My first-ever Windows experience was Windows XP. So, like most people who grew up using it, Windows XP is still my favorite Windows operating system to date. I might just be a little bit nostalgic, I know, I know. But XP wasn’t just popular because of nostalgia. It bridged the gap between the unstable consumer operating systems that came before it, like Windows 95 and Windows ME, and the professional-grade Windows 2000.
It was so good that many people skipped its successor, Windows Vista (although Vista was actually horrible). Windows XP went on to reign for more than a decade before Microsoft finally ended support for it. In addition to all that, Windows XP also made a lot of us familiar with several major system tools that have somehow survived to this day and are still being used on Windows 11.
Microsoft has replaced or redesigned plenty of Windows components over the years, but these tools keep hanging around because, in some cases, the newer alternatives simply aren’t as useful.
Control Panel outlived its own replacement
Settings covers the basics, but some options still redirect back here
If there’s one Windows component that perfectly represents Microsoft’s slow transition away from its older interface, it’s Control Panel. Control Panel has been around for decades, and Microsoft has been trying to phase it out in favor of the Settings app for years. Every major Windows update seems to move another collection of options from Control Panel into Settings.
The problem is that Microsoft still hasn’t finished the job. The Settings app has become the primary place for changing Windows settings. And for basic things like display options, personalization, network settings, Bluetooth, and Windows Update, that’s where I go first.
But whenever I need to change something more specific, I still find myself opening Control Panel. Things like advanced network configuration, certain power settings, installed programs, user accounts, and some older system options can still be easier to find there. In fact, some options still open the old Control Panel interface even when I start from Settings.
Microsoft clearly wants Settings to eventually replace Control Panel completely, but it might take a bit more time to get there. At this point, I wouldn’t even be surprised if Windows 12 arrives and I still have to type “control” into Run for some obscure setting.
The Storage page only shows me half the picture
Disk Management is where actual partition work still happens
Windows 11’s Settings app actually has a pretty decent Storage section. I can see how much space is being used, find out what’s taking up room on my drive, manage temporary files, and configure storage-related features.
However, all the storage information that shows up in the Settings app is merely surface-level. Meanwhile, Disk Management lets me see things on a much deeper level, including physical and logical drives, partitions, volumes, and their file systems. I can even perform tasks such as creating and deleting partitions, formatting volumes, changing drive letters, and shrinking or extending partitions where supported.
So, if I’m installing a new SSD, rearranging partitions, preparing a drive, or troubleshooting why a volume isn’t showing up correctly in File Explorer, I sure won’t be going to the Settings app.
msinfo32 tells me what the About page won’t
One window, every component information
The About page for Windows 11 is enough when I just want to check my processor, installed RAM, Windows edition, or system type. Sometimes I need much more than that. The built-in msinfo32 utility (System Information) gives me a much more detailed overview of the computer, including hardware resources, components, software environment, drivers, and system configuration.
It’s useful when I’m trying to figure out exactly what hardware or software is involved in a problem. Instead of opening several different Settings pages and piecing everything together, I can get a much broader picture from one window.
The interface looks dated compared with Windows 11’s Settings app, but it gives me information that the modern interface doesn’t present. For troubleshooting, that extra detail is often more valuable than a cleaner design.
Some settings only exist in the Registry
If Windows doesn’t give me a toggle, the Registry usually has one
The Registry Editor is probably the most intimidating tool on this list, and for good reason. It’s powerful, but changing the wrong value can mess up your entire system, so I always make sure I know what I’m changing before modifying anything. Still, there’s a reason Registry Editor has survived for so long.
A huge number of Windows behaviors and configuration options are stored in the Registry. Some settings that Microsoft doesn’t show through the normal interface can be changed by modifying the appropriate Registry value. I’ve used it for everything from disabling annoying Windows behaviors to changing options that simply aren’t available in Settings.
It’s also behind many of the Windows tweaks you see in troubleshooting guides. If there’s a feature that Windows doesn’t provide a normal toggle for, there’s a decent chance someone has found a Registry setting that controls it.
Nothing has actually replaced Device Manager
That yellow warning icon still means the same thing it always has
Windows has gotten much better at managing hardware automatically. When you plug in a keyboard, for instance, Windows will usually recognize it and install the necessary drivers without requiring me to do anything. But when there’s an issue with that device, there’s nowhere else you want to be other than Device Manager.
Sure, you can do some hardware troubleshooting from the Settings app, but most of the time, it won’t even work. You’ll still end up going to Device Manager at that point. It gives you a detailed list of the hardware installed on my PC, organized into categories such as display adapters, network adapters, processors, storage controllers, sound devices, and USB controllers.
You can then check whether a device has a driver problem, update or roll back a driver, disable a device, uninstall it, view its properties, and inspect hardware-related information. The yellow warning icon is also something we’ve all become very familiar with over the years. When I see one in Device Manager, I immediately know something isn’t right.
Windows moved on, but not everywhere
Windows has changed so much since XP, as it should. The interface looks completely different, Settings has replaced many of the old configuration pages, and Microsoft has redesigned countless parts of the operating system. Yet these tools are still here.
I’m not saying the newer Windows interfaces are bad. Settings is much easier to use for everyday configuration, and I wouldn’t want to go back to navigating old Windows menus for everything. But there are certain jobs where these older tools still make more sense.
