Microsoft releases PowerToys v0.71.0 with visual refresh, archive file preview and much more

It feels as though it has been a while since the last update for PowerToys, but Microsoft has now rectified this. The company has released PowerToys v0.71.0 which sees not only a large number of bug fixes, but also numerous tweaks, improvements and additions.

This is a hugely significant update that adds support for the previewing of archives in the Peek utility, as well as making it possible to use Registry Preview as the default tool for opening .reg files. PowerToys developers have really gone to town with this release; just about every module has been updated and there is an improved look that is more in line with the Windows 11 aesthetic.

See also:

• Microsoft finally fixes Start menu, Windows Search and UWP app issues in Windows 10 and 11
• Microsoft is tweaking the Windows 11 Start menu to highlight its own apps
• About f@cking time! Microsoft Team caters for non-prudish users by making the profanity filter optional

Among the highlights Microsoft draws attention to in this release, is a fix for an issue that caused PT Run to crash.

The company also say says: "Modernized Settings app title bar and styling (Mica background material) to be in line with Windows 11 guidelines".

But this is a long way for being all that's to be found in PowerToys v0.71.0. It may only be a small increase in version number, but the full changelog is pretty lengthy:

General

• Fixed infinite loop issue caused by global event not being reset. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Bump CommunityToolkit.Mvvm package version to 8.2.0. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed issue causing runner lag by moving check for updates and running bug report logic to the background thread.
• Bump WinUIEx package version to 2.2. Thanks @niels9001!
• Fixed issue causing Settings app crash when launching a second app process. Thanks @BLM16!
• Fixed network errors when checking for updates on virtual machines.
• Bump Microsoft.CodeAnalysis.NetAnalyzers package version to 7.0.3. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Bump Microsoft.Windows.Compatibility package version to 7.0.3.
• Bump System.Management package version to 7.0.2.
• Fixed issue causing PowerToys to start with Below Normal priority on startup.

ColorPicker

• Store color history in a separated file.

FancyZones

• Added feature to use middle click to toggle multiple zones spanning. Thanks @BasitAli!
• Fixed issue causing zoning not to happen until the cursor is moved.
• Improved monitor identification logic to mitigate issues causing layout reset.
• Fixed issue where default layout was applied instead of blank layout.

File Locksmith

• Added setting to show only in extended context menu.

File Explorer add-ons

• Developer files preview support for .vsconfig, .sln, .vcproj, .vbproj, .fsproj and .vcxproj files. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Developer files preview support .vbs, .inf, .gitconfig, .gitattributes and .editorconfig files. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @Aaron-Junker!
• Changed order of developer files preview` context menu items. Thanks @Aaron-Junker!
• Developer files preview support for .gitignore files. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @Aaron-Junker!
• Fixed issue causing preview pane flickering on file selection and resizing. Thanks @tanchekwei!

Hosts

• Improved UX by adding keyboard shortcuts. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Added setting to select the file encoding. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed parsing of commented lines with an address and host in the middle of the comment. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed issue on adding first entry and improve empty hosts list UI. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Added logic to handle more than 9 hosts per entry (Windows limitation) by splitting them into separate entries. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

ImageResizer

• Added Enter key event handler when setting width/height of the new custom size.

Installer

• Fixed PowerToys Plugin installation. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed issue causing missing Mouse Without Borders service after upgrade. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Removed unneeded PT Run registry entries.

Mouse Without Borders

• Added Name2IP setting. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed device layout issues. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed hiding cursor at the top of the screen when "Hide mouse at the screen edge" is enabled. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed issue that was preventing OS going to sleep mode. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Remove shortcut for deprecated VKMap functionality. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @dtaylor84!
• Make MWB work without service if service doesn't start properly. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed focus issue causing "Hide mouse at the screen edge" not to work properly. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed issue causing app to hijack shortcut keys if they are only partially matched.

Peek

• Consume Ctrl+Space shortcut only if Desktop or Shell are in the foreground. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Added feature to hide window with Esc key. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Added a setting to always run not-elevated (enabled by default). (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Support .vsconfig, .sln, .vcproj, .vbproj, .fsproj and .vcxproj files. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed blinking issue while loading developer files. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Reset preview Source on Peek window close. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Center Peek window on File Explorer activated monitor. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @SamChaps!
• Fix previewing unsupported file types by using effective pixels. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @SamChaps!
• Support .vbs, .inf, .gitconfig, .gitattributes and .editorconfig files. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @Aaron-Junker!
• Fixed memory leak by clearing generated thumbnails. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Added setting to close on focus lost. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed crash when triggering Peek with no files being selected. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed setting Peek window as a foreground window. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed race condition causing low quality preview to be displayed even if high quality preview is present. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Added support for .htm files.
• Fixed issue where title bar button colors were not update on Windows theme change.
• Added up/down arrow key item navigation. Thanks @DanWiseProgramming!
• Improved UX by defining minimum window size and adding tooltips for shown text. Thanks @htcfreek!
• Fixed crash on previewing internet shortcuts files.
• Support previewing archive files. Thanks @davidegiacometti!

PowerToys Run

• Fixed crash caused by non thread-safe Results update.
• Fixed crash caused by missing App.Dark.png
• Code cleanup and fixed possible crash caused by missing VS Code instance in VS Code plugin. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fix environment helper for nested environment variables. Thanks @htcfreek!

Quick Accent

• Added multiplication and division signs. Thanks @ailintom!
• Added opening exclamation mark to Catalan and Spanish language. Thanks @Aaron-Junker!
• Added the section sign ("§", U+00A7). Thanks @EikeJoo!
• Added accent units and more additional signs. Thanks @WilkoLu!

Registry Preview

• Added setting to set the app as default app for opening .reg files. Thanks @randyrants!
• Merge settings to single folder.
• Fixed issue of saving files without truncation. Thanks @qwerty472123!

Text Extractor

• Various improvements and fixes. Thanks @TheJoeFin!

Settings

• Styling fixes for Peek and Mouse Without Borders pages. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @niels9001!
• Fixed Mouse Without Borders machine connection status styling. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Improved Mouse Without Border page Uninstall service UX when it is inaccessible. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Updated File Explorer module screenshots and instructions to reflect the Windows 11 File Explorer. Thanks @infinitepower18!
• Modernized the app title bar and styling (Mica background material) to be inline with Windows11 guidelines. Thanks @niels9001!
• Improved error handling on settings backup failure.
• Added Reset button to shortcut control to reset activation shortcut to default value. Thanks @Svenlaa!
• Improved Exclude apps setting for all modules to also detect apps by title.

Development

• Added Peek and Mouse Without Borders to GitHub templates. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed the CI release pipelines winget package submission. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Fixed process report and termination lists for Peek and Mouse Without Borders. (This was a hotfix for 0.70)
• Added Winget configuration file. (This was a hotfix for 0.70) Thanks @ryfu-msft!
• Fixed tests localization issues.
• Added Microsoft.VisualStudio.Component.VC.ATL library to .vsconfig.
• Onboarding to GitOps.ResourceManagement.

You can download PowerToys v0.71.0 here, from the Microsoft Store, or by updating your current version.