If two projects need different groups of open applications, virtual desktops can reduce the effort of finding the right window. Start with two clearly defined activities rather than creating a separate desktop for every application.

These are workspaces within your Windows session. Treat them as organisation tools, not as separate user accounts or a way to protect confidential work from someone using the same unlocked session.

Create a pair of recognisable workspaces

Press Windows+Tab to open Task View, select New desktop and rename the desktop for its purpose. Select it before opening the applications for that task. Give the other desktop an equally clear name, such as Research and Drafting.

Open Settings, System, Multitasking and expand Desktops. Choose whether the taskbar shows windows from the current desktop or all desktops. The same area has a separate choice for the windows shown by Alt+Tab.

Decide which behaviour fits your work. Showing everything may help you retrieve an occasional reference; showing only the current desktop may make a busy project easier to follow. Change one choice and try it before adjusting the other.

Rehearse a complete switch

Open a harmless reference document in one workspace and a draft in the other. Switch through Task View, then use your usual taskbar or Alt+Tab habit to return to each document.

Check that the workspace name and available windows make the destination obvious. If you repeatedly land in the wrong project, simplify the arrangement rather than adding more desktops to compensate.

Before a presentation, inspect the actual sharing preview and choose the intended window or screen. A desktop label is not proof of what a meeting application will transmit.

Keep saving work normally while using this arrangement. The useful result is faster, more predictable navigation between live tasks; the existence of a named desktop does not replace a saved document or a backup.

Sources: Microsoft multiple desktops.