Windows clipboard history has undergone a major evolution with the October update of Windows 10. In the past Windows systems did not save the clipboard history. This simply implied that when you carried out a copy operation, only that immediate item is copied to the clipboard and is available to be pasted. Previous clipboard contents are overwritten by default and lost forever.
Third-party software used to be the only alternative to managing clipboard items. Some of them have the capacity to remember everything copied – plain texts, texts with formatting, HTML, pictures and even files.
With the new October update in Windows 10, you can now access a history of items copied to the clipboard, pin frequently used items, and sync the clipboard across your PCs. This post will be a guide on how to use these new features in your Windows 10.
How to enable the new clipboard features of Windows 10
This feature is only available in Windows 10 version 1809 or later. It remains disabled by default and will need to be enabled for you to enjoy its rich features.
To get your new clipboard enabled, open your computer settings from your Start menu and navigate to “System -> Clipboard.” Make sure the “Save multiple items” toggle switch is turned on.
Windows automatically syncs all copied items across all devices by default once this toggle switch is turned on. It may be necessary but is also a personal choice to select the “Never automatically synch text that I copy” radio button. Doing this ensures sensitive information is not synced.
How to access clipboard history
The fastest way to access a history of items saved to your clipboard is by using the hotkey Win + V. This hotkey is used from whatever application you wish to access the clipboard from.
It opens up the clipboard panel and also displays items already stored on the clipboard. These items are sorted by recency. Clicking on any of the displayed items will paste it into the current application.
The new Windows 10 clipboard feature allows you to pin the most frequently pasted items for quick access. To achieve this, click on the pin to the right side of the item you need pinned.
How to clear clipboard history
Since copied items are automatically saved in the new Windows 10 clipboard, so it may become important to clear the clipboard from time to time, which is a very simple process. You should note that cleared items are lost forever.
To clear the clipboard history, open Settings from your Windows 10 Startup menu and navigate to “System -> Clipboard.” Next, click the “Clear” button under “Clear Clipboard Data.”
All items will be cleared with the exception of items that have been pinned. To clear pinned items, however, one must first unpin them and repeat the process.
Conclusion
Items copied on this new Windows 10 clipboard can be synced across all devices running this latest update of Windows. For this to work, however, you must be logged in with the same Microsoft account.
Currently, Windows 10 will only sync data less than 100 KB in size using this feature. Long portions of text and large images will not sync until Microsoft increases this limit.
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