Microsoft added new entries to the File Explorer context menu in Windows 10 that some users of the operating system may like, and others may call bloat.
If you right-click on files in the most recent release build of Windows 10, the Creators Update, you get up to three additional context menu items.
You may get “Edit with Paint 3D” to edit an image with the built-in Paint 3D application, a “Cast to Device” entry to cast the media file to another device, and the “Share” entry which opens the Share UI of Windows 10 when selected.
Windows 10 Insider systems feature an “Edit with Photos” entry on top of that. That’s three edit options for images on Windows 10 in the context menu without any option to disable these entries.
Note: I recommend that you create a backup of the Registry before you make any changes to it. This allows you to restore the state before any editing. You can use a program like Erunt or RegBak for that, or with a right-click on any key (those on the left side) that is linked to adding, changing, or deleting values or entries, and selecting export.
Remove Windows 10 Context Menu bloat
Edit with Paint 3D
Paint 3D was included in the Windows 10 Creators Update. It is a modernized version of the classic Paint application that comes with a new UI, as an application, and ships with new features such as 3D functionality.
There is only one situation where the “Edit with Paint 3D” entry in the context menu makes sense: when you use a different default image editor for editing, but use Paint 3D sometimes for editing jobs. Even then it is possible to use “open with” instead to open the image in Paint 3D.
One issue that you will encounter when it comes to the removal of the context menu entry is that it is mapped to different file extensions, and that you need to remove Registry keys for each file extension individually to remove Paint 3D completely from the context menu.
To remove Edit with Paint 3D, do the following
- Tap on the Windows-key on the computer keyboard, type regedit.exe and tap on the Enter-key to open the Windows Registry Editor.
- Confirm the UAC prompt.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\SystemFileAssociations\.bmp\Shell
- Right-click on 3D Edit, and select Delete.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\SystemFileAssociations\.gif\Shell
- Right-click on 3D Edit, and select Delete.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\SystemFileAssociations\.jpg\Shell
- Right-click on 3D Edit, and select Delete.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\SystemFileAssociations\.jpeg\Shell
- Right-click on 3D Edit, and select Delete.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\SystemFileAssociations\.png\Shell
- Right-click on 3D Edit, and select Delete.
- If you notice the “Edit with Paint 3D” entry next to any other image type, repeat the process outlined above for it. All you need to do is go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\SystemFileAssociations\, click on the image file type, then on Shell to delete the 3D Edit value.
Edit with Photos
Edit with Photos is a new context menu option that is not part of the Creators Update version of Windows 10. It shows up in the latest Windows 10 Insider Builds that showcase features that will likely be part of the Fall Creators Update out later this year.
If you don’t use the Photos application to edit images on Windows 10, you may want to remove the entry from the File Explorer context menu.
To remove Edit with Photos, do the following
- Tap on the Windows-key on the computer keyboard, type regedit.exe and tap on the Enter-key to open the Windows Registry Editor.
- Confirm the UAC prompt.
- Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AppX43hnxtbyyps62jhe9sqpdzxn1790zetc\Shell\ShellEdit
- Right-click on ShellEdit, and select New > String value.
- Name it ProgrammaticAccessOnly.
Cast to Device
If you don’t use the casting functionality of Windows 10, you have no need for the Cast to Device entry in the File Explorer context menu.
Basically, what it allows you to do is stream media files to devices that support Miracast or DLNA.
To remove Cast to Device, do the following
- Tap on the Windows-key on the computer keyboard, type regedit.exe and tap on the Enter-key to open the Windows Registry Editor.
- Confirm the UAC prompt.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Shell Extensions
- If there is no Blocked key under Shell Extensions, right-click on Shell Extensions and select New > Key. Name the key Blocked.
- Right-click on Blocked, and select New > String Value.
- Name it {7AD84985-87B4-4a16-BE58-8B72A5B390F7}
- Double-click on the newly created String value, and change the Value data field to Play to menu.
- The change takes effect when you log out and on, restart the PC, or restart the Windows Explorer process.
Tip: To restore the “Cast to Device” entry in the Windows 10 context menu, go to the Blocked key in the Registry, right-click on {7AD84985-87B4-4a16-BE58-8B72A5B390F7} and select delete from the menu that opens.
Share
Share may not be active on all systems by default. It is on by default in recent Windows 10 Insider Builds. You may use it to share files using the built-in Windows 10 share functionality.
To remove Share, do the following
- Tap on the Windows-key on the computer keyboard, type regedit.exe and tap on the Enter-key to open the Windows Registry Editor.
- Confirm the UAC prompt.
- Go to HKEY_Classes_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\
- Right-click on Modern Sharing, and select Delete from the context menu.
