Because Windows 7, applications with many open windows are mixed into a solitary taskbar button. Hovering about the button provides you a live thumbnail of each individual window and you can then click on the window you want to do the job with.
If you’re routinely switching amongst applications with open up home windows, that can get a minimal cumbersome. You can keep the Ctrl essential down even though clicking a taskbar button to view the final energetic window—and then hold clicking with Ctrl held to cycle through every single of that app’s open windows — but that typically just lets you perspective the window as an alternative of making it energetic. If you’re willing to make a delicate Registry edit, you make it so that clicking a taskbar button usually opens the last energetic window — no Ctrl critical needed.
Note: This does not do the job on Windows 11 as of May perhaps 2022. Nevertheless, it does continue to function on Home windows 10,
Make Taskbar Buttons Open up the Very last Lively Window by Modifying the Registry Manually
To make clicking taskbar buttons open the previous lively window, you just will need to make an adjustment to a person location in the Windows Registry. This is effective on PCs managing Home windows 7, 8, or 10.
Warning: Registry Editor is a effective device and misusing it can render your method unstable or even inoperable. This is a very straightforward hack and as lengthy as you stick to the instructions, you shouldn’t have any complications. That mentioned, if you’ve never worked with it ahead of, consider looking through about how to use the Registry Editor right before you get commenced. And definitely back up the Registry (and your personal computer!) just before producing variations.
Associated: Learning to Use the Registry Editor Like a Pro
Open the Registry Editor by hitting Commence and typing “regedit”. Push Enter to open Registry Editor and give it permission to make changes to your Pc.
In the Registry Editor, use the still left sidebar to navigate to the adhering to vital:
HKEY_Current_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerAdvanced
Up coming you are going to develop a new value within the State-of-the-art essential. Correct-simply click the Innovative vital and select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
Name the new value “LastActiveClick”.
Double-simply click the new LastActiveClick price to open up its qualities window. Alter the value from to 1 in the “Value data” box and then simply click “OK.”
You can now exit Registry Editor. You’ll want to indication out and back in (or restart your Laptop) for the alterations to choose spot. You can check it by just popping open any app and opening numerous home windows. Make a window from a unique application energetic and then click on the original app’s taskbar button. It really should open the past window you worked on in that application. To reverse the adjustments, just head back again into the Registry and both transform the LastActiveClick value again to — or delete the worth solely — and then indication out and back again into Home windows.
Obtain Our 1-Simply click Registry Hacks
If you never truly feel like diving into the Registry your self, we’ve designed some a few of registry hacks you can use. The “Enable Final Energetic Click” hack creates the LastActiveClick price and sets it to 1. The “Disable Previous Energetic Click (Default)” hack gets rid of the benefit from your Registry, restoring the default habits. Both hacks are incorporated in the next ZIP file. Double-simply click the 1 you want to use and simply click by the prompts. When you’ve utilized the hack you want, indication out and back again into Windows or restart your personal computer.
Taskbar Past Active Simply click Hacks
Associated: How to Make Your Have Home windows Registry Hacks
These hacks are definitely just the Highly developed key, stripped down to the LastActiveClick value we talked about in the past part, and then exported to a REG file. And if you appreciate fiddling with the Registry, it’s truly worth having the time to learn how to make your very own Registry hacks.