Handy Keyboard Shortcuts for Windows 8 (Historical)

Use this reference for the original Windows 8 Start screen and Charms interface. It combines the shortcut list with the separate Start-screen and power-user guide. The sections below distinguish opening a panel, switching apps and changing Start settings, so a shortcut's effect is easier to recognize.

Start, search and Charms

Win means the Windows logo key. Hold it while pressing the second key, then release both. Pressing Win alone opens Start; pressing it again returns to the previous view. From Start, typing begins an app search in the original Windows 8 interface.

Settings depends on where you start. If you want Start options, return to Start before pressing Win + I. Settings inside an app can instead show that app's options. This difference is expected, not proof that the shortcut failed.

Switching apps and arranging the screen

For Win + Tab, hold Win and tap Tab to choose another app before releasing. Snapping depends on the available layout, display and Windows version; Win + period is not a universal “always move right” command. Microsoft's original Windows 8 walkthrough explicitly describes cycling the layout with repeated presses.

Customize Start and expose administrative tools

For original Windows 8 colors and background, open Settings → Change PC settings → Personalize → Start screen. Choose a design and color, then return to Start to inspect the result. Note your previous selection if you want to reverse the change.

To show administrative tools on the original Start screen:

1. Go to Start and press Win + I.
2. Select Tiles, then set Show administrative tools to Yes.
3. Return to Start and look for the added tool tiles toward the right. Set the same option back to No to hide them again.

Showing tools does not grant administrator rights. Win + X is a separate shortcut to the Quick Link menu; it does not depend on displaying these tiles. Opening the menu is enough to check the shortcut—there is no need to run a disk, account or service change.

Windows 8.1 differences to recognize

• Search: Microsoft's Windows 8.1 overview documents Win + S for its broader search experience. Do not diagnose different results using the Windows 8 app-only default.
• Start background: from Start, Windows 8.1 offers Settings → Personalize. It can also show the desktop background on Start; this is distinct from the Windows 8 PC-settings route above.
• App arrangement: Windows 8.1 expanded side-by-side app layouts. The narrow snapped-app behavior described in the original Windows 8 walkthrough is not a description of every later layout.

If a shortcut does something unexpected

First confirm the actual Windows version and whether the keyboard is controlling this PC or a remote/virtual desktop. Then check the starting context: Start, a desktop program, or a Windows 8 app. Repeat one harmless navigation shortcut and record what appears.

If the corresponding menu works with the mouse but the key combination does not, check keyboard software, a Windows-key lock or session-level key handling before changing Windows settings. That comparison narrows the investigation; it does not identify a faulty keyboard by itself.

If simultaneous key presses are difficult, Win + U opens Ease of Access, where keyboard behavior can be adjusted. Do not turn off an accessibility setting without checking whether the person using the computer needs it.

Documentation review: 3 November 2026. Checked against Microsoft's historical Windows 8/8.1 references and shortcut definitions. Start customization from the companion guide is preserved. No new Windows 8 device test is claimed.

Official references

Microsoft Press — Introducing Windows 8Printed pages 15–19 and 29: administrative tools, app switching, snap cycling and PC settings (PDF) Microsoft — Original Surface RT user guidePrinted pages 53 and 105: historical Start personalization and shortcut reference (PDF) Microsoft — Getting around in Windows 8Contemporaneous preview explanation of context-sensitive Search and Settings Microsoft — Keyboard combination definitionsHistorical shortcut identifiers; included as a reference, not instructions to change keyboard filtering Microsoft Press — Introducing Windows 8.1Search and interface changes, distinct from original Windows 8 (PDF) Microsoft — Windows 8.1 Start backgroundsThe later Personalize route and desktop-background option Microsoft — Keyboard accessibility referenceEase of Access and keyboard options; this later leaflet also includes Windows 8.1-era search behavior (PDF)