Add MAIL icon to control panel

Question

At our job we have the icons users see on the control panel limited. We do this through group policies. All clients have Office 365 and work on Windows 11 23H2

In User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Control Panel we user "Show only specified Control Panel items" to limit what they see.

Now we want to add the Mail icon to this line-up. But I just can't find the cannonical name I can use to make this work. I have tried "Microsoft.Mail", "Mail (Microsoft Outlook)", "Mail (Microsoft Outlook 2016)", "Mail (Microsoft Outlook) (32-bit)", "Mail (Microsoft Outlook) (32-bits)", "Mail (Microsoft Outlook 2016) (32-bit)", "Mail (Microsoft Outlook) (32-bits)", the CPL name, ... But nothings works.

Does anyone have an idea here?

***moved from Windows / Windows 11 / Settings***

Answer 1

Hello

Thank you for posting in Microsoft Community.

To add the Mail icon (which opens the Mail app or the Outlook profile settings) to the Control Panel in Windows 11 using Group Policy, you're right that the canonical name can be tricky to identify. However, the correct Control Panel item for the Mail app is not always immediately obvious.

Here’s the solution to add the Mail icon in the Control Panel via Group Policy:

1. Mail Control Panel (Canonical Name):

The Mail icon is actually tied to a CPL (Control Panel Item), and the correct name that should be used in the policy is:

Microsoft.Outlook.Mail or Microsoft.Mail (depending on the Office version and installation type).

However, since you’ve already tried several variations (including "Mail (Microsoft Outlook)") without success, let's go through the exact method to ensure you have the correct configuration.

2. Steps to Add the Mail Icon:

A. Group Policy Method (User Configuration)

Open Group Policy Management:

Open the Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) on a domain controller or management system.

Navigate to User Configuration:

Go to:
User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Show only specified Control Panel items.

Enable and Edit the Policy:

Double-click on "Show only specified Control Panel items".

Set the policy to Enabled.

Click the Show button in the options window.

Add the Canonical Name for Mail:

Add the following entry to the list of allowed control panel items:

Microsoft.Mail

This is the correct item for Mail settings (which handles Outlook profiles and mail-related configuration).

B. Manually Adding the Mail Icon via Registry (Alternative Method)

If Group Policy doesn't reflect immediately, you can also manually add the registry key for Mail to ensure it shows up in the Control Panel.

Open the Registry Editor (regedit).

Navigate to the following registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

Create a New String Value:

Right-click in the right pane, choose New > String Value, and name it DisallowCpl.

Add the Mail CPL:

Set the value to Microsoft.Mail.

Restart the system or log off and log back in to see if the Mail icon appears in the Control Panel.

3. Test the Policy

Once the Group Policy is updated, you should see the Mail item (that handles Outlook or Mail settings) appear in the Control Panel for users.

I hope the above information is helpful to you.

Best regards

Runjie Zhai

Answer 2

I have tried both options and they both don't work. The funny thing is. I have tried options where group policies don't matter. First I logged on as admin on a PC in a regular client OU and I had 38 items on the control panel. Second I logged in on a PC that is in our ICT OU and doesn't have any policies applied and there I saw 39 items: Difference was the mail icon. And I have talked it through with the colleague who made the GPO's and he hasn't set up anything special concerning the mail icon.

So any idea where i group policies I might find something that explains this?