How to Add the Old Control Panel to the Metro Start Screen in Windows 8

By default there is no way to easily access the old Control Panel in Windows 8, in order to get to it you have to go through the new Metro Control Panel or switch to Explorer. Here’s how to create your own tile for it.

To get started you need to create a shortcut, so right-click on the desktop, and choose New –>  Shortcut.

When you are asked for the location of the item, type the following:

%windir%\explorer.exe shell:::{26EE0668-A00A-44D7-9371-BEB064C98683}

Now we need to give our new shortcut a name.

Now right-click on your new shortcut and select properties from the context menu.

When the dialog opens, click on the Change Icon button.

Paste the following into the textbox:

%SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll

Now select the the Control Panel icon and click ok.

Finally right-click on your new shortcut and select “Pin to Start” from the context menu.

That’s all there is to it.