Some users (including myself) are extremely pissed off with new “modern” task manager in Windows 8. Although some of its functions are not bad, like the “command line” column in the task list or performance graph, I don’t really need them. The old Task Manager provides a more consistent way of task management for me, it is familiar and the new one does not even remember the last active tab. So I am definitely one of those who want the good old, more usable Task Manager back in Windows 8. Let me show you how to do that with a few simple steps.

How to restore the good old Task Manager in Windows 8

1. Download the following ZIP file (containing classic Task Manager files from Windows 8′s boot.wim) and unpack the TM folder into the root of your system drive.
You should get the following: 

2. Open System Properties and check which version of Windows 8 you are running – x86 and x64. Mine is x64:

3. Double-click on the appropriate reg file . e.g. click on install_x64.reg file if you have Windows 8 x64 like me, otherwise click on the install_x86.reg file.

4. That’s it! You don’t need to reboot, you don’t to do anything else. Just press the Ctrl+Shit+Esc keys on your keyboard and enjoy the return of your good old friend:

Note: Import the UNINSTALL_x86_or_x64.reg file to restore the “new” Task Manager of Windows 8 back.

How does it work:

In the example above, I used the old, famous trick  with the “debugger” option. As you may or may not be knowing, you can specify a debugger application for every executable file in Windows. It is possible to set it via the following registry key: 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersionImage File Execution Options

Here you can see a list of executable files. It is possible to create the “debugger” option for every file shown in that list.

The “debugger” option usually contains the full path to the executable file which should act as the debugger. It will get the full path to the running executable file. We can use this to override the executable file of Task Manager.

I have extracted the genuine Taskmgr.exe and Taskmgr.exe.mui from the boot.wim file of Windows 8. But I can’t use them directly, because the files have the same names as the new Task Manager from Windows 8. Also, even though replacing them is possible, SFC /scannow will restore the “original” one when it runs. So the files must be renamed before I can set the old Task Manager as the debugger. That’s why the file is named “Tm.exe” file in the ZIP archive you downloaded above.

Might you also like the previous article Task manager tips for Windows 8.

Via winaero