How to reset file explorer’s folder view in windows 10

Brady Gavin has been immersed in technology for 15 years and has written over 150 detailed tutorials and explainers. He’s covered everything from Windows 10 registry hacks to Chrome browser tips. Brady has a diploma in Computer Science from Camosun College in Victoria, BC. Read more.

Windows 10 lets you customize how you see the contents of your folders by adding or removing the preview/details pane, viewing layout of icons, grouping and sorting, and more. If you want to get rid of customizations you’ve made, you can reset the folder view to its default.

One thing to keep in mind when doing this is that Windows has five different templates for which you can customize folder views. These templates include folders for general items, documents, pictures, music, and videos. When you reset a particular folder view, you’re only resetting the view for the template attached to the folder you’re currently viewing. So, for example, if you reset a folder using a music template, all music folders on your system get reset, but folders using other templates are untouched.

Start by firing up File Explorer and navigating to a folder that uses the template you want to reset.

Switch over to the “View” tab and then click the “Options” button.

In the Folder Options window that opens, switch to the “View” tab and then click the “Reset Folders” button. In the confirmation window, click the “Yes” button.

Finally, click “OK” and all the folder view customizations you’ve made to that particular template will be reset to the Windows default.

Now that you’re back to a fresh start, you can continue to customize folder views and while you’re at it, configure folder options to get even more out of File Explorer and all of its neat little tweaks you may not have known about.

This Itechguide teaches you how to reset File Explorer to default view in Windows 10. The guide offers

Resetting File Explorer to default view restores it to look like this:

If your File Explorer View displays in any other style, follow the steps below to reset your Windows 10 File Explorer to look like the image above:

1. Search File Explorer and open it from the search results.

1. Then, on the File Explorer menu bar, click the View tab.

1. On the far end of the View tab – within the Show/hide section – click Options. Then, click Change folder and search options. This opens Folder Options.

1. On Folder Options, click the View tab.

1. To reset Windows 10 File Explorer to the default view – on the Folder views section of the Views tab, click Reset Folders. You will receive a confirmation pop-up.

1. Finally, on the Folder Views reset confirmation pop-up, click Yes.

1. To ensure that your change are saved, click OK. This also closes the File Explorer Options.

If you found it helpful, kindly vote Yes to the “Was this post Helpful” question below.

Also, take 1 minute to tell us what you think about this guide – use the “Leave a Reply” form found at the end of this page.

Finally, for more Windows 10 Itechguides, visit our Windows 10 How-To page.

You may also find our comprehensive File Explorer guide very helpful – Get Help With File Explorer In Windows 10: The Ultimate Guide.

Reset Folder View Settings to Default in Windows 10: One of the best features of Windows 10 is the appearance and personalization settings but sometimes this much of customization can lead up to some annoying changes. One such case is where your Folder View Settings are automatically changed even when you don’t have anything to do with it. We usually set the Folder View settings according to our own preferences but if it changes automatically then we have to adjust it manually.

If after every restart you need to adjust your Folder View settings then it can become quite an annoying issue and therefore we need to fix this problem in a more permanent way. Windows 10 generally forgets your Folder View settings and therefore you need to reset the folder view settings in order to fix this issue. So without wasting any time let’s see How to Reset Folder View Settings to Default in Windows 10 with the help of the below-listed tutorial.

Reset Folder View Settings to Default in Windows 10

Make sure to create a restore point just in case something goes wrong.

Method 1: Reset Folder View Settings to Default in File Explorer Options

1.Open Folder Options or File Explorer Options from any one of the methods listed here.

2.Now switch to the View tab and click on “Reset Folders” button.

3.Click Yes to confirm your action and continue.

4.Click Apply followed by OK to save changes.

Method 2: Reset Folder View Settings to Default in Windows 10 using Registry

1.Press Windows Key + R then type regedit and hit Enter to open Registry Editor.

2.Navigate to the following registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell

3.Right-click on Bags and BagMRU keys then select Delete.

4.Once done, close Registry and reboot your PC.

Method 3: Reset Folder View Settings of All Folders in Windows 10

1.Open Notepad then copy & paste the following:

2.Now from Notepad menu click on File then click Save as.

3.From Save as type drop-down select “All Files” then under File name type Reset_Folders.bat (.bat extension is very important).

4.Make sure to navigate to desktop then click on Save.

5.Double-click on Reset_Folders.bat to run it and once done File Explorer would be restarted automatically to save the changes.

Recommended:

That’s it, you successfully learned How to Reset Folder View Settings to Default in Windows 10 but if you still have any questions regarding this tutorial then feel free to ask them in the comment’s section.

Aditya Farrad

Aditya is a self-motivated information technology professional and has been a technology writer for the last 7 years. He covers Internet services, mobile, Windows, software, and How-to guides.

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Published by Timothy Tibbetts on 02/18/2020

File Explorer has numerous options to change the view to suit your preferences. If you’ve found that your File Explorer view has changed so much that it’s easier to start fresh, then we can reset File Explorer to the default view.

TIP : Hard to fix Windows Problems? Repair/Restore Missing Windows OS Files Damaged by Malware with a few clicks

You can reset all Folders in Options, or using a Batch file.

1: Reset File Explorer Using Batch File

Using a batch file is a one-click solution to start fresh with your File Explorer view that is simple enough for any skill level.

If File Explorer is open, close it now.

Right-click on Reset Folder View Settings in Windows 10.bat and Run as administrator.

Your screen will flash briefly, and your Taskbar will disappear for a few seconds while File Explorer is stopped and restarted to finalize the reset.

2: Reset File Explorer in Options

Resetting in File Explorer options has the advantage of resetting only similar folders or all folders.

Click on any folder, say Pictures, and set that folder up how you like.

Click on View > Options.

To reset similar folders, click on Reset Folders.

To apply to all Folders, click on Apply to Folders.

Be sure to check out our Similar articles below for other File Explorer tips and tricks.

This guide will show you how to reset folder view settings, preview width and details, and navigation width back to default preferences in Windows 10.

• 3 How to reset Win 7, Factory reset Windows 7
• Instructions to reset Windows Firewall Rules to the initial default state

In Windows, you can resize the File Explorer window, template, column width, Group by , Sort by, and view the layout of folder items the way you want. want.

This guide will show you how to reset folder view settings, preview width and details, and navigation width back to default preferences in Windows 10.

How to reset the view settings of all folders using a BAT file

The downloadable .bat file in this option contains commands that will reset all folders’ view settings to default.

Step 1. Download the .bat Reset_Folder_View_Settings_of_All_Folders_to_Default.bat file.

Step 2. Save the .bat file to the desktop.

Step 3. Unblock the .bat file.

Step 4. Double click on the .bat file to run it.

Step 5. Now, you should notice your screen blinking when Explorer is restarted to apply registry changes.

How to reset only the view settings of a directory with the same template type as the current directory

Step 1. Open the folder (eg Pictures in This PC ) in File Explorer ( Win + E ) with template (ex: template Pictures ) that you want to reset for all optimized folders with the same template there.

Step 2. Click the View tab and click the Options button in the ribbon to open Folder Options from within this folder.

Step 3. Click the View tab in Folder Options and click the Reset Folders button .

Step 4. Click Yes to confirm.

Step 5. Click OK in Folder Option.

Step 6. View setting of current directory and all optimized folders with same template type are now reset to default.

By Vega | Follow | Last Updated January 13, 2022

Summary :

Summary: You can change default folder view Windows 10/11 for all folders and choose from a variety of folder layouts. In this article from MiniTool Partition Wizard, we show you how to change default folder view in Windows 10/11.

Quick Navigation :

• What Are Folder Templates?
• How to Change Default Folder View Windows 10/11?
• Bottom Line
• User Comments

In Windows File Explorer, you may have noticed different folder layout settings for different folders. Some folders have smaller icons, while others have larger icon view layouts.

What Are Folder Templates?

Windows File Explorer includes five folder templates that you can use to customize your folder view. Each of these templates comes with a unique layout that sorts and groups objects based on the folder’s content type. These templates are:

• General Items – For any folder that contains a mixed combination of files and other subfolders.
• Documents – For folders containing documents (Word files, text files, etc.)
• Images – For folders containing image files (.jpg, .png files, etc.)
• Music – For all such folders that contain music files (.mp3, .wav, etc.)
• Videos – For any folder that contains only video items (.mp4, .avi, etc.)

Whenever you create a new folder and put some files into it, Windows does its best to determine the folder template based on the content. If you store mixed types of files in any folder, Windows automatically assigns general items as folder templates.

When browsing folders in File Explorer, you can apply the current folder’s view settings to all folders on your PC that are optimized for the same folder template type.

How to Change Default Folder View Windows 10/11?

There are two methods to change default folder view Windows 10/11. You can choose one of the methods to change it.

Method 1: Change Default Folder View via View Feature

To set “Windows 10 change default view”, you can follow the below steps:

Step 1: Press the Win + E key to open the File Explorer.

Step 2: Change the settings as needed. You can change the layout in the upper of File window to choose which folder details to display, add extra panes, adjust column widths, and more.

Step 3: Navigate to the View tab in the top ribbon bar and click Options in the upper-right corner of the window to access the Folder Options window.

However, if you’re using Windows 11, you can click the View button in File Explorer and choose a setting according to your requirements. Then click the three-dots menu and select Options from the drop-down.

Step 4: In the Folder Options dialog, select the View tab. And then click the Apply to Folders button.

Step 5: Click Yes on the confirmation window that pops up.

Step 6: Click OK on the Folder Options window to save the settings.

Method 2: Chang Default Folder View via Custom Feature

To change the default view of all folders, here is another method.

Step 1: Open the folder. Then right click it and select the Properties option.

Step 2: Switch to the Custom tab and select a template from the drop-down menu for Optimize this folder for.

Step 3: Check the Also apply this template to all subfolders box and then click the OK button.

Have you ever come across file explorer not responding Windows 10 issue when trying to use file explorer? If you do, try the following top 9 ways now to fix it!

Bottom Line

In the above article, we conclude the guide on how to change default folder view Windows 10/11. Hope the two methods can help you. If you have other methods, please share them with us.

This post shows students and new users steps to reset File Explorer’s folder view when using Windows 11. With Windows, one can customize File Explorer folder views by adding or removing the preview/details pane, displaying icons vs list, grouping, sorting, and more.

If you have customized File Explorer folder views and you want to reset all the changes you’ve made, the steps below will show you how to do that.

Windows File Explorer includes five folder templates that one can use to customize the view of folders. These templates are: General items , Documents , Pictures , Music , and Videos . Each one of these templates provides a unique layout, sorting and grouping of items depending on the folder’s content type.

Something to remember is if you reset a particular folder template, only that template is reset and the other are untouched. So for example, when you reset the Documents folder views, only the Document template is reset and the other templates are left alone.

To get started with resetting File Explorer folder views, follow the steps below.

How to reset File Explorer folder’s view on Windows 11

As mentioned above, if you have made some changes to File Explorer folder views, and you want to reset everything back to the default, use the steps below.

First, go and open File Explorer on Windows 11. Alternatively, you can press the Windows key + E on the keyboard to open File Explorer.

Once opened, click on the ellipse (three dots on the toolbar) and select Options.

On the View tab, under Folder views, click the Reset Folders button to reset File Explorers’ folder views.

When you click the reset button, you’ll get a confirmation windows to confirm the changes, click Yes.

After that, File Explore folder views should be reset to the default.

That should do it!

Conclusion:

This post showed you how to reset File Explorer’s folder views when using Windows 11. If you find any error above or have something to add, please use the comment form below.

Published by Richard

In my spare time, I research topics that are interesting and worthwhile for users and students who want to try something new. I, too, am a student and my focus here is to help other students and new users get started with managing Ubuntu Linux, Windows, Content Management Systems (CMS) and others.

I try to do my best explaining the topics and detailing the instructions so that anyone can understand. These tutorials may not work in all situations and for all users. However, if you run into trouble, please ask your questions below and I or someone from the community may help you resolve. Thanks for reading and hope you come back.

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How do I apply folder view options to all subfolders in Windows 10?

Steps to Apply a Folder’s View to All Folders of Same Template Type in Windows 10

1. Open Windows Explorer of File Explorer. Now change the Folder layout, view, icon size just as you prefer.
2. Next, tap on the View tab and go to Options.
3. Go to View tab, and click on Apply to Folders.
4. It will ask for your confirmation.

How do I apply folder view to all subfolders?

Locate and open the folder that has the view setting that you want to use for all folders. On the Tools menu, click Folder Options. On the View tab, click Apply to All Folders. Click Yes, and then click OK.

How do you make all folder views the same Windows 10?

Click Options/Change folder and Search options. In the Folder Options window, click the View Tab and click the Apply to Folders button. This will display most of the folders in the List View.

How do I change the view of all folders?

In the desktop, click or tap the File Explorer button on the taskbar. Click or tap the Options button on the View, and then click Change folder and search options. Click or tap the View tab. To set the current view to all folders, click or tap Apply to Folders.

How do I change the view in File Explorer?

Open File Explorer. Click the View tab at the top of the window. In the Layout section, select Extra large icons, Large icons, Medium Icons, Small icons, List, Details, Tiles, or Content to change to the view you want to see.

How do I change the default folder for all folders in Windows 10?

How to reset view settings for all folders in File Explorer

1. Open File Explorer.
2. Click on the View tab.
3. Click on the Options button.
4. Click on the View tab.
5. Click the Reset Folders button.
6. Click the Yes button.
7. Click the Apply to Folders button.
8. Click the Yes button.

How do I sort all folders by type?

Open the folder that contains the files you want to group. Click or tap the Sort by button on the View tab. Select a sort by option on the menu.
…
Sort Files and Folders

1. Options. …
2. The available options vary depending on the selected folder type.
3. Ascending. …
4. Descending. …
5. Choose columns.

What are the folder view styles?

There are four different view types: List View, Icon View, Chart View, and Bar View. To switch between the views click on the icons below the Upload and New Folder buttons.

How do I show all folders in Windows 10?

To make the navigation pane show all folders in Windows 10, do the following.

1. Open This PC in File Explorer.
2. Enable the navigation pane if required.
3. Right click the empty space on the left to open the context menu.
4. Enable the option Show all folders.

Is Microsoft release Windows 11?

Microsoft is set to release Windows 11, the latest version of its best-selling operating system, on Oct. 5. Windows 11 features several upgrades for productivity in a hybrid work environment, a new Microsoft store, and is the “best Windows ever for gaming.”

Why are some folders greyed out Windows 10?

If you’ve selected the “Show Hidden Files, Folders, and Drives” option under Tools -> Folder Options -> View(Tab) in an explorer window, then these hidden files will show up as “ghosted” or “grayed”. To get them back to normal, right-click on them, select “Properties”, then un-check the “Hidden” checkbox.

How do I change the folder view in Windows 10?

To change the view of a folder, first open the folder within the File Explorer window. Then click the “View” tab within the Ribbon. Then click the desired view style button in the “Layout” button group. You can hold your mouse pointer over any view button to preview how it would appear in the window below.

By Vera | Follow | Last Updated July 12, 2021

Summary :

If you don’t like the new File Explorer in Windows 11, you can tweak the Windows settings to switch back to Windows 10 File Explorer on Windows 11. MiniTool Software shows you how to get the classic context menu in this post and let’s see the ways.

Curiosity is an instinct. Microsoft’s new Windows operating system – Windows 11 has been released for some time. Although its final version is not rolled out officially, many users are curious about this new OS and perform a compatibility check, then install Windows 11 on their computers. You may be the one among them.

When starting the new OS, you will find the big changes on Start Menu, Taskbar, Settings, and File Explorer (including Context Menu). If you don’t prefer some tweaks, you can change to the classic mode. In our previous post, we show you how to customize Windows 11 (related to Start Menu and Taskbar).

How can you move Windows 11 Start Menu to the left side to let it look like Windows 10? Now 2 simple ways are introduced in this post.

Today, we will focus on the Windows 11 File Explorer. In File Explorer, you can find the interface is simplified and some options are lacking. Ribbon and traditional context menu are gone. To access the old right-click menu in File Explorer, you need to right-click anywhere and click Show more options. Besides, you can only see some icons including Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete, Share, etc.

The good news is you can switch back to Windows 10 File Explorer on Windows 11 if you don’t like the new change. In the following part, two simple ways will be introduced to you.

How to Use/Restore Windows 10 File Explorer in Windows 11

Get Windows 10 File Explorer in Windows 11 via Folder Options

This is the simplest way to restore the classic File Explorer and follow these steps below.

1. Click the three-dot menu in File Explorer and choose Options.
2. In the Folder Options interface, go to the View tab.
3. Move to the Advanced settings section, scroll down to find Launch folder windows in a separate process, and then check the box of this option.
4. Click Apply and then OK to save the change.

File Explorer will automatically re-launch and you can find the classic File Explorer comes back.

Restore Windows 10 File Explorer in Windows 11 via Registry

1. To get started, press Win + R to get the Run window, type regedit, and click OK.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced.
3. Right-click the Advanced key and go to New > DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name it as SeparateProcess.
4. Double-click this new key and set its value data to 1 to enable the old Windows 10 Explorer in Windows 11.
5. Click OK and restart your computer. When opening File Explorer, you will find it is switched back to the classic interface of Windows 10.

These two ways revert not only the File Explorer interface but also the context menu of File Explorer. That is, the old Ribbon interface at the top of the Explorer window appears and the Windows 10 classic context menu is available in Windows 11.

Further Tip: Restore Classic Context Menu of Both File Explorer and Desktop

Both of the two methods above can only switch back to the classic context menu of the File Explorer, but not the classic context menu of the Desktop. When right-clicking the Desktop, you can get the simplified menu.

To get Windows 10 File Explorer and Desktop classic context menu, follow these instructions.

1. Create a new text document on the Desktop and name it as Classic.

2. Open this document and copy & paste the following text to it and then save the file.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FeatureManagement\Overrides\4\586118283]

“EnabledState”=dword:00000001

“EnabledStateOptions”=dword:00000001

“Variant”=dword:00000000

“VariantPayload”=dword:00000000

“VariantPayloadKind”=dword:00000000

3. Change the file extension to .reg and you can get a registry file.

4. Double-click this file, click Yes to give an administrator permission, click Yes and OK.

5. Restart your computer and you can get the old classic context menu on both File Explorer and Desktop.

Do you know how to disable or enable the new context menu in Windows 11? In this post, we will show you two full guides.

Final Words

How can you use Windows 10 File Explorer in Windows 11? After trying the ways mentioned above, you can easily switch back to Windows 10 File Explorer on Windows 11. As well, a further tip to restore the classic context menu for Desktop and File Explorer is also listed. Have a try if you need it.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Position: Columnist

Vera is an editor of the MiniTool Team since 2016 who has more than 5 years’ writing experiences in the field of technical articles. Her articles mainly focus on disk & partition management, PC data recovery, video conversion, as well as PC backup & restore, helping users to solve some errors and issues when using their computers. In her spare times, she likes shopping, playing games and reading some articles.

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Reset Folder View Settings in Windows 10 contains a batch file to reset File Explorer to the default view.

Using a batch file is a one-click solution to start fresh with your File Explorer view that is simple enough for any skill level.

If File Explorer is open, close it now.

Download Reset Folder View Settings in Windows 10 from MajorGeeks.

Double-click on Reset Folder View Settings in Windows 10.bat.

Your screen will flash briefly, and your Taskbar will disappear for a few seconds while File Explorer is stopped and restarted to finalize the reset.

Our tutorial also explains how to reset File Explorer in options.

Be sure to check out our Similar articles below for other File Explorer tips and tricks.

Other than Quick Access, File Explorer (called Windows Explorer in earlier versions) has not received any major new features in Windows 10 largely because Microsoft seems to be interested in launching a modern version of the File Explorer app rather than updating the classic Windows Explorer.

Windows Explorer or File Explorer is the default file browser in Windows operating system. File Explorer in Windows 10/11 offers a total of eight views: Extra large icons, Large icons, Medium icons, Small icons, List, Details, Tiles, and Content.

In Windows 10/11 File Explorer, one can quickly switch to details or large icons view by clicking respective icons located at the bottom right of the File Explorer. To select between these eight views, you need to click the View tab and then choose one of the views.

Now, if you prefer using keyboard shortcuts over mouse or touchpad, you will be happy to know that you can use keyboard shortcuts to switch between File Explorer views in Windows 10/11. For instance, you can switch to the list view by simultaneously pressing Ctrl, Shift, and 5 keys (Ctrl + Shift + 5).

Change File Explorer view using keyboard shortcuts

Important: It’s important to note that these keyboard shortcuts to change the File Explorer view might not work in the newly introduced File Explorer app, at least for now.

The following are the keyboard shortcuts to change the File Explorer view in Windows 10/11.

NOTE: These keyboard shortcuts work in the new Windows 11 as well.

Ctrl + Shift + 1 – Extra-large icons

Ctrl + Shift + 2 – Large icons

Ctrl + Shift + 3 – Medium icons

Ctrl + Shift + 4 – Small icons

Ctrl + Shift + 5 – List view

Ctrl + Shift + 6 – Details view

Ctrl + Shift + 7 – Tiles

Ctrl + Shift + 8 – Content

Change the File Explorer view using Ctrl + mouse scroll

If you do not remember the keyboard shortcuts, you can hold down the Ctrl key and then scroll down/up the mouse wheel to switch between the views.

Did you know that there are over 10 new keyboard shortcuts in Windows 10? Also, you can use Ctrl + F1 hotkey to minimize or expand the File Explorer ribbon.

And easily make changes for all your folders at once

File Explorer remains the default file manager in Windows 10, and despite Microsoft making a series of improvements in the latest feature updates, the app retains is familiar look and feel.

This is both good and bad, as some people believe that File Explorer needs a refresh not only in terms of features, but also when it comes to its interface, mostly because Windows as a whole is evolving at a super-fast pace.

However, boasting a familiar approach is exactly what many users need, especially if all they want is to work with their files in the simplest possible way in Windows 10 without third-party apps.

While at first glance it’s a rather limited application, File Explorer comes with the essential customization package, and one of the options that users are provided with concerns the information displayed in each folder.

As a result, you can manually customize the look of each folder, not with shiny graphics that you don’t need, but with data that is relevant to file management. For example, you can enable additional columns, configure view and sort options, and group files displayed in a specific folder based on various settings.

All of these changes can be made in just one folder or in all folders that you open in File Explorer. While not necessarily a straightforward process, setting up File Explorer to use one specific folder configuration for all folders on your device is possible with just a few clicks.

First and foremost, what you need to do is to launch File Explorer and make the changes that you want in a specific folder. Remember that the application automatically saves your changes per each folder, so if you don’t want the configuration to be applied system-wide, no further action is required.

On the other hand, to expand your view options to all folders, in File Explorer follow the next path:

File Explorer > View > Options > View
As you can see in this new window, the Folder Options UI provides you with two different options:
Apply to Folders
Reset Folders
The first button lets you apply your current folder settings to all folders on your device. Before doing this, you must open the Folder Options screen from the folder that you previously configured.

The second allows you to reset the configuration you made in folders to the default settings. This is particularly helpful if you previously made changes that you no longer want to use, and just want to return to the default view in Windows 10.

You can use these features as many times as you want, and you can further configure File Explorer using the options available in the same screen in the Advanced settings section.

Once again, if you make changes that you want to reset, there’s a dedicated Restore Defaults button just for these options at the bottom of the window.

File Explorer won’t evolve in a significant manner in the upcoming Windows 10 version 1903, also known as April 2019 Update. Microsoft was originally believed to be working on a modern file manager for Windows 10, but while the application was spotted several times in the past, no other plans have been shared to track its progress.

Windows 10 version 1903 will be finalized by Microsoft next month, at which point the company should release the RTM build to users enrolled in the Windows Insider program. The public rollout to production devices across the world will take place gradually beginning with April after the RTM build is thoroughly tested by insiders.

If you have recently used Windows 10 File Explorer Search box to find a file, then you may have noticed that the results are always displayed in Content View, and even if you change the view to detail, as soon as you close the window and search again, the content will be again displayed in Content View. This is a very annoying issue which seems to bug users ever since Windows 10 came. Another problem is the filename column is way too small in Content View and there isn’t any way of expanding it. So the user then has to change the view to Details which sometimes results in the search running again.

The problem with this solution is to change the default folder view of search results permanently to user choice without changing it manually every time they use the File Explorer search. So without wasting any time, let’s see How to Change Default Folder View of Search Results on Windows 10 with the help of the below-listed guide.

Change Default Folder View of Search Results on Windows 10

Make sure to create a restore point, just in case something goes wrong.

1. Open Notepad file, then copy and paste the following code as it is:

2. Click File from notepad menu then select Save As.

3. From Save as type drop-down selects All Files.

4. Name the file as Searchfix.reg (.reg extension is very important).

5. Navigate to where you want to save the file preferably desktop and then click Save.

6. Now right-click on this registry file and select Run as Administrator.

7. Reboot your PC to save changes.

Set Details view for Music, Pictures, Documents and Videos search folders

1. Open Notepad file, then copy and paste the following code as it is:

2. Click File from notepad menu then select Save As.

3. From Save as type drop-down select All Files.

4. Name the file as Search.reg (.reg extension is very important).

5. Navigate to where you want to save the file preferably desktop and then click Save.

6. Now right-click on this registry file and select Run as Administrator.

7. Reboot your PC to save changes.

Recommended:

That’s it you have successfully learned How to Change Default Folder View of Search Results on Windows 10 but if you still have any questions regarding this post then feel free to ask them in the comment’s section.

Aditya Farrad

Aditya is a self-motivated information technology professional and has been a technology writer for the last 7 years. He covers Internet services, mobile, Windows, software, and How-to guides.

Microsoft’s File Explorer for Windows has been the industry standard for most tasks in the past few years. It has a comprehensive UI that can be customized based on your desires and needs. However, this customization tends to last only till your next restart. But did you know that you can make your File Explorer customizations stick?

If you have been tired of switching to the Details view each time you open a folder, then here is a neat trick that will help you set it as your default in Windows 10. Let’s take a quick look at the procedure.

• Make ‘Details’ your default view for all folders
• Why some folders do not use the ‘Details’ view by default
• Can I use the ‘Details’ view on my desktop?

Make ‘Details’ your default view for all folders

Press ‘Windows + R’ on your keyboard to launch the Run dialog box.

Now type in ‘%userprofile%’ and press Enter on your keyboard.

Click on ‘View’ at the top.

Now click on ‘Options’ at the far right.

Switch to the ‘View’ tab at the top of your screen.

Click on ‘Apply to Folders’.

Click on ‘Yes’ to confirm your changes.

And that’s it! All your folders should now use the ‘Details’ view by default.

Why some folders do not use the ‘Details’ view by default

The changes you make using the guide above only apply to the selected folder template. While the userprofile folder we accessed earlier, covers the basic template, changes still need to be applied specifically to different folder types. This includes folder templates for Pictures, Music, Videos, and more.

If you use such templates for most of your folders, then simply repeat the guide above for each concerned template. In most cases, doing this for your default Pictures, Videos, and Documents folder should be more than enough.

Can I use the ‘Details’ view on my desktop?

This is a highly requested feature that was unfortunately removed by Windows 10 with their creator’s update back in 2018. Earlier you could press ‘Ctrl +Shift +6’ on your keyboard to switch to the details view on your desktop but this no longer works with the latest versions of Windows 10.

If however, you are using an older version of Windows 10, you can still give it a go.

I hope you were able to easily set ‘Details’ as your default view in File Explorer using the guide above. If you face any issues, feel free to reach out using the comments section below.

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Table of Contents

How to change folder view settings in Windows 11?

However, if you’re using Windows 11, you can click the View button in File Explorer and customize it to suit your tests. Then click on the three-dot menu and also select options from the drop-down menu. Step 4: In the Folder Options dialog box, select the View tab.

How to change Windows 11 to classic view?

Using a hiring plan is an attractive option that will ideally encourage you to try a job change. The Registry Editor is one of the most important allies after most people want to quickly change Windows 11 to the classic look.

How to change Windows 11/10 quick view (file preview)?

Sometimes you need to update Windows 11/10 Quick View, better known as file preview, see file hints and sometimes preview! In any Windows Explorer window, you can use the large buttons to switch between the detailed view and the thumbnail view buttons in the lower right corner.

Is it possible to revert windows 11 to Windows 10 look?

It is currently not possible to fully restore Windows 11 to the current look of Windows. And given Microsoft’s current take on custom UI, that may never happen. However, there are a few key tweaks that will help you feel more comfortable.

How do I get Windows 11 to look like Windows 10?

Open each option, select Application, Personalization, open Themes, then Desktop Icons. A composition will appear with the five regular presentation icons on the desktop. Click on the image you want to edit, then activate the edit icon. Navigate to where you placed the icon set, some of the icons you want to use, and click Open.

Can I change Windows 11 to Windows 10?

The easiest way is to visit the Microsoft Windows 10 home page on your Windows 11 PC and search for Create Windows 10 installation media. Download tactics, open it, and follow the on-screen instructions. Then be sure to select this option to update this PC now.

How do I change the view in Windows 11?

Select Start > Settings > > Gadget Display.
If you’d like to change any of our text and mobile app sizes, select an option from the drop-down menu next to Scale.
To update the screen resolution, use the following screen resolution drop-down menu.

How to restore folders in Windows 10? Read this guide to get two practical methods to find your lost folder.

By Lena / Last update November 16, 2020

The need to restore folder in Windows 10

To free up the storage space of computer, people like to delete unnecessary files or folders from time to time. You may like to use the “Shift + Delete” to directly remove the folder. Or you may keep to the habit of regular emptying recycle bin. However, now you just find that you have deleted one folder that contains some important documents accidentally.

Then is it possible to retrieve deleted folder on your Windows 10 computer? Well, the answer is Yes. Actually, the deleted files are not really gone from your computer. They are just marked as available space and wait to be overwritten by new data. So you’d better stop using your computer at once. The folders are most often recoverable as long as they have not been overwritten. Keep reading to learn the methods to restore deleted folder in Windows 10.

How to restore folder in Windows 10?

Method 1. Restore deleted folder in Windows 10 without software

First, you can try to restore folders with the built-in utility – Previous Versions. It’s one very useful feature that is available in Windows 10/8/7. It can help you restore files to a previous version. Deleted files can also be restored.

Step 1. Navigate to the location (folder or drive) where the folder was stored before being deleted.

Step 2. Right-click the drive or the folder, and then select Properties.

Step 3. Click the Previous Versions tab and then you will see all the available versions.

Step 4. Check and select the right version you want to restore. Click Restore to get the folder back.

Note: You may not see the Previous Versions option if you have not turned it on. You can first setup Previous Versions in Windows 10 and then have a try. Or if you have no luck of Previous Versions, you can try data recovery tool to help you. Just keep reading to learn more.

Method 2. Restore deleted folder in Windows 10 via data recovery software

If the Previous Versions utility can’t help you or you have no correct backup, then data recovery software is the way to go. Recoverit Pro, a professional PC data recovery tool can help you retrieve all kinds of deleted files without effort, including documents, pictures, audio files, etc. The following are the steps to restore deleted folder in Windows 10 with this tool.

Step 1. Download, install and launch Recoverit > Select Deleted Files Recovery mode.

Step 2. Select the location where you lost the files and click Start.

Step 3. When the scanning process is done, you will see a list of your deleted files. Choose the files you want to get back and click Recover. (Try All-Around Recovery mode if you cannot find your lost data.)

Get an easy way to backup your files in Windows 10

Although it’s possible to restore deleted folders without backup, the whole process is time-consuming. In addition, besides accidental file deletion, there are many other factors that can lead to data loss such as system crash, hard drive failure, virus affection, etc. We may never know when the disaster will happen, but a backup can help you get out of the trouble as soon as possible.

If you prefer an easy and flexible way to backup your computer, then AOMEI Backupper Standard – one free computer backup tool is your best choice.

It enables you to do system/disk/partition/files backup & recovery.

It allows you to set custom schedule backup, and then it will automatically perform the backup daily/weekly/monthly.

How about give it a try? Just download AOMEI Backupper Standard on your Windows 10 PC and follow the steps below to make a backup in minutes. Here we take File Backup as an example.

Secure Download

Step 1. Open AOMEI Backupper > Click Backup and then choose File Backup.

Step 2. Name the task > Click Add File or Add Folder > Click Browse to choose the files/folders you want to backup > Click OK to continue.

Step 3. Choose the location to save the backup image > Click Schedule to set the schedule task > Finally, click Start Backup to confirm.

Notes:

1. You can click Backup Options to set the compression level of the backup.

2. In AOMEI Backupper Professional, you can enable Scheme feature. It can help you remove old backup images automatically which can help you free up your storage. You can get the free trial version to explore it by yourself.

Conclusion

That’s all for how to restore deleted folder in Windows 10. According to your situation, the Windows Previous Versions or data recovery tool can help you make it. And obviously, it’s much easier to restore deleted files from the backup image than recover files with data recovery tool. Don’t forget to make a regular backup with AOMEI Backupper to keep your data safe.

There are 3 ways discussed in this article that focus on show folder size Windows 10. The main motive of each of these three ways is to resolve the issue of how to show folder size in Windows 10.

Part 1. How to Show Folder Size in Windows Explorer?

Follow these steps for using Windows explorer to show folder size method:

• Go to File Explorer Options.

• Click on “View” tab.

• Tick the box beside the option “Display file size information in folder tips” in the advanced settings dialog box.

• Click on “OK” to save the changes.

• By following these steps folder size explorer Windows 10 can be used to see the folder size in Windows 10.

Part 2. How to View Folder Size in Windows 10 from Properties?

Another way to view folder size Windows 10 is to check it from properties. The size of files is well shown in the Windows File Explorer, but usually, the size of the folder is not shown up in it. Follow the steps mentioned to see the folder size using properties:

• Locate the file in Windows File Explorer.

• Make a right click on it and click on the option “Properties” in the drop-down menu.

• A window named as “[foldername] Properties” will pop up showing the folder size in “Size” and space occupied on the disk at “Size on disk” boxes respectively.

Part 3. How to Show Folder Size in Windows 10 Using Apps?

There are a few apps that can help in the process of viewing the folder size in Windows 10 PC. 5 of the most popular software are listed here for the said purpose:

1. Folder Size:

Folder Size software is free of cost and easily downloadable. After getting installed in the PC Folder Size add on a new column in the Windows File Explorer. This column shows the size of each file and folder. People like folder Size due to the facts that:

• It updates the size of the folders automatically when a change in folder occurs.

• No other application or program is required to be used for getting the information of the size of the folder.

• The size of the folder is shown only on opening the Windows Explorer. No need to scan each time the PC is turned on.

• If the folder is large, then it will be scanned in the background while allowing the user to perform other tasks.

Here is the download link of the same:

2. TreeSize:

TreeSize is also a program that lets the user know about the size of the folder. Its main feature is to inform the user which folder is occupying more space on the disk, so that he or she can free up space. Just like Folder Size, TreeSize is also free. Download the .exe file from the following link and install it. After installation click on “scan” in the menu and select the folder to see the size of it. The user can also select an entire drive to see the size of all the folders within it. Sorting of the later can be done too by TreeSize. TreeSize is capable of showing the size of subfolders within the folders too by expanding the later.

Here is the download link for TreeSize:

3. Disktective:

Disktective is a software platform to find out the size of the PC’s folders. The most preferred part of this software product is its user-friendly interface, which makes it easy to use and its portability. After installing the software from the link provided, the application will ask the user to choose the drive to scan. After selecting the drive, a quick scan will be done and the size of all the folders in the selected drive. A pie chart of the sizes will also be shown to the user for easier grasp of the space occupied by the folders. This software product also enables the user watch the size of external drives, i.e., CD/DVD or USB too.

4. Getfoldersize:

Getfoldersize is another application to judge the size of folders in the PC. It shows the size of all the folders in the whole PC in shape of a folder tree sorted by folder size. This categorisation helps the user to locate the trash files or empty folders no longer needed. The user can free up space simply by deleting the said. The most liked features of this application are:

• Its visual interface, which systematically shows the folders and sub-folders; this makes it easier to choose which file to remove and which folder/file to keep.

• All the ghost folders, i.e., unused or empty folders can be tracked down easily through this.

• The software can scan computers connected through the same network.

5. WinDirStat

WinDirStat can show the disk usage statistics view and clean up the spaces for various editions of Microsoft Windows. WinDirSat scans the whole directory of the PC and then projects the results in three functional ways viz.

• Tree view of the directory list just like the Windows Explorer but more arranged according to the size of the file

• Treemap, this feature shows the entire subjects of the directory in the form of a tree.

• Extension list which depicts the statistics of the files and their types.

That’s all about how to show folder size in Windows 10. In addition, losing the account’s password can make people suffer a lot. But with the use of a simple tool named 4WinKey, one can easily deal with such problems. This simple software product can come in real handy for the problems related to a lost password of Windows 10 PC.

Windows 11 has many new features, and some of them, and some of them not so much. One let-down that many people agree on is the File Explorer. If you are thinking of installing the insider preview version of Windows 11 or waiting for the release later this year, you don’t have to go back on your plans just because of the explorer. This tutorial will show you how to restore Windows 10’s File Explorer on Windows 11.

Restore Windows 10’s File Explorer on Windows 11

So, what is it that bothers people about the new layout? The layout is similar to Windows 10’s; however, there is no ribbon menu, and many items that we access regularly are buried in submenus. Functions like cut, paste, rename, etc., appear only as icons. There is no text to tell you which icon performs what function. When you go through the new explorer, you may find further things that annoy you. If you like the Windows 10 explorer and want to continue using it in Windows 11, you can get it back using the Registry Editor.

Registry Editor

Step-1: Open the Run box using the shortcut keys Win + R.

Step-2: Type regedit and press Enter.

Step-3: You will be asked, do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device? Select Yes.

[Many users with the Windows 11 insider preview have complained that the UAC prompt gives a Remember me option and another option labeled C. This is probably a bug and hopefully will be fixed when Windows 11 is released later this year. If you see this error, then click on Remember me, and you will be able to open the Registry Editor]

Step-4: Type the following path in the Registry Editor and press Enter:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Shell Extensions

You can navigate manually, too, using the left pane if you want.

Step-5: Under Shell Extensions in the left pane, see if you can see Blocked.

If you don’t, then create this key. Right-click on Shell Extensions, hover the cursor over New, and select Key.

Step-6: Label this new key as Blocked.

Step-7: Now, right-click in the right pane and hover the cursor over New. Select String Value.

Step-8: Name this value as:

Step-9: Close the Registry and restart your PC.

This will give you the Windows 10 explorer back, but some features may be slightly different. If you want to get the Windows 11 Explorer, right-click on the newly created Blocked Key and the String Value and select Delete. After that, restart your system again.

Back in Windows 7 and Windows 8, File Explorer opened by default to the ‘Computer’ or ‘This PC’ view, respectively, giving users an overview of their home folders, local drives, and network locations. This view is still available in Windows 10, but File Explorer now opens by default in the new ‘Quick Access’ view. The Quick Access view is similar to the ‘All My Files’ option in Mac OS, showing users their frequently accessed folders and documents.

Some users love this type of interface as it makes it easy to quickly find the most recently accessed files and folders, as well as related data. Other users, particularly longtime Windows users, hate it. Good file management obviates the need for Quick Access’s simplistic display of user data, and power users would prefer to get an overview of their current PC—including information about drive formatting, mounted network shares, and available capacity—instead. Further, the This PC view has unique options in its ribbon toolbar, such as shortcuts to map a network drive and view system properties, making it far more useful than Quick Access for many users.

Thankfully, Microsoft has included an option that lets Windows 10 users choose which view File Explorer will use by default. Here’s how to configure File Explorer to open in the This PC view in Windows 10.

Switching Views

The File Explorer in Windows 10 has a number of views that allow you to view your content in the way you want, but you’ll need to know where to look to switch your views.

Step 1: In Windows 10, open a new File Explorer window and click the View tab from the ribbon toolbar.

Step 2: In the View tab, find and click on Options, listed by default on the far right side of the ribbon.

Step 3: In the Folder Options window, make sure you’re on the General tab and then find the drop-down box labeled Open File Explorer To. Click the drop-down menu and select This PC. Click OK to save your changes and close the window.

There’s no need to log out or reboot your PC. Just open a new File Explorer window and you’ll see that it automatically displays the This PC view by default. The Quick Access view is still there and can be viewed at any time, but users who prefer the more detailed This PC view won’t have to acknowledge Quick Access unless they choose to switch. The File Explorer in Windows 10 is an extremely powerful tool that let’s you change how you use your PC—you’ll just need to know where to look.

File Explorer helps Windows users to locate and manage the files and programs. When there is an issue with File Explorer, you may not be able to view files and folders you are looking on the computer. However, do not freak out if you are having trouble running your File Explorer. Such errors arise from outdated programs or Windows being overwhelmed by the subsequent running of applications. Stopping the operation or doing a restart on File Explorer or else the Windows Explorer does not have any issues with other programs. Therefore, try out these solutions in fixing File Explorer not responding issues on your Windows 10 PC.

How to Fix File Explorer Not Working Issues in Windows 10?

Fixing File Explorer issues is self-run and straightforward, meaning even the novice users can handle it. There are multiple ways of running File Explorer in Windows 10 and fixing the subsequent issues.

1. Delete File Explorer History

It may not be the ultimate solution, but making a quick fix on the problem to complete your tasks can work.

• Under the Windows 10 Cortana search box, enter “File Explorer Options” and click the corresponding desktop app to open.

• Go to “General” tab and click “Clear” to delete the File Explorer history.

Now, check whether File Explorer works properly on your computer.

2. Change Default Opening Location

We recommend changing the default opening location that could help to fix issues in some cases.

• Go to “General” tab when you are in “File Explorer Options”.
• Change the “Quick Access” option to “This PC” option against “Open File Explorer to”.
• Click “OK” to save changes.

Viewing Quick Access files may cause issues especially when you frequently work with files on external drives. Changing the default option to “This PC” will improve the stability in the long run.

3. Restart File Explorer

If the above two options do not work in your case, you can restart the program. It comes in handy when it is not responding completely.

• Simultaneously press “Ctrl + Shift + Esc” keys to open Task Manager. Alternatively, you can open the Task Manager by right-clicking on the taskbar.

• Under the Processes tab, you can view the Apps section.
• Click on “File Explorer” and select “Restart” to re-run the program.
• Also, you can right click on File Explorer and select “Restart”. Choose “End Task” to close the program.

If you do not get it under the Apps section, scroll down to the Windows Processes section.

Now check whether the File Explorer is responsive.

4. Restore File Explorer Default Options

Having a low processor PC prompts for lesser operations. Owing to that, you need to reset options that are slowing down your Windows 10 File Explorer to default. Such actions may overwhelm the RAM of the PC.

• To start File Explorer, use the “Windows + R” keys to open the Run dialog box.
• Key in “control.exe folders” command and click “OK”.

• Under the “General” tab, select the “Restore Defaults” option.
• Click the “Apply” button to apply and “OK” button to save changes.

In case of any options that could have caused a hitch, restoring can fix them.

5. Exit File Explorer and Start it from Task Manager

This option is an alternative to restarting File Explorer, although it is longer. It requires ending the File Explorer program entirely and starting it over again.

• Press and hold down “Shift + Ctrl” keys and right click on the taskbar. Then release the keys.
• To quit the File Manager, select “Exit Explorer”.

• Since the File Explorer will be off, the screen will turn blank.
• Open “Task Manager” by pressing Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys.
• Under the “File” dropdown option, select “Run new task”.

• A “Create new task” box will come up.
• Key in “explorer.exe” and press “OK”.

All the features will be available once more, and you can check whether the File Explorer is working.

6. Run File Check Using System Scan

If you suspect any file corruption is causing the problem, then this option should help. Windows File checker scan is built-in to check and restore corrupted files. Using this you can restore your corrupted files, fix File Explorer, and ensure you secure your PC from malware.

• Search for “cmd” in the search box. Select the most appropriate one, right-click on it and select “Run as administrator”. In this case, select “Command Prompt”.

• Type “sfc/scannow” and press Enter key.

• When it is done, restart the computer and check if the issue has been fixed.

7. Restart File Explorer Using Command Prompt

Try out this option if File Explorer is not responding completely. It is a command-line option with few prompts to restart File Explorer.

• Open the “Run” prompt box by pressing the “Window + R” keys.
• Enter “cmd.exe” in the “Open” box and click “OK”.
• Besides, you can type “cmd” in the search box and select the best suitable option if the search box is working.

• Type in “taskkill /f /im explorer.exe” command in the Command Prompt window and press the “Enter” key.
• The above prompts close File Explorer.
• To run File Explorer again, type “start explorer.exe” command and press Enter.
• The desktop features will re-appear.

8. Troubleshoot Using Clean Boot

This option to fix File Explorer issues in Windows 10 is quite technical but worth trying. It helps boot your PC under basic programs eliminating any interruptive programs. It may occur when you’ve installed a program or an update. Follow these steps to perform a clean boot successfully.

• Open Run using “Windows + R” keys and input “msconfig” command.
• Then press “OK” to open the system configuration window.
• Under the “General” tab, ensure the “Load systems services” box is checked and uncheck the “Load startup items” box.

• Proceed to the “services” tab and check the “Hide all Microsoft services” box.
• Click the “Disable all” button on the same tab and click “Apply”.
• Finally, press “OK” to save.

On rebooting, File Explorer issues should be fixed.

Final Words

The fixes listed above are the best options you can have for new and professional users. File Explorer options will help fix the underlying issues while the system file scan and other options will help fix the file corruption and other complex problems.

File Explorer is widely used in Windows 10 to copy, edit, and move files. However, you may encounter various problems related to it. The most common one is File Explorer slow, which significantly affects productivity.

In this fast-paced age, waiting a few seconds seems permanent, especially for trivial things like folders. Here are available solutions that might speed things up.

Table of Contents

Reset File Explorer

Resetting File Explorer to the default settings is an effective way to handle the File Explorer slow issue.

Step 1. Type File Explorer Options in the Start Search box and press Enter to open it.

Step 2. Select the View tab and select the Reset Folders option. Then click Yes when the confirmation window pops up.

Step 3. Finally, click the OK and Apply button to save the changes.

Use Win + E to Open File Explorer

Sometimes, this issue may occur when using the File Explorer shortcut. Instead of right-clicking the icon, pressing Win + E keys to start File Explorer is also the right way.

Disable Quick Access Service

Quick Access is one of File Explorer’s features that help users quickly access specific folders or files. However, sometimes this feature may cause File Explorer to get slow. So, you can try to disable it.

Step 1. Type File Explorer in the Start Search box and press Enter to open it.

Step 2. On the upper left corner of File Explorer, click File and choose Change folder and search options.

Step 3. In the General tab, change the “Open File Explorer to:” option from Quick Access to This PC.

Step 4. Then, restart the PC to see if the Windows 10 File Explorer slow issue still exists.

Use Registry Editor To Disable Cortana

Cortana is a useful function to find the programs and features you want quickly. But it may also cause File Explorer to slow. To resolve this issue, please follow the below steps to disable it.

Step 1. Press Win + R and type Regedit, and hit Enter to open Registry Editor.

Step 2. Move to the following path:

“HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Search”

If there’s no WindowsSearch key, you’ll need to create it. Right-click the Windows key and click New and select Key. Then name the new folder as WindowsSearch.

Step 3. Click the new folder, right-click the space, and select New. Then click DWORD (32-bit) Value and name the new DWORD value as AllowCortana.

Step 4. Double-click the AllowCortana value and set its Value data as 0.

Step 5. Finally, click OK to save the changes and restart your PC.

Change Folder Optimization

Often performing optimization in the background can cause File Explorer to slow down. Therefore, you need to change the optimization of the folder to resolve this issue.

Step 1. Right-click the folder, which causes File Explorer slow, and select Properties.

Step 2. Select the Customise tab, and change the “Optimize this folder for:” option to General items.

Step 3. Check the box of “Also apply this template to all subfolders“, and click OK and Apply.

Fix-It Now!

After trying the above solutions, your Windows File Explorer will start without delay. Thus, once the File Explorer loads slowly, do not hesitate to try these methods as soon as possible.

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To display full directory paths in File Explorer’s title bar:

1. Launch FIle Explorer.
2. Click View > Options.
3. Click the “View” tab.
4. Select the “Display the full path in the title bar” checkbox.
5. Click “Apply” and “OK”.

File Explorer, formerly Windows Explorer, has steadily evolved over the years and become easier to use. One change has been to “prettify” directory paths, which are now obscured from the user.

File Explorer’s address bar breaks the path up into individual folders, which you can expand to quickly navigate through a directory hierarchy. However, you can’t see where the root folder resides without first clicking into the address bar.

It’s possible to make the window’s title bar (but not the address bar) display the complete path. With this option enabled, you’ll see window titles such as “C:,” instead of just “OneDrive.” This can be helpful when working with lots of similarly named folders under different root directories.

Open File Explorer and click the “View” tab on the ribbon. Next, click the “Options” button to the far-right of the ribbon. Switch to the “View” tab and then select the “Display the full path in the title bar” checkbox. Click “Apply” and then “OK” to close the popup.

Subsequently opened File Explorer windows will now be titled with the full path to the directory they’re currently displaying. You can easily reverse the change by returning to the Folder Options popup and clearing the “full path” checkbox.

File Explorer is a useful program to access files and folders stored on the Windows 10 computers. While that’s one of the most used program, several users have pointed out that the File Explorer is loading slow or getting slow on their computers. It works and opens alright, but takes several seconds to launch.

In a world of instant gratification, waiting a few seconds can seem like forever, especially for something as trivial as a folder. Here are some solutions that might help speed things up.

1. Disable Cortana

Cortana, Microsoft’s personal digital assistant, is known to slow down the launch process of the File Explorer. Disable it if you are not using it actively.

2. Reset File Explorer

Resetting File Explorer will revert all settings to default. Open File Explorer (press Windows key+E) and click on Options to select Change folder and search options.

Click on Reset Folders under the View tab and confirm when asked.

Try launching File Explorer now and check if it is still loading slow.

3. Launch Folder Windows in Separate Process

This setting will open each folder in a separate window. The benefit here is that if one File Explorer window crashes or lags, others should remain unaffected. The only setback you will face is that it will consume more system resources. A lot will depend on your system’s hardware configuration and how many windows you have open.

Go back to ‘Change folder and search options’ as you did in the second step above, and select the box in front of ‘Launch folder windows in a separate process’ option. Save and try again. You can always switch later.

4. System Lagging or Lacking Resources

Your computer might be running slow due to a lack of enough RAM or free space on the drive or partition. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc keys to open Task Manager and check if you are getting 100% Disk Usage error, that will indicate the lack of enough space or falling short of enough RAM.

5. Quick Access Cache

Open File Explorer and navigate to the below folder structure. However, you may have to enable hidden files and folders first. Copy and paste the following path directly in the File Explorer’s address bar to save time for opening the AutomaticDestinations folder. It won’t be visible (greyed out) if the “View Hidden Files” options is not enabled and you are trying to navigate it through the directory structure.

Delete this file.

That will clear the Quick Access Cache.

Is File Explorer still loading slowly? If the issue is resolved but only comes back later to haunt you again, stop using Quick Access and delete all shortcuts that you have created.

Open Folder Options again and select Open File Explorer to This PC under the General tab.

6. Run Maintenance Task

Search for and open Control Panel and go to System and Security > Security and Maintenance. Click on Maintenance to reveal a drop-down menu.

Click on Start maintenance to begin checking for errors. Once maintenance is done, check again if the File Explorer is still loading slowly.

7. Optimize Folder and Rebuild Index

Do you have particularly large folders with lots of files and sub-folders within it? If that’s the folder loading slowly in File Explorer, you need to optimize that folder and then rebuild the index.

It is better to divide files into sub-folders rather than keeping everything inside a single large folder. While Windows OS optimizes folders and rebuilds index from time to time. Doing that manually would save time and may solve File Explorer loading slowly error.

Note: The steps shared are for Windows 7, but they work in Windows 10 too. The process remains the same.

8. Disable Windows Search Service

The Windows Search creates a table of content where an entry of each file and folder stored on your system is made. The indexing process then runs in the background. The constant indexing of file is useful for faster search, but it is known to slow down the File Explorer.

Search for Services app and open it. Under the Name tab, find and double-click on Windows Search service. You will see a pop-up. Under the General tab, click on Stop to halt the service from running and then select Disabled from the drop-down menu next to Startup type. Save everything and check the File Explorer again.

9. Command Prompt

Search for and open Command Prompt with admin rights.

Enter the below command and hit Enter to execute it.

Wait for it to complete and then reboot your computer.

Exploring Options

If you are still rocking an HDD (hard disk drive) on your computer, it’s time to switch to SSD (solid-state drive). It will significantly improve load times for all processes. Also, the SSDs will boost the opening and navigating the File Explorer experience. This issue can be annoying and cause serious setbacks to your work. You don’t want that, especially when you are on a deadline and have work that needs to be done.

If you found another way to fix File Explorer is slow or loading slow error, share it in the comments below.

Next up: Do you want to sort files by size or numerically in Windows 10? Find out what’s taking all that space? Click on the link below to learn how.

Last updated on 13 July, 2021

The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.

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Windows 10 has made some changes to the download folder by categorizing files by date. Some people prefer the old view, and it’s easy to get it back. Here’s how.

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Here’s a short video on how to make these changes:

Odds are you’re now seeing something like this:

Right-click on the right Window and click on Group by and (None)

That’s it! The confusion came because you would assume this setting would be under View or even Sort by. We certainly did.

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For some time now, Microsoft has changed the Live Search in File Explorer frustrating many users and costing us hours of productivity. On their first attempt to fix the problem, they pulled a Microsoft and screwed the pooch. We now have a fix for the problem.

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As you’re probably aware, when you use File Explorer Search, you will see what it found, and you have to click the blue arrow to see all the results.

Previously, Live Search allowed you to click on a file when it was found.

After applying the fix, our Live Search is finally back.

The fix should be easy for anyone to apply.

Make sure File Explorer is closed before you begin.

Open PowerShell as admin and navigate to the folder where you extracted Mach2.

Type in mach2 disable 18755234 or .\mach2 disable 18755234 if you receive an error message.

Your PowerShell should look like this:

Start File Explorer and finally enjoy the Live Search that you expect from File Explorer.

Microsoft may try and fix the problem and revert this fix later. Until they figure it out, bookmark this page in case you need to apply this fix again after a future Windows Update.

When you are using Microsoft Windows 10 there are certain issues that can really be annoying. One of these points is that Microsoft Windows 10 automatically hides certain files that are usually seen on another OS. So the important files that are available on the drive are not deleted by mistake. Deleting those files might affect the workability of the whole system.

If you are a total nerd person and like playing with important files on the drives, you should know how to unhide folders in Windows 10. So, this article we will talk about how to unhide files and folders in Windows 10.

Unhiding Files and Folders in Windows 10

Are you sure you want to play with hidden files in Windows OS? If your answer is yes, please be with us until the end of the article. We will be featuring 3 methods to unhide files and folders in Windows 10.

Method 1: Unhide Files and Folders in Windows Using File Explorer

One of the easiest methods of unhiding files from Microsoft Windows 10 is by using the explorer.

Step 1: Go to the Start button and click on the File Explorer.

Step 2: You will get multiple options from which you need to select the View.

Step 3: You will see the Hidden items checkbox which you need to select to view the hidden files on your Windows 10.

Method 2: Unhide Folders in Windows 10 Using Control Panel

If you aren’t comfortable using the File Explorer option on your computer, you can use the Control panel to show hidden files and folders in Windows 10.

Step 1: Select Control Panel by going to the Start button.

Step 2: Select File Explorer Options from the list and then select the View tab.

Step 3: You will get a huge list of options and scroll down until you see Hidden Files and Folders and then select Show hidden files, folders and drives. This will allow you to see all the hidden files.

There is also an option in the list which states Hide protected operating system files, check this box to make sure you are not playing with system files.

Method 3: Unhide Folders in Windows 10 Using Registry Option

It may take you a little expertise in order to do it via the registry, but here’s an easy process to see hidden files in Windows 10 using registry.

Step 1: In order to bring up the Run dialogue box, you need to hold the Windows and R keys. Once the Run window is up, type “regedit” and hit Enter.

Step 2: Now you need to navigate to the list of locations: HKEY_CURRENT_USER – Software – Microsoft – Windows – CurrentVersion – Explorer – Advanced. Click on Hidden and Right Click and choose Modify and set Value Data to 1 and click OK which will allow you to see the hidden files and folders. If you set the same to 2 it will not show you any kind of hidden folders.

If you want to see the files and folders of the operating system too, you have to set the ShowSuperHidden and turn the value to 1 by right-clicking and choose Modify as you did above. If you don’t wish to see these folders, just change the value to 2.

These are all the methods that will help you to unhide files and folders in Windows 10. If you have any questions following the above tutorial, do let us know in the comments section below.

In Windows File Explorer, you might have noticed the different folder layout settings for different folders. Some of the folders have smaller icons while some puts on a large icons view layout. There are several folder layouts available in Windows 11/10/8/7 which you can choose from, for any folder. While Windows has set these defaults based on the nature of the files in the folder, if you wish, you can set a default Folder View for all folders. In this post, we will how to set & apply the same view settings of the current folder, as the default, for all other folders on your PC.

What are Folder Templates

Before rolling on to change the folder’s view settings, let’s take a look at how folder templates work. You might have noticed that folders that contain pictures have a different view layout than those that contain videos or documents. This is the folder optimization technique in play which chooses one of the five templates for any folder based on the content that is stored in it. These templates are:

• General Items – Applies to any folder that contains a mixed combination of files and other sub-folders.
• Documents – Applies to the folders that contain documents (Word files, text files, etc.)
• Pictures – Applies to the folders that contain image files (.jpg, .png files, etc.)
• Music – Applies to all such folders which contain music files (.mp3, .wav, etc.)
• Videos – Applies to any folder that contains just video items (.mp4, .avi, etc.)

Whenever you create a new folder and put some files in it, Windows does its best to decide the folder template based on the content. If you’re storing mixed type of files in any folder, Windows automatically assigns General Items as the folder template. If you want to view any folder’s template, right-click the folder icon and open its Properties window. In here, navigate to the Customize tab where you can see the correct template optimized for the folder in question.

Set a default Folder View for all folders in Windows

Now that we are clear on the basics, let’s roll over to the task at hand. You can apply a folder’s view settings to only those folders which are optimized for the same folder template type. Once the view layout is generalized for a folder template type (say, Music), every time you change the layout of file icons (from tile icons to large icons), the same will be reflected in other folders as well that are optimized for Music template. Now, you can follow the below steps to apply the folder view settings across a folder template type:

Open File Explorer by using key combination Windows Key + E and navigate to the folder you want to use as a source for view layout settings.

As Windows 11 comes with a new UI in File Explorer, you won’t find the View tab. Instead, you can click on the View button in File Explorer and choose a setting as per your requirements.

Next, Windows 11 users need to click on the three-dotted icon and select the Options from the list.

However, if you are using Windows 10, navigate to the View tab in ribbon baron the top and change the settings per your wish. You can change the layout and choose the folder details to display, add extra panes, adjust column width, etc.

Once done with the changes, click Options to open the File Explorer Options, earlier called Folder Options. window.

Finally, navigate to View tab in Folder Options window.

Click/Tap on Apply to Folders button.

Click/Tap Yes on the confirmation window that pops up.

Click/Tap OK on the Folder Options window to save the settings.

That is it. You have just generalized the view settings for a particular folder template type across the OS. Hope this works for you.

How do I change the default view for all folders?

To change the default view for all folders, you need to follow the aforementioned guide. There are mainly two methods. First, you can right-click after opening a folder and select the Properties option. Switch to the Customize tab and choose a template from the drop-down list. Check the Also apply this template to all subfolder boxes and click the OK button. Alternatively, you can do the same using the View option.

How do I get folder view to all subfolders in Windows 11/10?

To get folder view to all subfolders in Windows 11/10, you need to open a folder and right-click in an empty space to select the Properties option from the context menu. Then, switch to the Customize tab and choose Pictures from the drop-down list. Tick the Also apply this template to all subfolder checkboxes. At last, click the OK button.

Date: June 1, 2021 Tags: Folder, Tips

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Driven by my immense passion for Windows & other Microsoft technologies, I love to keep myself abreast of the latest strides and swings in the world of technology. I am fond of traveling to mountains & love to help others with their technical or non-technical setbacks.

By: Waseem Patwegar

You can change the way Files and Folders function and are displayed on your computer by going to Folder Options page using File Explorer. You will find below the steps to Open Folder Options in Windows 10.

Open Folder Options in Windows 10

In general, the default setup for Files and Folders suits most users and they rarely come across the need to change the way Files and Folders are displayed or function on their computers.

It is only when you try to Hide Folders, Share Files, Map Network Drive that you will be looking for way to open Folder options, in order to make your desired changes.

Also, sometimes Windows 10 may also prompt you to Open Folder Options and make certain changes, in order to perform certain tasks.

Open Folder Options Using File Explorer

Perhaps the easiest way to open Folder Options in Windows 10 is by using the File Explorer.

1. Right-click on Start button and click on File Explorer .

2. On File Explorer screen, click on the View tab > Options > Change Folder and Search options .

Alternately, you can also open Folder Options by clicking on the File Tab > Change Folder and Search options .

3. On the next screen (Folder Options), you will be able to change the way Files and Folders look and function on your computer by going to General, View and Search Tabs.

4. On the General Tab , you can clear File Explorer History and choose whether or not you want recently used and frequently used files to show up on your computer.

5. On the View tab , you can Hide or Unhide Files/Folder, Hide or Unhide File Extensions, Hide or Display File Icons and make other changes to the way Files and Folder Appear on your computer.

6. The Search tab of Folder Options allows you to modify the way windows 10 searches Files and Folders on your computer.

Windows 11/10 is easy to use and customize, but it becomes annoying when your Folder View settings change automatically. We usually set our Folder View settings on our own preferences like the view as grid/list, large/medium/small icons, etc., but it changes automatically after some time, and we have to adjust it manually. Thankfully, there is a fix to this problem.

Windows 11/10/8/7 often forgets your folder view settings, and this is when you need to reset the settings which include the sorting order or the files, view mode, grouping, etc. All Windows versions let you customize and reset your folders. You can do so using the File Explorer or by using Windows Registry. In this post we will learn about how to reset your folders in Windows 10 PC.

Reset Folder View in Windows 11/10

You can change the folder view settings both via File Explorer and via Windows Registry.

Via File Explorer Options

Press Win+E to open File Explorer and Click on File on the top menu ribbon.

Select “Change folder and search options”.

This will open the File Explorer Options window shown below.

Go on ‘View’ tab and click on Reset Folders, if you want to reset all folders of this type to their default settings.

You can also adjust the folder settings manually by checking or un-checking the checkboxes mentioned under ‘Advanced Settings’ tab.

Under ‘General’ tab, you can tweak the settings like ‘opening each folder in same or a different window’ or ‘Single or double click to open a window’.

Select the options, click on Apply and you are done.

For Folder Settings in Windows 7, go to the toolbar > Organize, and select Folder and search options.

Using Windows Registry

Open Registry Editor by typing Regedit.exe

Navigate to the following key-

Delete Bags and BagMRU subkeys

Exit the Registry Editor

You need to restart the explorer shell to make the changes take effect.

Let’s say you have added a Size column in the appointment lists, turned off the Reading Pane, arranged messages by a customized criteria, or other settings before, and you need to restore the initial folder views at present. How do you deal with it? This article will talk about a couple of tricks about restoring initial folder views in Microsoft Outlook.

If you want to restore folders’ initial view, you can apply the Reset View feature in Microsoft Outlook 2010 or later versions.

1. In the Navigation pane, click to select a folder that you will reset its view, click View > Change View, and specify a view mode from the drop down list you will restore to initial view.

2. Click View > Reset View. See screenshot:

A warning dialog box will come out. Click the Yes button in the dialog box.

Then the selected folder is reset to its original view at once. If you want to apply this view to other folders, please go on the following steps.

3. Click View > Change View > Apply Current View to Other Mail Folders on the View tab. See screenshot:

4. Then in the Apply View dialog box, please (1) check the mailboxes and their subfolders in the Apply View to These Folders: box, (2) it’s optional to check the option of Apply View to subfolders, and (3) click the OK button.

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The following steps will guide you to restore initial folder views in Microsoft Outlook 2007 at ease.

1. Click to open the folder you want to restore its initial view, and click View > Current View > Messages or other view as you need.

2. Click View > Current View > Customize Current View.

3. In the popping up Customize View dialog box, please click the Reset Current View button at the bottom. See screen shot:

4. In the coming warning dialog box, please click the OK button.

5. Click the OK button in the Customize View: Messages dialog box to exit it.

There is an alternative method that can restore the initial views of all folders at once.

1. Close the Microsoft Outlook, and open the Run dialog box with pressing the Win + R keys.

2. Enter the outlook.exe /cleanviews in the Open: box, and click the OK button.

Then Microsoft Outlook opens with restoring the default views of all folders immediately.