Supercharge Your Context Menu with Open with++

Open with++ is an open-source, lightweight Windows shell extension that allows users to add fully customized, command-line driven menu items to the Windows File Explorer right-click context menu. Developed primarily by developer Stax76, it solves a common Windows limitation by letting power users quickly open any file or folder with specific applications, scripts, or arguments without digging through complex registry keys. Key Features

Custom Command Launching: You can map any file or folder to open directly in a preferred text editor, IDE, or utility using custom command-line arguments.

Argument Macros: It supports dynamic macros like %path%, %parent%, or %file_name% to automatically pass the right targets to your scripts or executable files.

Highly Flexible Rules: You can restrict specific context menu options to appear only for certain file extensions, directory types, or when a precise number of files are highlighted.

Clean GUI Configuration: Instead of manually messing around inside the dangerous ⁠Windows Registry Editor, the utility provides a straightforward graphical user interface to add, rearrange, or delete menu entries. The Windows 11 Compatibility Catch

If you are running Windows 11, it is essential to understand how Open with++ behaves due to Microsoft’s revamped task architecture:

Classic Win32 Integration: Open with++ was built specifically for the classic Win32 right-click menu layout.

The Overflow Menu: On Windows 11, your custom commands will not appear on the clean, primary right-click menu. Instead, they will be tucked away inside the legacy overflow menu, accessible only after clicking “Show more options” (or pressing Shift + F10).

Workarounds: To see your custom shortcuts immediately on Windows 11, you must either run a registry tweak to force Windows 11 back to the classic classic menu layout full-time, or switch to an alternate companion app like ContextMenuForWindows11, which utilizes the modern modern IExplorerCommand APIs to inject custom buttons straight into the main menu.

The project is entirely open-source and free to download. You can find the source code, installation guides, and releases directly on the ⁠Open with++ GitHub Repository. If you are planning a setup, tell me: Which version of Windows you are using?

What applications or custom scripts you are hoping to add to your menu?

I can give you the exact command line arguments and macros you will need to configure them seamlessly. superuser.com