How to Enable or Disable the New Drag Tray in Windows 11

Windows 11 continues to evolve with new features designed to enhance user experience and productivity. One such feature is the Drag Tray, a file-sharing interface that appears when dragging files to the top of the screen. While some users find this feature intuitive and helpful, others may prefer a more traditional workflow without the Drag Tray interface. This comprehensive guide will walk you through multiple methods to enable or disable the Drag Tray in Windows 11, depending on your preferences and needs.

What is the Drag Tray

The Drag Tray is a relatively new addition to Windows 11's ecosystem, initially introduced in Insider Builds (specifically Beta Channel build 22635.4805 and later). This feature is designed to simplify file sharing by providing a convenient flyout interface that appears when you drag a file to the top edge of your screen. It's important to note that the Drag Tray currently supports only individual files—not folders, collections of files, or compressed containers like .zip files. 

This feature isn't available to everyone yet through standard Windows Update channels. However, for enthusiasts who don't want to wait, the ViveTool provides a way to unlock it early.

How to Enable Drag Tray Using ViveTool

Follow these steps carefully to enable the new drag-and-drop system tray.

Step 1. Download ViveTool

1. Go to the official ViveTool GitHub releases page.

2. Download the latest version of the tool (e.g., ViVeTool-v0.3.4.zip).

3. Extract the contents of the downloaded ZIP archive to a convenient folder on your system, such as C:ViVeTool.

Step 2. Open Command Prompt

1. Type cmd in the search bar and select Run as administrator.

2. Type the following command to navigate to the ViveTool folder:

cd C:ViveTool 

Replace the path to the folder with your actual path.

3. Now, enter the following command to enable the drag tray feature and press Enter:

vivetool /enable /id:45624564,53397005,48433719

Step 3. Restart Your Computer

After successfully running the command, restart your computer for the changes to take effect.

Once your system reboots, the Drag Tray feature should be active. To test it, simply drag any file upward toward the top edge of your screen—you should see the new sharing interface appear with various application options.

How to Disable the Drag Tray

If you find the feature buggy or simply prefer the old behavior, you can easily revert the change.

Method 1: Disable via ViveTool

If you wish to disable the Drag Tray after enabling it via ViveTool, follow the same process above but use this command instead:

vivetool /disable /id:45624564,53397005,48433719

Restart your computer after executing the command for the changes to take effect.

Method 2: Disable via Registry Editor

For users who find the Drag Tray feature disruptive or unnecessary, the Registry Editor method provides a way to permanently disable this functionality. 

Step 1. Open Registry Editor

Press Win + R, type regedit, and press Enter to launch the Registry Editor.

Step 2. Navigate to the Appropriate Key

Go to the following path in the registry:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\FeatureManagement\Overrides

Step 3. Create New Keys

Right-click on the Overrides key, select New > Key, and name it 14. Then, right-click on the newly created 14 key, create another key within it, and name this one 3895955085.

Step 4. Create DWORD Values

Inside the 3895955085 key, create two new DWORD (32-bit) Values:

• EnabledState with a value data of 1.
• EnabledStateOptions with a value data of 0.

Step 5. Restart Your Computer

After making these changes, restart your computer for them to take effect.

Conclusion

The Drag Tray in Windows 11 represents Microsoft's continued effort to create more intuitive and efficient user experiences. Whether you choose to embrace this new functionality or disable it in favor of traditional methods, understanding how to control these features empowers you to create a computing environment that best suits your needs and preferences.