Personalization Add or Remove Folders under This PC in File Explorer in Windows 11

Rboppy · May 3, 2025

My answer is no, I don't show all folders.

Edwin · May 3, 2025

If all else fails, you could use WinaeroTweaker to add any folder to the Nav Pane...

antspants · May 3, 2025

Edwin said:
If all else fails, you could use WinaeroTweaker to add any folder to the Nav Pane...

View attachment 132858

Is what I use. My File Explorer is exactly how I want it.

antspants · May 3, 2025

If you’re interested in how I setup File Explorer to show particular foldrs in the Navigation Pane, and to envoke Expand To Folder in the right pane when using this customisation — It may not be right for you though,it’s a personal preferece:

Using Winaero Tweaker

1 - Navigate to Customize This PC Folders
2 - Selected the User Folder ex Music
3 - Remove it
4/5/6/7 - Add a Custom folder (same folder ex Music)

(Repeat the process for all user folders and any other folder you want to add to the top of This PC so as to "expand to")

8 - The folder now appears at the top of This PC
9 - Remove the User Folder/s from Quick Access.
There isn't any point in having them in there in my opinion as they are just below, now under This PC

Clicking on a folder in section 8 in the image, utilizes/allows the process of "Expand to folder" in the right pane of File Explorer

Edwin · May 3, 2025

antspants said:
My File Explorer is exactly how I want it.

Damn right! These are Tools, man..., the Toolbox should be full!
Getting tired of MS's one wrench fits all attitude!

Rboppy · May 3, 2025

Interesting, but beyond what I want at this time. I have way too many irons in the fire right now.

Edwin · May 3, 2025

Explorer is just a frame..., excuse me, WAS just frame..., capable of all kinds of

!
If it's possible, just do it!

Rboppy · May 9, 2025

antspants said:
If you’re interested in how I setup File Explorer to show particular foldrs in the Navigation Pane, and to envoke Expand To Folder in the right pane when using this customisation — It may not be right for you though,it’s a personal preferece:

Using Winaero Tweaker

1 - Navigate to Customize This PC Folders
2 - Selected the User Folder ex Music
3 - Remove it
4/5/6/7 - Add a Custom folder (same folder ex Music)

(Repeat the process for all user folders and any other folder you want to add to the top of This PC so as to "expand to")

8 - The folder now appears at the top of This PC
9 - Remove the User Folder/s from Quick Access.
There isn't any point in having them in there in my opinion as they are just below, now under This PC

Clicking on a folder in section 8 in the image, utilizes/allows the process of "Expand to folder" in the right pane of File Explorer

Thanks for that, interesting and useful program .

antspants · May 9, 2025

Rboppy said:
Thanks for that, interesting and useful program .

It is, many features that are worth using, many that to me, are not.

Fajn · Dec 12, 2025

Peter Njeim said:
Edit 2: I solved the issue by going to the Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{B4BFCC3A-DB2C-424C-B029-7FE99A87C641}\ShellFolder, right clicking it and clicking Permissions. Then I clicked Advanced, Change (at the top to change the owner), then changed it from SYSTEM to Administrators (just typed "administrators" the box then clicked "Check Names"). Clicked OK, then OK again. Then I clicked on Administrators and checked the Full Control check box on the Allow column, then OK again. I then double clicked on the SortOrderIndex DWORD, and changed it to 0 (was 0x48 (72) initially). Then I reversed the permission changes by right clicking the Key (the ShellFolder folder in the left pane), clicking Permissions, then clicking Administrators and unchecking the Full Control checkbox in the Allow column. Then clicked Advanced, then Change at the top, then typed "SYSTEM" in the text box, then clicked Check Names, then clicked OK, then OK, then OK, and that was it, Desktop is now the first folder as it should be.

Edit 1: unfortunately it seems that the Folders section doesn't respect the Sort by option, however it does respect Ascending vs Descending, and the Group by option. So the question is how to make the Folders section respect the Sort type, however knowing that Microsoft is deprecating the Folders section, maybe the section will be gone for good before this bug gets fixed.

Hello, this works, however there is a new problem. Earlier (before the tabbed layout) the Desktop folder was the first folder (top left) (ignoring 3D Objects folder which I disable). After applying these registry keys, the Desktop folder is now the last folder (bottom right). I don't see any way I could change the order. I tried to add and remove the DWORDS in different orders to no avail. Do you know of any way to make the Desktop folder the first folder again? Version 22621.675

Thanks to this I wondered if this is not possible on system level, or at least not without some hackery, why not just enforce the sorting on a Current_User level.

I am an extreeeeme noob so this needs testing for potential side effects, but so far it seems that adding the the keys from the root into the HKEY_CURRENT_USER seems to work just fine.
What I did is that I copied Attributes, FloderValuesFlags and SortOrderIndex from the ShellFolder subkey of each key from HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT to the corresponding key in HKEY_CURRENT_USER. Then I set the SortOrderIndex DWORD from 48 to 0, as it was the only one that had it hat way. Others already had 0. In fact all the folders have the exact same values except for this one.
Unfortunatelly this only moved Desktop to the bottom left corner. This puzzles me cos' they should've benn on the same level, but oh well.
So in my last ditch effort I just went for it and set the SortOrderIndex for all the other folders to 1, and voila... Desktop is now in the first place in top left.

Code:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{B4BFCC3A-DB2C-424C-B029-7FE99A87C641}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:f080004d
"FolderValueFlags"=dword:00000029
"SortOrderIndex"=dword:00000000

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{d3162b92-9365-467a-956b-92703aca08af}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:f080004d
"FolderValueFlags"=dword:00000029
"SortOrderIndex"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{088e3905-0323-4b02-9826-5d99428e115f}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:f080004d
"FolderValueFlags"=dword:00000029
"SortOrderIndex"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{3dfdf296-dbec-4fb4-81d1-6a3438bcf4de}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:f080004d
"FolderValueFlags"=dword:00000029
"SortOrderIndex"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{24ad3ad4-a569-4530-98e1-ab02f9417aa8}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:f080004d
"FolderValueFlags"=dword:00000029
"SortOrderIndex"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{f86fa3ab-70d2-4fc7-9c99-fcbf05467f3a}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:f080004d
"FolderValueFlags"=dword:00000029
"SortOrderIndex"=dword:00000001

Please I ask someone more knowledgable to test this as I have no idea if what I did is safe.

Rubic · Dec 14, 2025

I'm looking for enthusiasts to experiment with Nilesoft Shell script.

Nilesoft-Shell-Snippets/ext.others/treeview.advance.md at main · RubicBG/Nilesoft-Shell-Snippets

Contribute to RubicBG/Nilesoft-Shell-Snippets development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

I'll probably finish it the next time I reinstall Windows, but it still works satisfactorily for me - Have fun!

sugengtiadaguna · Apr 14, 2026

Hi Brink,

I have tried to use your tutorial in my laptop. The thing is that the folders are not sorted correctly. You can see from the screenshot that the Desktop folder always at the end of the group even it was sorted ascending by name. I also have tried to add those folders one by one (instead of using the "Add All Folders to This PC") with the same results.

Is it possible to "fix" this? And is it possible to seperate this "Add and Remove Folder" for different Groups (Folders and Devices and drives)? Thank you.

dacrone · Apr 15, 2026

sugengtiadaguna said:
Hi Brink,

I have tried to use your tutorial in my laptop. The thing is that the folders are not sorted correctly. You can see from the screenshot that the Desktop folder always at the end of the group even it was sorted ascending by name. I also have tried to add those folders one by one (instead of using the "Add All Folders to This PC") with the same results.

Is it possible to "fix" this? And is it possible to seperate this "Add and Remove Folder" for different Groups (Folders and Devices and drives)? Thank you.

View attachment 168852

its somewhere in this massive thread.. but yeah you can fix it:

Set Ownership of KEY to Administrators (group):

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{B4BFCC3A-DB2C-424C-B029-7FE99A87C641}\ShellFolder

Give Full Control to Administrators in Properties > Security Tab

Change DWORD "SortOrderIndex" value from "72" to "0"

Remove Full Control from Administrators in Properties > Security Tab

sugengtiadaguna · Apr 15, 2026

Yess it works dacrone!

Thanks a ton!

Personalization Add or Remove Folders under This PC in File Explorer in Windows 11

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