BetaWiki:Featured article/2020-05

The Start Screen on Windows 8 build 7850, locked behind RP

Redpill (also abbreviated as RP) is a term adopted by Microsoft to denote feature hiding efforts. It was first spotted in build 6608, along with its counterpart Bluepill. Despite this fact, most associate Redpill with Windows 8 only. This can be attributed to Windows 7 using the term rather sparingly.

In Windows 7, Bluepill features were to be enabled through the registry. However, Windows 8 utilizes a licensing policy and an external library called shsxs.dll, both of which are responsible for the hidden features that Redpill can provide. Over time, several applications were developed in effort to enable these hidden features with varying degrees of success.