Applies to Windows 8, Windows RT

Where is Control Panel?

In Windows 8 and Windows RT, there are a few different ways to find and change your settings: Control Panel, the Settings charm, PC settings, and Search. Most of the settings that you'll want to change can be found in PC settings.

Watch a video about finding and changing settings. (To view captions in your language, tap or click the Closed captioning button Closed Captioning button.)

To open PC settings

  • Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings.
    (If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.)

    PC settingsPC settings

    In PC settings, you can personalize the Start and lock screens, customize the Search and Share charms, add user accounts, and change various other settings.

To open Control Panel

  • Open Control Panel by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Control Panel in the search box, tapping or clicking Apps, and then tapping or clicking Control Panel.

    Control PanelControl Panel

    Control Panel has familiar settings like themes and desktop backgrounds, Family Safety, screen resolution, and more.

To open the Settings charm

  • Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Settings.
    (If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and then click Settings.)

    In the Settings charm, you'll find settings, help, and info for the app you're in, plus a few common PC settings—network connection, volume, brightness, notifications, power, and keyboard. These PC settings are the same no matter where you are in Windows, but the app settings are different in every app.

To search for settings

If you're not sure where to find the settings you're looking for, you can search your PC.

  1. Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Search.
    (If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and then click Search.)

  2. Enter a word or phrase in the Search box, tap or click Settings, and then select from the list of results.