Windows 11 Start menu layout via GPO

[InspireICT]

We are using this method (copying to default profile location on computer vs each user profile) and the settings icon also appears but not overly fussed as it doesnt open for Pupils and restricted users anyway due to GPO restrictions but is on our list to investigate how to fully remove down the line...

[Warwick_Tech]

Hi All,

 

While we are all discussing start menus we have an odd glitch -

 

We use the 'start2.bin' method copied across via GPO to 'default users' but when logged in as local admin, it works fine with the Office icons;

 

 

But then as a domain user the icons are missing

 

 

This only seems to happen for office - anyone got any ideas?

 

The icons are in the 'all apps' section, just not the main window...

[NK2002]

Hi. I was having this issue. If you create the Start2.bin as local admin it will be looking at "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs". The start layout can't see those shortcuts for my users and so the shortcuts fail. I played around with GPO to allow a test OU for users have the ability to pin start menu items. I then pinned what I wanted and exported the Start2.bin file.

 

My guess (I can't see the BIN file contents to corroborate this) is that the User layout made this way points the the %localappdata% location and not the ProgramData location.

 

If we could edit the BIN file directly then this would all be much simpler!

[Hoyt]

Hi. I was having this issue. If you create the Start2.bin as local admin it will be looking at "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs". The start layout can't see those shortcuts for my users and so the shortcuts fail. I played around with GPO to allow a test OU for users have the ability to pin start menu items. I then pinned what I wanted and exported the Start2.bin file.

 

My guess (I can't see the BIN file contents to corroborate this) is that the User layout made this way points the the %localappdata% location and not the ProgramData location.

 

If we could edit the BIN file directly then this would all be much simpler!

 

From what I understand copying the Start2.bin file no longer works with the recent 24H2 update. I tested it myself and sure enough no go. I am still searching for a way to remove the "pinned" section from our user's Start Menus. Shoot, we would be perfectly happy with blank start menus. Our user's Desktops are redirected to the file servers so we have no need for the Start Menu other than the power and log off functions.

[thimon]

Haha another reason I’ll be skipping 24H2! 🙂

[Hoyt]

Haha another reason I’ll be skipping 24H2! 🙂

 

I'd love to find a simple way that isn't too much of a "hack" to just have a blank start menu. We have that with our Windows 10 clients now and it works great (redirected Desktops for shortcut configs).

[NK2002]

Copying does seem to be having issues, at least copying at profile creation. I've added it to default user and it copies across to new profiles fine. Not a perfect solution but it's a start.

[Julian]

The start menu will only show items, if they are are also in the "All Apps" menu, please check that a shortcut for the missing apps, is also in the "All Apps" menu.

[Vinays061]

Hi I have applied these setting seems to be working but need to login twice to get updated to load new layout why

[Vinays061]

Did you noticed you need to login twice for the policy update?? Edited January 8, 2025 by Vinays061

[Vinays061]

Did you noticed you need to login twice for the policy update?? Edited January 8, 2025 by Vinays061

[DGardiner]

is this fixed in 24h2 yet?

 

Its annoying not having the file explorer/etc icons at the bottom of the start menu - doesnt seem to be a gpo for any of it either

[ITGuyNW]

I've just been looking into pinning those icons at the bottom next to the power button and its crazy that its not a GPO!

[LegacyPulsar]

The whole system is completely whack. I'm still managing to successfully run a custom Start Menu in 23H2 by GPOing the start2.bin file at my users. There are occasions where a new user with a local profile will log on to a system and it won't work properly at all, and I have to scrub their profile and start again on the device (at which point it'll then work on their next login) but otherwise it's pretty consistent.

 

I have definitely found that if I need to apply a new start2.bin to my domain, it HAS to be created and exported from a regular (non-admin) user account or else the shortcuts don't work. The links to SharePoint and online services I've had to do via installing Web Apps through Edge GPO, then pinning shortcuts to those to the Start Menu, as Microsoft doesn't allow pinning of internet shortcuts to the menu (absolute pain). The custom icons on the shortcuts are applied by robocopying them from a central location into a hidden C:\icon folder on each system, and these are then referenced by the shortcuts which are in the Start Menu folder.

 

 

It was a very long and drawn out process getting it to this point, but apart from the occasional broken web app that needs updating, it seems to be working well.

 

On a separate note I won't be updating to 24H2 because it breaks NIC ClassID, which we rely on to assign systems to certain areas of DHCP and therefore make sure they have the right level of filtering. I'm hoping they fix it in 25H2 or else we're going to be in a spot of bother...

Edited June 13, 2025 by LegacyPulsar
additional information

[Hoyt]

The whole Windows 11 ecosystem is nothing but a Charlie Foxtrot.

 

I would be tickled to just have a BLANK Start Menu.  We use redirected Desktops with only the bare minimum of icons on it for basic functionality.  We have never allowed any customizable shortcuts since going to Active Directory and it has been great.  They want an Internet shortcut?  They have to bookmark it.  We aren't wasting resources on placating user wish lists.

 

It's infuriating how many Group Policies are in place that Windows 11 has been specifically programmed to ignore.  The "Pro" version of Windows now is basically the same as the Home version with the ability to log on to a Domain (to which it ignores a good bit of its policies).

[mikes]

yeah I'd like to have an organized Start Menu like the one above, it looks nice, but it's so much messing around to get it working; plus I can see staff getting used to it only to then have complaints they can't find anything when a Windows Update inevitably breaks it.  Users can just bookmark their own stuff as they see fit until MS makes a proper customizable start menu without any hackery.

 

And yeah with customizations users have to log in twice for it to actually work - I was asked to set the computers up with some custom pinned icons and dark mode enabled by default - but as the OS applies the UI before copying the customized UI data over to the profile, it only works if they log on again with the custom data there from before.

 

I could dream of a day where EU govts get their stuff together and design a good free Linux distro for all EU public sector workers, free to the public as well, guaranteed to work with their workflows...   but I can dream of world peace as well

[Hoyt]

1 hour ago, mikes said:

I can see staff getting used to it only to then have complaints they can't find anything when a Windows Update inevitably breaks it.

 

That's it in a nutshell right there.  Microsoft breaks stuff they claim to officially support all the time.  We are not about to start using unsupported methods and then have to explain ourselves when they quit working.

[STK91]

Hi all

 

Just wondered what the latest is on this, please?

 

Does the above work? Start2.bin? or is there another way to sort the start pins? 

 

How are people sorting the start menu out for there users?

 

Thanks

 

[Farli]

Hello I have be battling this problem for weeks.

I can get the start2.bin to copy into the users profile on 24h2 fine.

 

But the process "StartMenuExperienceHost.exe" starts up before the file has copied over so it builds a new start menu as the file was not there when process started

 

To get around this I just need to restart the process, when I do this as an administrator manually every thing is great new start pins show up lovely in my new lay out. 

 

But when i try to write something to automatically do this for a standard user I keep hitting brick wall I have looked at PS1 script and also tried a ps1 script

scheduled task, as they don't have permission to kill system process. 

 

I am struggling with what to do, as I don't have a great knowledge of PS1 scripts, and after my cancer treatment things are just that bit harder to process. 

 

any help would be greatly appreciated

 

 

 

 

[MartinByard]

We've been having problems with this when moving to 24H2.

 

Traditionally we would pin things to create a start menu we wanted, and then copy the start2.bin file into the default user and then "it just worked" for all other new users (we do it in our SCCM task sequence). It has been very hit and miss for us on 24H2.

 

I managed to find this https://github.com/letsdoautomation/powershell/blob/main/Export-StartLayout%2C Import-StartLayout alternatives for Windows 11/README.md, which aims to replicate the reg keys that are created when InTune is managing the start menu for you.

 

It seems to be rock solid so far, but as with anything test it yourself before rolling it out everywhere.

 

The apps we've added to our start menu are:

"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Word.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Excel.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\OneNote.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\PowerPoint.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Microsoft Office 365.lnk",
"C:\Users\%username%\Appdata\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\File Explorer.lnk",
"MSTeams_8wekyb3d8bbwe!MSTeams",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Microsoft Edge.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Google Chrome.lnk",
"Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_8wekyb3d8bbwe!App",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Log Off.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Take a Break.lnk"

 

[amartin]

On 22/07/2025 at 14:22, MartinByard said:

We've been having problems with this when moving to 24H2.

 

Traditionally we would pin things to create a start menu we wanted, and then copy the start2.bin file into the default user and then "it just worked" for all other new users (we do it in our SCCM task sequence). It has been very hit and miss for us on 24H2.

 

I managed to find this https://github.com/letsdoautomation/powershell/blob/main/Export-StartLayout%2C Import-StartLayout alternatives for Windows 11/README.md, which aims to replicate the reg keys that are created when InTune is managing the start menu for you.

 

It seems to be rock solid so far, but as with anything test it yourself before rolling it out everywhere.

 

The apps we've added to our start menu are:

"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Word.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Excel.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\OneNote.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\PowerPoint.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Microsoft Office 365.lnk",
"C:\Users\%username%\Appdata\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\File Explorer.lnk",
"MSTeams_8wekyb3d8bbwe!MSTeams",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Microsoft Edge.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Google Chrome.lnk",
"Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_8wekyb3d8bbwe!App",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Log Off.lnk",
"C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Take a Break.lnk"

 

 

On that link which method do you use 1 or 2?

[MartinByard]

We used to do method 2, but that stopped working reliably and so have switched to method 1, and it seems to be pretty rock solid for us.

[5nowman]

Quick question - how are you all removing "settings" from the start menu ?

 

I can remove it as a tile but when you click on "All" it is there!

 

WTH microsoft?

 

5nowman.

[thimon]

21 hours ago, 5nowman said:

Quick question - how are you all removing "settings" from the start menu ?

 

I can remove it as a tile but when you click on "All" it is there!

 

WTH microsoft?

 

5nowman.

Why would you want to get rid of it? It’s pretty useful for all users to have access to. If you’ve got your user permissions right, no one should be able to break anything via the settings app. 

[timbo343]

22 hours ago, 5nowman said:

Quick question - how are you all removing "settings" from the start menu ?

 

I can remove it as a tile but when you click on "All" it is there!

 

WTH microsoft?

 

5nowman.

We have the settings app shown, this was something we had to acknowledge but with a bit of additional settings in Group Policy, we have settings locked down so it only shows Sounds to all users and Sounds & Display to staff. Everything else is hidden in Settings.

 

Additional to Settings, you have to allow Control Panel for settings to work, so yet another tweak with Group Policy to hide ALL items in Control panel.