Back in 1995, Microsoft released Windows 95 with a new way to navigate the GUI (Graphic User Interface) called the Start menu. To make it easy to use, they added a new key to the standard keyboard called the Windows logo key and added some useful shortcuts. Since then, Microsoft has integrated Windows logo key shortcuts into every version of Windows. Here is a complete list of Windows logo key shortcuts for Windows 10.

Windows logo key shortcuts for Windows 10

There are now more than sixty different Windows logo key shortcuts inside Windows 10 (all of them are listed below). For more keyboard shortcuts for Windows, see the links at the bottom of this article.

Windows logo key shortcuts for Windows 10

Press	To
	Start menu
+ A	Open action center
+ B	Set focus in the notification are
+ C	Open Cortana in listening mode (turned off by default)
+ D	Show desktop
+ E	Open File Explorer
+ F	Open Feedback Hub
+ H	Open a dictation window
+ I	Settings
+ J	Set focus on a Windows tip when available
+ K	Connect to devices
+ L	Switch users (Lock computer if on a domain)
+ M	Minimize all windows (desktop)
+ P	Project options
+ R	Run...
+ S	Opens Search
+ T	Set focus on the taskbar and cycle through pinned/running desktop apps
+ U	Ease of Access Center
+ V	Displays clipboard history
+ W	Opens the Start menu with the Search box highlighted
+ X	Open the Power User menu
+ Y	Switch input between your desktop and Windows Mixed Reality
+ Z	Show commands available in full-screen app
+ 1-9	Go to the app at the given position on the taskbar
+ Period (.) or Semicolon (;)	Open the emoji, kaomoji, and symbol panel
+ + (plus)	Zoom in (Magnifier)
+ - (minus)	Zoom out (Magnifier)
+ , (comma)	Peek at the desktop
+ / (forward slash)	Begin IME reconversion
+ Enter	Open Narrator
+ Spacebar	Switch input language and keyboard layout
+ Tab	Show all open apps and view additional desktops
+ Esc	Exit Magnifier
+ Home	Minimize non-active desktop windows
+ Pause/Break	System Properties
+ Left Arrow	Snap desktop window to the left (+Shift to move window to left monitor)
+ Right Arrow	Snap desktop window to the right (+Shift to move window to right monitor)
+ Up Arrow	Maximize desktop window (+Shift to keep width)
+ Down Arrow	Restore/minimize desktop window (+Shift to keep width)
+ F1	Windows Help and Support
+ Alt + Enter (on Taskbar item)	Open Taskbar settings
+ Alt + 1-9	Open the Desktop and open the Jump List for the app at the given position on the taskbar
+ Ctrl + F	Find computers (if on a network)
+ Ctrl + D	Add a desktop
+ Ctrl + Q	Open Quick Assist
+ Ctrl + Right arrow	Switch between desktops you’ve created on the right
+ Ctrl + Left arrow	Switch between desktops you’ve created on the left
+ Ctrl + Enter	Turn on Narrator
+ Ctrl + Spacebar	Change to previously selected input
+ Ctrl + F4	Close the desktop you’re using
+ Ctrl + 1-9	Open the Desktop and switch to the app at the given position on the taskbar
+ Ctrl + Shift + B	Wake computer from black/blank screen
+ Ctrl + Shift + 1-9	Open the Desktop and open a new instance of the app at the given position on the taskbar
+ Shift + M	Restore minimized windows
+ Shift + S	Open the Snipping Bar
+ Shift + V	Cycle through notifications
+ Shift + 1-9	Open the Desktop and go to the app at the given position on the taskbar
+ Shift + Up arrow	Stretch the desktop window to the top and bottom of the screen
+ Shift + Down arrow	Restore or minimize the active desktop windows
+ Shift + Right arrow	Move an app to a monitor on the right
+ Shift + Left arrow	Move an app to a monitor on the left
The following seven (7) Windows logo key shortcuts are for the Game Bar
+ G	Open the Game bar
+ Alt + B	Turn HDR on or off
+ Alt + G	Record the last few moments of game play (you can change the amount of time recorded in Game bar > Settings)
+ Alt + R	Start/stop recording
+ Alt + Print Screen	Take a screenshot of your game
+ Alt + T	Show/hide the recording timer
+ Alt + M	Start/stop microphone recording

For more keyboard shortcuts for Windows, see the links below:

Windows logo key keyboard shortcuts

General keyboard shortcuts

Natural keyboard shortcuts

Dialog box keyboard shortcuts

Accessibility keyboard shortcuts

Windows Explorer keyboard shortcuts

Repairing computers for a living requires working on different versions of Windows. Windows 8 must have the most changes out of all the Windows releases I've seen in the last decade or so. It seems like what worked in previous versions of Windows doesn't work in Windows 8. So here are six ways to make Windows 8 easier to use.

1. Create Shutdown, Restart, and Logoff shortcuts

Microsoft made shutting down and restarting Windows 8 kind of hard. You have to go to the Start screen and log-off before you can get to these options. It just seemed like too many steps for me, so I just created my own shortcuts and toolbar for shutting down, restarting, and logging off.

How to create log-off, restart, and shutdown shortcuts on the Start screen in Windows 8.

2. Start menu replacements

Windows 7 style Start menu in Windows 8 using Start8

If you're a die-hard Windows user and find the Start screen just doesn't work for you, there is hope. There are numerous third-party shell menus out there like Start8, Open Shell, and Pokki's Windows 8 Start Menu. Get one, and Windows 8 will feel just like Windows 7.

3. Power users command menu

The desktop and laptop versions of the Windows 8 Power User command menu

This is one of the Windows logo key shortcuts for Windows 8 (see below), but I think it deserves to be listed separately. It contains links to some of the most used programs inside of Windows. From the Control Panel, Computer Management, and an Admin Command Prompt, if it's a commonly used Windows program, you'll probably find it here. Add it works on both the Desktop and Start screen.

Press	To
+ X	Open the Power User command menu. There are over a dozen different apps you can run from this menu.

4. Start screen hidden search feature

Most people find it hard to find programs on the Start screen (Windows RT). But there is one cool feature that actually will help you search for programs. If you go to the Start screen and just type the first couple of letters of the name of the program you're looking for, Windows RT will bring up the Search charm with Apps pre-selected. Remember that there is no box or form field associated with this feature; you just type.

5. Windows 8 Keyboard shortcuts

The Windows logo key has been around since Windows 95, and with every new version of Windows, Microsoft just adds more key combinations. There are now forty (40) different Windows logo key shortcuts in Windows 8.

Windows logo key shortcuts for Windows 8.

6. Windows 8 restart options

Windows 8 restart option screen

It used to be when you had a problem with Windows, you could press F8 at startup and get to the boot options. This was the primary way to start Windows in Safe Mode or boot to other media. But with newer computers using Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) and Windows 8 booting faster, pressing F8 at boot is hard, if not impossible. But there are a couple of ways to get there once Windows 8 is started. Note: If you want to boot from removable media, make sure that the media you want to boot to is attached (USB) or inserted (CD/DVD) before proceeding.

If you are logged off:

1. On the logon screen, in the lower right-hand corner, tap or left-click the Power Icon. Hold the Shift key down while you tap or left-click on Restart.
2. On the restart options screen, tap or left-click Troubleshoot.
3. Tap or left-click on Advanced options.
4. From here, you can choose what startup settings you want to use or boot to a bootable CD/DVD or USB drive.

If you are logged on:

1. Press the Windows logo key + C to bring up the Charms bar.
2. Tap or left-click Change PC Settings.
3. Tap or left-click General.
4. Scroll down to Advanced startup and tap or left-click Restart now.
5. On the restart options screen, tap or left-click Troubleshoot.
6. Tap or left-click on Advanced options.
7. From here, you can choose what startup settings you want to use or boot to a bootable CD/DVD or USB drive.

And if you would like to enable the Advanced Boot Options menu, you can do that too. Just remember that there is no timer on the Advanced Boot menu anymore. If enabled, Windows 8 will wait for user input every time the system starts. How to enable the Advanced Boot Options menu at start up in Windows 8.

A while back, I wrote an article on left-hand keyboard shortcuts for Windows. I like to use them, so I don't have to take my right hand off the mouse. With the release of Windows 8, Microsoft added in more shortcuts, primarily for the Start screen. So here is a list of Windows 8 keyboard shortcuts for just your left hand.

The desktop and laptop versions of the Windows 8 Power User command menu

Left-hand keyboard shortcuts for Windows 8

Press	To
Windows shortcuts
	Show the Start screen. If you have the Desktop running, you can also use this key to toggle back and forth between the Start screen and the Desktop.
+ D	Show just the Desktop (all running applications will be minimized). You can also use this combo to start the Desktop.
+ E	Start a new instance of Windows Explorer / File Explorer.
+ C	Open the Charms bar. When you open the Charms bar inside of a Windows RT app and select Settings, it displays the options for that app.
+ F	Open Files in the Search charm.
+ Q	Open Apps in the Search charm.
+ W	Open Settings in the Search charm.
+ X	Open the Power User command menu. There are over a dozen different apps you can run from this menu.
ALT + TAB	Switch between open apps using Task Switcher.
Application shortcuts
CTRL + A	Select all
CTRL + C	Copy
CTRL + S	Save
CTRL + V	Paste
CTRL + X	Cut
CTRL + Y	Redo
CTRL + Z	Undo

Check out these related articles:

A complete list of Windows 8 keyboard shortcuts

General Windows keyboard shortcuts

In 1995, Microsoft introduced Windows 95 with a new feature called the Start menu. To make it easy to use, they added a key to the standard keyboard and called it the Windows logo key. Microsoft even added a hand full of keyboard shortcuts to go along with it. The Windows logo key is now standard on Windows based computers, and Windows 8 takes full advantage of it.

The Windows logo key from a Microsoft keyboard

There are now over forty different Windows logo key shortcuts inside of Windows 8 (all of them are listed below). For more keyboard shortcuts for Windows, see the links at the bottom of this article.

Windows logo key shortcuts for Windows 8

Press	To
	Start screen
+ C	Open charms
+ D	Show desktop
+ E	Open Windows Explorer
+ F	Go to Files in Search charm (+Ctrl to find computers on a network)
+ G	Cycle through desktop gadgets
+ H	Share charm
+ I	Settings charm
+ J	Switch focus between snapped and larger
+ K	Devices charm
+ L	Switch users (Lock computer if on a domain)
+ M	Minimize all windows (desktop)
+ O	Lock screen orientation
+ P	Projection options
+ Q	Search charm
+ R	Run...
+ T	Set focus on taskbar and cycle through running desktop apps
+ U	Ease of Access Center
+ V	Cycle through notifications (+Shift to go backward)
+ W	Go to Settings in Search charm
+ X	Quick link power user commands (Opens Windows Mobility Center if present)
+ Z	Open app bar
+ 1-9	Go to the app at the given position on the taskbar
+ + (plus)	Zoom in (Magnifier)
+ - (minus)	Zoom out (Magnifier)
+ , (comma)	Peek at the desktop
+ . (period)	Snap a metro app to the right (+Shift to snap to the left)
+ Enter	Narrator (+Alt to open Windows Media Center if installed)
+ Spacebar	Switch input language and keyboard layout
+ Tab	Cycle through metro app history (use Ctrl to use arrow keys)
+ Esc	Exit Magnifier
+ Home	Minimize non-active desktop windows
+ Page Up	Move Start screen to left monitor
+ Page Down	Move Start screen to right monitor
+ Break	System Properties
+ Left Arrow	Snap desktop window to the left (+Shift to move window to left monitor)
+ Right Arrow	Snap desktop window to the right (+Shift to move window to right monitor)
+ Up Arrow	Maximize desktop window (+Shift to keep width)
+ Down Arrow	Restore/minimize desktop window (+Shift to keep width)
+ F1	Windows Help and Support

For more keyboard shortcuts for Windows, see the links below:

Windows logo key keyboard shortcuts

General keyboard shortcuts

Natural keyboard shortcuts

Dialog box keyboard shortcuts

Accessibility keyboard shortcuts

Windows explorer keyboard shortcuts

One of the most useful items I use daily is keyboard shortcuts. Especially shortcuts that I can perform with just my left hand, allowing me to keep my right hand on the mouse. You can use keyboard shortcuts to open frequently used files, folders, and programs like File Explorer. Windows has a ton of built-in keyboard shortcuts (see links at the bottom of this article), plus you can create your own custom keyboard shortcuts. Here are my favorite left-hand keyboard shortcuts.

Press	To
+ E	Open File Explorer
+ R	Open the Run dialog box
+ D	Display the Desktop
+ F	Search for a file or folder (Windows 7 / 8.1)
+ S	Search for a file or folder (Windows 10 / Windows 11)
CTRL + A	Select all
CTRL + X	Cut
CTRL + C	Copy
CTRL+ V	Paste
CTRL + ALT + (KEY)	Custom keyboard shortcut (see below)

Create your own Windows keyboard shortcuts

You can create keyboard shortcuts that use CTRL + ALT + (your choice of a key) for frequently used files, folders, and programs. You will need to have a shortcut to the file, folder, or program you want to open first. You can use an existing shortcut (on your desktop or the Start menu) or create a new one.

How to create a shortcut in Windows

Once you have a shortcut:

1. Right-click on the shortcut
2. From the context menu, click Properties
3. On the Properties box, select the Shortcut tab
   
4. Click inside the Shortcut key box and press the key which you want to combine with CTRL + ALT

Note:
You can not use the following keys for keyboard shortcuts: ESC, ENTER, TAB, SPACEBAR, PRINT SCREEN, SHIFT, or BACKSPACE.

For more information on Windows keyboard shortcuts, follow the links below:

Windows 11 keyboard shortcuts

Windows 10 keyboard shortcuts

Windows logo key keyboard shortcuts

General keyboard shortcuts

Natural keyboard shortcuts

Dialog box keyboard shortcuts

Accessibility keyboard shortcuts

Windows Explorer keyboard shortcuts