How to: Customize Menus and Toolbars (Visual Studio)
By using the Customize dialog box, you can add or remove commands on any menu or toolbar in the integrated development environment (IDE), or change the order and grouping of commands. You can also add menus or toolbars, and you can change the layout, position, and content of existing toolbars. To open the Customize dialog box, on the Tools menu, click Customize.
Warning
Make sure that the menus and toolbars you customize remain checked in the Customize dialog box. If they are not checked, your changes will not persist across Visual Studio sessions (that is, when you close and reopen Visual Studio).
Customizing Existing Menus and Toolbars
To add a command to a menu or toolbar
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Commands tab, under Choose a menu or toolbar to rearrange, select the menu or toolbar you want to change and then click Add Command.
In the Add Command dialog box, select a category name on the Categories list and then, on the Commands list, select the command you want to add.
Click OK.
Click Close.
To remove a command from a menu or toolbar
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Commands tab, under Choose a menu or toolbar to rearrange, select the menu or toolbar you want to change.
Select the command you want to remove, and then click Delete.
Click Close.
To separate commands on a menu or toolbar
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Commands tab, under Choose a menu or toolbar to rearrange, select the menu or toolbar you want to change.
Select the command you want to separate from the commands above it. You cannot insert a separater before the first command.
In the Modify Selection list, select Begin a Group.
A separator bar appears on the list of commands, above the selected command.
Click Close.
The command appears on the menu or toolbar with a separator before it.
To add a new menu
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Commands tab, click Add New Menu. The new menu appears and is named New Menu.
In the Modify Selection list, you can change the name of the menu.
Click Close.
The command appears on the menu or toolbar before it.
To change the order of menus
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Commands tab, under Choose a menu or toolbar to rearrange, select the menu or toolbar you want to move.
Click Move Up or Move Down to move the command.
Click Close.
The command appears on the menu or toolbar with a separator before it.
Creating Toolbars
To create a toolbar
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Toolbars tab, click New.
In the New Toolbar dialog box, type a name for the toolbar.
Use the steps described earlier in this document to add commands to the toolbar.
Changing Toolbar Layout
You can arrange toolbars by dragging them in the main docking area, or by using the Customize dialog box to move them to other docking areas.
To arrange toolbars in the main docking area
Drag a toolbar by its left edge to move it where you want it.
Surrounding toolbars are automatically re-arranged.
To change the docking location of a toolbar
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Toolbars tab, on the Modify Selection list, select a dock location.
Click Close.
For more information about how to improve the usability and accessibility of toolbars, see How to: Set Accessibility Options.
Resetting the Main Menu and Shortcut Menus
If you change the locations of commands or change command icons, you can reset them to their original configurations.
To reset a menu or toolbar
On the Tools menu, click Customize.
In the Customize dialog box, on the Commands tab, under Choose a menu or toolbar to rearrange, select the menu or toolbar you want to reset.
Click Reset All.
The selected menu bar, toolbar, or context menu returns to its original configuration.