Windows 7 RTM GodModes Unveiled

Windows 7 GodMode has gotten its fair share of time in the limelight, albeit the actual trick is in the GodMode label, rather than the action performed on the latest iteration of the Windows 7 client. The actual trick is rather simple, users need only create a New Folder on the Windows 7 desktop and name it GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}. The GodMode moniker can be replaced by any piece of text users desire, but the {Extension CLSID} is essential to the function that the resulting desktop item will get to perform. The GodMode in Windows 7 is nothing more than the All Tasks folder which centralizes a list with all Control Panel items. Another interesting point is that not only will the GodMode trick work in Windows 7 and Windows Vista, but also in the next iteration of the OS, Windows 8.
“Please be assured that there are no security implications with this so called “trick”. It’s simply a documented feature of the Windows shell whereby file system folders can be easily made into namespace junctions or Control Panel items. The item in question is actually the All Tasks folder which simply provides a comprehensive list of possible Windows settings,” revealed Patrick Rogers, Microsoft account technology specialist. “Beginning in Windows Vista, each Control Panel item was given a canonical name for use in programmatically launching that item to make it easier for developers to access core functionality in Windows. When you create a folder and give it the canonical name, the icon is transformed into the Control Panel item for the named task.”

Following initial reports of Windows 7 GodMode, Steven Sinofsky, president, Windows and Windows Live Division, made public additional Windows 7 Control Panel Canonical Names. Users will be able to find the list provided by Sinofsky via this link. Just as it was the case for GodMode, the additional Control Panel Canonical Names point to various settings in the operating system. Rogers even managed to point to the complete list of Control Panel Canonical Names. What is interesting is that some of the Control Panel Canonical Names items will only work in “Windows 7 and later,” indicating that the same settings will be preserved in Windows 8.

“These canonical names are well documented on MSDN for Windows Vista and Windows 7 so feel free to have fun creating control panels all over your file system. There is no real magic here, but rather, a way for Developers to access the settings in Windows in an easy, centralized way,” Rogers added. “For the rest of us… it’s just kind of cool to have an icon that gives you searchable access to every possible setting and have people ask about that nefarious “God Mode” icon on your desktop!”

Here are a few selections from the Canonical Names of Control Panel Items list:

- Action Center Microsoft.ActionCenter (Windows 7 and later only) {BB64F8A7-BEE7-4E1A-AB8D-7D8273F7FDB6}
- Backup and Restore Microsoft.BackupAndRestore (Windows 7 and later only) {B98A2BEA-7D42-4558-8BD1-832F41BAC6FD}
- Biometric Devices Microsoft.BiometricDevices (Windows 7 and later only) {0142e4d0-fb7a-11dc-ba4a-000ffe7ab428}
- Credential Manager Microsoft.CredentialManager (Windows 7 and later only) {1206F5F1-0569-412C-8FEC-3204630DFB70}
- Default Location Microsoft.DefaultLocation (Windows 7 and later only) {00C6D95F-329C-409a-81D7-C46C66EA7F33}
- Desktop Gadgets Microsoft.DesktopGadgets (Windows 7 and later only) {37efd44d-ef8d-41b1-940d-96973a50e9e0}
- Devices and Printers Microsoft.DevicesAndPrinters (Windows 7 and later only) {A8A91A66-3A7D-4424-8D24-04E180695C7A}
- Display Microsoft.Display (Windows 7 and later only) {C555438B-3C23-4769-A71F-B6D3D9B6053A}
- Getting Started Microsoft.GettingStarted (Windows 7 and later only) {CB1B7F8C-C50A-4176-B604-9E24DEE8D4D1}
- HomeGroup Microsoft.HomeGroup (Windows 7 and later only) {67CA7650-96E6-4FDD-BB43-A8E774F73A57}
- Infrared Microsoft.Infrared (Windows 7 and later only) {A0275511-0E86-4ECA-97C2-ECD8F1221D08}
- Location and Other Sensors Microsoft.LocationAndOtherSensors (Windows 7 and later only) {E9950154-C418-419e-A90A-20C5287AE24B}
- Notification Area Icons Microsoft.NotificationAreaIcons (Windows 7 and later only) {05d7b0f4-2121-4eff-bf6b-ed3f69b894d9}
- Pen and Touch Microsoft.PenAndTouch (Windows 7 and later only) {F82DF8F7-8B9F-442E-A48C-818EA735FF9B}
- Phone and Modem Microsoft.PhoneAndModem (Windows 7 and later only) {40419485-C444-4567-851A-2DD7BFA1684D}
- Recovery Microsoft.Recovery (Windows 7 and later only) {9FE63AFD-59CF-4419-9775-ABCC3849F861}
- Region and Language Microsoft.RegionAndLanguage (Windows 7 and later only) {62D8ED13-C9D0-4CE8-A914-47DD628FB1B0}
- RemoteApp and Desktop Connections Microsoft.RemoteAppAndDesktopConnections (Windows 7 and later only) {241D7C96-F8BF-4F85-B01F-E2B043341A4B}
- Sound Microsoft.Sound (Windows 7 and later only) {F2DDFC82-8F12-4CDD-B7DC-D4FE1425AA4D}
- Speech Recognition Microsoft.SpeechRecognition (Windows 7 and later only) {58E3C745-D971-4081-9034-86E34B30836A}
- Troubleshooting Microsoft.Troubleshooting (Windows 7 and later only) {C58C4893-3BE0-4B45-ABB5-A63E4B8C8651}

Nice find. Thanks.

I tought that you had seen them all in my post but.....

The following canonical names are defined for Control Panel items in Windows 7. All names are also valid on Windows Vista unless specified otherwise. Not all Control Panel items are available on all varieties of Windows and some Control Panel items might appear only when appropriate hardware is detected. These canonical names do not change for different languages. They are always in English, even if the system's language is non-English.
Control Panel Item Canonical name GUID
Action Center Microsoft.ActionCenter (Windows 7 and later only) {BB64F8A7-BEE7-4E1A-AB8D-7D8273F7FDB6}
Administrative Tools Microsoft.AdministrativeTools {D20EA4E1-3957-11d2-A40B-0C5020524153}
AutoPlay Microsoft.AutoPlay {9C60DE1E-E5FC-40f4-A487-460851A8D915}
Backup and Restore Microsoft.BackupAndRestore (Windows 7 and later only) {B98A2BEA-7D42-4558-8BD1-832F41BAC6FD}
Biometric Devices Microsoft.BiometricDevices (Windows 7 and later only) {0142e4d0-fb7a-11dc-ba4a-000ffe7ab428}
BitLocker Drive Encryption Microsoft.BitLockerDriveEncryption {D9EF8727-CAC2-4e60-809E-86F80A666C91}
Color Management Microsoft.ColorManagement {B2C761C6-29BC-4f19-9251-E6195265BAF1}
Credential Manager Microsoft.CredentialManager (Windows 7 and later only) {1206F5F1-0569-412C-8FEC-3204630DFB70}
Date and Time Microsoft.DateAndTime {E2E7934B-DCE5-43C4-9576-7FE4F75E7480}
Default Location Microsoft.DefaultLocation (Windows 7 and later only) {00C6D95F-329C-409a-81D7-C46C66EA7F33}
Default Programs Microsoft.DefaultPrograms {17cd9488-1228-4b2f-88ce-4298e93e0966}
Desktop Gadgets Microsoft.DesktopGadgets (Windows 7 and later only) {37efd44d-ef8d-41b1-940d-96973a50e9e0}
Device Manager Microsoft.DeviceManager {74246bfc-4c96-11d0-abef-0020af6b0b7a}
Devices and Printers Microsoft.DevicesAndPrinters (Windows 7 and later only) {A8A91A66-3A7D-4424-8D24-04E180695C7A}
Display Microsoft.Display (Windows 7 and later only) {C555438B-3C23-4769-A71F-B6D3D9B6053A}
Ease of Access Center Microsoft.EaseOfAccessCenter {D555645E-D4F8-4c29-A827-D93C859C4F2A}
Folder Options Microsoft.FolderOptions {6DFD7C5C-2451-11d3-A299-00C04F8EF6AF}
Fonts Microsoft.Fonts {93412589-74D4-4E4E-AD0E-E0CB621440FD}
Game Controllers Microsoft.GameControllers {259EF4B1-E6C9-4176-B574-481532C9BCE8}
Get Programs Microsoft.GetPrograms {15eae92e-f17a-4431-9f28-805e482dafd4}
Getting Started Microsoft.GettingStarted (Windows 7 and later only) {CB1B7F8C-C50A-4176-B604-9E24DEE8D4D1}
HomeGroup Microsoft.HomeGroup (Windows 7 and later only) {67CA7650-96E6-4FDD-BB43-A8E774F73A57}
Indexing Options Microsoft.IndexingOptions {87D66A43-7B11-4A28-9811-C86EE395ACF7}
Infrared Microsoft.Infrared (Windows 7 and later only) {A0275511-0E86-4ECA-97C2-ECD8F1221D08}
Internet Options Microsoft.InternetOptions {A3DD4F92-658A-410F-84FD-6FBBBEF2FFFE}
iSCSI Initiator Microsoft.iSCSIInitiator {A304259D-52B8-4526-8B1A-A1D6CECC8243}
Keyboard Microsoft.Keyboard {725BE8F7-668E-4C7B-8F90-46BDB0936430}
Location and Other Sensors Microsoft.LocationAndOtherSensors (Windows 7 and later only) {E9950154-C418-419e-A90A-20C5287AE24B}
Mouse Microsoft.Mouse {6C8EEC18-8D75-41B2-A177-8831D59D2D50}
Network and Sharing Center Microsoft.NetworkAndSharingCenter {8E908FC9-BECC-40f6-915B-F4CA0E70D03D}
Notification Area Icons Microsoft.NotificationAreaIcons (Windows 7 and later only) {05d7b0f4-2121-4eff-bf6b-ed3f69b894d9}
Offline Files Microsoft.OfflineFiles {D24F75AA-4F2B-4D07-A3C4-469B3D9030C4}
Parental Controls Microsoft.ParentalControls {96AE8D84-A250-4520-95A5-A47A7E3C548B}
Pen and Touch Microsoft.PenAndTouch (Windows 7 and later only) {F82DF8F7-8B9F-442E-A48C-818EA735FF9B}
People Near Me Microsoft.PeopleNearMe {5224F545-A443-4859-BA23-7B5A95BDC8EF}
Performance Information and Tools Microsoft.PerformanceInformationAndTools {78F3955E-3B90-4184-BD14-5397C15F1EFC}
Personalization Microsoft.Personalization {ED834ED6-4B5A-4bfe-8F11-A626DCB6A921}
Phone and Modem Microsoft.PhoneAndModem (Windows 7 and later only) {40419485-C444-4567-851A-2DD7BFA1684D}
Power Options Microsoft.PowerOptions {025A5937-A6BE-4686-A844-36FE4BEC8B6D}
Programs and Features Microsoft.ProgramsAndFeatures {7b81be6a-ce2b-4676-a29e-eb907a5126c5}
Recovery Microsoft.Recovery (Windows 7 and later only) {9FE63AFD-59CF-4419-9775-ABCC3849F861}
Region and Language Microsoft.RegionAndLanguage (Windows 7 and later only) {62D8ED13-C9D0-4CE8-A914-47DD628FB1B0}
RemoteApp and Desktop Connections Microsoft.RemoteAppAndDesktopConnections (Windows 7 and later only) {241D7C96-F8BF-4F85-B01F-E2B043341A4B}
Scanners and Cameras Microsoft.ScannersAndCameras {00f2886f-cd64-4fc9-8ec5-30ef6cdbe8c3}
Sound Microsoft.Sound (Windows 7 and later only) {F2DDFC82-8F12-4CDD-B7DC-D4FE1425AA4D}
Speech Recognition Microsoft.SpeechRecognition (Windows 7 and later only) {58E3C745-D971-4081-9034-86E34B30836A}
Sync Center Microsoft.SyncCenter {9C73F5E5-7AE7-4E32-A8E8-8D23B85255BF}
System Microsoft.System {BB06C0E4-D293-4f75-8A90-CB05B6477EEE}
Tablet PC Settings Microsoft.TabletPCSettings {80F3F1D5-FECA-45F3-BC32-752C152E456E}
Taskbar and Start Menu Microsoft.TaskbarAndStartMenu {0DF44EAA-FF21-4412-828E-260A8728E7F1}
Text to Speech Microsoft.TextToSpeech {D17D1D6D-CC3F-4815-8FE3-607E7D5D10B3}
Troubleshooting Microsoft.Troubleshooting (Windows 7 and later only) {C58C4893-3BE0-4B45-ABB5-A63E4B8C8651}
User Accounts Microsoft.UserAccounts {60632754-c523-4b62-b45c-4172da012619}
Windows Anytime Upgrade Microsoft.WindowsAnytimeUpgrade {BE122A0E-4503-11DA-8BDE-F66BAD1E3F3A}
Windows CardSpace Microsoft.CardSpace {78CB147A-98EA-4AA6-B0DF-C8681F69341C}
Windows Defender Microsoft.WindowsDefender {D8559EB9-20C0-410E-BEDA-7ED416AECC2A}
Windows Firewall Microsoft.WindowsFirewall {4026492F-2F69-46B8-B9BF-5654FC07E423}
Windows Mobility Center Microsoft.MobilityCenter {5ea4f148-308c-46d7-98a9-49041b1dd468}
Windows SideShow Microsoft.WindowsSideShow {E95A4861-D57A-4be1-AD0F-35267E261739}
Windows Update Microsoft.WindowsUpdate {36eef7db-88ad-4e81-ad49-0e313f0c35f8}

Windows Vista Control Panel Canonical Names
The following are canonical names for Control Panel items found in Windows Vista that have been renamed or removed as of Windows 7. For compatibility with Windows Vista, all of these names are valid on Windows 7, but the experience can be different:

Some items have been simply renamed and given new canonical names, retaining the same GUID. The old canonical name launches the Control Panel item, which may or may not use the same user interface (UI) seen in Windows Vista.
The functionality of some items has been moved or consolidated with other items in a new item. In this case, the old canonical name maps to the most appropriate new Control Panel item.
Control Panel Item Canonical name GUID Notes
Add Hardware Microsoft.AddHardware {7A979262-40CE-46ff-AEEE-7884AC3B6136} Maps to Microsoft.DevicesAndPrinters
Sound Microsoft.AudioDevicesAndSoundThemes {F2DDFC82-8F12-4CDD-B7DC-D4FE1425AA4D} Now Microsoft.Sound
Backup and Restore Center Microsoft.BackupAndRestoreCenter {B98A2BEA-7D42-4558-8BD1-832F41BAC6FD} Now Microsoft.BackupAndRestore
Windows Marketplace Microsoft.GetProgramsOnline {3e7efb4c-faf1-453d-89eb-56026875ef90} Removed
Infrared Microsoft.InfraredOptions {A0275511-0E86-4ECA-97C2-ECD8F1221D08} Now Microsoft.Infrared.
Pen and Input Devices Microsoft.PenAndInputDevices {F82DF8F7-8B9F-442E-A48C-818EA735FF9B} Now Microsoft.PenAndTouch
Phone and Modem Microsoft.PhoneAndModemOptions {40419485-C444-4567-851A-2DD7BFA1684D} Now Microsoft.PhoneAndModem
Printers Microsoft.Printers {2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D} Maps to Microsoft.DevicesAndPrinters
Problem Reports and Solutions Microsoft.ProblemReportsAndSolutions {FCFEECAE-EE1B-4849-AE50-685DCF7717EC} Maps to Microsoft.ActionCenter
Regional and Language Options Microsoft.RegionalAndLanguageOptions {62D8ED13-C9D0-4CE8-A914-47DD628FB1B0} Now Microsoft.RegionAndLanguage
Windows Security Center Microsoft.SecurityCenter {087DA31B-0DD3-4537-8E23-64A18591F88B} Maps to Microsoft.ActionCenter
Speech Recognition Options Microsoft.SpeechRecognitionOptions {58E3C745-D971-4081-9034-86E34B30836A} Now Microsoft.SpeechRecognition
Welcome Center Microsoft.WelcomeCenter {CB1B7F8C-C50A-4176-B604-9E24DEE8D4D1} Now Microsoft.GettingStarted
Windows Sidebar Properties Microsoft.WindowsSidebarProperties {37efd44d-ef8d-41b1-940d-96973a50e9e0} Now Microsoft.DesktopGadgets

Zardoc said:

smarteyeball said:

Zardoc said:

God knows.

I asked him, but am still waiting for an answer ....

LOL

FliGi7 said:

You forgot to include the CLSID in your prayer.

Damn, knew there had to be a reason :)

Does it annoy anyone else that a shortcut to control panel items is termed as a "God Mode"?

I've been labeling it as anything but with all my shortcuts

I can't find the key in Vista to remove Bloatmode.