Installing Windows 10 Classic Notepad, SnippingTool and Paint in Windows 11

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= Installing Windows 10 Classic Notepad, SnippingTool and Paint in Windows 11 =
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Required tools:
  - 7-Zip: https://www.7-zip.org/

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Part 1: Extracting the applications from a Windows 10 ISO and Organizing Files
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1. Download the Windows 10 ISO file
  - See the browser trick: https://forum.level1techs.com/t/tutorial-how-to-get-windows-10-iso-directly-from-microsoft/220429

2. Create a new folder directly on your C: drive called "ClassicApps"

3. Inside this ClassicApps folder, create the following folders:
  - Notepad (Classic)
  - Paint (Classic)
  - SnippingTool (Classic)

4. Extract/mount the Windows 10 ISO file you downloaded

5. Open the extracted/mounted folder, then open the "sources" folder

6. Copy the install.esd file to your desktop

7. Use 7-zip to open the install.esd file

8. There should be a bunch of numbered folders, each corresponds to a different Windows 10 image. To see which folder is which image, you can open and format the [1].xml file

9. In my copy, 1 is the Windows 10 Home image, 6 is the Windows 10 Pro image, not that it really matters

10. Go into a folder of your choice, if you don't know which one, just pick the [1] folder

11. Next, navigate to the Windows folder

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Notepad (Classic)
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1. Scroll down and find the "notepad.exe" file

2. Copy this file and paste it into your "ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic)" folder

3. Right-Click this file, click create shortcut

4. Rename the shortcut to: "Notepad (Classic)"

5. Next, we need the language files for this application. Create a new folder inside of "ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic)" folder titled, "en-US"
  - Note: If you have a Windows ISO file for a different language, replace "en-US" with the language that corresponds to your ISO file

6. Back in 7-zip, go to the Windows\en-US folder
  - Again, replace "en-US" to match your language

7. Copy the notepad.exe.mui file into your "ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic)\en-US" folder

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SnippingTool (Classic)
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1. Back in 7-Zip where you are browsing the image.esd contents, navigate to the "Windows\System32" folder

2. Find the "SnippingTool.exe" file, copy it and paste it into your "ClassicApps\SnippingTool (Classic)" folder

3. Right-Click this file, click create shortcut

4. Rename the shortcut to: "SnippingTool (Classic)"

5. Next, we need the language files for this application. Create a new folder inside of "ClassicApps\SnippingTool (Classic)" folder titled, "en-US"
  - Note: If you have a Windows ISO file for a different language, replace "en-US" with the language that corresponds to your ISO file

6. Back in 7-zip, go to the "Windows\System32\en-US" folder
  - Again, replace "en-US" to match your language

7. Copy the "SnippingTool.exe.mui" file into your "ClassicApps\SnippingTool (Classic)\en-US" folder

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Paint (Classic)
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1. Create the following folders within your "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)" folder:
  - Helper
  - Program
  - SystemResources

2. Back in 7-Zip where you are browsing the image.esd contents, navigate to the "Windows\System32" folder

3. Copy the mspaint.exe file into the "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Program" folder

4. Right-Click this file, click create shortcut

5. Rename the shortcut to: "Paint (Classic)"

6. Move the shortcut inside of the "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper" folder

7. While inside the "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Program" folder, create a new folder titled, "en-US"
  - Note: If you have a Windows ISO file for a different language, replace "en-US" with the language that corresponds to your ISO file

8. Back in 7-zip, go into the "Windows\System32\en-US" folder
  - Again, replace "en-US" to match your language

9. Copy the "mspaint.exe.mui" file into your "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Program\en-US" folder

10. Now, Paint requires a few more things to get working properly

11. Back in 7-zip, navigate to the "Windows\SystemResources" folder

12. Copy the "mspaint.exe.mun" file into the "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\SystemResources" folder

13. Next, download the following: https://pastebin.com/VEAPr1ZM
  - This will register the Windows 10 Paint app as a file handler in Windows 11, associating this app with files that Paint can open
  - It will also add right-click context menu entries to open in Paint (Classic) when right-clicking on compatible Paint files

14. Save the contents to a new text file named "register_paint_classic_win11.reg", then move it to the "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper" folder

15. Next, download the following: https://pastebin.com/g1RpDZ4G
  - This will unregister the Windows 10 Paint app as a file handler in Windows 11, disassociating this app with files that Paint can open
  - It will also remove right-click context menu entries to open in Paint (Classic) when right-clicking on compatible Paint files

16. Save the contents to a new text file named "unregister_paint_classic_win11.reg", then move it to the "ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper" folder

17. A note about these registry files:
  - The hex code you see is configured to point to the C:\ClassicApps folder path. This means that for these registry files to work and to get the Paint (Classic) app registered in Windows, you must follow the folder structure I've outlined in this guide
  - To move these ClassicApps to a different location on your file system, you will have to edit each the hex values in a hex editor and replace the hex values in the registry file
  - For simplicity sake, I recommend just following the folder structure outlined in this guide

When done, your folder/file structure should look like this:
  C:\ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic)\en-US\notepad.exe.mui
  C:\ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic)\Notepad (Classic)
  C:\ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic)\notepad.exe
  C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper\Paint (Classic)
  C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper\register_paint_classic_win11.reg
  C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper\unregister_paint_classic_win11.reg
  C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Program\en-US\mspaint.exe.mui
  C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Program\mspaint.exe
  C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\SystemResources\mspaint.exe.mun
  C:\ClassicApps\SnippingTool (Classic)\en-US\SnippingTool.exe.mui
  C:\ClassicApps\SnippingTool (Classic)\SnippingTool (Classic)
  C:\ClassicApps\SnippingTool (Classic)\SnippingTool.exe

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Part 2: Final Touches
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1. In Windows 11, open the "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Accessories" folder

2. Copy the shortcuts created earlier for each classic application into this folder
  - This will allow you to search/find the application in the start menu in Windows for all users

3. Now, let's add these applications to your path. Press Win+R, type sysdm.cpl, hit Enter, click the Advanced tab, then click "Environment Variables"
  - Under System variables, double-click Path, then:
    - Click the "New" button, enter the following: C:\ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic)
    - Click the "New" button, enter the following: C:\ClassicApps\SnippingTool (Classic)
    - Click the "New" button, enter the following: C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Program

4. Register Paint (Classic) in Windows as a file handler for image files in Windows 11 and add right-click context menus to "Edit with Paint (Classic)"
  - Run the "C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper\register_paint_classic_win11.reg" registry file to add the required entries into the Windows Registry
  - Note: To undo this and remove these entries, just run the "C:\ClassicApps\Paint (Classic)\Helper\unregister_paint_classic_win11.reg" registry file

5. Make Notepad (Classic) the default editor for text files instead of the newer Notepad application by disabling modern app aliasing:
  - Go to Settings > Apps > Advanced app settings > App execution aliases
  - Find the "Notepad" entry and toggle it Off
  - Now, find a text file, right-click it and choose Open with > Choose another app
  - Select Notepad (ensure it is the old notepad icon)
    - If you have to find Notepad, just navigate to the C:\ClassicApps\Notepad (Classic) folder and select the notepad.exe file
  - Click OK