New+: Hiding the built-in "New" context menu breaks File Explorer Ctrl+Shift+N shortcut

Microsoft PowerToys version

0.99.1

Installation method

Microsoft Store

Area(s) with issue?

New+

Steps to reproduce

1. Open PowerToys Settings.
2. Go to New+.
3. Enable New+ if it is not already enabled.
4. Enable the setting: Hide the built-in "New" context menu.
5. Open File Explorer.
6. Navigate to any folder where the user has permission to create folders.
7. Press Ctrl + Shift + N.

Result: no new folder is created.

8. Return to PowerToys Settings → New+.
9. Disable: Hide the built-in "New" context menu.
10. Without restarting Explorer, return to File Explorer.
11. Press Ctrl + Shift + N again.

Result: new folder creation works immediately.

✔️ Expected Behavior

Ctrl + Shift + N in File Explorer should continue to create a new folder even when PowerToys New+ hides the built-in "New" context menu.

The setting appears intended to hide the visible built-in New context menu, not disable Explorer’s native keyboard shortcut for creating folders.

❌ Actual Behavior

When PowerToys New+ → Hide the built-in "New" context menu is enabled, Ctrl + Shift + N stops creating a new folder in File Explorer.

The behavior changes immediately when toggling the setting. No Explorer restart is required.

When the setting is enabled, these registry queries show that the user-level New context menu handler is disabled:

HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\New
(Default) = disabled_

Because HKCR is a merged view where HKCU overrides HKLM, the effective handler also becomes:

HKCR\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\New
(Default) = disabled_

The machine-level default remains intact:

HKLM\SOFTWARE\Classes\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\New
(Default) = {D969A300-E7FF-11d0-A93B-00A0C90F2719}

So PowerToys appears to hide the built-in New menu by disabling the native Explorer New shell handler at the HKCU level, which also breaks Explorer’s Ctrl + Shift + N folder creation shortcut.

Upload Bug Report ZIP-file

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Additional Information

OS: Windows 11
PowerToys area: New+
Issue is reproducible immediately by toggling "Hide the built-in New context menu".
No Explorer restart is required.
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth completed successfully.
sfc /scannow found no integrity violations.

Registry state while the setting is enabled:

HKCR\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\New
(Default) REG_SZ disabled_

HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\New
(Default) REG_SZ disabled_

HKLM\SOFTWARE\Classes\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\New
(Default) REG_SZ {D969A300-E7FF-11d0-A93B-00A0C90F2719}

Disabling the PowerToys setting restores Ctrl + Shift + N behavior immediately.

Other Software

No response

Start by tracing the New+ setting that handles the registry value at HKCU\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\New, then reproduce the toggle in Windows 11 File Explorer. Done means hiding the built-in New context menu no longer prevents Ctrl + Shift + N from creating a folder, with the behavior changing immediately when the setting is toggled.