A few days back in following tutorial we mentioned about an AskVG reader "zydrius sMiLe" who requested a tutorial for removing or hiding "Get help" button from Windows Explorer's Command Bar (aka Folder Band or Toolbar) in Windows 7:
At that time I was unable to do it because of a 64-bit Windows problem as mentioned in recent tutorial:
But now when we know how to modify system files in 64-bit Windows without any problem, we are ready to remove the "Get Help" button from Windows 7 Explorer's Command Bar.
As usual we'll need to edit Shell32.dll file in Resource Hacker to accomplish the task.
Following is a preview of the output which you'll get after following this tutorial:
You can see in above image, "Get Help" button is no longer available at the right-side of Command Bar in Windows Explorer.
So without wasting time lets start the tutorial. This tutorial should also work in Windows Vista but we have not checked it in Vista:
1. As we mentioned above, we'll need to edit "%windir%\System32\Shell32.dll" file. So first copy Shell32.dll file from "System32" folder to some other location for example Desktop.
Note: here %windir% represents "Windows" directory which can be found in the system drive where Windows is installed. In most of the cases its C:\Windows.
2. Now open the new file in Resource Hacker.
3. Go to "View -> Find Text" (or press Ctrl + F). It'll open Find box.
4. Now type following String in textbox:
HelpButton
5. Click on "Find Next" button and it'll show the line containing this text. It will be line 4 in UIFILE -> 32 section.
<Button3d id="atom(HelpButton)" accdefaction="resstr(0x79AC, library(shell32.dll))" accdesc="resstr(0x79AF, library(shell32.dll))" accessible="true" accname="resstr(0x79AE, library(shell32.dll))" accrole="pushbutton" active="mouseandkeyboard" layoutpos="right" tooltip="true"/>
6. You just need to replace "layoutpos="right"" string present at the end of line with "layoutpos="none"".
<Button3d id="atom(HelpButton)" accdefaction="resstr(0x79AC, library(shell32.dll))" accdesc="resstr(0x79AF, library(shell32.dll))" accessible="true" accname="resstr(0x79AE, library(shell32.dll))" accrole="pushbutton" active="mouseandkeyboard" layoutpos="none" tooltip="true"/>
7. When you have done, click on "Compile Script" button.
8. That's it. After modifying the string, save the file.
9. Now we'll need to replace original Shell32.dll file present in "C:\Windows\System32\" folder with our new Shell32.dll file which we saved at Desktop or some other location.
10 a. First take ownership of "C:\Windows\System32\Shell32.dll" file using following tutorial:
Add Take Ownership Option in File / Folder Context Menu in Windows Vista and 7
10 b. Now rename it to "shell32_backup.dll" or any other name.
10 c. Now copy your new modified "shell32.dll" file from Desktop to "System32" folder.
11. Restart your system and after restart Windows will start using your new modified file and you'll get rid of "Get Help" button from Command Bar in Windows Explorer.
PS: You can follow the same steps to remove "View" and "Preview Pane" buttons from Command Bar. The code for both buttons is present in line 3 and line 5 of "UIFILE -> 32" section respectively.
NOTE: If you want to restore "Get Help" button in Command Bar, simply restore the default Shell32.dll file from its backup.
Posted by: Vishal Gupta | Categories: Resource Hacker, Windows 7
Mohamed Ghoneam
Thanks VG , this is a really impressive and useful tourtial , I hope microsoft will offer us an easy way to customize UI of the final release of windows 8 , I feel like customization gets harder for each new windows version microsoft produces , thanks again VG .
Thomas
thnx VG. I'm loving your customization tutorials. pls keep em coming. :)
Windows Fan
amazing work. i always hated that annoying button. absolutely useless. now its no longer there. :D
TheAslan
Yet another great tip and very detailed from AskVG =D Keep them coming my friend!
zydrius32
Good to hear, what at least 'u made it. )) I tried, it works; but only with "Get Help" button. If 'u look at 5 line 'u will see, what there's no "layoutpos="right"", so when 'u adding it by 'urself and changing to "none" - nothing changes. I tried to remove that line, but then there's no "Change your view." button too. So, I think what "Change your view" and "Preview Pane" are related... :|
TheAslan
I tried ti add this line in line 4: layoutpos="none"
But it didn't hide Preview Pane icon, I also tried to remove the whole 4th line but then it hided all those 3 icons there, is there any solution? By default there's no layoutpos="none" at the 4th line.
zydrius32
Since 'u can't only remove "Preview Pane", I thought, what would be nice to have "Change your view" in "Organize" menu. Something similar to "Layout". Maybe VG can create a registry key? http://www.askvg.com/how-to-customize-rename-remove-or-hide-command-bar-buttons-in-windows-7-explorer/
TheAslan
I found a way to disable Preview Pane icon in command bar, here's how, open regedit and then go here:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
1. Create a new DWORD (32 bit) and name it as: NoReadingPane
2. Give it a new value: 1
3. Preview Pane icon is gone
zydrius32
@TheAslan
Nice, it worked like a charm!
Alan
I cannot find anyway to remove the 'View' button. Is there another location other than UIFILE 32?
zydrius32
@Alan
'U have to remove the whole "PreviewPane" line, but it also removes Preview Pane button. If 'u try to change "layoutpos" to "none" - it won't work.
Thermal
I removed it from windows explorer succesfully but he is still there in windows update window.
zydrius32
Agree with Thermal, I would like to know that too; and btw, there are "Help" buttons in Open/Save dialogs, Unlike normal explorer windows, it looks like those dialogs uses different file than "shell32.dll". 'U can compare my customized (normal) explorer window with "Save/Open" window.It flouts my icons in "shell32.dll", customized "Command Bar", ignores modificated "explorerframe.dll", also keeps "Help" button.
img52.imageshack.us/img52/2363/21516824.png
.P.S. some DLLs, whose 'u can edit to disable a few more "Help" buttons:
accessibilitycpl.dll
ActionCenterCPL.dll
DiagCpl.dll
fvecpl.dll
PerfCenterCPL.dll
powercpl.dll
sdcpl.dll
SensorsCpl.dll
systemcpl.dll
taskbarcpl.dll
themecpl.dll
usercpl.dll
zydrius32
"Windows Update" "Help button" - wucltux.dll
trala
Cool trick, but shell32.dll has been updated at least 6 times since Win7 came out in different updates/hotfixes so it is definitely one of those fixes you'd have to keep doing and as such I think I'm going to leave it as is. The latest version of shell32.dll at this moment in time is 6.1.7601.22231 and is installed by KB2796765.
The reason I was looking into this was because of having made a lite Win7 build (vLite) which will botch Help. But I found that just removing helppane.exe and winhlp32.exe from the Windows directory pretty much does the job.
Astrophil
Successfully removed "get help" & "preview pane" buttons, but how to remove "change you view" button from folder band?
LOR PAL
Thanks!!!