Start Menu Organizer

A Windows Start Menu management tool. Clean up junk, detect broken shortcuts, remove duplicates, organize by category, and take full control of your Start Menu.

Features

Detection & Analysis

• Broken Shortcut Detection - Identifies shortcuts pointing to files/folders that no longer exist
• Duplicate Detection - Finds multiple shortcuts targeting the same executable
• Junk Detection - Flags uninstall links, readme files, help docs, license files, and other clutter
• Target Path Display - See exactly where each shortcut points

Cleanup Actions

Organization

• 11 Built-in Categories: Development, Browsers, Communication, Media, Graphics, Office, Utilities, Gaming, System, Security, Networking
• Move to Category - Manually organize selected items
• Auto-Organize All - Automatically sort recognized apps into category folders based on pattern matching

Batch Rename

• Strip Version Numbers - Remove "v1.2.3", "2024", "(1.0.0)" from names
• Clean Up Names - Remove "x64", "64-bit", "Microsoft", extra spaces, "- Shortcut" suffix
• Find & Replace - Custom text replacement in shortcut names

User Interface

• DataGrid View with sortable columns: Name, Type, Status, Location, Target
• Search/Filter (Ctrl+F) - Filter by name, path, or target in real-time
• Filter Toggles - Show/hide Shortcuts, Folders, Junk, Broken, Duplicates
• Sort Options - Sort by Name, Type, Status, Location, or Target
• Preview Mode - See what actions would do without executing them
• Progress Bar - Visual feedback for long operations
• Activity Log - Color-coded operation history

Safety Features

• Undo Support (Ctrl+Z) - Recover from accidental deletions
• Backup/Restore - Create timestamped backups before making changes
• Preview Mode - Dry-run any operation first
• Confirmation Dialogs - No destructive action without explicit approval

Customization (Settings Tab)

• Add/remove junk detection patterns
• Edit category patterns for auto-organization
• Export/Import configuration as JSON
• Reset to defaults

Installation

No installation required. Simply download and run.

Option 1: Direct Download

1. Download StartMenuOrganizerPro.ps1
2. Right-click and select "Run with PowerShell"

Option 2: From PowerShell

.\StartMenuOrganizerPro.ps1

Running as Administrator

For full access to both User and System Start Menus, run as Administrator:

1. Right-click PowerShell → "Run as Administrator"
2. Navigate to script location and run it

Requirements

• Windows 10 or Windows 11
• PowerShell 5.1 or higher (included with Windows)
• No additional modules or dependencies

Usage

Quick Start

1. Launch the script (as Admin for full access)
2. The tool scans both User and System Start Menus by default
3. Use the filter checkboxes to focus on problem items (Junk, Broken, Duplicates)
4. Select items and apply actions, or use bulk operations

Keyboard Shortcuts

Right-Click Context Menu

• Delete / Rename
• Open File Location
• Open Target Location
• Move to Category (submenu with all categories)
• Select All / Select None

Recommended Workflow

1. Create a Backup - Click "Backup" before making changes
2. Enable Preview Mode - Check "Preview Mode" to test operations safely
3. Remove Broken First - Click "Remove Broken Shortcuts" to clean invalid links
4. Remove Junk - Click "Remove All Junk" to clear clutter
5. Handle Duplicates - Click "Remove Duplicates" to deduplicate
6. Flatten or Organize - Choose your preferred structure:
   • "Move All to Root" for a flat structure
   • "Auto-Organize All" for category folders
7. Clean Names - Use batch rename to polish shortcut names

Start Menu Locations

The tool manages shortcuts in these directories:

Note: System Start Menu modifications require Administrator privileges.

Configuration

Junk Patterns

Default patterns that flag items as junk:

*uninstall*, *readme*, *help*, *documentation*, *manual*,
*license*, *website*, *support*, *visit *, *about *,
*release notes*, *changelog*, *what's new*, *getting started*,
*user guide*, *online *, *web link*, *url*, *register*,
*feedback*, *update*, *check for update*

Category Patterns

Each category has wildcard patterns for auto-organization. Examples:

• Development: Visual Studio*, VS Code*, Git*, Python*, Docker*
• Browsers: Google Chrome*, Firefox*, Edge*, Brave*
• Gaming: Steam*, Epic Games*, GOG*, Xbox*

Export/Import Config

Save your customized patterns:

1. Go to Settings tab
2. Click "Export Config"
3. Save the JSON file

Data Storage

Troubleshooting

"Access Denied" errors

• Run the script as Administrator for System Start Menu access

Items not appearing

• Click "Refresh" or press F5
• Check filter toggles - some types may be hidden

Undo not working

• Undo only works for deletions made in the current session
• For older changes, use "Restore" to recover from a backup

Script won't run

Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser

Related Tools

Start Menu Organizer cleans up and reorganizes what's already in your Start Menu — removing junk, broken links, and duplicates, and sorting apps into folders. If you want to save, deploy, or restore a Start Menu layout across machines or after Windows updates, see the companion tool:

Start Menu Manager — Export/import Start Menu layouts and taskbar configurations, manage named profiles, and perform full backups. Use Start Menu Organizer to clean up first, then Start Menu Manager to preserve and deploy the result.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Feel free to submit issues and pull requests.

License

MIT License — see the LICENSE file for details.

Tip: Always create a backup before bulk operations. While undo is available, backups provide the safest recovery option.