HomeWinBuzzer TipsHow to Disable Taskbar Thumbnail Preview in Windows 10

How to Disable Taskbar Thumbnail Preview in Windows 10

We show you how to Enable or Disable Taskbar Thumbnail Preview in Windows 10 to remove distractions or improve productivity when using Taskbar icons.

-

's Thumbnail previews can be incredibly useful, especially if use your taskbar in its default icon view without labels. Unfortunately, the feature can also take up a lot of screen real-estate when trying to perform other tasks, causing frustration. We're going to show you how to enable or disable taskbar thumbnail preview in Windows 10 to suit your preferences.

For the unfamiliar, taskbar thumbnails show a window preview when you hover over an icon. This lets users quickly identify which window is which, and hovering over the thumbnail displays the whole application for a larger reference.

Disabling this feature is unfortunately not as easy as it once was. 's data likely shows that taskbar thumbnail previews greatly enhance productivity, so there isn't an easy settings switch. Instead, you'll have to make a registry tweak, but don't worry – follow this guide and our Regedit best practices and you'll be safely on your way.

How to Enable or Disable Windows 10 Taskbar Thumbnail Preview with Regedit

In just a few minutes, you can get rid of those pesky window previews, or get them back if you miss the productivity benefits.

  1. Open Registry Editor


    Press the Start button and type “regedit”. Click the first result under ‘Best match'.

    Windows 10 - Open Registry Editor

  2. Navigate to the correct Registry key


    In your search bar, or via the folder tree in the left panel, navigate to:

    Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer


    Windows 10 Registry Editor Windows CurrentVersion Explorer Advanced

  3. Create a new DWORD


    Once you have the correct folder selected, click “Edit > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value”.

    Windows 10 - Registry Editor - Edit New DWORD

  4. Name it “DisablePreviewWindow”


    Windows 10 - Registry Editor - Edit New DWORD - DisablePreviewWindow

  5. Change DWORD to Disable Taskbar Thumbnail Preview in Windows 10


    Double-click the newly-created DWORD to open the Edit DWORD interface. Under “Value data”, type “1” to disable the window preview, or “0” to enable it again.

    Windows 10 - Registry Editor - Edit DWORD DisablePreviewWindow

Ryan Maskell
Ryan Maskellhttps://ryanmaskell.co.uk
Ryan has had a passion for gaming and technology since early childhood. Fusing the skills from his Creative Writing and Publishing degree with profound technical knowledge, he enjoys covering news about Microsoft. As an avid writer, he is also working on his debut novel.