[Tip] Enable Hidden Secret Immersive Search Bar UI in Windows 10

Today in this tutorial, we are going to share a registry tweak to activate and enable a hidden secret Search bar UI in Windows 10 operating system as shown in following screenshot:

By default, Windows 10 shows a Search box on Taskbar which can be removed or set to an icon only using Taskbar context menu (right-click menu) as mentioned here. When you click on the search box, you can type your search term and Windows 10 will show search results in the search box fly-out. You can also access the search box using WIN+S hotkey or by launching Start Menu and directly type search term.

Did you know newer Windows 10 versions come with a hidden secret immersive UI for the search box? You need to manually activate and enable it for use. By default, the new search UI is disabled or hidden.

Once you activate this new search UI in Windows 10, the search box on Taskbar is replaced by a small search icon as shown in following screenshot:

PS: The new search bar UI doesn’t support full text box on Taskbar. If you right-click on Taskbar, you’ll notice that “Search” option only has 2 options to select: Hidden and Show search icon.

When you click on the search icon, it launches the new immersive search bar in the center of your computer screen. The new search bar is floating and doesn’t contain any titlebar and caption buttons (minimize, maximize, close). It just opens in form of a floating toolbar with a huge search box to type the search query.

Following screenshot shows the new floating immersive search bar UI in Windows 10:

PS: This new Search bar UI respects system theme and colorization. If you enable dark or light themes in Windows 10, the new search bar follows the same theme. Also if you set Start Menu and Taskbar to show colors (how-to guide), the new search bar also opens in accent colors.

When you enable the new search bar, you can use the WIN+S keyboard shortcut to launch it anytime and anywhere. If you open Start Menu and type something, Windows will use the new search bar to show search results.

You can launch the new Search bar UI on top of any program window using WIN+S hotkey or by clicking on search icon in Taskbar.

If you also want to try and enjoy the new search bar UI in Windows 10, following steps will help you:

1. Press WIN+R keys together to launch RUN dialog box. Now type regedit and press Enter. It’ll open Registry Editor.

2. Now go to following key:

3. In right-side pane, right-click on empty area and select New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value option. Set the new DWORD name as ImmersiveSearch and set its value to 1

That’s it. It’ll immediately reveal the new floating search bar UI in Windows 10.

Try to click on Search icon on Taskbar or press WIN+S keys together and you’ll get the new floating search bar on your computer screen.

BONUS TIP 1:

By default, the new floating search bar appears in small compact size on your screen. If you want, you can enable the full UI of search bar with the help of following registry tweak:

1. Again go to following key in Registry Editor:

2. Now create a new key under Flighting key and set its name as Override

3. Select Override key and in right-side pane, right-click on empty area and select New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value option. Set the new DWORD name as ImmersiveSearchFull and set its value to 1

That’s it. Now whenever you’ll launch new Search bar, it’ll appear in full size on your computer screen.

BONUS TIP 2:

You can also enable rounded corners in the new search bar UI with the help of following registry tweak:

1. Again go to following key in Registry Editor:

2. In right-side pane, right-click on empty area and select New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value option. Set the new DWORD name as CenterScreenRoundedCornerRadius and set its value to any desired number. The number defines radius size for search bar window corners. We found setting it to 5 works best.

That’s it. Now try to launch new Search bar and you’ll notice rounded corners in Search bar window.

RESTORE DEFAULT SEARCH UI:

If you decide to restore default Search box UI, simply delete the DWORDS created in above mentioned steps specially ImmersiveSearch DWORD.

Also Check:

“Top Apps” Section Appears at the Top of Taskbar Search Fly-out in Windows 10

[Review] New Updated Search Box in File Explorer in Windows 10

[Bug Fix] Search Box in Windows 10 File Explorer Stuck or Not Responding