Windows 7: Features

There's been a lof of buzz recently about a super secret mode in Windows 7 that has been called "god mode".

What it basically is, is an extended control panel that allows you to control various aspects of the OS that are not typically surfaced via a GUI.

Here's how you enable it:

Create a new folder (right-click and click on “New Folder”). Right-click on the folder and click on rename, copy and paste this: GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

What comes up is a Control Panel like window with sections for Action Center ("Check security status" and so on), Administrative Tools, and AutoPlay.

The back half of that mysterious shortcut is actually a globally unique identifier (GUID) that points to a shell folder, in this case Control Panel.

The segment at the beginning can be whatever text you want it to be. The resulting list simply opens Control Panel in Windows Explorer, displaying all available tasks and allowing you to group them using standard Explorer techniques.

All of the tasks in the "God Mode" list are already available in Control Panel. There is not a single new or hidden tweak here. Many of them are listed under the different category headings there.

Some of the specific task links appear only in response to a search for a specific keyword; they represent alternate entry points to tasks that you might not find easily using the conventional navigation.

It's fun but nothing really to see here...

Update 1-7-2010

Apparently there are more strings...

In an email interview with Cnet, Steven Sinofsky, Windows division president, said several similar undocumented features provide direct access to all kinds of settings, from choosing a location to managing power settings to identifying biometric sensors.

He noted that there are over 12 strings which give access to various different settings.

Sinofsky and others say the term GodMode was coined by bloggers and was not something the company used internally.

Here’s the list of more strings:

{00C6D95F-329C-409a-81D7-C46C66EA7F33}
{0142e4d0-fb7a-11dc-ba4a-000ffe7ab428}
{025A5937-A6BE-4686-A844-36FE4BEC8B6D}
{05d7b0f4-2121-4eff-bf6b-ed3f69b894d9}
{1206F5F1-0569-412C-8FEC-3204630DFB70}
{15eae92e-f17a-4431-9f28-805e482dafd4}
{17cd9488-1228-4b2f-88ce-4298e93e0966}
{1D2680C9-0E2A-469d-B787-065558BC7D43}
{1FA9085F-25A2-489B-85D4-86326EEDCD87}
{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}
{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}
{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}
{241D7C96-F8BF-4F85-B01F-E2B043341A4B}
{4026492F-2F69-46B8-B9BF-5654FC07E423}
{62D8ED13-C9D0-4CE8-A914-47DD628FB1B0}
{78F3955E-3B90-4184-BD14-5397C15F1EFC}

To make them work, create a new folder with any name ( it doesn’t have to be something specific ), then a period, then insert one of the text strings.

Tip: Click here to run a free scan for Windows related errors