The modern Open With dialog box is back in Windows 11

Using Windows 11

Disappointed with the lack of new features in the latest Windows 11 build? Pondering the meaning of your existence? Then rejoice, for there is some good news on the features front.

That’s because build 25151 that Microsoft recently released does come with one hidden one.

This undocumented feature is not exactly new. That’s because the software titan had already released something like this earlier this year. Build 22567, released at the very start of March, offered a modern implementation of the Open With dialog box that appears when you select the app for a specific file.

The new version had stylish visuals, better suggestions, and the option to browse compatible apps in the Microsoft Store.

Sadly, this redesigned dialog box was pulled in build 22579 a couple weeks later due to various performance issues. Now, some three months later, the feature is back with a vengeance in the operating system.

Open With Before After

Although Microsoft has not announced the return of this new Open With dialog box, it can be manually enabled at your own risk using the ViveTool app.

Download and extract this handy little tool, then launch Windows Terminal as Administrator in Command Prompt profile. Then navigate to the ViveTool folder using change directory command. For example, cd C:\Vive.

Here, type vivetool /enable /id:36302090 and press Enter. This is for the latest version of ViveTool. In case you are using an older version of the utility, type the vivetool addconfig 36302090 2 command.

Now, simply right-click any file and select Open With > Choose another app.

If you want to go back, you can revert changes using vivetool /disable /id:36302090 or for the older version, the vivetool delconfig 36302090 2 command.

That’s all there is to it.