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Microsoft PowerToys is an indispensable toolkit for Windows 11 power users, with everything from advanced window management to system-wide color picking. However, keeping all of these utilities ready to launch at a moment’s notice comes at a major cost to your system memory. Developers are finally addressing this issue with a new memory-saving feature that kills idle background processes in PowerToys.

The feature is a community-developed low memory mode that can potentially fix this idle drain by automatically killing inactive processes.

Currently, several PowerToys utilities keep a helper or user interface (UI) process constantly running in the background so they can open instantly when you press a hotkey. While this makes the tools feel incredibly fast and responsive, it also means PowerToys is hoarding system memory for utilities you might only use occasionally.

The impact on system resources is not trivial. In a screenshot shared by developers tracking the issue, the PowerToys.ColorPickerUI process can be seen consuming over 200 MB of RAM while sitting completely idle in the background.

I use PowerToys daily, and I haven’t experienced a scenario where its RAM usage caused other tasks to flounder. However, we are now at a time when saving every megabyte of RAM is as important as ever.

How the new memory-saving feature in PowerToys works

To fix this idle memory drain, an independent contributor submitted a feature request and subsequent pull request (PR #47487) to the Microsoft PowerToys GitHub repository. The proposed solution introduces an optional low memory mode.

When a user enables this setting, the specific utility will completely close its helper process while it is not actively being used.

When you need the tool, pressing the standard activation hotkey will relaunch the process on demand. The only trade-off for this reduction in background RAM usage is that the very first launch of that specific utility might be slightly slower than usual.

According to the pull request documentation, this RAM-saving “exit-after-use” behavior will initially support four specific tools in PowerToys:

• Text Extractor
• Color Picker
• Advanced Paste
• Peek

This new development adds a shared low_memory_modules settings map and helper APIs, allowing supported utilities to opt into the idle-close behavior without requiring a complex new schema field for every individual module.

The PowerToys runner will refresh the cached settings and apply the policy by restarting only the affected modules. The system then uses a specific command (PTSettingsHelper::is_low_memory_mode_enabled) to determine whether a module should stay warm or shut down after use.

Low memory mode in PowerToys is a community development masterpiece

Originally, the developer named the feature “Low memory mode”. However, during the code review process, Microsoft collaborators suggested renaming the toggle to “Close apps when inactive” because it better describes the system action to everyday users.

I like the fact that the user interface matches the native Windows 11 aesthetic. In the PowerToys General Settings tab, users will see a new expandable section adorned with a leaf icon. During development, reviewers specifically noted that this leaf glyph looks like the “Efficiency mode” icon found natively in the Windows 11 Task Manager.

From this new settings block, you can click “Enable all” to apply the memory-saving behavior globally (across supported tools), or individually toggle the feature for specific apps like Text Extractor or Peek.

The toggle will also appear inside the dedicated settings page for each supported module, with the description and disclaimer saying “Closes the app when not in use to save memory. It may open slower.”

Why freeing up RAM is critical for Windows 11

This optimization could not arrive at a better time. PowerToys is constantly expanding its footprint. We recently tested the PowerToys Command Palette with a new Dock and the advanced window resizing and layout management features. As the suite grows heavier with new capabilities, stopping background RAM usage becomes essential.

Similarly, this software optimization is useful for some of Microsoft’s recent controversial hardware decisions.

As we reported, Microsoft is launching a $1,300 Surface Laptop with just 8GB of RAM, fundamentally contradicting its own Copilot+ AI hardware requirements.

When hardware manufacturers continue to sell premium Windows 11 machines with highly constrained memory pools, power users cannot afford to let background utilities eat up 200 MB of RAM simply to keep a Color Picker “warm”.

It is important to note that the feature is not yet available in PowerToys. Also, the development team has confirmed that keeping the “warm” background process running will remain the default behavior across the application to preserve the instant-launch experience.

Users who want to reclaim their system memory will need to manually navigate to the settings and opt into the feature.

The code has already successfully passed its initial ARM64 validation checks and unit tests, and is currently awaiting final maintainer confirmation before it rolls out to the public.

The post Microsoft’s PowerToys is getting a low memory mode that kills idle utilities hogging Windows 11 RAM appeared first on Windows Latest

While other commencement speeches have been met with boos for hyping up artificial intelligence, Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak reminded college graduates that they already posses "AI" of their own: "actual intelligence." He framed AI as an attempt to duplicate brain-like routines, and encouraged students to "think different" as they enter a workforce being reshaped by automation. Business Insider reports: Steve Wozniak did what other college graduation commencement speakers couldn't this year: earn applause when talking about AI. The Apple cofounder took the stage during Grand Valley State University's graduation ceremony earlier this month. During his speech, Wozniak offered reassurance to new graduates who are entering the workforce at the height of the AI revolution. "It would take too long to go deeply into what I think about AI, but we've been trying to create a brain," Wozniak said. "Is there a way we can duplicate a routine a trillion times and have it work like a brain? AI is one of those attempts." [...] During his commencement address, Wozniak reflected on working at Apple and offered students some advice as they begin their careers. "You should always try to think different," he said. "Don't follow the same steps as a million other people. Think, is there something I can do a little different?" You can watch the clip on YouTube.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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Christian Thordal: The Jazz Duo Effect and The Absent PO — Two Sides of Agile Product Ownership

The Great Product Owner: Clarity, Accountability, and a Partnership That Fills in the Blanks

Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes.

 

"We kind of filled in the blanks for each other, and it felt very natural — it's grown organically into this partnership where we're extremely aligned on how we see and do things." - Christian Thordal

 

Christian describes his best Product Owner as someone he currently works with — a person who combines deep product clarity with genuine leadership. This PO is fully accountable for the backlog, sets clear expectations toward the teams, and isn't afraid to push them. What makes this PO stand out is how they use reporting as a communication tool: alongside the backlog, they proactively communicate to the product leader whether things are within or outside scope, always with a plan ready. Christian and this PO hold weekly follow-ups to discuss the team, the backlog, and the product direction. Over time, their alignment has become so strong that during facilitation sessions they naturally fill in blanks for each other — one picks up where the other leaves off. Vasco compared it to a jazz duo, where each musician picks up on the other's leads in real time. This kind of organic partnership in leadership direction reflects positively on the entire team, creating a sense of coherence and momentum that everyone can feel.

 

Self-reflection Question: How aligned are you with your Product Owner on leadership direction, and what would it take to build the kind of partnership where you naturally fill in the blanks for each other?

The Bad Product Owner: When the PO Disappears and the Scrum Master Becomes the Glue

Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes.

 

"You can inspire, you can motivate, but you can't really do the work for them." - Christian Thordal

 

Christian shares an experience from a larger logistics company in Denmark where the Product Owner was a great, likable person — but didn't understand the role. The backlog was high-level, consisting primarily of Epics with no acceptance criteria. Then the warning signs started: the PO became increasingly hard to get a hold of, started canceling refinement meetings (sometimes on the same day), began working more from home, and became physically more distant from the team. Christian and the team were left to navigate on their own, breaking down epics into stories and tasks without knowing if they were building the right product. Christian tried setting up weekly one-hour sessions to help the PO work through the backlog, but the fundamental problem remained — you cannot do the PO's work for them. Eventually, Christian found himself filling in for the PO, which is itself an anti-pattern: the Scrum Master becoming the glue that holds the product together. The symptoms to watch for are clear: a PO who starts missing meetings, backlog items that remain unrefined, a PO who becomes physically or remotely distant, and — the biggest red flag — a Scrum Master who feels compelled to step in and do the PO's job.

 

Self-reflection Question: Are there signs that your Product Owner is drifting away from the team, and have you caught yourself filling in gaps that aren't yours to fill?

 

[The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

🔥In the ruthless world of fintech, success isn't just about innovation—it's about coaching!🔥

Angela thought she was just there to coach a team. But now, she's caught in the middle of a corporate espionage drama that could make or break the future of digital banking. Can she help the team regain their mojo and outwit their rivals, or will the competition crush their ambitions? As alliances shift and the pressure builds, one thing becomes clear: this isn't just about the product—it's about the people.

 

🚨 Will Angela's coaching be enough? Find out in Shift: From Product to People—the gripping story of high-stakes innovation and corporate intrigue.

 

Buy Now on Amazon

 

[The Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast Recommends]

 

About Christian Thordal

 

Christian Thordal is a former Danish Army officer turned Agile Coach. He works with leaders and teams to create clarity, accountability, and momentum in complex organizations. His approach blends military leadership principles with modern product development, helping organizations move from discussion and strategy to real execution and measurable results.

 

You can link with Christian Thordal on LinkedIn.

Download audio: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/scrummastertoolbox/20260522_Christian_Thordal_F.mp3?dest-id=246429

About Karina

Karina has a decade of experience partnering with leading nonprofits, foundations, city agencies, and community stakeholders. At August, Karina is an organizational design consultant who helps nurture more creative, self-managing and productive teams. She’s partnered with New York City’s Department of Education, Sundance Institute, Planned Parenthood, PepsiCo and Chanel. Prior to joining August, she worked for 10 years with nonprofits, foundations, government agencies, and community networks tackling complex organizational and social challenges. Her passion is helping groups navigate ambiguity, gain insight, and unlock highly complex challenges.

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Today We Talked About

• Her Background
• Theater and Psychology
• Human side of AI
• Agile Ways of Working
• Teams That Meet the Moment
• Why your org chart may be quietly killing innovation
• The “team charter” revolution: how making roles explicit accelerates clarity and growth
• Meetings are broken: the structural reset that eliminates decision paralysis
• “Safe to try”: how high-performing teams move forward without waiting for consensus
  • Chunking work down
  • Cycle’s of reflection
  • The world moves too fast now to be perfect
• Why “progress over perfection” drives faster, healthier transformation
• Four small team tweaks that could immediately improve your workweek
• Why shared habits and shared language are so important for teams right now.
• It would be great to touch on two practices from the book about how to make decisions as a team in a world that never sits still: safe to try and even overs.
• The role of leaders in supporting exceptional team work.
• The shift that AI is going to bring for technical and creative leaders.
• Lies about Performance:
  • Better Strategy
  • Superstar talent, leads to superstar teamwork
• One way doors and two way doors
• Even overs
• Move fast and fix things
• Work in Public

 

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Connect with Karina

• LinkedIn
• Website
• Book

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