Control Panel, a staple of the Windows operating system that has, for the last 39 years, allowed users to change various system settings, including Default Programs, User Accounts, Power Options, and even BitLocker Drive Encryption, may actually not be going anywhere, according to an updated support page from Microsoft, one that no longer lists the long-standing feature as being in the process of being deprecated. According to a previous version of the support page that can be found on the Wayback Machine, Microsoft was planning to replace the Control Panel with the Settings app, an alternative that was originally introduced to users in 2012 with the release of Windows 8.
The post previously said:
- “The Control Panel is a feature that’s been part of Windows for a long time. It provides a centralized location to view and manipulate system settings and controls.”
- “Through a series of applets, you can adjust various options ranging from system time and date to hardware settings, network configurations, and more.”
- “The Control Panel is in the process of being deprecated in favor of the Settings app, which offers a more modern and streamlined experience.”
The latter now reads:
- “Many of the settings in Control Panel are in the process of being migrated to the Settings app, which offers a more modern and streamlined experience.”
A look at the classic Control Panel in Windows 10:
From a report:
It’s not clear whether this reflects a policy change or just a clarification of language. We’ve asked Microsoft whether it has changed plans to deprecate the Control Pane or if the original version of the support page was just incorrect in the first place, and we’ll update if we receive a response.