Start Menu - Pin to

How to Pin a Program to the Start Menu in Vista​



information   Information
This will show you how to add or remove a pinned program or program shortcut to the left white area of the Start menu to make it easier to open.
Note   Note

  • This does not work in the Classic Start Menu.
  • It is best to Pin the actual source EXE for the program and not a shortcut to the program. It is easier for a shortcut to be moved or deleted, causing the pinned program shortcut in the Start menu to not work anymore.
Tip   Tip
To see how to pin a folder or folder shortcut to the Start Menu, see: How to Pin a Folder to the Start Menu in Vista

EXAMPLE: Pin area of the Start Menu
NOTE: This is the left white side of the Start menu. To change the size of these icons to be large or small, see: How to Display Small or Large Icons in the Vista Start Menu
Start_Menu.jpg​
​



OPTION ONE
How to Pin a Program to the Start Menu

1. Right click on the program exe or program shortcut.​
NOTE: If you delete or move this program exe or program shortcut, the pinned icon will no longer function properly.​
​
2. Click on Pin to Start Menu. (See screenshot below)​
NOTE: Sometimes you may need to press and hold Shift key and then right click to see the Pin to Start Menu option.​
Right_Click.jpg​
​




OPTION TWO
How to Remove a Pinned Program

NOTE: If you cannot get Vista to remove the pinned program, then see step two here: How to Fix Recent Programs Not Being Remembered in Vista
1. Right click on the pinned program inside the Start Menu.​
​
2. Depending on the pinned program, click on either Remove from this list or Unpin from Start Menu. (See screenshots below)​
Remove1.jpgRemove2.jpg​
​

That's it,
Shawn



Related Tutorials

 

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Click to expand...
Thanks for the information. However, the remove option leaves me wanting a little more...

Let's say I go to the application folder on the disk for Google Chrome ("C:\Users\MyUserFolder\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\Application\") and pin chrome.exe to my start menu.

To remove that pinned item, is there no way I can edit the item on the start menu? I have to go back to the Google Chrome folder in order to unpin it? What if I don't remember where the program folder is? I have to search for "chrome.exe" to find it, then pick through the list until I find the right file? This seems ridiculous.

Is there an easier way to remove the pin?

Thanks,
Wes
 

My Computer

System One

Hello Wes, and welcome to Vista Forums.

I think you may have misunderstood. You can right click on the pinned item inside the Start Menu itself to see those options in OPTION TWO of the tutorial.

Hope this helps,
Shawn
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2, 4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2, 8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system, Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam, HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn, APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI, Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy Y0F94AV
    CPU
    i7-7500U @ 2.70 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB DDR4-2133
    Sound Card
    Conexant ISST Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17.3" UHD IPS touch
    Screen Resolution
    3480 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    512 GB M.2 SSD
Brink said:
It is best to Pin the actual source EXE for the program and not a shortcut to the program. It is easier for a shortcut to be moved or deleted, causing the pinned program shortcut in the Start menu to not work anymore.
Click to expand...

The start menu pin removal option only works if we don't follow the above recommendation, and that still requires navigating through the start menu to find the pinned item in question. Is there any way to edit the list directly?

I just think it would be silly if I cannot either:
1. Right-click on the pinned menu to remove an item, OR
2. Open up the pinned menu list in file explorer and organize it as I wish.

And you're right, the way you say to remove the pinned item does seem to be the way it is intended to work, so I don't mean any disrespect to your tutorial. I guess this is more of a complaint against the functionality of the Vista start menu :(
 

My Computer

System One

My Computers

System One System Two

  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2, 4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2, 8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system, Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam, HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn, APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI, Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy Y0F94AV
    CPU
    i7-7500U @ 2.70 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB DDR4-2133
    Sound Card
    Conexant ISST Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17.3" UHD IPS touch
    Screen Resolution
    3480 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    512 GB M.2 SSD
Yeah, sorry it's not exactly what your wanting, but at least it will get rid of that one. :)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2, 4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2, 8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system, Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam, HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn, APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI, Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy Y0F94AV
    CPU
    i7-7500U @ 2.70 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB DDR4-2133
    Sound Card
    Conexant ISST Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17.3" UHD IPS touch
    Screen Resolution
    3480 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    512 GB M.2 SSD
How is a Pin exist physically in the file system?
Is it asort of shortcut (a small file)?
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Phenom II 945 3.0GHz (Quad Core) 45nm, AM3 8MB Cache
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4A78 PRO,Onboard Video,HDMI,PCI-EX, GB LAN, iEEE
    Memory
    8GB (4x2GB) PC6400 DDR2 800 Dual Channel
    Sound Card
    AC 97 3D Full Duplex sound card (onboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Westinghouse L2046NV, IBM P70
    Screen Resolution
    1400 x 1050, 1024 x 768
    Hard Drives
    1000GB Samsung 7200RPM SATA2, UDMA 300 32m cache
    Case
    PowMax Black Mid Tower ATX Case w/ Front USB
    Cooling
    Spire Kestrel-King II AMD 64 fan, Case Fan 120 mm Extra Quie
    Mouse
    Microsoft Wireless Optical Mouse black & silver
    Keyboard
    Black Wireless Keyboard, 104 key
    Internet Speed
    6 MBit
    Other Info
    GeForce 9300GS 512Mb PCI EXpress 16X dual head, tv out - does not work
Hello Ildar, and welcome to Vista Forums.

Yes, it's just like a shortcut. You can see where these pinned Start Menu items are stored at in the green information box at the top of the tutorial.

Hope this helps,
Shawn
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2, 4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2, 8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system, Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam, HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn, APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI, Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy Y0F94AV
    CPU
    i7-7500U @ 2.70 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB DDR4-2133
    Sound Card
    Conexant ISST Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17.3" UHD IPS touch
    Screen Resolution
    3480 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    512 GB M.2 SSD
Brink said:
Yes, it's just like a shortcut.
Click to expand...
Thank you, it a little helps. I found that Pin files.
I am confused that the properties of shortcut is showing as shortcut (.lnk) but
properties of Pin showing as executable file (.exe) which could mean that "Pinning" will copy exe file to user' s Start menu folder. One of friend of mine said
I organized my Start Up menu very poorly by Pinning (which he think copying) exe files.
Is there a difference between a shortcut and a Pin?
 

My Computer

System One

  • CPU
    AMD Phenom II 945 3.0GHz (Quad Core) 45nm, AM3 8MB Cache
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4A78 PRO,Onboard Video,HDMI,PCI-EX, GB LAN, iEEE
    Memory
    8GB (4x2GB) PC6400 DDR2 800 Dual Channel
    Sound Card
    AC 97 3D Full Duplex sound card (onboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Westinghouse L2046NV, IBM P70
    Screen Resolution
    1400 x 1050, 1024 x 768
    Hard Drives
    1000GB Samsung 7200RPM SATA2, UDMA 300 32m cache
    Case
    PowMax Black Mid Tower ATX Case w/ Front USB
    Cooling
    Spire Kestrel-King II AMD 64 fan, Case Fan 120 mm Extra Quie
    Mouse
    Microsoft Wireless Optical Mouse black & silver
    Keyboard
    Black Wireless Keyboard, 104 key
    Internet Speed
    6 MBit
    Other Info
    GeForce 9300GS 512Mb PCI EXpress 16X dual head, tv out - does not work
A pinned item is a shortcut. It does not copy the exe file, but is only a shorcut file that merely points to the exe file like a shortcut does. :)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2, 4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2, 8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system, Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam, HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn, APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI, Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy Y0F94AV
    CPU
    i7-7500U @ 2.70 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB DDR4-2133
    Sound Card
    Conexant ISST Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17.3" UHD IPS touch
    Screen Resolution
    3480 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    512 GB M.2 SSD
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