How to manage notifications in Windows 10

Windows 10 finally brought an Action Center to the desktop OS that allows you to keep track of notifications from various parts of the operating system, email, apps and other areas.

In today’s information rich environment there are times we need to have some detailed control over what notifications we receive and Windows 10, just like Windows Phone 8.1, allows you to do that.

Quiet Hours is one way to mute both visual and audible notifications in Windows 10 but it is an option that is meant for temporarily disabling notifications.  You can configure quick access to that button very easily in the Action Center.

Another option is to just turn off the master alert toggle and not receive any notifications but that is like trying to drive a tack with a hammer – it is overkill.

So let’s walk through the process for really setting up the notifications in Windows 10 so you see just what you need to from your apps.

To begin open up the Settings app – a shortcut to this is located on the Start Menu.

From the main page of the Settings app click/tap on System.

From the System page click/tap on Notifications & actions.

From here there are several controls relating to notifications on Windows 10.

1. Master toggle to turn off all app related notifications.

2. Toggle to show visual notifications on the lock screen.

3. Toggle to show alarms, reminders and incoming calls on the lock screen

4. Toggle to not allow notifications to pop up on screen when you are presenting.

5. Toggle to turn off all notifications for a specific app.

6. Click on the highlighted app name to customize notifications for that app.

After clicking on the linked name of any app on the previous page you can now decide to modify notification settings for that specific app.

1. Turns on/off all notifications for this app.

2. Turns on/off visual notifications/banners for this app.

3. Turns on/off audible notifications for this app.

With this level of control you can really tweak exactly what alerts you see in the Windows 10 Action Center.

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