PowerToys 0.96.0 released
Microsoft has released the latest version of PowerToys, its collection of utilities for boosting Windows efficiency. This update introduces several new features alongside solid improvements that users can explore right away.
The Advanced Paste tool now offers even greater flexibility, connecting to multiple AI model providers like Azure OpenAI, the standard OpenAI service, Google Gemini, Mistral, Foundry Local, and Ollama. This change means you've got more avenues for leveraging advanced paste functionality in your daily work, unlocking intriguing possibilities.
Microsoft also improved the Command Palette itself; it's now faster and operates more smoothly than before. Better file search filters, improved clipboard history metadata display, and a cleaner context-menu styling contribute to a much more seamless way of navigating commands. Plus, this update includes dozens of bug fixes, ensuring things just run better.
PowerRename gets a neat new trick too: it can now pull photo metadata, such as camera details or GPS coordinates, right into your renaming process using pattern-matching. This is especially handy for photographers tackling large image collections and wanting to organize them based on specific info quickly.
Another performance win comes from the Command Palette's search field, which feels much snappier when you navigate context menus or start typing a query; results pop up faster than in previous builds now. Fallback options like math calculations and the classic Run command also benefit from quicker loading times.
PowerToys itself looks better with this release, too, thanks to some behind-the-scenes design tweaks. The Command Palette's settings page has been reorganized for easier digging into specific options. Activation-key choices are grouped under an expander now, while extension settings are presented more clearly overall.
Beyond the headline changes, numerous smaller updates are sprinkled across other PowerToys tools as well. For example, Find My Mouse doesn't become quite so intrusive anymore; it won't disrupt your active application or make the cursor turn to a busy icon like before when activated. The Hosts File Editor now has customizable backup settings, letting you fine-tune frequency and location preferences and decide on auto-deletion policies.
For developers using PowerToys, there are several maintenance-related fixes that add up: clearing build warnings in Command Palette projects helps prevent future snags, and logging improvements make handling exception messages less frustrating. These kinds of changes help significantly bolster the overall stability and speed we're seeing with this version.
Notably added is a command-line interface for Peek file previewing, bringing that capability to more places easily via the terminal or other commands. The photo metadata extraction feature in PowerRename was already mentioned as being useful for organization, but it's worth highlighting again specifically because it really helps manage image files based on different criteria.
Microsoft also focused on accessibility within this update. New features help screen readers associate controls with labels more reliably and ensure buttons have accessible names for everyone's better navigation.
Microsoft continues its dedication to refining PowerToys as a utility suite, making the latest release another strong step in that direction. The company has simultaneously upgraded its development infrastructure, migrating build agents from Windows Server 2019 to Server 2022 and giving them more space via an expanded P: drive for release builds. This update tackles disk pressure issues head-on.
Throughout this process, the developers have focused on delivering a powerful set of tools that just keep getting better. As always, you can see Microsoft's commitment here in PowerToys' ongoing evolution towards higher quality.
These infrastructure changes and .NET package updates for security fixes further contribute to PowerToys' overall stability and performance, making it an even more reliable resource for Windows power users now.
Release PowerToys v0.96.0
