Move Start Menu Shortcuts Into Folders

[Distorted Vision]

Greeting ChatGPT, old friend!

I have installed StarDock Start11 using Windows 10 Style.
This gives me a start menu that I am happy with.

I have two issues:

How I make the pinned program icons bigger?

Also I am trying to move Adobe Fresco and Adobe XD into folder Adobe.
Like I'm trying to move Dropbox into folder Dropbox.

 

[Distorted Vision]

The issue I have is that it seems to only copying the "Windows Menu" shortcut. Its not copying the actual pins.
Unless I'm misunderstanding something.

 

[ChatGPT]

You’re not wrong to be suspicious — robocopy did exactly what you told it to copy, but that folder didn’t contain the Start11 “pinned grid” data you expected. Short answer: Start11 keeps its pinned layout separately (not as a collection of .lnk files in the User Pinned folder), so copying %AppData%...\User Pinned\StartMenu will only capture whatever real .lnk files Windows stores there (in your case just the single “Windows Menu” shortcut). The Start11 pinned grid/layout is stored in Start11’s settings (registry) and/or Start11’s own config, so you need to back that up too.
Why you only see “Windows Menu.lnk”

• Robocopy copied whatever was actually in %AppData%\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\StartMenu at the time — that folder contained only Windows Menu.lnk, so that’s the only thing that was backed up. Your Start11 pinned layout is not fully represented by that folder. (This matches what you saw in the robocopy output.

What to back up so you can restore everything later
1) The per‑user Start pinned .lnk files (you already did this)

• %AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\StartMenu
• Command (run as the same user):
  robocopy "%AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\StartMenu" "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<snapshot>" /E

2) The Start Menu Programs folders (where actual shortcuts live)

• Per‑user:
  %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
• All users:
  C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
• Back them up too (robocopy /E) — many Start tiles point to shortcuts in those folders.

3) Start11 settings (this is the important one)

• Start11 stores most configuration (including the Start11 layout/pinned mapping) in the user registry. The community and Stardock posts point to the Stardock key (Start8 key used by Start11); backing up that registry key preserves Start11 settings.
• Export the key (while signed in as your normal user) to a .reg file:
  reg export "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Stardock\Start8" "D:\Backups\Start11_Settings.reg"
• To restore later (same user account), import:
  reg import "D:\Backups\Start11_Settings.reg"
  then restart Explorer (or sign out/sign in) so Start11 reloads that config.

Notes about Start11’s GUI export

• Start11 has a GUI Export/Import for settings in some builds, but users have reported it can misbehave or be broken by certain 3rd‑party theming tools. If the GUI export works for you, it’s fine; otherwise use the registry export as above.

Safe step‑by‑step to make a complete backup now
1) Back up the per‑user pinned folder (you did this already with robocopy).
2) Back up the Start Menu Programs folders:
robocopy "%AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs" "D:\Backups\StartMenuPrograms\User" /E
robocopy "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs" "D:\Backups\StartMenuPrograms\AllUsers" /E
3) Export Start11 settings (registry):
reg export "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Stardock\Start8" "D:\Backups\Start11_Settings.reg"
4) Export Taskband (optional — taskbar pins / mappings):
reg export "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Taskband" "D:\Backups\Taskband.reg"
How to restore everything later (recommended order)
1) Copy back the Program shortcuts (robocopy from backup to Program folders).
2) Copy back the User Pinned .lnk files into:
%AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\StartMenu
3) Import the Start11 registry key (reg import), then restart Explorer or sign out/in.
4) If Start11 has an “Import” or “Restore” in its UI, you can try it after the registry import — but the registry import should restore the core settings.
Why the registry import is necessary

• Start11 writes its layout/mapping into its registry key, and the UI draws the pinned grid from that data — the per‑user “User Pinned” folder can be empty or incomplete if Start11 uses virtual mapping. Backing up only the User Pinned folder will often miss the Start11 layout.

If you want, I can:

• Give you the exact commands to run now (I can produce a one‑shot PowerShell script that:
  • makes a dated snapshot of the two StartMenu Programs folders,
  • copies the User Pinned folder,
  • exports the Stardock Start8 registry key, and
  • exports the Taskband key),
• Or provide the exact Restore steps you can paste later.

Which would you prefer — I’ll create the PowerShell snapshot script (and an accompanying scheduled‑task example), or just give the single reg export + robocopy commands to run manually now?

 

[Distorted Vision]

Give me the PowerShell snapshot script.

 

[ChatGPT]

Nice — below is a ready-to-run PowerShell snapshot script that:

• creates a dated snapshot folder under D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\
• copies (robocopy) the per‑user pinned Start shortcuts, the per‑user Start Menu Programs folder and the All Users Start Menu Programs folder
• exports the Start11/Stardock registry keys (if present) and the Explorer Taskband mapping
• logs actions to a snapshot_log.txt inside the snapshot folder

Important notes before running

• Run this while signed in as the normal user account whose Start / Start11 settings you want to back up. Exporting HKCU works only for the currently signed-in user. If you run it as Administrator under a different account it will export that account’s HKCU instead.
• The script uses robocopy (Windows built-in). It requires D:\Backups to be available — change $BaseBackup path if you prefer another drive.
• Restoring registry keys will overwrite current Start11/Taskband settings — keep the files safe and restore only when necessary.

Save and run

1. Copy the script into a file named Backup-StartMenuSnapshot.ps1
2. Right‑click the file → Run with PowerShell (or run from a PowerShell prompt) while signed-in as your user.
3. After the script finishes open the snapshot folder (D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp>) and check the files & snapshot_log.txt.

Script (paste into a .ps1 file):

# Backup-StartMenuSnapshot.ps1
# Snapshot per-user Start pinned shortcuts, Start Menu Programs and Start11/Taskband registry keys
# Run as the user whose Start layout you want to back up (do NOT run elevated under a different account) Set-StrictMode -Version Latest # --- CONFIG ---
$BaseBackup = "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins" # change if you want a different base path
$Timestamp = Get-Date -Format "yyyy-MM-dd_HH-mm-ss"
$DestRoot = Join-Path $BaseBackup $Timestamp
$LogPath = Join-Path $DestRoot "snapshot_log.txt" # Sources
$UserPinned = Join-Path $env:APPDATA "Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\StartMenu"
$UserPrograms = Join-Path $env:APPDATA "Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs"
$AllUsersPrograms= "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs" # Registry keys to export (HKCU keys)
$RegKeys = @( "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Stardock\Start8", "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Stardock\Start11", "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Taskband") # Robocopy options
$RobocopyOptions = "/E /COPY:DAT /R:3 /W:5 /V" # --- FUNCTIONS ---
function Log { param([string]$Text) $timestamp = Get-Date -Format "yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss" $line = "$timestamp`t$Text" $line | Tee-Object -FilePath $LogPath -Append Write-Host $line
} function Run-Robocopy { param([string]$src,[string]$dst) if (-not (Test-Path $src) { Log "SOURCE NOT FOUND: $src" return } New-Item -Path $dst -ItemType Directory -Force | Out-Null $args = @( '"'+$src+'"', '"'+$dst+'"') -join ' ' $cmd = "robocopy $src $dst $RobocopyOptions" Log "Running: $cmd" # Start-Process to capture exit code & robocopy $src $dst $RobocopyOptions | Tee-Object -FilePath (Join-Path $dst "robocopy_output.txt") $rc = $LASTEXITCODE Log "robocopy exit code: $rc"
} # --- MAIN ---
New-Item -Path $DestRoot -ItemType Directory -Force | Out-Null
"Snapshot created: $DestRoot" | Out-File -FilePath $LogPath -Encoding utf8 Log "Starting snapshot..."
Log "User: $env:USERNAME"
Log "User profile: $env:USERPROFILE" # 1) Copy per-user pinned Start shortcuts
Log "Copying User Pinned StartMenu: $UserPinned -> $DestRoot\StartMenu"
Run-Robocopy -src $UserPinned -dst (Join-Path $DestRoot "StartMenu") # 2) Copy per-user Start Menu Programs
Log "Copying User Start Menu Programs: $UserPrograms -> $DestRoot\UserPrograms"
Run-Robocopy -src $UserPrograms -dst (Join-Path $DestRoot "UserPrograms") # 3) Copy All Users Start Menu Programs
Log "Copying All Users Start Menu Programs: $AllUsersPrograms -> $DestRoot\AllUsersPrograms"
Run-Robocopy -src $AllUsersPrograms -dst (Join-Path $DestRoot "AllUsersPrograms") # 4) Export registry keys (if present)
foreach ($rk in $RegKeys) { # convert to Registry provider path check $rProviderPath = $rk -replace '^HKCU','HKCU:' $exists = $false try { $exists = (Test-Path "Registry::$rk") } catch { $exists = $false } if ($exists) { $safeName = ($rk -replace '[\\: ]','_').Trim('_') $regFile = Join-Path $DestRoot ("$safeName.reg") Log "Exporting registry key $rk to $regFile" # Use reg.exe to export (works in all PowerShell versions) & reg.exe export $rk $regFile /y | Out-Null if (Test-Path $regFile) { Log "Export OK: $regFile" } else { Log "Export FAILED for $rk" } } else { Log "Registry key not found: $rk" }
} # 5) Save environment snapshot (list of files in folders)
Log "Listing contents of backed-up folders..."
Get-ChildItem -Path (Join-Path $DestRoot "*") -Recurse -Force | Select-Object FullName,Length,LastWriteTime | Out-File (Join-Path $DestRoot "contents_listing.txt") Log "Snapshot complete: $DestRoot"
Log "Check the log file at: $LogPath"
Log "To restore: copy files back to the same locations and import registry .reg files with 'reg import', then restart explorer or sign out/in." # End script

How to restore later (brief)

• Copy back each folder from the snapshot to the original path (run as same user). Example (Command Prompt as user):
  robocopy "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp>\StartMenu" "%AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\StartMenu" /E
• Import saved registry files (run as the same user):
  reg import "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp>\HKCU_SOFTWARE_Stardock_Start8.reg"
  reg import "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp>\HKCU_SOFTWARE_Microsoft_Windows_CurrentVersion_Explorer_Taskband.reg"
• Then restart Explorer: Task Manager → right‑click Windows Explorer → Restart (or use Stop-Process/Start-Process).

Would you like a scheduled task XML next that runs the script nightly and keeps the last N snapshots (rotation)?

 

[Distorted Vision]

No need for scheduled task. We're all done here.
ChatGPT, wrap things up.

 

[ChatGPT]

All done — nice work getting everything back the way you want it. Quick wrap-up and next‑steps so you’ve got a single place to look back at.
What we fixed

• Restored your Start menu layout: Reset to defaults in Start11 recovered your pinned grid.
• Hid unwanted Adobe apps in Start11 (Adobe Fresco / Adobe XD) so they don’t show in the Start list.
• Backed up the currently available Start pins and Start shortcuts to D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp> using robocopy — your successful snapshot was created at D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\2025-11-04_03-10 and contains Windows Menu.lnk (that was the only .lnk in the User Pinned folder at the time).
• Delivered a PowerShell snapshot script that:
  • snapshots per‑user pinned .lnk folder,
  • snapshots per‑user and All Users Start Menu Programs folders,
  • exports Start11 (Stardock) registry key(s) and Explorer Taskband registry key,
  • saves logs/listings in the snapshot folder for later inspection.

Why you saw only “Windows Menu.lnk”

• Start11 stores its layout/mapping in its settings/registry. The per‑user User Pinned folder only contained one .lnk at the time, so robocopy correctly copied just that file. The Start11 registry export in the snapshot is what will restore the Start11 layout later.

How to restore later (brief)
1) Copy snapshot files back to the same locations (run as the same user):

• User pinned .lnk: %AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\StartMenu
• User programs: %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
• All users programs: C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
  Example: robocopy "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp>\StartMenu" "%AppData%...\User Pinned\StartMenu" /E
  2) Import registry exports (run as the same user):
• reg import "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp>\HKCU_SOFTWARE_Stardock_Start8.reg"
• reg import "D:\Backups\StartMenuPins\<timestamp>\HKCU_SOFTWARE_Microsoft_Windows_CurrentVersion_Explorer_Taskband.reg"
  3) Restart Explorer (Task Manager → Restart Windows Explorer) or sign out/in.

Short suggestions

• Keep the snapshot folder and the Start11 settings .reg export together (that combination restores Start11 + OS shortcuts reliably).
• If you continue to tweak Start11, export its settings (Configure Start11 → Export) after each major layout change and store alongside your D:\Backups snapshots.
• Check your Acronis backup profile to ensure AppData\Roaming is included if you want these per‑user items in your image backups.

If you want later

• I can produce a one‑line restore script you can run to reapply a chosen snapshot, or
• Walk you through importing the registry snapshots safely, or
• Make the scheduled‑task XML (you said you don’t need it now, but I can provide it anytime).

Thanks — glad we got everything sorted. If anything else comes up, ping me and I’ll jump back in.