Tweaking the Windows Context Menu
For the Windows Explorer right click context menu.
Use the HKCR (HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT) path for administrator,
and HKCU (HKEY_CURRENT_USER) for only the current user.
Background of right panel
HKCR\Directory\Background\shell
HKCU\Software\Classes\directory\Background\shell
Directory icon
HKCR\Directory\shell
HKCU\Software\Classes\directory\shell
File
HKCR\*\shell
HKCU\Software\Classes\*\shell
How to add a command (sample install script):
If prompted, do not override keys unless it’s for the command/knowledgable.
$name = "Open with Sublime"
$cmd = """C:\Program Files\Sublime Text\subl.exe '%1'"""
reg add HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shell
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shell\$name"
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shell\$name\command" /d $cmd
If manually adding via regedit, note that these are keys (not string values)
%1 indicates the current file. more args
Alternate script, if opting for a different key vs name:
$name = "Open with Sublime"
$key = "OpenSublime"
$cmd = """C:\Program Files\Sublime Text\subl.exe '%1'"""
reg add HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shell
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shell\$key" /d $name
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shell\$key\command" /d $cmd
Other paths to try:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFileSystemObjects\ShellEx\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\
Miscellaneous
Windows 11 always expand context menu:
reg add HKCU\Software\Classes\CLSID\{86ca1aa0-34aa-4e8b-a509-50c905bae2a2}\InprocServer32 /ve /f
(may need to restart Windows Explorer)