Windows Keyboard Shortcuts (Part One)

Introduction

Keyboard shortcuts are keys or combinations of keys that provide an alternative way to do something that you would typically do with a mouse or be accessible only through a menu.

These shortcuts can speed up the common operations by reducing input sequences to a few keystrokes.

In this post, we will describe the most common general shortcut keys you will often use in Windows.

General Shortcuts

F1 ->Display Help
F2 ->Rename the selected item
F3 ->Search for a file or folder
F4 ->Display the address bar list in File Explorer
F5 ->Refresh the active window
F6 ->Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
F10 ->Activate the Menu bar in the active app
ALT + F4 ->Close the active item, or exit the active app
ALT + ESC ->Cycle through items in the order in which they were opened
ALT + ENTER ->Display properties for the selected item
ALT + SPACE ->Open the shortcut menu for the active window
ALT + LEFT ARROW ->Back
ALT + RIGHT ARROW ->Forward
ALT + PAGE UP ->Move up one screen
ALT + PAGE DOWN ->Move down one screen
ALT + TAB -> Switch between open apps (except desktop apps)
CTRL + F4 -> Close the active document
CTRL + A ->Select all items in a document or window
CTRL + C or CTRL + INSERT ->[Copy the selected item]
CTRL + D / DELETE ->Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin
CTRL + R or F5 ->Refresh the active window
CTRL + V or SHIFT + INSERT ->Paste the selected item
CTRL + X ->Cut the selected item
CTRL + Y ->Redo an action
CTRL + Z ->Undo an action
CTRL + + or CTRL + – [Zoom in or out of a large NUMBER of items, like apps pinned to the Start screen]
CTRL + mouse scroll wheel [Change the size of desktop icons or zoom in or out of a large NUMBER of items, like apps pinned to the Start screen]
CTRL + RIGHT ARROW ->Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word
CTRL + LEFT ARROW ->Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word
CTRL + DOWN ARROW ->Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph
CTRL + UP ARROW ->Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph
CTRL + ALT + TAB ->Use the arrow keys to switch between all open apps
CTRL + ARROW + SPACE ->Select multiple individual items in a window or on the desktop
CTRL + SHIFT + ARROW ->Select a block of text
CTRL + ESC ->Open the Start menu screen
CTRL + SHIFT + ESC ->Open Task Manager
CTRL + SHIFT ->Switch the keyboard layout when multiple keyboard layouts are available
SHIFT + F10 ->Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
SHIFT + ARROW ->Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text within a document
SHIFT + DELETE ->Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin first
RIGHT ARROW ->Open the next menu to the right or open a submenu
LEFT ARROW ->Open the next menu to the left or close a submenu
ESC ->Stop or leave the current task