Windows Explorer Folder View settings

How to Reset Windows Explorer Folder View Settings to Make Vista Remember​

   Information

Vista sets the Explorer window view settings and folder type template according to what folder types are in the window. This will show you how to reset the Windows Explorer folder view settings, turn off Automatic Folder Type Discovery, and increase the folder view cache to have Vista remember the view settings, folder type template, size, or position of a specific window for when it was last closed at the specific path location.

This does not work with the sub Save As, Open With, Open in New Tab (Internet Explorer), etc.... type dialog windows through the File menu bar item though. These do not seem to be able to have their size or position remembered. For these, you can use the free program AutoSizer to resize them.

   Note

• The Windows Explorer window pane Layout settings are universal for all window templates. These are the Search Pane, Details Pane, Preview Pane, and Navigation Pane. They can only be turned on or off for all windows with the same folder template. For example, the Music Details, Music Icons, Pictures and Videos, All Items, Contacts, and Documents.
• This will have no affect on the memory for the Open, Save, and Save As dialog boxes for having them open to the same location.
• External devices (EX: USB drive) will not retain their folder view settings when turned off or disconnected from the computer.

   Tip

It has been reported that installing the Vista SP2 has helped resolved this issue of Vista forgetting folder view settings for no apparent reason.

   Warning

The exact cause of Vista losing it's memory on your folder view settings has not been found yet. This may just reset them for now to help Vista remember them again. It has been noticed that changing a lot of window folder view settings in combination with some unknown applications settings may be triggering this forgetfulness. Make sure that you do not have a setting in a 3rd party program set to clear the folder view setting cache when it is used. (EX: CCleaner - Window Size/Location cache option under Cleaner -> Advanced)

METHOD ONE

Normal Way to Reset a Folder Type View Settings

   Note

This resets the folder view settings for all folders with this same folder template type back to the default view settings. You will need to use METHOD TWO below for Vista not remembering your settings for all the folder views.

1. Open Folder Options from the Control Panel (Classic View), and click on the View tab and Reset Folders button. (See screenshot below)​

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2. Click on Yes to the confirmation pop-up.​

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3. Click on OK to close Folder Options.​

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METHOD TWO

Reset All Folder View Settings to Make Vista Remember

   Note

• This resets all current folder view settings so they will be rebuilt when you restart.
• This will also bring back the Uninstall, Change, Repair, or Uninstall/Change buttons in Programs and Features if missing.

OPTION ONE

Automatically Using a REG File Download

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1. Click on the Download button below to download the Reset_Folder_View.zip file and save it to your desktop.

   Note

This .reg download includes and does all of the Manual section below for you automatically.

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2. Open the ZIP file and extract the Reset_Folder_View.reg file to your desktop.​

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3. Right click on the downloaded Reset_Folder_View.reg file and click on Merge.​

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4. Click on Run button in the Security Warning prompt.​

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5. Click on Continue in the UAC prompt.​

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6. Click on YES in the Confirmation prompt.​

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7. Click on OK in the Success prompt.​

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8. Go to step 29 in OPTION TWO below to finish wrapping this up.​

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OPTION TWO

Manually Through Registry Editor

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Reset Folder View Settings :​

1. Open the Start Menu.​

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2. In the white line (Start Search) area, type regedit and press Enter.​

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3. Click on Continue in the UAC prompt.​

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4. In regedit, go to:​

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

5. In the left pane, right click on Bags, and click on Delete. (See screenshot below)​

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A) Click on Yes in the confirmation pop-up window.​

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6. In the left pane, right click on BagMRU, and click on Delete. (See screenshot below)​

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A) Click on Yes in the confirmation pop-up window.​

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7. In regedit, go to:​

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HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell

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A) In the left pane, right click on BagMRU and click Delete. (See screenshot below step 8)​

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B) Click on Yes in the confirmation pop-up window.​

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C) In the left pane, right click on Bags and click on Delete.​

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D) Click on Yes in the confirmation pop-up window.​

8. In regedit, go to:​

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HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam

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A) In the left pane, right click on BagMRU if here and click Delete. (See screenshot below step 8)​

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B) Click on Yes in the confirmation pop-up window.​

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C) In the left pane, right click on Bags if here and click on Delete.​

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D) Click on Yes in the confirmation pop-up window.​

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9. The registry will now look like this. (See screenshot below)​

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Disable Automatic Folder Type Discovery for Templates :​

CREDIT TO: Kristan Kenney: Confessions of a Windows Enthusiast

   Note

This will allow you to have what folder type template you set for the window instead of Vista automatically assigning a default template to it based on the contents of the window. This is when you have your folder template changed to Pictures and Videos from All Items when you put one image file in the folder.

   Note

OPTION: This is an optional section, but it is recommended. Steps 1-9 must have been done first before you do this section. If you decide to skip it, then go to step 21.​

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10. In regedit, go to: (See screenshot below)​

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

11. In the left pane, right click on Shell and click on New and Key.​

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12. Type Bags and press Enter. (See screenshots below)​

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13. In the left pane, right click on Bags and click New and Key.​

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14. Type AllFolders and press Enter. (See screenshots below)​

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15. In the left pane, right click AllFolders and click on New and Key.​

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16. Type Shell and press Enter. (See screenshots below)​

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17. In the right pane of Shell, right click on a empty area and click on New and String Value.​

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18. Type FolderType and press Enter. (See screenshot below)​

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19. In the right pane, right click on FolderType and click on Modify.​

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20. Type NotSpecified (or one below) and click on OK. (See screenshots below)​

   Tip

You can type any one of these values in bold below instead to apply the template as the default for all folder types. You will still be able to change a individual folder type template to what you want and have Vista remember it afterwards.

   Tip

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[TABLE=class:-grid,-width:-500][TR][TD]
Value
[/TD]
[TD]
Description
[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]
NotSpecified
[/TD]
[TD]
All Items folder type template
[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]
Contacts
[/TD]
[TD]
Contacts folder type template
[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]
Music
[/TD]
[TD]
Music Details folder type template
[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]
MusicIcons
[/TD]
[TD]
Music Icons folder type template
[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]
Documents
[/TD]
[TD]
Documents folder type template
[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]
Pictures
[/TD]
[TD]
Pictures and Videos folder type template with large icons
[/TD][/TR][/TABLE]

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Increase Folder View Cache Memory :

   Note

This will increase the amount of folders to be remembered for changes to the folder view settings.

   Note

OPTION: This is a optional step, but the increase will help ensure that Vista does not forget. Steps 1-9 must be done first before you do this section. If you decide to skip it, them go to step 25.​

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21. In regedit, go to: (See screenshot below)​

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

22. In the right pane, right click on BagMRU Size.​

NOTE: If you do not have the BagMRU Size value, then right click on a empty space in the right pane and click on New and DWORD (32-bit) Value. Type in BagMRU Size and press enter.​

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23. Click on Modify.​

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24. Dot the Decimal and type 20000 (folders) and click on OK. (See screenshot below)

   Note

5000 is the default number of folders to be remembered.

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Deleting Local Group Policy Setting :​

   Note

This will show you how to check to see if this Group Policy setting has been set to not save the position of open windows or the size and position of the taskbar when users log off, and to delete if it is so that the changed will now be remembered at exit.

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25. In regedit, go to: (See screenshot below)​

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HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer​

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26. In the right pane, look to see if you have NoSaveSettings. If you do, then right click on NoSaveSettings and click on Delete and Yes to confirm deletion. (See screenshot above)​

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27. In regedit, go to:​

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HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer​

28. Repeat step 26 if you have NoSaveSettings here as well.​

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Wrapping it Up :​

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29. Close regedit.​

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30. Log off and log on,or restart the computer to apply the reset and to let Vista rebuild the registry keys with a clean slate.​

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31. Open Folder Options.​

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A) Click on the View tab. (See screenshot below)​

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B) Check Remember each folder's view settings.​

   Warning

If left unchecked, Vista will ignore custom view settings for every folder and have every folder open using default settings instead. Only, uncheck this setting to force all folders to stop using display settings you have specified.

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C) Uncheck Restore previous folder windows at logon.​

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D) Click on OK.​

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32. Make the changes you want for the opened Windows Explorer windows.​

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33. To Apply These Changes to All the Same Folder Type Templates ​

   Tip

For more information on folder templates, see: How to Choose and Customize a Folder Type Template and Columns in Vista and How to Change the Windows Explorer Columns and Sort Order in Vista

A) Open Folder Options​

WARNING: Folder Options must be opened from within the same Windows Explorer window that you are changing or the Apply to Folders button will be grayed out.​

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B) Click on the View tab. (See screenshot below step 31D)​

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C) Click on the Apply to Folders button.​

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D) Click on Yes in the confirmation prompt.​

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E) Click on OK.​

34. To Apply Changes to Just this Window Template​

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A) Close the window when you make your changes to the Windows Explorer window to save the folder view settings for just that one window.

   Warning

Vista will only remember the way it is when you last closed the window.

35. To Apply Changes to All Window Templates​

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A) In step 20 above, you can change the default folder template used of (NotSpecified) to what you want instead for all folder templates without having to restart the computer again.​

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That's it,
Shawn

Related Tutorials

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• How to Back Up and Restore Your Folder View Settings in Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8
• How to Change a Windows Explorer Folder Type Template in Vista
• How to Change a Default Open Window Size for a Shortcut in Vista
• How to Change Windows Explorer Default Open Location
• How to Use the Windows Explorer Address Bar in Vista
• How to Enable or Disable the Menu Bar in Vista
• How to Change the Windows Explorer Columns and Sort Order in Vista
• How to Enable or Disable Folder Options in Vista
• How to Turn the Preview Pane On or Off in Vista
• How to Turn the Navigation Pane On or Off in Vista
• How to Change the Sort Order for Numbers in File and Folder Names in Vista
• How to Enable or Disable Auto-Hide for Vista Explorer Full Screen F11
• How to Hide or Show File Names in Vista
• How to Disable Auto Arrange in Vista Windows Explorer to have Free Sorting

 

[Poleroad]

I spent a lot of time and I searched the topic of the Column Size but I couldn't find any discussion about the column size when "Save As", "Print to File", "Open File:, "File Upload", etc. uses in the Windows Explorer.

Every way I tried, the Windows Explorer brings up the default column size with File Name very narrow so that one needs to extend the size to see the full name of the file to be selected. Every single time !

Is there any way to set a default size for the File Name for "Save As", "Print to File", "Open File:, "File Upload", etc. ?

Thanks,
Claudiu

 

[Brink]

Hi Claudiu, and welcome to Vista Forums.

If you mean the window folder view settings for these menu items, then you have to set these one at a time per program and close the window to have this way when you open that menu item in that program next time. You will need to do Method Two in this tutorial first though.

If you mean the column sizes in the windows for these menu items, then these are remembered by how you last set the column size for a window when it was closed for all windows.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[MilesAhead]

Hi DrT,

I have noticed that these windows that cannot have their folder views remembered all have the UAC prompt with them. It seems as if this is interfering somehow.

Hmmm I have UAC disabled. What I'm getting is strange. Seems if I open some explorer folders it will revert to grid lines icon view. However if I open C:\ it will
have the details view the way I want it. Seems every few days I need to run
the reset_folder_view.reg and then go to C:\ and push the Apply to Folders
button. There seems to be no way to predict when it will happen. I have
XP multiboot so who knows if there's some side effect.

 

[Brink]

Thank you MilesAhead. I'll add this to the list.

 

[Poleroad]

Thank you, Shawn.

I am afraid I might need some hand holding. Let me take two examples:

1. Upload a file to a website through Internet Explorer, or FireFox by Browsing, using Windows Explorer to find the file. (I wish I could paste an image here but I couldn't find a way to do that.)

2. Using a program such as QuarkXpress, or PhotoShop and trying to save a newly created file through "Save As" (it uses Windows Explorer to navigate to the folder I need).

From my perspective they are identical situations. In each case, the folder that I access shows the File Names in a very narrow column. (Whether I get to it 1. by selecting step by step from My Computer to a particular folder; or 2. by a memorized folder from a previous action).

None of these programs allow me to select any settings for such actions and the Windows Explorer that acts as the interface doesn't seem to have any such settings either.

Where do you set them "one at a time" ? Any help would help.

Thanks,
Claudiu

 

[Brink]

Claudiu,

After you open the window from the program to "Save As" and click Browse, right click on the column name to select the size option you like. Option Three (method three) in this tutorial will help show you what I mean.

http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/108665-column-customize.html

Once set, close the window. All Windows Explorer windows will now have that column set for that width until you change it again.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[Poleroad]

I have to admit that I got it to work on my computer and my wife's computer (after 1 year of struggling with the new Vista) -- but only after I applied the Reset Method No. Two: Reset All Folder View Settings to Make Vista Remember from http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/70819-windows-explorer-folder-view-settings.html.

Wow, "Save As", "File Upload" it now shows File Name with wide size columns.

Thank you all, and especially Shawn for providing a good information base.

 

[Brink]

Your welcome Claudiu. I'm happy to hear that you got the wide size columns now. Thank you for posting back your results.

Shawn

 

[magicalones]

Fantastic!!!!! Thanks works like a charm

 

[Brink]

Your welcome Magicalones, and welcome to Vista Forums.

Shawn

 

[dreimanis]

this tutorial worked perfectly. thanks for the tips and spent time.

 

[Brink]

Your welcome Dreimanis, and welcome to Vista Forums.

Shawn

 

[Mykle]

Great tutorial Brink. It was very clear, descriptive, and easy to follow.

I do have one question though. I would like to increase the cache size for Vista to remember the settings but I do not have the key that you indicated in the tutorial. Is it possible to create one? Thanks.

 

[Brink]

Hi Mykle, and welcome to Vista Forums.

You can use the reg file download and restart the computer, then afterwards it should be there to make it easy to change.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[Kayden]

thank you thank you for the file it was exactly what i needed!

 

[Brink]

Your welcome Kayden, and welcome to Vista Forums.

Shawn

 

[bmb]

Hi Brink
I need one help im confused which guide is right for this problem..
In windows explorer when i setup Medium Icon size this always change to Tiles Icon or details.How can i fixed this so folder can remmember Icon size..
This is from View Option :Large Icon,Medieum Icon ,Details etc.....

Thanks.........

 

[Brink]

Hello Bmb,

You can do Method Two in this tutorial to reset the Folder Views so Vista will remember when you set the window to Medium icon size and close the window, Vista will remember how it was when it was last closed.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[Caliban51]

Amazing guide! You have no idea how much this bothered me! THANK YOU!

 

[Brink]

Your welcome Caliban, and welcome to Vista Forums.

Shawn