Windows 11 is getting a new Task Manager design

Microsoft is getting ready to overhaul the Task Manager in Windows 11. Like the rest of the operating system, the Task Manager is getting a new design that matches Microsoft’s new Fluent Design language. It seems Microsoft hid the new design in the bowels of recent Windows 11 builds, but engineering student Gustave Monce, who previously got Windows 11 running on a phone, uncovered the work-in-progress and shared it on Discord this week.

It’s possible to enable the new Task Manager inside the latest preview builds of Windows 11, but Microsoft hasn’t officially announced the redesign. “This is a hidden feature in the new build,” says Monce. “Everything is broken though.” It’s clearly early days for this new design, but it already includes a dark mode and interface that closely matches the big design changes in Windows 11 — rounded corners, pastel shades, and a focus on simplification.

The tabs in the existing Task Manager have been replaced with a sidebar that allows you to switch between the various sections of the app. Task Manager is a big legacy part of Windows that originally debuted with Windows NT 4.0. It hasn’t had any significant changes for nearly 10 years after it was last overhauled in Windows 8.

Microsoft is gradually redesigning most of the legacy parts of Windows. A new Media Player app is currently in testing, and Windows 11 is also getting a redesigned Notepad app with dark mode support.