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In my case, I have to login and manage user accounts on a specific PC on our network quite frequently. I just learned that I can use the Windows Computer Management Snap-in to connect to another PC using the following command line.

mmc c:\windows\system32\compmgmt.msc /computer:\\ComputerName

How can I do this for this application or any other application that takes parameters?

UPDATE

Thanks for the quick answers, guys. All will suffice, but I am curious, is there a way to change the "shortcut" that is the pin on the Task bar? Even if it's a registry hack?

If I can change the reference on the pin, I would have to manage a shortcut or bat file. Certainly, having a few shortcuts and pins aren't problematic, but they are still extra, unnecessary files if this can be done another way.

4 Answers 4

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For the simplest method, you can create a shortcut anywhere and pin it to the Taskbar. If you want to edit a existing shortcut/pin, there are two methods:

  • Open %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\TaskBar (copy-paste this in Run command box). This contains all your pinned shortcuts. You can edit the target properties of the shortcuts.
  • Right-click on the shortcut/pin, then right-click on the application (first selection on bottom), choose Properties and edit the target.

These both work the same way.

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  • Another way (though it only works when the application is not running), is to Shift + right-click on the taskbar icon, then choose Properties and edit the Target field.
    – Indrek
    May 3, 2012 at 14:41
  • @Indrek Its the Same Thing as I said in the Alternative Method. May 3, 2012 at 14:43
  • @AkshatMittal Not exactly the same.
    – Indrek
    May 3, 2012 at 15:31
  • @Indrek Pressing Shift then Right Click on non-Active app opens the Same Menu with "Unpin" Option and "Pin to Start" options as on Right Click pin, Then Right Click the Application May 4, 2012 at 10:36
  • @AkshatMittal You're doing something wrong, then. Shift + right-click should open the standard Windows context menu, just as if you had right-clicked on the shortcut in Windows Explorer. The end result is of course the same as your alternative method - the Properties dialog -, but it's one click faster if the application isn't running, so it's not exactly the same. Anyway, I only mentioned it for the sake of completeness.
    – Indrek
    May 4, 2012 at 12:16
6

There is no programmatic way manage pinned items on the start menu or the taskbar. The problem with allowing you to modify pinned items is that you might try to do it; and that is wrong.

The problem is that people, who are not the user, might decide to add items to:

  • the desktop
  • the start menu fast items list
  • the quick launch menu
  • the favorites menu
  • the start menu pinned list
  • the taskbar pinned list

Suddenly these areas become a dumping ground for every bit of junk that someone thought was too cool.

Those areas are for users. Not installers. Not IT.

That is why there's no way for anyone, except the user, to pin items to the start menu or the taskbar. If they let you: you might try to do it. Microosoft learned their lesson.

Applications still try to stuff their garbage on the desktop, and the user's Quick Launch - even when there no longer is a quick launch. Even Git, the current darling, does it:

enter image description here

Developers cannot be trusted to do what's right.

To quote Raymond Chen:

Why is there no programmatic access to the Start menu pin list?

We learned our lesson the hard way.

In Windows 95, we gave programmatic access to the Start menu "Fast items" list - the items that appear at the top of the Start menu above the Programs list. This area was meant for the user to customize with their favorite links, but programs quickly saw the opportunity and spammed themselves into it every chance they got.

In IE, we gave programmatic access to the Favorites menu, and once again, programs spammed themselves into it.

In Windows XP we intentionally did not give programmatic access to the bold list of items at the top of the Start menu (the "pin list"). The pin list is for users to put their favorite icons. It is not the place for a program to decide unilaterally, "I am so cool. I am your favorite icon. I just know it. So I'll put myself there because, well, I'm so cool."

Because we knew that the moment we let people mess with the pin list, everybody would install themselves into it and it would become meaningless (and annoying).

Next Microsoft needs to figure out how to stop programs from adding shortcuts to themselves to the desktop.

Bonus Chatter

Looking up my old Quick Launch folder in Windows 7:

C:\Users\ian\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

Shows Foxit Reader thought it simply had to add itself there. Along with

  • µTorrent
  • Google Chrome

If you are the author of one of those programs, you are an idiot. Stop putting your icons in the quick launch. Stop putting your icons on the desktop. Stop putting your icon on the All Users desktop. And i see that nowadays Chrome has found a way to bypass the Windows rules, and pins itself to my taskbar on initial install. Programs belong in the start menu, and nowhere else.

The Quick Launch folder still exists, but now it's simply a decoy for ill-mannered applications to dump their garbage into.

The Desktop folder should go the same way.

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  • what about C:\Users\user\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\TaskBar ? it has, fine not pinned start menu icons afaik, but pinned taskbar icons
    – barlop
    Nov 23, 2013 at 23:25
  • @barlop For the love of god, please don't use it.
    – Ian Boyd
    Nov 28, 2013 at 20:42
  • 1
    There is nothing wrong with a user using it. And anyhow, The only way I have "used it", is dragging an exe or lnk to it and the lnk file is stored there. I'm not talking about a program using it obviously it is obscene that programs do that.. A solution isn't that these routes should be blocked off, but that zero cost open source software be developed that doesn't do that. But also nowadays "respectable" programs add toolbars by default unless ticked not to. And in that world, we must be aware enough not to tick boxes for quicklaunch and desktop icons, or worse, toolbars.
    – barlop
    Nov 28, 2013 at 22:54
  • Is your first sentence of this answer still valid as of today?
    – Marc.2377
    Jun 30, 2016 at 20:38
2

You can create a shortcut(such as a simbolic link with "mklink" command) to your command with the specified parameters and then pin it(the shortcut) to the Windows 7 Taskbar.

1

in a text document enter command

mmc c:\windows\system32\compmgmt.msc /computer:\\ComputerName

then do save as .bat file and it should run the line when you click the link.

Then if you need to you can do the right click add to start menu.

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