Setting defaults start menu for Windows 11

Question

Good morning. Hope all of you safe and well.

Need some advice on creating a default Start Menu and Taskbar in Windows 11. The idea being that any user logs in being that local user or domain user they will get a default start menu. Did the following steps (Based on https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/configuration/customize-start-menu-layout-windows-11) :

1. Create folder c:\layouts
2. Run Powershell as Admin and exeucted the following: Export-StartLayout -Path "C:\Layouts\LayoutModification.json"
3. Set "Computer Configuration\Adminstrative Template\Start Menu and Taskbar\Star Layout" to enabled and "C:\Layouts\LayoutModification.json"
4. Set "User Configuration\Adminstrative Template\Start Menu and Taskbar\Star Layout" to enabled and "C:\Layouts\LayoutModification.json"

But when I create a new local user its not setting the start menu based on the LayoutModification.json. Am I missing a trick or something?

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

Answer 1

The method described above works well if you are building a standard image, these days we just treat PC's as consumables and take whatever model we can get from wherever that does what we need it to do. Most of them now come with Windows pre-loaded - yep sometime I miss the good old days...

Most of the computers I set up are going to end up on a domain and most comapnies still want a standard install. There are many ways to do this but I find the simplest way to do this is run through the OOB experience, create the Local Admin user, login. and set up the start menu / desktop / taskbar the way you want it.

Then copy %LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.Windows.StartMenuExperienceHost_cw5n1h2txyewy\LocalState**.** including sub folders to

C:\Users\Default\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.Windows.StartMenuExperienceHost_cw5n1h2txyewy\LocalState\

Use xcopy or robocopy and remember and copy the sub folders

Then when you add new user profiles to the machine they'll get a nice clean setup. Hope this helps