PeekDesktop: Bring macOS Sonoma’s Desktop Peek to Windows

Have you ever admired the way macOS Sonoma lets you click on the desktop wallpaper to instantly reveal your desktop, hiding all open windows? Now, you can get that same experience on Windows 10 and 11 with PeekDesktop!

What is PeekDesktop?

PeekDesktop is a lightweight utility that brings the "click wallpaper to reveal desktop" feature from macOS Sonoma to Windows. With a simple click on an empty area of your desktop wallpaper (not on an icon), all your open windows minimize, letting you access your desktop instantly. Click any window, the taskbar, or the wallpaper again, and everything comes right back where it was.

Key Features

• Instant Desktop Access: Click empty wallpaper to minimize all windows.
• Seamless Restore: Click any app, the taskbar, or the wallpaper again to restore your windows exactly as they were.
• Icon-Friendly: Clicking or dragging desktop icons won’t accidentally trigger peek.
• System Tray Controls: Easily enable/disable PeekDesktop, set it to start with Windows, check for updates, and more from the tray icon.
• No Admin Needed: Runs without admin rights and uses less than 5 MB RAM when idle.
• Multi-Monitor Support: Works across all your screens.

How Does It Work?

PeekDesktop uses efficient Windows APIs to detect clicks on the desktop, distinguish between wallpaper and icons, and manage window states. It doesn’t require installation—just download, extract, and run.

• Uses SetWindowsHookEx(WH_MOUSE_LL) for mouse detection
• Identifies desktop vs. icons with MSAA hit-testing
• Captures and restores exact window positions
• Monitors for app/taskbar focus to restore windows

Getting Started

1. Download the latest release for your platform (Intel/AMD or ARM64).
2. Extract the zip and run PeekDesktop.exe.
3. Control the app from the system tray.

No installer, no fuss—just a better desktop experience!

Why Use PeekDesktop?

PeekDesktop is perfect for anyone who wants quick access to their desktop without losing their window layout. It’s especially handy for power users, developers, and anyone who loves the macOS workflow but prefers Windows.

Open Source and Actively Developed

PeekDesktop is open source under the MIT License. Contributions are welcome! Check out the GitHub repo for source code, build instructions, and upcoming features like smooth animations, hotkey support, and more.

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Try PeekDesktop today and bring a touch of macOS magic to your Windows PC!