- Dock Windows to the Screen in Windows 11
- Adjusting the docking of windows in Windows 11
Using a PC with one screen is fine. Working with two screens is even better and much more comfortable. But it also requires a little bit of organization so that you don’t spend your time looking for open windows. With Windows 11, Microsoft is introducing a new way to manage the workspace, whether it consists of one or more monitors. All open windows can be anchored in a specific area. They are "magnetized" in such a way that they do not move inadvertently and remain easily identifiable. The system allows you to organize the display of windows in several predefined zones among several available models. Be careful, however. Not all applications follow the system. Firefox, for example, does not offer any particular anchoring option. Windows also has a short and selective memory. If you close a window (an application or File Explorer, for example) and reopen another one, it will not take the place it occupied before. Except for the Edge browser, which will open in a docked window if it was open that way when you left the app. Strange.
How to Dock Windows on the Screen in Windows 11?
The window docking system is enabled by default in Windows 11. Relatively easy to handle, it offers several layout templates to choose from depending on your usage.
- For example, open a File Explorer window. Place the mouse pointer on the square at the top right of the window (near the cross used to close it). Immediately, a small layout palette is displayed.
- Several models are available: two or three columns of similar or different size or in blocks. Place the mouse pointer over the desired shape of the window and the place where you want to position it on the screen. It is highlighted.
- Click and the window immediately takes the place you have chosen for it.
- Now open a new window. This can be a folder in File Explorer or an application such as a browser. Again, place the mouse pointer over the square at the top right of the window. Choose another location from the same layout template as the one used previously.
- The window will automatically be positioned where you want it.
- If, on the other hand, you choose a location from another layout template, Windows will ask you to reorganize the windows.
- For example, if you had originally chosen a layout with two columns and you want to dock a third window, you will have to define its location on the screen.
- Of course, the windows are not locked in the space where you have docked them. You can detach them and paste them wherever you want on the screen. They will then return to their original size.
- You can also choose to paste a window onto one of the edges of the screen yourself by moving it with the mouse (it will then occupy half the display area). By moving the window to the top of the screen, it will occupy the entire display area.
What are The Window Docking Settings in Windows 11?
Windows 11 allows you to adjust a few settings to manage window docking or to disable it altogether if you don’t need it.
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- Press Win + i to access the Windows settings. Click on System in the left column and then on Multitasking in the central pane.
- Now click on the little arrow at the end of the Anchor Windows section to access all the options. Note in passing the presence of the switch that allows you to disable the function.
- Windows offers several options related to docking windows on the screen. Uncheck the ones you consider unnecessary. Your settings are saved automatically.