Add Custom Folder/Library to the Start Menu

Winnland · 14 Oct 2010

I did the same thing as timmiej93 but I used the 'My Videos' library.

Right click the library link you want to use (e.g. My Videos) select Rename.
Type in the name you want to give the library (e.g. Programming), hit enter.
Navigate to the folder you want to add to the renamed library (e.g. Python 3.1).
Right click the folder, select 'Include in library' and click the newly renamed library.

After doing the above, I had to restart my machine. Prior to restarting, the folder stores within my libraries would not expand when I hovered on them. After reboot, all works great. I also went back and right clicked on the default My Videos folders to remove them from the now named Programming library just to clean things up.

It's a shame that this work around had to be performed but at least my machine is now customized the way I prefer it. It makes no sense that Microsoft included the option to easily add new libraries yet doesn't allow the user to access a new library from the navigation pane of the start menu.

Tech Addiction · 08 Jan 2011

You can add the Video Floder to the Right side of the Start menu by right clicking the start menu and choosing properties, then Customize then scroll all the way to the bottom and click display as link beside Videos.

whs · 08 Jan 2011

joshpowers said:

Adding custom links to the right hand side of the start menu would require a code guru.

Taken that I'm not a code guru and would still like a custom link on the right hand side of my start menu, there are a few work arounds to this.

Option 1:

The Documents, Pictures, Music, Video, Download links can be routed to whatever folder you want.(You can enable/disable these librarys from showing in your start menu by right clicking on the taskbar, going to the start menu tab, and selecting customize.) The downside of this is that you can't change the names of the libraries.

In my example, I have all my documents stored on a secondary internal HDD. (E:/)

Step 1: Start -> Right click on Documents -> Select Properties

Step 2: Click "Include a folder"

Step 3: Browse to your given directory, and click "Include Folder"

(In my case it is "E:\My Documents")

Step 4: In the Library locations box, select the directory you just chose, then click "Set save location"

Step 5(Optional): you can remove the default directories so only the directory you specified is opened when you go to the documents library

Step 6: Click Ok, and it prompts you if you want to move all the files from the old location(s) to your new directory. This is up to you, I say no.

Step 7: Hit Start -> Click Documents to verify it points to your new directory.

Option 2:

Very similar to option 1, but with a little more customization.

Step 1: Enable favorites menu in taskbar properties -> start menu -> customize

Step 2: Right click on favorites when in the start menu, and select properties.

Step 3: Under the location tab, change the directory to whatever you wish.

Step 4: Click ok.

This option is nice because it allows you to browse the directory as a menu.

I think of these as redneck workarounds, but take from it what you want :)

Option 2 is the way to go. You can really only replace an existing folder and Favorites is a good candidate - although I use Games.

Tech Addiction · 08 Jan 2011

I was referring to adding Videos to here.

Mike Connor · 08 Jan 2011

If you want to customise the start menu and also get some useful features back then try this;

Welcome to Classic Shell

This is also excellent for customising;

True Launch Bar • Superior replacement for standard Quick Launch

I use both, along with QtTabBar

QTTabBar

and some other stuff. All works very well and does what I want.

Regards....Mike Connor

ProVanity · 16 Jan 2013

First off download classic shell32.
It's allows you to have the windows 98 / xp classix start menu.
then go into classic shell's startmenusettings.exe.
there you can completely sort / delete / rename edit your start menu.

cheers

ProVanity · 16 Jan 2013

didn't read above post^^^^

darthvader45 · 22 Sep 2014

Winnland said:

I did the same thing as timmiej93 but I used the 'My Videos' library.

Right click the library link you want to use (e.g. My Videos) select Rename.
Type in the name you want to give the library (e.g. Programming), hit enter.
Navigate to the folder you want to add to the renamed library (e.g. Python 3.1).
Right click the folder, select 'Include in library' and click the newly renamed library.

After doing the above, I had to restart my machine. Prior to restarting, the folder stores within my libraries would not expand when I hovered on them. After reboot, all works great. I also went back and right clicked on the default My Videos folders to remove them from the now named Programming library just to clean things up.

It's a shame that this work around had to be performed but at least my machine is now customized the way I prefer it. It makes no sense that Microsoft included the option to easily add new libraries yet doesn't allow the user to access a new library from the navigation pane of the start menu.

Nice, I did it with my Favorites menu. Turned it into a nice library for everything I needed(currently, Audacity projects editing Minecraft parodies of songs like Timber by Pitbull, basically snipping the audio I need and converting it to WAV).

jonnyhotchkiss · 14 Mar 2016

vijer said:

Typical Windows crap. Let's see I can add Favorites, Games, Homegroup, Recorded TV, Videos

NONE of which I care to ever open let alone have quick access to from the Start menu but hey I cannot add a custom folder!! Stupid

So far I am not impressed with Windows 7 and will stick with the competitors OS. Microsoft keeps to trying to think for the user which I guess is what you need to do for dumber users.

What is it you want to link to, and have your tried symbolic links or junctions?

Codify said:

Have been searching for ages for a way to do this - I want to have a link to my Music folder on the right side of the Start Menu. Can't believe there is no way to get such a simple thing!

I disabled the library view because of it's sheer annoyingness (the number of times i had to right click and select 'open folder location' just to be able to work with my files properly) and now i don't have links to my my picture folder and music folder.

Grr!!!

What path is your mypics etc that you want to link to?

For your purposes I'm surprised you're not making use of the library folders. ie music folder(s) in music library...

Wish I could read assembly!

jonnyhotchkiss · 24 Mar 2016

1) Enable (as menus) your libraries - documents, music, videos, pictures... note the order (i think it's fixed, renaming them didn't affect)

I started with the (never used) RecordedTv.
In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders
I added {1A6FDBA2-F42D-4358-A798-B74D745926C5} with value
C:\Users\Jonny\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Libraries\System Locations.library-ms

On a roll, I tried recycling the (former photos) library.
I changed the value for {A990AE9F-A03B-4E80-94BC-9912D7504104} to
C:\Users\Jonny\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Libraries

So you can use photos,videos,recordedtv, even documents... recycle them, to point to libraries, or folders!

EDIT: This will create some interesting side-effects, namely

- The Libraries structure needs revising (I'm working on a fix). currently, the above hack gives you libraries within libraries (in the navspace)

- any libraries that you reference as 'new User Shell Folders' (redirectors referenced to get custom startpanel-menus) will be systemised, and you can't see them in libraries (root) and worse they're hidden from the 'Include in Library' options!!!

Thankfully there's an easy fix for this, ie create a library-symbolic-link to the (now-hidden) system-library:

Here I linked my (now hidden) System Locations library
mklink "System Places.library-ms" "System Locations.library-ms"

Add Custom Folder/Library to the Start Menu

Fix and customize start menu win 7