Vista - Pin Folder to Start Menu

How to pin folders to the Start menu

You already know that you can "pin" your favorite programs to the top of the Start menu so they're always there and easily accessible. Wouldn't it be cool if you could also pin specific folders there to make them just as easy to get to? Sure, you can put a shortcut on the desktop, but some folks prefer to keep their desktops uncluttered. Well, there's a registry edit that will allow you to add an item to the right context menu for folders so you can pin them to the Start menu. As always, back up the registry before making changes.

1. Open your registry editor and navigate to the following key: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
2. Right click an empty space in the right pane and select New | Key
3. Name the new key {a2a9545d-a0c2-42b4-9708-a0b2badd77c8}
4. You do not need to give it a value.

Now when you right click a folder while holding down the Shift key, you'll see an option in the context menu to "Pin to Start Menu." To disable the capability, delete this key.