care for the classical, in Windows style 98, start menu. These citizens, after a free upgrade to “ten,” will be joined by numerous Windows 7 users who still did not want to use the “innovative” “eight”, among other things, because of “stupid and incomprehensible tiles.”

For some users, the new menu will not be suitable on a personal level; for others, it means a negative impact on productivity and ease of use. That's why…

Classic Shell

Classic Shell is a utility that can bring peace back to the homes of old-fag-minded users. Download the Russian version from the official website. Install what you need.

I'll go through the points from top to bottom. Classic Explorer turns "Explorer" into some semblance of the good old file manager. It looks weird on my computer. Right above work area, under the search window, a toolbar appeared, and folder icons in the left panel were cut off.

But the modified “Control Panel” will definitely please fans of the classics.

Classic Start Menu — the main function of the utility. You can install the Start menu from Windows 98, XP or 7 in Windows 10 in two clicks. See the gallery with examples and comments on the screenshots.

Classic Shell is highly customizable: classic with one/two columns and Windows 7 style, whatever you like. You can turn menu items on and off, rearrange them, even application icons can be customized.

Native if necessary Windows menu 10 can be called using hotkeys or a mouse click. You can disable or access program settings by right-clicking on the “Start” button.

Classic IE in theory it changes the appearance of the browser Internet Explorer, leading to a classic look. I don't know who needs this feature, but I tried it and the utility didn't do anything with IE 11. Look at the screenshot, maybe you will find traces of work.

well and Classic Shell Update- this is a function for checking application updates; this part must be installed. Good luck.

Classic Shell / Classic Shell– a program that changes the appearance of the operating system installed on your computer. Classic Shell rus only works with Windows. With each new version external Windows view changes, becomes more avant-garde, more graphic. Some people are impressed by this, but there are also people who find it difficult to get used to and understand new proposals from developers. Until now, the overwhelming majority Windows users considered the best classic design Windows 7 Start menu.

Since there is no way to return to the classic view of the Start menu by simply changing system settings, we will turn to such a wonderful program for help as Classic Shell in Russian language. Thanks to it, we will return the usual design for Explorer, the Start menu and the Internet Explorer browser. Changing the browser interface to the classic one became possible thanks to a special plugin. Using the latest version of Classic Shell, please note that it does not affect system functions, does not change them. This simple program, with its own interface and settings. Latest version You can download Classic Shell for free in Russian via a direct link from the official website on our website.

Main features of Classic Shell for Windows 8, 10:

Returns standard view Start menu;
Returns the cascading architecture of submenus in the Windows main menu;
Returns the usual appearance Internet browser Explorer using a plugin;
Skin support for changing themes;
Compatible with all versions of Windows;
Russian language support;
Doesn't put a strain on system resources, has minimum system requirements.

Please note that the Classic Shell program will return the Start button and menu to you only in Windows 10 and 8. There is no point in installing Classic Shell for Window 7, it already has a Start menu.

Microsoft, when releasing new versions of operating systems, transforms them by changing settings, adding or, conversely, removing any functions or parameters. The appearance of the Start menu is also changing. In this regard, some users who are accustomed to working with the standard taskbar and Start menu experience some discomfort when loading new versions of the OS. Excellent software product, capable of returning the regular (classic) Start menu to a more later versions OS (Windows 7, 8, 10 and Vista) is Classic Shell. From the link below you can download classic shell for windows 10.

When you return to the classic “Start”, the utility makes settings settings that relate, among other things, to the design appearance menu. In other words, it changes visual display elements of the operating system. But the program also brings some new features. About them below.

The application consists of several components, namely:

Classic Explorer, which adds a panel to Explorer;
Classic Start Menu, in fact, carrying out the return standard panel and "Start";
Classic IE, which allows you to install and then configure the panel in the Internet Explorer web browser;
Classic Shell Update, which “monitors” the appearance of updated versions programs.

Installing the utility is simple and will not cause any difficulties for you. The installation is completely Russian-language. You need to go through all the steps of the installation wizard.

Custom installation will require you to specify certain Classic Shell components, which will be installed on your PC. All elements are marked as standard.

For returning standard menu“Start” includes items such as the Classic Start Menu, as well as the Classic Shell Update.
Installing elements such as Classic Explorer and Classic IE makes it possible to modify the browser and explorer design, but these components are not so essential for ordinary users. They can be disabled.

When the software installation is complete, a window with Classic Start Menu options will pop up. In this window you can configure all utility parameters. However, the selected options can always be changed.

In general, all settings in Classic Shell are default, but you can experiment with the options.

Let us outline the main features of the utility:

changing the appearance due to the presence of skins;
displaying documents that were recently opened by the user;
search bar necessary applications, already built into the utility;
deleting, dragging, renaming program icons, as well as performing other actions using the mouse;
advanced options for customizing functionality and appearance;
ability to track volume free space on disk and overall size applications and files;
transformation of the “All programs” button into a cascade menu;
and much more.

Download the classic shell program for Windows 10 for free if you want to make your operating system more classic.

For most Windows 10 users who had difficulty migrating from previous Windows 7 on a new operating system, it will be good news to learn about the Classic Shell application. What kind of program is this and what interesting features it can offer the user, which we will consider in the framework of this article.

About the program

primary goal Classic programs Shell - a modification of the Start Menu and with the ability to edit it to suit your needs, as well as the introduction of additional functions into Explorer. In general, it allows you to:

Customize your Start menu with several templates.
Modify start buttons for Windows 7, 8, 10.
Search files and documents.
Get quick access to frequently used programs.
Flexibly customize the Start menu to suit your needs.

The program also adds to Explorer additional functions, such as: “status bar” and “toolbar”.

The utility is English-language (with the possibility of updating to the Russian-language version), applies to free of charge. You can download it from the official website of the developer. Installation is straightforward.

Settings and features

After installation is complete, a window with styles will appear:

In the first tab, you can choose the style in which your Start menu will be designed. There are three options in total: classic, classic with two columns and Windows 7 style.
The second tab allows you to further configure hotkey commands.
On the third tab, you can select the skin you like to design the Start menu.
The fourth tab offers personal settings Start menu. Here you can set which elements and how will be displayed in the Start menu.
If you check the box next to “Show all Setting”, 10 more tabs will open, which allow you to flexibly customize the menu design and adjust the available functions.

Advice! If you are not comfortable English interface program, you can install Russian language. To do this, open the “Language” tab, select “Ru” and click “Click here to install it”. Then close the panel and launch Setting for Classic Start Menu.

Now, here are some examples of quick customization of the Windows 10 Start menu:

Windows 7 Style → Classic Skin.
Classic Style → Metro.
Classic with two columns → Windows XP Luna.
Windows 7 Style → Metallic.

You can modify the Start button itself. Click the “Replace Start button” and select two proposed options, or attach your own. The program only works with .bmp and .png formats.

Removal

“Uninstall and change programs” will help you remove a program:

Conclusion

In general, the program will appeal to users who want to diversify the standard Start menu with something new, as well as those who yearn for the top ten for the standard Windows 7 start menu. In addition, the program allows you to very finely configure system applications and programs in the Start menu. And this is convenient if you often access the settings of the classic “Control Panel”, which has already been removed from the menu quick access(Win+X) in Windows 10 Insider Preview.

Classic Shell - free program to return the same look classic Start menu in operating systems Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista. The program changes the visual display of elements of the Windows operating system for more convenient use.

Many users experience inconvenience when using the Start menu due to the fact that Windows developer, Microsoft is constantly changing the settings, options, and appearance of the Start menu.

Therefore, many users want to return classic menu"Start" for operating systems Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8. In the operating system Windows system 7 users change the appearance of the Start menu in the style of the Windows XP operating system.

The free Classic Shell program returns classic look The Start menu allows you to make extensive customization of the display styles, options and design of the start menu.

The Classic Shell program consists of three components:

Classic Start Menu - return of the classic Start menu
Classic Explorer - Adding a Toolbar to Windows Explorer
Classic IE - customizing panels in Internet Explorer browser

In this article we will look at the work of the Classic Start Menu component, which allows you to make the old Start menu in operating system Windows. Not all users need other program components.

The Classic Shell program works in Russian. You can download the Classic Shell program from the official website of the developer. On the downloads page, select the “Classic Shell x.x.x (Russian)” file to download to your computer.

classic shell download

Installing Classic Shell

Installation of the Classic Shell program occurs in Russian and does not cause any difficulties. Go through the Classic Shell installation wizard one by one.

In the Custom Installation window, you must select application components to install on your computer. By default, all components are selected for installation.

We want to bring back the classic Start menu, so we only need to keep the “Classic Start Menu” and “Classic Shell Update” components (for automatic updates).

The "Classic Explorer" and "Classic IE" components change the appearance of Explorer and Internet Explorer, respectively, and not all users need such changes. Therefore, disable the installation of these components.

Classic Shell for Windows 10

After left-clicking on the Start menu, you will see the classic Windows 7-style Start menu installed in the Windows 10 operating system. This is what the Start menu looks like with default settings.

The classic Start menu for Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 will look similar.

Setting up Classic Shell

After installing the application, the “Classic Start Menu Options” window will open. In this window, all program parameters are configured.

You can change Classic Shell settings at any time. To do this, right-click on the “Start” menu and select “Settings” in the context menu.

In the “Start Menu Style” tab, you can select a classic style for the Start menu in the style of the Windows XP or Windows 7 operating systems.

With default settings, the standard Start button is displayed on the Desktop. Instead of a button image from the operating system, you can set an image from Classic Shell (two options) or add your own own image, if you have a similar picture.

By default, the main settings in the program are made in the tabs: “Start Menu Style”, “Basic Settings”, Cover”, “Start Menu Customization”.

Check the box next to “Show all parameters” to configure other parameters in the Classic Shell program.

After this, they will become available additional settings in the tabs: “Menu View”, “Start Button”, “Taskbar”, “ Windows Settings 10", "Context menu", "Sounds", "Language", "Control", "Main menu", " General behavior", "Search field".

Although the program is configured optimally by default, the user can independently change the application settings to suit his needs by experimenting with the settings. To do this, select the settings, see what happened after changing them. If it turns out that you went a little overboard with the settings changes, you can return the program settings to their defaults.

In the application settings you can hide unnecessary functions, change the display of items and icons, change the order of items, remove items from the Start menu.

To do this, select the element, select a command and display. After right-clicking on the desired element, select additional functions.

In the “Skin” tab, you can select a cover for the standard “Start” menu. By default, Windows 10 uses the Metro skin. You can choose other covers: " Windows Aero", "Metallic", "Midnight" or "Windows 8", the minimalist "Classic Skin" option or the "No Cover" option.

Classic Shell parameter settings can be saved to an XML file in order to load settings from this file when new installation Classic Shell programs. To do this, use the “Archive parameters” button, select the desired option: “Save to XML file” or “Load from XML file" To reset the program's settings to default, select "Reset all settings."

Removing Classic Shell

Classic Shell program is uninstalled in a standard way. If the program was not uninstalled correctly, or some problems arose during the uninstallation process, use special utility which can be downloaded from here.

Conclusions of the article

The free Classic Shell program installs an alternative (formerly classic) Start menu in the Windows operating system. After installing the program on the computer, the user can return the classic appearance of the Start menu in Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7, and make other changes to the appearance and settings of the start menu.