Windows 10: Windows 11's Notepad is getting an auto save feature

Microsoft is adding a new feature to Windows 11's Notepad. The popular text editor is getting an option to auto save documents.

Notepad had been stagnating for many years, with barely any improvements added to it until the app was moved to the Microsoft Store in 2019. The text editor received its first major update in December 2021, with a new interface design, a dark mode theme, and multi-level undo / redo. Microsoft introduced support for Tabs in Notepad almost exactly a year later, at the end of December 2022.

But one feature remained elusive, it was among the most requested ones from users, support for auto save in Notepad. This is one of the notable quality of life options that is available in Notepad++, and other third-party programs of the genre, and helps prevents loss of data in unsaved documents.

The Redmond company has finally announced the feature, it is currently being tested in the Canary and Dev channels of the Windows Insider Program. The update will allow Notepad to save your session state and close the program without any warnings, i.e. Windows won't prompt you about unsaved documents. When you re-open Notepad, the text editor will automatically restore the previously opened tabs. This works similar to how a web browser handles your sessions.



(image via: Microsoft)

Notepad will auto save any text content and edits that you had made before closing the tab. But Microsoft says that the changes do not actually impact the files themselves. So, what does that mean? In simple words, the saved session state is sort of cached, i.e., saved in a temporary file, and not in the actual documents themselves. If you try accessing the file via another text editor, you won't see the unsaved content. When you access Notepad, it will display the previous session, and you may choose to retain or discard the unsaved content when clicking on the close button on each tab.



The auto save feature is an optional one, meaning you can disable it from the app's settings. I updated my Dev Channel VM to Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 23536, but still don't see the new features. Microsoft's announcement mentions that the features are being rolled out to users, in the usual A/B testing pattern.

The auto save feature in Notepad is available in version 11.2307.22.0 and above. You can update the app from the Microsoft Store to see if you have access to the feature.

On a side note, Microsoft is rolling out a new feature to Snipping Tool version 11.2307.44.0. It has a combined capture bar, which lets you choose between capturing screenshots and screen recordings quickly, without opening the app. All you need to do is use the Print Screen or Win + Shift + S hotkeys to trigger the capture bar for screenshots, or the Win + Shift + R shortcut to record your screen.



(image credits: Microsoft)

The Snipping tool is also gaining support for recording audio from your PC's output and input devices, so you can capture audio from your sound card/speaker or a microphone connected to the computer. These features are also being A/B tested, so you may not see them yet.



(image Courtesy: Microsoft)

I always have an unsaved Notepad document open on my computer, it helps prevents unscheduled restarts due to Windows Updates and the like. This trick has also been particularly useful with games that froze up, and wouldn't let me access the Task Manager. In this case, using Ctrl + Alt + Del to access the Power Menu and clicking restart would close all programs including the game, but won't shut down/reboot the system because Windows would display a warning Notepad's contents had not been saved. It's a silly little thing, but I suppose when Notepad's auto save feature arrives, I'll have to use WordPad or a different text editor for this.

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Getting the old version of Notepad on Windows 11

Good Day OlivierD'Anjou,

My name is Carlo, I am also using Windows 11 pc and community member like you.

Here's the steps you can try.

-Right-click on the Start button and select Settings from the menu.

-On the list on the left-hand side, select Apps.

-From the right pane, select Optional features.

-Click on View Features corresponding to Add an Optional feature.

-Search for Notepad from the list and check the box associated with it.

-Click on Next. On the next page, click on Install.

Reboot the system after Notepad has been installed.

Have a wonderful day ahead and stay safe.

Sincerely,

Carlo T.

 

Notepad is closing automatically Windows 11 Home

In Notepad 11 (version 11.2302), the application closes automatically without prompting for confirmation, even if there are unsaved changes. This can cause users to lose their work if they accidentally press Ctrl + W or click on the Close button. People who work with keyboards for long hours, such as developers, software engineers, and coders, are prone to encounter these issues.

Steps to Reproduce:

Open Notepad 11.
Type some text in the editor.
Press Ctrl + W or click on the Close button.
Note that the application closes without asking for confirmation or saving changes.

Expected Behavior: Notepad should prompt for confirmation when closing the application, giving the user a chance to save any unsaved changes before exiting.

Actual Behavior: Notepad 11 closes automatically without asking for confirmation, potentially causing data loss.

Possible Solution: Implement a confirmation dialog when closing Notepad 11 to prevent accidental closures and data loss. Additionally, adding an auto-save feature could help users recover their work in case of unexpected closures.

Severity: High, as it can cause users to lose their work without warning.

Reproducibility: Always.

 

saving letters from NOTEPAD

Hi Ron,



This issue is quite unclear and too broad for us to distinguish the main reason why you are having challenges/concerns with using
Notepad. To have a better understanding of your concerns, we'd like to ask you some questions:

• Do you have an Office program installed on your computer? This enables the
  Clipboard feature to let you copy and paste texts.
• What is your method of copying a text?
• In what program are you trying to attempt to paste your letters copied from
  Notepad?

• What were the recent changes made on your computer before you experienced this issue?
• What troubleshooting steps have you done so far?
• Did you receive any error messages?

In addition, you can read our forum guidelines here:
Suggestions for asking a question on help forums to help you phrase questions and concerns in our community.



Your response will be much appreciated.