Scrollbar - Change Width Size in Windows 8

How to Change Scrollbar Width Size in Windows 8 and 8.1

information   Information
This tutorial will show you how to change the size of the scrollbar width for your user account in Windows 8, Windows RT, Windows 8.1, and Windows RT 8.1.


EXAMPLE: Scrollbar Size Set Wider
NOTE:
This is with the setting of -1000 in the steps below.
example.jpg





Here's How:

1. Press Windows + R keys to open the Run dialog, type regedit, and click/tap OK.

2. If prompted by UAC, then click/tap on Yes.

3. In regedit, navigate to the location below. (see screenshot below)
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\WindowMetrics
Scrollbar_Width-1.jpg

4. In the right pane of WindowMetrics, double click/tap on ScrollHeight to be able to modify it. (see screenshot above)

5. Type in a data value between -120 to -1500, and click/tap OK. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: The default value is -255. A higher value (ex: -1000) will give you a wider scrollbar, and lower value (ex: -100) will give you a thinner scrollbar.
Scrollbar_Width-2.jpg

6. In the right pane of WindowMetrics, double click/tap on ScrollWidth to be able to modify it. (see screenshot below step 3)

7. Type in the same data value you entered for "ScrollHeight" in step 5 above, and click/tap OK. (see screenshot below)
Scrollbar_Width-3.jpg

8. Close regedit.

9. Sign out and sign in with your user account to apply.


That's it,
Shawn



 

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are you serious? ok XP it was just a few clicks with a mouse and oh forget it. I do not have the computer know-how to do that.
it's almost as if some somebody at Microsoft went out their way to make this OS diffacult on older people. thanks anyway.
 

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Hello commander,

If you wanted to do it, t's not so bad if you follow the tutorial step by step. We're happy to help as needed. :)
 

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Big Help on Acer W3

I bumped mine to -400, and that gives me enough width to use it (most of the time). A technique to keep in mind is to hold your fingertip on there long enough to "register" - seems to be about 1-2 seconds.

Watch out though if using the GUI Display setting control to later change overall size (like medium/125% or Custom Sizing) - adjusting those seemed to reset my scrollbar settings.

I agree with the poster about how annoying this is compared to the full control XP gives via the GUI, but I am familiar with this kind of tweaking from my experience with Windows CE/HPC/PPC/WM 5/6 (Jornada 728 or XV6900 anyone?) that required registry edits like this for a lot of settings. Good ol' MS and its one-size-fits-all/why tweak notions.
 

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I split the screen, with these instructions on the left, and the regedit screen on the right. Then, just follow the instructions carefully. NOTE that there are 2 values that need to be changed: one is HEIGHT, the other is WIDTH, and they need to have the same value. I changed mine to -500, which worked out fine. But if that's not enough, you can go back in and make it a bigger value. Plus, it's a good exercise in getting 'under the hood' of this OS.-Tom
 

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Thnx, Win8 4ums!
I am curious why you give "-120" as the minimum.
Also, why do the values for ScrollWidth and ScrollHeight need to be the same?
 

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Hello TheVictor, and welcome to Eight Forums. :)

Anything below "-120" is no different.

You can play with different values if you like. I just find that it gives better results with them as the same.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
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