Enable Floating Search Bar in Windows 10 (Immersive Cortana)
Microsoft is going to add a floating search box to Windows 10 version 1803 "Redstone 4". It is powered by Cortana and replaces the search box in the taskbar. The test version of the feature is already available in the recently released Windows 10 build 17040 Insider Preview.
At the moment of this writing, the floating search box provides the same feature you could find in Cortana in the taskbar. Same as Cortana, it uses the Win + S hotkey to activate the UI.
Here are a couple of screenshots which demonstrate the feature in action.
To try this feature in action, you need to apply a Registry tweak. Here is the procedure in detail.
To enable Floating Search in Windows 10 (Immersive Cortana), do the following.
Right-click the taskbar and enable Cortana - Show icon in the context menu.
Open the Registry Editor app.
Go to the following Registry key.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search\Flighting
See how to go to a Registry key with one click.
Here, create a new subkey Override as shown below.
On the right, create a new 32-Bit DWORD value ImmersiveSearch. Note: Even if you are running 64-bit Windows you must still create a 32-bit DWORD value.Set its value to 1.
The Registry tweak should take effect instantly. If not, restart the Explorer shell.
Restart Windows 10.
Now, click on the Cortana icon you enabled or press the Win + S shortcut keys on your keyboard. Voila, the floating search box is enabled:
Note: Having Cortana's search box disabled for the taskbar is mandatory. With the search box enabled on the taskbar, the floating search box will not work. That's why it is required to turn Cortana into an icon as your first step.
It is possible to make the search box appear at the bottom of this new search pane. There is another Registry tweak you should apply.
Enable Search Box At The Bottom
Under the key you have created, which is HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search\Flighting\Override, create a new 32-bit DWORD value. Name it as SearchBoxOnTop. Set its value data to 1. See the following screenshot:
This will move the search box down to the bottom edge of the Cortana pane. Here is how it looks:
To save your time, I've prepared ready-to-use Registry files which include both tweaks described above. The undo tweak is also included.
Download Registry Files
That's it. Thanks to @vitorgrs and @4j17h for their research!
This entry was posted in Windows 10 and tagged Windows 10 Floating Cortana, Windows 10 Floating Search, Windows 10 Immersive Cortana, Windows 10 Immersive Search on November 21, 2017 by Sergey Tkachenko.
About Sergey Tkachenko
Sergey Tkachenko is a software developer who started Winaero back in 2011. On this blog, Sergey is writing about everything connected to Microsoft, Windows and popular software. Follow him on Telegram, Twitter, and YouTube.
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5 thoughts on "Enable Floating Search Bar in Windows 10 (Immersive Cortana)"
RKO May 3, 2018 at 4:35 pm
Is it still working in Windows 10 April Update? Not working for me.
Sergey Tkachenko Post author May 3, 2018 at 9:21 pm
Looks like the feature has been removed.
Fabricio Jose Jassir Medina Cardona August 8, 2018 at 7:37 pm
After a few tries, it seems that you have to put the ImmersiveSearch 32bit value on "Search" key instead of creating "Override" inside the "Search" key. (the "key" means folder) and put the value into 1.
Pegel November 12, 2018 at 5:15 am
Thanks dude it works, just make "DWORD" value (ImmersiveSearch) in "search" key like you said.
Tested on Pro 1803 build 17134.376
Darth Agnon November 16, 2018 at 1:56 am
Would it be possible to add this to Winaero tweaker? It looks cool. Does anyone know if it's available in Win10 v1709?