Unit 2OSObjective 1.610 min read

Control Panel Applets, File Explorer Options, and Power Options

Unit 2: Windows Tools, Commands, Settings, and Networking. Lesson 8 of 41 in APlus Academy Core 2.

The Control Panel still holds settings the newer Settings app does not. The exam names the applets and asks where a given setting lives.

The applets, one line each

Internet Options: legacy browser settings that still matter system-wide: security zones, the Connections tab with LAN and proxy settings, certificates, and content controls. The proxy set here applies to many applications.
Devices and Printers: every printer and peripheral; add a printer, set the default, open printer properties and the print queue, troubleshoot.
Programs and Features: uninstall or change installed programs, view installed updates (and uninstall a bad one), and Turn Windows features on or off (Hyper-V, .NET, Telnet client, SMB 1.0).
Network and Sharing Center: active networks and their profile, Change adapter settings (IP configuration lives on the adapter's properties), sharing options, and the troubleshooter.
System: computer name, domain or workgroup join, remote settings (Remote Desktop, Remote Assistance), System Protection (restore points), and Advanced settings: performance and visual effects, virtual memory (paging file), environment variables, startup and recovery.
Windows Defender Firewall: turn the firewall on or off per network profile, Allow an app through, and Advanced settings for inbound and outbound rules by port and program.
Mail: Outlook profiles, email accounts, and data files.
Sound: playback and recording devices, the default device, levels, and communications behavior.
User Accounts: change an account's type (standard or administrator), passwords, User Account Control level, and the Credential Manager for saved passwords.
Device Manager: the same devmgmt.msc.
Indexing Options: which locations and file types Windows Search indexes; rebuild the index when search misses files.
Administrative Tools (Windows Tools in Windows 11): shortcuts to the consoles and utilities.

File Explorer Options

Formerly Folder Options.

General: open File Explorer to This PC or Quick access, single- or double-click, privacy (recent files).
View: show hidden files, folders, and drives; hide extensions for known file types (turn this off so "invoice.pdf.exe" is visible); hide protected operating system files; show full path in the title bar; launch folder windows in a separate process.
Search: how searches treat indexed and non-indexed locations.

A support call that says "I cannot see the AppData folder" or "the file has no extension" is this dialog.

Its General options cover opening folders in the same window, single-click or double-click, and privacy; its View options cover how to view hidden files, file extensions, and protected operating system files.

Power Options

Power plans: Balanced (default), Power saver, High performance, and, on some machines, Ultimate performance; each plan sets display-off and sleep timers, and Change advanced power settings exposes everything else.
Sleep (suspend, standby): the machine keeps RAM powered and resumes in seconds; a laptop in sleep for days drains its battery.
Hibernate: RAM is written to hiberfil.sys on disk and the machine powers off completely; slower to resume, but nothing is lost when the battery dies. Hybrid sleep does both.
Choose what closing the lid does and what the power buttons do: sleep, hibernate, shut down, or nothing (a laptop used with the lid closed on a dock).
Turn on fast startup: at shutdown, the kernel session is hibernated so the next boot is quicker; it can interfere with dual boot, disk access from other systems, and some updates; a restart bypasses it.
USB selective suspend: lets Windows power down idle USB devices to save energy; disable it when a USB device keeps disconnecting.

Power settings are also where "the PC never sleeps" and "the screen turns off too fast" are fixed.

Exam tip: proxy settings live in Internet Options; the paging file, computer name, and restore points live in System; uninstall updates and Windows features in Programs and Features; show hidden files and file extensions in File Explorer Options, View. Sleep keeps RAM powered; hibernate writes it to disk. Fast startup speeds boot but confuses dual boot. USB selective suspend causes dropped USB devices.

Remember

Internet Options: zones, proxy, certificates. Devices and Printers. Programs and Features: uninstall, updates, Windows features. Network and Sharing Center: adapters, profile. System: name, domain, remote, System Protection, virtual memory, environment variables. Defender Firewall: profiles, allow an app, advanced rules. Mail, Sound, User Accounts (type, UAC), Device Manager, Indexing Options, Administrative Tools. File Explorer Options View: hidden files, extensions, protected OS files. Power: plans, sleep versus hibernate, lid action, fast startup, USB selective suspend.

Deeper explanation

Control Panel Applets, File Explorer Options, and Power Options, explained slowly

Two generations of settings

Control Panel is the older layer with tabbed dialogs; Settings is the newer layer with categories. Windows still needs both, and the exam names Control Panel applets by their exact titles. Learn what each applet uniquely owns.

What each applet uniquely owns

applet                        unique contents
Internet Options              security zones, proxy under Connections, certificates, trusted sites; affects apps that use the system proxy
Devices and Printers          printer properties, default printer, print queue, add device
Programs and Features         uninstall, installed updates (uninstall a bad KB), Turn Windows features on or off
Network and Sharing Center    Change adapter settings, network profile, advanced sharing settings, diagnose
System                        computer name and domain, remote settings, System Protection (restore points), Advanced: performance, virtual memory, environment variables, startup and recovery
Windows Defender Firewall     on or off per profile, allow an app, advanced inbound and outbound rules
Mail                          Outlook profiles and data files
Sound                         default playback and recording devices, levels, enhancements
User Accounts                 account type, UAC settings, Credential Manager, manage another account
Device Manager                drivers (the same console)
Indexing Options              indexed locations, rebuild
Administrative Tools          the consoles and utilities in one folder
File Explorer Options         hidden files, extensions, protected OS files, open-in behavior
Power Options                 plans, sleep and hibernate timers, lid and button actions, fast startup, USB selective suspend

File Explorer Options, View tab, the settings that generate tickets

setting                                       default   when to change
Show hidden files, folders, and drives        off       to reach AppData, ProgramData, or a hidden config
Hide extensions for known file types          on        turn OFF so the real extension is visible; a security habit
Hide protected operating system files         on        rarely; only for specific repairs
Launch folder windows in a separate process   off       stability when Explorer crashes
Show full path in the title bar              off        convenience

The classic phishing trick, "invoice.pdf.exe," shows as "invoice.pdf" when extensions are hidden.

Power states, drawn

state                   RAM         disk          resume time   power use   risk
sleep (standby, suspend)   powered   nothing saved  seconds       low         battery drains over days; lost work on power failure
hybrid sleep            powered     copy saved    seconds       low         desktop default; safe on power loss
hibernate               off         hiberfil.sys  tens of seconds   none    needs disk space equal to RAM
shut down (fast startup)   off      kernel hibernated   quick boot   none    dual boot and disk access from other OS confused; use Restart to fully reset
shut down (no fast startup)   off   nothing       full boot     none        the true cold boot

Power plans (Balanced, Power saver, High performance, Ultimate performance) bundle timers and processor settings; Advanced settings expose everything: hard disk turn-off, sleep after, hibernate after, USB selective suspend, lid close action, power button action, processor minimum and maximum, display brightness.

Worked examples

"Only one application cannot reach the internet, and it uses the system proxy." Internet Options, Connections, LAN settings: a stale manual proxy.
"After Tuesday's update the scanner software crashes." Programs and Features, View installed updates, uninstall the KB, then pause updates.
"The user cannot find the AppData folder." File Explorer Options, View, show hidden files.
"A USB headset keeps disconnecting after idle." Power Options, advanced, USB selective suspend: disable.
"A laptop closed and put in a bag was hot and dead the next morning." The lid action was Sleep; set it to Hibernate.
"A dual-boot machine's Linux side cannot mount the Windows partition." Fast startup left the NTFS volume hibernated; turn fast startup off.
"Restore the PC to yesterday's state." System, System Protection, System Restore.

How the exam asks it

"Where are proxy settings configured in Control Panel?" Internet Options.
"Where is the paging file size changed?" System, Advanced, Performance settings, Virtual memory.
"Where can a technician uninstall a recent Windows update?" Programs and Features.
"Which setting makes file extensions visible?" File Explorer Options, View, uncheck Hide extensions for known file types.
"Which power state writes memory to disk and powers off?" Hibernate.
"Which feature speeds boot by hibernating the kernel session?" Fast startup.
"A USB device disconnects when idle." Disable USB selective suspend.

What to memorize

The applet table, especially Internet Options for proxy, System for virtual memory and restore points, Programs and Features for updates and Windows features.
File Explorer Options View: hidden files, extensions, protected files.
Sleep versus hibernate versus fast startup; USB selective suspend; lid action; power plans.