ReStart v1.8.1

ReStart 1.8.1 makes arranging a full-screen Start layout smoother and brings the default group and folder gestures closer to Windows 10.

Highlights

• Smoother movement: pointer previews and edge scrolling follow display frames. Tiles and groups ease toward new positions and continue from their visible position when you change direction.
• Stable occupied-slot moves: internal rearrangement reuses the space you release when displaced tiles fit. Half-cell previews no longer briefly widen a group and push unrelated groups away. Normal dragging, selected tiles and open folders share the same planning operations.
• Native-style defaults: dropping into empty space creates an unnamed group. Hold one tile over another until the folder preview is ready to create a folder or add to one.
• More control while dragging: hold Shift to rearrange without creating or entering folders. Hold Alt to place independently in empty space. Enable Use free tile placement in settings to keep independent placement as your default; optional overlap grouping remains available in that mode.
• Shortcut guidance: tile drags show an optional Alt/Shift toast that fades out after five seconds. Press F1, or use Settings → Start behavior → Keyboard shortcuts, for the localized reference.
• Reliable update confirmation: an update acknowledged immediately before the replacement process exits no longer risks an unnecessary rollback.
• Live tile boundaries: explicit external-protocol blocking supplements the existing WebView2 restrictions, with new tests for dynamic compilation, Node/CLR access, local files and networking without permission.
• Theme-matched media: website screenshots, full-size image links, posters and paired one-minute videos follow light/dark selection. Video theme changes preserve playback position.
• Refreshed guidance: updated documentation, all eight READMEs, screenshots and the 60-second English demo cover the controls. GitHub Discussions now hosts usage questions, ideas and community showcases.

Existing layouts

Your saved tiles, independent entries, folder contents, sizes and positions are retained. No layout reset is required. New empty-space drops and new pins follow the selected placement mode. Layout undo/redo remains available during the running session.

Download

Choose ReStart-win-x64.zip for Intel/AMD PCs or ReStart-win-arm64.zip for Windows on ARM. Extract the entire ZIP and keep its supporting folders beside ReStart.exe. Both packages include the .NET runtime. SHA-256 files accompany the ZIPs.

Existing portable installations can use Settings → Updates → Download update, followed by Restart and update after preparation and verification. See the update guide for requirements and manual replacement.

Demo

Dark theme MP4 · Light theme MP4. Both show the same one-minute demonstration in English.