control panel

The software equivalent of a physical control panel that provides options for the user to change the appearance or actions in an application; in system software such as the operating system; or in the hardware. In Windows, control panels are used to configure the OS and hardware, while "options," "tools" or "preferences" menus are used to change functions within applications.

If a control panel is not modified by the user, the default settings are used. See default and preferences.

Windows Control Panels

The Windows operating system provides a series of control panels for changing settings in the hardware and software.