How to Easily Turn On the Windows 11 App Resume Feature

What is the Apps Resume Feature?

This feature lets you pick up right where you left off on your phone when you get back to your Windows 11 PC. For example, if you were editing a Word document on your phone (iPhone or Android) and then unlock your PC within 5 minutes, you’ll get a notification on your computer. Clicking that notification opens the same document on your PC automatically!

It works with files stored in OneDrive like Word documents, Excel sheets, PowerPoint slides, OneNote pages, and PDFs.

How to Turn On Apps Resume Using Windows Settings

1. Open the ⚙️ Settings app on your PC.
   
   You can do this by clicking the ⊞ Start menu and selecting Settings, or by pressing the keyboard shortcut Windows key + I.
2. In Settings, click Apps on the left side.
3. Look for the Resume tile on the right and click it to open.
4. Toggle the switch to On to enable the Apps Resume feature.
   
   

   

5. Under Resume, find the OneDrive option and toggle it On to allow resuming work on OneDrive files from your phone.
6. When done, simply close the ⚙️ Settings app.

How to Turn Off or On Apps Resume Using the Windows Registry (Advanced)

If you like a more hands-on approach, you can also enable or disable Apps Resume through the Windows Registry. Be careful, as changing the registry can affect your PC if done incorrectly.

1. Open the Windows Registry Editor by typing regedit in the ⊞ Start menu search and pressing Enter.
2. Navigate to this folder:
   
   ComputerHKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionCrossDeviceResumeConfiguration
3. 🖱️ Right-click on Configuration, then choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
4. Name the new DWORD IsResumeAllowed.
5. Double-click the new value and set it to:

   • 1 to turn Apps Resume On
   • 0 to turn it Off
6. You can also control specific apps by creating DWORDs like this:
   
   IsOneDriveResumeAllowed
   
   Set to 1 to allow OneDrive to resume or 0 to block it.
7. Close the Registry Editor when finished.

What Happens After You Enable Apps Resume?

When you open a OneDrive file on your phone and then unlock your PC within 5 minutes, you will see a notification like this:

Click the notification, and the same file will open in your PC’s web browser, so you can continue working without searching for it.

Summary

• Apps Resume lets you continue working on OneDrive files from your phone right on your Windows 11 PC.
• You need Windows 11 Build 22635.4515 or newer (Beta Channel) and the same Microsoft account on both devices.
• Supported files include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and PDFs.
• You can turn Apps Resume on or off in ⚙️ Windows Settings or by editing the Registry.

By turning on Apps Resume, you can save time and keep your work moving smoothly between your phone and PC!

More info: Read the official Microsoft announcement here.