ContextMenuMgr

Project Overview

Context Menu Manager Plus is a context menu manager for Windows. Rather than a simple on/off switch, it first intercepts menu entries added by third-party software and queues them on a "Pending Review" page so you decide what stays, so installing an app no longer floods your right-click menu. It manages both classic context menus and the new Windows 11 menus, and adds global search, registry protection, and in-depth Shell Extension analysis. The program runs as a backend service, a front-end UI, and a tray host working together, built with .NET 10, WPF, and Named Pipe IPC.

Turn the Windows context menu from "whatever software wants" back into "whatever the user allows."

Key Features

• Intercept then review: newly detected entries are disabled or blocked first, then shown in a review queue where you allow, keep disabled, or remove them
• Classic menu management: covers files, folders, directory background, desktop background, drives, libraries, This PC, and the Recycle Bin, with enable, disable, delete, and undo delete
• Windows 11 menu management: enumerates new Win11 entries with package name, publisher, context type, and COM Server path, with per-user enable and disable
• External change detection: finds newly added third-party entries, known entries that were restored or deleted, and registry/state mismatches
• Global search and filtering: find and jump by title, command, registry path, file path, CLSID, or Win11 package info
• File type and rules pages: covers shortcuts, UWP shortcuts, executables, custom extensions, directory types, and more
• Registry protection: restrict third-party writes to context-menu registry keys to reduce silent additions
• Special menu support: covers the New menu, Send To, Win + X, and other entries beyond ordinary menus
• Deep analysis: probes third-party Shell Extensions in an isolated ProbeHost process, so failures do not affect ordinary menu management

Target Audience

• Windows users who are tired of third-party apps filling their context menu
• Advanced users who want centralized context menu control
• System administrators who need to clean up context menus in bulk

Quick Start

1. Download the installer matching your system architecture from Releases; for most devices pick x64-self-contained
2. You can also install via a package manager, e.g. winget install PLFJY.ContextMenuMgrPlus, or run scoop bucket add PLFJY https://github.com/PLFJY/scoop-bucket.git then scoop install PLFJY/ContextMenuMgrPlus
3. Launch the app and open "Pending Review" to handle intercepted new entries, choosing allow, keep disabled, or remove
4. On the file, folder, directory background, and other pages, enable, disable, delete, or undo delete entries
5. Use global search to locate a target entry by title, command, or registry path
6. In Settings, adjust language, theme, launch with Windows, and enable registry protection as needed

Core Advantages

• Intercept first: new entries do not take effect by default, returning the decision to the user
• Two tracks in one: classic shell/shellex menus and Windows 11 menus are managed together
• Fast location: global search across many fields makes complex menus easy to navigate
• Long-term reliability: a backend service and tray host keep the takeover active across restarts

System Requirements

Item	Requirement
OS	Windows
Runtime	.NET 10, not needed separately when using the self-contained installer
Installation	GitHub Releases, WinGet, or Scoop

Notes

• This project modifies the registry; understand the impact before use
• Delete, disable, and ACL protection may be limited by system permissions, security software, or Windows protections
• Some protected registry root keys cannot have their ACLs modified normally, which is a Windows limitation
• With registry protection enabled, some app or driver installers may be unable to write context-menu keys
• Icon, display name, and CLSID metadata parsing are best-effort and may not cover every third-party entry