Microsoft PowerToys' size fantastically shrinks to just 785 MB in the new version

Microsoft Powertoys’ size always bugs developers, but in this new app iteration, the Redmond-based tech giant has successfully cut the size down from 1.15 GB to 785MB in its latest version, v0.72. The size in File Explorer properties for the installation folder also shrinks all the way to just 554 MB.

In addition to the size reduction, v0.72 also includes several new features and improvements, including a new Value Generator plugin for PowerToys Run that generates hashes and GUID values. 

Also, a new feature for the Mouse Highlighter that allows the highlight to always follow the mouse pointer has been introduced, as well as a revamp of PowerRename to support a bigger number of files without crashing.

However, there are still a few underlying issues. Microsoft says that the Mouse Without Borders service might be pointing to the wrong space due to changing paths in the installation folder.

“Users not running as admin will have to enable service mode again after installation. A toast notification will appear if Mouse Without Borders is unable to start the service correctly”, says Microsoft in GitHub. 

“File Explorer extensions changed paths might not be loaded correctly until File Explorer and Preview Host processes are restarted, so we advise restarting the computer when possible after updating PowerToys,” the known issues section continues.

What are your thoughts on Microsoft PowerToys’ size shrinking to just 785 MB in its new version? Let us know in the comments!