Set a default tile arrangment on the Windows 8.1 start menu

Question

I have a few Windows 8.1 computers. They are joined to a domain, and will be shared among multiple users. I want to provide a default arrangement for the tiles on the Windows 8 start menu.

I know I can do this through group policy, but that locks the arrangement in place; it becomes mandatory, rather than simply the default or original layout for each profile. I only want to provide a default that users can change later.

I also want to include a shortcut that I made myself in this layout, and it needs to include an item that's based on network access that is not available to the local administrator account.

How can I get a start menu layout that accomplishes all this?

Answer 1

Here's what I had to do to get everything I wanted to work:

1. I had to log in as a standard user, because I wanted my layout to reference some network resources that were not available for the local administrator account.

2. Setup the layout like you want

   If you want to include a shortcut file that you make yourself, ie to a shared folder:

   1. Make the shortcut, and place it in C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu
   2. The item should now appear in Start Menu's Apps view (swipe up from the bottom, or click the down arrow below the regular start menu)
   3. Pin the shortcut to the start menu from the Apps view.
   4. Pinning from anywhere else will not work. Pinning from the Apps view if the file is not saved in that common ProgramData location will not work.

   .

3. Copy appFolder.itemdata-ms from %userprofile%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows to the equivalent folder for the Default profile (usually C:\Users\Default\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows) You may need to provide administrator credentials to do this, or you may want to do this between step 7 and step 8, instead.

4. While still logged in as the user where you prepare the start menu layout, use Powershell to export your layout, like this:

   Export-StartLayout -As BIN -Path appsFolderLayout.bin

   The file will be in your Documents library.

5. Copy it to the equivalent folder for the Default user (possibly this is not necessary, but I had done this when I finally got it to work). Again, you may want to do this step in between steps 7 and 8.
6. Also copy it to the root folder of the local administrator's profile (ie: C:\Users\Administrator\)
7. Login with the local administrator account.
8. Run PowerShell as administrator

9. Execute the following command:

   Import-StartLayout -LayoutPath .\appsFolderLayout.bin -MountPath \

   Note the trailing back-slash.

10. Delete any user profiles on the system where you need to see the new layout

11. Reboot

Answer 2

The layout is stored in a file called appsFolder.itemdata-ms. Use one Account to create the layout in the way you want it and copy the layout file to c:\users\default\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows and set it to readonly.

In Windows 8.1 there is also new a powershell command to export the layout:

Export-StartLayout -Path "C:\Layouts\Marketing.bin" -As BIN

You can later use the Import cmdlet to import it.

Answer 3

Adding another method on how to take some of the above and do it via Group Policy

http://blogs.technet.com/b/matthewms/archive/2014/03/21/windows-8-1-for-business-remember-our-good-friend-group-policy.aspx