Show Administrative Tools on Start Menu via Registry

This guide explains how to configure Windows to show or hide Administrative Tools on the Start menu using the Windows Registry Editor (Regedit). By modifying a specific DWORD value within the current user’s profile settings, you can control the visibility of system management utilities without navigating through standard graphical menus.

The Registry Entry

The display of Administrative Tools on the Start menu is controlled by the following registry location and value:

• Registry Path: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced
• Value Name: Start_AdminTools
• Value Type: REG_DWORD (32-bit Value)
• Value Data:
  • 0 = Hide Administrative Tools (Disabled)
  • 1 = Display Administrative Tools on the Start menu (Enabled)

(Note: In older versions of Windows, such as Windows 7 or Vista, a value of 2 was used to display the tools in both the “All Programs” list and directly on the Start menu itself, while 1 showed them only in the “All Programs” menu.)

How to Modify the Setting in Regedit

1. Press Windows Key + R to open the Run dialog box.

2. Type regedit and press Enter (or click OK) to open the Registry Editor.

3. Navigate through the left-hand folder tree to:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

4. In the right-hand pane, locate the entry named Start_AdminTools.

   • If the entry does not exist, right-click an empty area in the right pane, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it Start_AdminTools.

5. Double-click Start_AdminTools to edit it.

6. Set the Base to Hexadecimal, enter 1 in the Value data field to display the tools (or 0 to hide them), and click OK.

7. Close the Registry Editor.

To apply the changes, restart the explorer.exe process via Task Manager, or log off and log back into your Windows user account.