Forget Task Manager, Windows 11 will let you nuke apps from the taskbar

Tons of Windows 11 news poured out from Microsoft Build this week—and among the new features coming down the pipeline is a new way to force quit an app.

Currently, the way to kill an unresponsive program is by opening the Task Manager, finding the app within the Processes tab, right-clicking, and then choosing End task. But as highlighted by The Verge, you can soon perform the same action with fewer steps in Windows 11. You just have to right-click on the app in the taskbar, then choose Force Quit. 

This method mimics macOS, making a transition (or switching between operating systems) that much easier than before—and less bewildering for people who rarely (if ever) interact with the Task Manager. 

Force Quit isn’t the only fresh feature headed to Windows 11, either. A couple will cross off items from our wishlist, like universal RGB lighting controls. Other nifty updates include Mouse without Borders, an addition to Microsoft’s excellent PowerToys lineup that lets you control multiple PCs with just one mouse; a proper Windows Backup app; and the launch of Windows Copilot, which will provide AI assistance within the operating system.

But perhaps the most momentous announcement was coming native support for compressed files formats like RAR, 7-ZIP, and GZ. After almost three decades, Microsoft is officially making third-party programs that handled such files extraneous—and by proxy, likely putting memes about WinRar’s 30-day trial in their grave.