Top 5 Missing Windows 11 Features Users Are Demanding Restored

Three years after the debut of Windows 11, the conversation around Microsoft’s flagship operating system remains as heated as ever. While significant design overhauls, performance optimizations, and cloud integration have been championed by Microsoft’s marketing, a powerful cross-section of long-time users argue that dearly loved features vanished without suitable replacements. The outcry isn’t a mere social media blip—these complaints dominate Microsoft’s own Feedback Hub, where tens of thousands of users have repeatedly voiced their demands. Their requests highlight lingering friction between Microsoft’s ambition to “modernize” Windows and the practical needs of those who rely on nuanced customization and control. Let’s explore the five most-wanted Windows 11 features—currently missing in action—and what their ongoing absence means for users and Microsoft itself.

The Most-Wanted Windows 11 Features: What Users Demand​

1. Freedom to Move the Taskbar​

The taskbar may seem like an unremarkable feature, but its flexibility has long defined the Windows experience. For decades, users could drag the taskbar to any edge of the screen: bottom, top, left, or right. This simple freedom allowed unique workflows—whether for accessibility, maximizing vertical space, or personal taste. With Windows 11, Microsoft decreed the taskbar would remain anchored to the bottom, removing decades of user empowerment with a single design choice.
Not surprisingly, the Feedback Hub’s top-voted request calls for the return of a movable taskbar. As of mid-2024, this post had amassed more than 24,000 votes and over 2,000 comments. Some users voice frustration, others outright anger. “The move taskbar feature is missing now for years. Why has this not been changed yet?” wrote one. The biting criticism isn’t limited to nostalgia; for some, productivity and even accessibility hinge on customizing this core UI element.
Microsoft’s response—typical of its engagement with contentious feedback—has been noncommittal. The official reply reads, “We’ll be continuing to evolve Windows 11 and its features based on feedback like this, so thank you so much for taking the time to give us your feedback.” To date, no genuine progress or roadmap for restoring this functionality has been publicized.

Why Does It Matter?​

Restoring taskbar mobility isn’t just about aesthetics, but user-centric computing. Many vertical monitors, for example, become less functional when forced to employ a bottom-fixed taskbar, especially in multi-display setups. Power users lament the loss of muscle memory spanning two decades, while some visually impaired users cite the need for flexibility as an accessibility must-have.

Technical Roadblocks or Design Dogma?​

Was this removal a technical necessity, or simply a drive for design consistency? Microsoft has remained vague. Some engineers hint that deep architectural changes in the new taskbar implementation—meant to accommodate new animations and under-the-hood improvements—made side or top positioning complex to re-add. But for veteran users and system tweak enthusiasts, that’s cold comfort. The optics remain: Microsoft prioritized aesthetic coherence over user agency.

2. Option to Remove the “Recommended” Section in the Start Menu​

Few UI changes in Windows 11 have been as universally decried as the “Recommended” section of the Start menu. Designed to surface recently opened files or suggested apps, the intent is to save clicks and expose new features. In practice, tens of thousands of users see it as wasted space, or worse, a stalking horse for advertising.
The Feedback Hub request to “turn off the Recommended section in the Start menu and have the whole area disappear” currently stands as the second-most voted, with over 17,400 endorsements and hundreds of impassioned comments. Many users describe it as redundant—recent files already appear in File Explorer—and some bristle at what they perceive as creeping commercialization of the OS. “No, I don’t want to reduce the size, I want to hide it, forever, for good,” summarizes one particularly frustrated comment.
Microsoft’s response acknowledges the feedback, stating that while total removal isn’t supported, users can manage the section’s content to some degree via Settings > Personalization > Start. The introduction of a “More pins” layout in Windows 11 23H2 update does let people shrink the Recommended area to a single row, but the space itself cannot be reclaimed for more app shortcuts.

Advertising Creep and Privacy Worries​

Underlying user resistance are broader fears: Will this space become a vehicle for sponsored content? How much control does Microsoft want over what surfaces on users’ desktops? Concerns about privacy and autonomy—core to Windows’ appeal—resonate throughout the hundreds of comments that accompany the feature request.

Critically, Is Microsoft Listening?​

While incremental improvements have been made, notably with pin layout options, Microsoft has shown little inclination to allow complete removal of Recommended. The persistent rumor that further Start menu personalization will be tied to forthcoming enterprise SKUs, or even a Windows subscription model, only stokes fears that control will remain elusive for home and pro users.

3. User-Defined Search Providers for Web Queries​

Windows search, long the workhorse of finding files or launching apps, has morphed over the years into a web-integrated assistant. On Windows 11, the moment you type a query, Windows search feeds the text to Microsoft’s Bing search engine and opens web results in the Edge browser—regardless of your chosen default, unless you’re in the European Economic Area (EEA), where regulatory pressure recently forced Microsoft to offer browser choice.
The Feedback Hub request to “add an option for Windows search to use my preferred search provider” sits at over 11,000 votes and has drawn widespread support, particularly in North America, where Bing’s marketshare remains low compared to competitors like Google or DuckDuckGo. Frustration runs deep; as one user noted, “The EU rule should apply in the United States, heck, everywhere in the world.”
Microsoft’s current policy means that, outside the EEA, web search from the Start menu is inextricably tied to Bing and Edge. Recent builds in Europe pilot a “browser and provider selection” prompt, but there are no announced plans for a global rollout.

User Choice vs. Platform Lock-In​

The technical justification centers on “end-to-end experience optimization” and “security,” per Microsoft’s public statements. However, detractors see it as a classic case of vendor lock-in, echoing the antitrust dramas of the Internet Explorer era. For IT professionals, this policy complicates deployment—users expect their default browser to work everywhere, not just from taskbar or desktop icons.

Regulatory and Legal Backdrop​

This controversy is entwined with global debates over digital markets. The Digital Markets Act in the EU has forced tech giants, including Microsoft, to break open entrenched defaults and offer genuine user choice. Legal watchers suggest that unless American or global antitrust enforcement intensifies, status quo will continue—meaning Windows search equals Bing and Edge for the vast majority of the world.

4. Lower Minimum CPU (and Hardware) Requirements​

Of all the shakeups delivered by Windows 11, none sent more shockwaves through the user base than drastically tightened processor and TPM (Trusted Platform Module) requirements. In one sweep, hardware that ran Windows 10 admirably—including expensive gaming rigs and workstations—were rendered “unsupported” by the new OS. The Feedback Hub’s call to “lower the CPU/Processor requirements for Windows 11” has pulled in more than 8,400 votes and is a flashpoint for both technical and environmental concern.
User complaints highlight multiple angles: frustration over perfectly usable machines being locked out of official updates, suspicion that the requirements are more about boosting new PC sales than genuine security, and environmentalists warning of needless e-waste on a massive scale. “Millions of PCs are going to end up in the landfill for no good reason,” warns one comment, speaking to real anxiety as the Windows 10 end-of-support date looms ever closer.
Microsoft’s official stance remains unchanged, emphasizing security and future supportability for features like Windows Hello, virtualization-based security, and Secure Boot. Still, some independent studies suggest that the exclusion of many late-model Intel and AMD CPUs offers only minimal real-world gains for most users—especially those willing to forgo some advanced security controls.

Workarounds Exist, But At What Cost?​

Technically savvy users have discovered registry hacks and third-party tools to install Windows 11 on older hardware, but these routes are fraught with risks: loss of future updates, unsupported drivers, or instability. For businesses or non-experts, such paths are nonstarters.

Environmental and Ethical Dilemmas​

Perhaps the most damning long-term consequence is environmental. As right-to-repair and anti-e-waste campaigns gather steam worldwide, Microsoft’s stance on hardware obsolescence risks not just user ire but public scrutiny. Does the world need more e-waste in the name of marginal security gains?

5. Taskbar “Never Combine” Mode: Unfinished and Frustrating​

A seemingly small but crucial feature for power users is the ability to avoid combining app windows on the taskbar. In Windows 10, users could choose never to combine buttons, leaving each window as a persistent entry for rapid access. Windows 11 reintroduced a partial “never-combine” option after heavy user outcry, but the implementation continues to disappoint: icons bunch into an overflow menu if space runs out, labels are forced on (eating precious horizontal pixels), and dynamic icon widths cause constant UI “jumping” as applications update.
“Update the Windows 11 taskbar to support never combining app icons and hiding labels” sits at over 8,000 votes, many echoing the same theme: Microsoft brought back the checkbox, but not the complete experience. “Why are labels forced at all when choosing never-combine? It eats too much space,” asks one reviewer, pointing to persistent workflow inefficiencies.
Microsoft’s incremental changes (first introducing overflow menus, then restoring some label options) have been seen as half-measures. For multitaskers, resource-intensive creators, and anyone else who relies on taskbar granularity, Windows 11’s current approach remains a net regression.

Is Full Restoration Possible?​

While aspects of the old experience may return with sustained feedback, Microsoft’s reluctance so far suggests that “legacy” behaviors will always be compromised to suit a sleeker, more controlled interface. Whether out of engineering complexity or a desire to nudge users toward new behaviors, the frustrating result is that Windows 11 seems unwilling to fully trust users with deeper customization.

Unpacking Microsoft’s Logic: Modernization vs. Backlash​

Why Did These Features Disappear?​

The short answer: Microsoft bet that a cleaner, unified design and streamlined codebase would ultimately benefit most users, simplify support, and future-proof the platform for hybrid work and cloud integration. Windows 11’s design borrows heavily from smartphones—removing UI “clutter,” reducing entry points for new users, and pushing cloud-backed features front and center.
But while these choices may help drive consistency and supportability (and perhaps enable thinner Surface devices or ARM-based laptops), the backlash is real. Windows’ historical strength is rooted not in its default settings but in the latitude it grants users—an ethos often summed up as “your PC, your way.” Many of Windows 11's most painful removals or changes contravene that spirit.

Microsoft’s Feedback Loop​

The persistence of these five feature requests—garnering over 75,000 votes according to third-party analysis—shows that the community isn’t merely nostalgic but wants practical, time-tested options restored. Every new release of Windows 11 brings fresh hope (and, more often, fresh exasperation) as limited tweaks are rolled out, and the most desired changes remain just out of reach.
What’s more, responses on the Feedback Hub remain boilerplate and vague. A representative example: “We appreciate your feedback and will continue evolving Windows 11 based on user suggestions.” But with little sign of decisive action, users are left skeptical that “appreciate your feedback” means anything more than “We’re ignoring this.”

BleepingComputer Confirms the Groundswell​

Reporting by outlets like BleepingComputer confirms that these five requests alone account for well over 75,000 votes and are continually refreshed with new comments and complaints each week. Independent checks of the Feedback Hub show no meaningful reduction in discussion volume or urgency around these topics, indicating that Microsoft’s efforts to “modernize” have failed to win over a critical segment of its install base.

The Risk for Microsoft: Alienating Core Users​

For a company as intricately connected to business workflows and professional users as Microsoft, the cost of ignoring this feedback could be steep. Enterprise IT decisions may stall as organizations wait for clarity on future support for legacy hardware. Power users—the engineers, creators, administrators, and enthusiasts who form the backbone of Windows evangelism—may increasingly look to other operating systems or delay upgrades, shrinking the platform’s mindshare.
Every Windows release has its grumbling skeptics, but the scale and persistence of the Windows 11 backlash is different. These aren’t obscure luxury features; they’re foundational qualities of the OS for millions.

The Opportunity: Rebuild Trust Through Transparency​

Microsoft has periodically shown that it can be responsive when public outcry grows loud enough. The eventual (albeit imperfect) return of the “never-combine taskbar” in Windows 11 is proof. Similarly, the adaptation to EU search and browser defaults under regulatory pressure shows that technical hurdles can be overcome when necessary.
What could turn the tide? Transparency, a clear roadmap, and better engagement. Releasing specifics about why a feature is gone, what stands in the way of restoration, or what substitutes may be possible would do more to win hearts and minds than platitudes alone. Even simple admissions of missteps—something Apple was forced to embrace with macOS’s “butterfly keyboard” controversies—can restore goodwill.

Looking Ahead: Will Microsoft Reconsider?​

While Windows 11 continues to evolve, with new features, AI integration, and cloud services, its success will be measured as much by what it restores as what it introduces. Flexibility, customization, and trust lie at the heart of the Windows brand, and there is still time for Microsoft to reclaim that mantle—if it chooses to listen more closely to its users, not just its own design instincts.
For anyone eyeing Windows 11 in the coming year, the state of these five features—and Microsoft’s response—may tell you more about the long-term direction of Windows than any marketing campaign. Real improvement isn’t about shiny new features; it’s about ensuring the foundational ones work for everyone, not just those willing to embrace change for its own sake.

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Source: BleepingComputer Windows 11 users want these five features back