Declutter desktop


K

Kan Lang

Well-known member
Local time
10:56 PM
Posts
29
OS
Windows 10
hi, in Windows Explorer (I mean the program that opens when clicking Win-E) when moving up the foldertree I end up in 'Desktop'. Let's call it 'desktop 1'.

In this 'instance' of the desktop (as opposed to the instance outside of Win-E Windows Explorer which I will call 'desktop 2') there are a lot of icons, shortcuts, etc (libraries, network, current user-files, control panel).

Those icons, shortcuts, etc that are visible in desktop 1 are not visible in desktop 2. It's good that they are not visible there. And I want them gone in desktop 1 as well. Is this possible somehow?

Kind regards, Kan
 
Windows Build/Version
Windows 11 Pro 24H2 fully patched

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
I suggest you post screenshots to clarify your post.


All the best,
Denis
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200.8037
thanks, yeah that's probably a good idea. :-)

This is the window that opens when I click Win + E. I want to get rid of most of those icons and their labels. Is this somehow possible? Kind regards, Kan
 

Attachments

  • win+e desktop.webp
    win+e desktop.webp
    27.5 KB · Views: 1

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
Kan Lang said:
This is the window that opens when I click Win + E. I want to get rid of most of those icons and their labels. Is this somehow possible?
Click to expand...
Right click each folder and select "Unpin from Quick Access'?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 26200.7840
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaPad L340
    CPU
    Intel Core i3-8145U
    Memory
    16GB
    Hard Drives
    500 GB M2 1 TB HDD
    Internet Speed
    400 MB
    Browser
    Chrome | Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender | Block unknown executables | Various ASR rules enabled | Smart App Control
Thanks for your kind reply! it’s not Quick Access but desktop…
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
If they're shortcuts, you can simply delete them if you don't want them there. Right click on each one and display the properties.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.8524
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14500
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M G P WIFI
    Memory
    64GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX 4060
    Sound Card
    Chipset Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG 45" Ultragear, Acer 24" 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    5120x1440, 1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB 2280 PCIe Gen4 3D NAND NVMe M.2 SSD (O/S)
    Silicon Power 2TB US75 NVMe PCIe Gen4 M.2 2280 SSD (backup)
    Crucial BX500 2TB 3D NAND (2nd backup)
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD archive files
    External off-line backup Drives: 2 NVMe 4TB drives in external enclosures
    PSU
    Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 750W
    Case
    LIAN LI LANCOOL 216 E-ATX PC Case
    Cooling
    Lots of fans!
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security
  • Operating System
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.8524
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14400
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M DS3H AX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Sound Card
    Realtek Embedded
    Monitor(s) Displays
    27" HP 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB 2280 PCIe Gen4 eD NAND PCIe SSD
    Samsung EVO 990 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung 2TB SATA SSD
    PSU
    Thermaltake Smart BM3 650W
    Case
    Okinos Micro ATX Case
    Cooling
    Fans
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security
Thanks gunrunnerjohn! They are in-built (inbred when it comes to their aestethics imho) shortcuts to Win 11 (rightclick don’t offer standard type deletion).
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
Change your View.

I prefer List View instead of Icon View. Here's the default view of my File Explorer.

1758393739420.webp
 

Attachments

  • 1758393416507.webp
    1758393416507.webp
    93.6 KB · Views: 1

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 16 DA16260
    CPU
    Intel Series 3 Core Ultra X9 388H
    Memory
    64GB LPDDR5x 9600 MT/s
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Arc graphics B390 Panther Lake
    Monitor(s) Displays
    16" 3.2K Tandem OLED Infinity Edge
    Screen Resolution
    3200 x 2000 16:10 236 PPI
    Hard Drives
    1 Terabyte M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
    Case
    Black Anodized Aluminum
    Cooling
    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
    Internet Speed
    942 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium)
    Antivirus
    Windows Security (Defender)
    Other Info
    NPU delivering 67 TOPS
    Microsoft 365 subscription
    Microsoft OneDrive 1TB Cloud
    Microsoft Visual Studio
    Microsoft Visual Studio Code
    Microsoft Sysinternals Suite
    Microsoft BitLocker
    Microsoft Copilot
    Dell Support Assist
    Dell Command | Update
    Macrium Reflect X subscription
    1Password Password Manager
    Amazon Kindle for PC
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Microsoft Surface Laptop 7
    CPU
    Snapdragon® X Elite (12 Core) with Hexagon NPU delivering 45 TOPS
    Memory
    32GB LPDDR5x 8448 MT/s
    Graphics card(s)
    Integrated Adreno GPU
    Sound Card
    Omnisonic speakers with Dolby Atmos spatial sound
    Monitor(s) Displays
    13.8″ PixelSense Flow touchscreen 120 Hz 600 NIT
    Screen Resolution
    2304 × 1536 (201 PPI), 3:2 aspect ratio
    Hard Drives
    1 TB PCIe NVMe Gen 4 SSD
    Case
    Black Anodized Aluminum
    Cooling
    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
    Internet Speed
    942 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium)
    Antivirus
    Windows Security (Defender)
    Other Info
    Microsoft 365 subscription (Office)
    Microsoft OneDrive 1TB Cloud
    Microsoft Visual Studio 2026
    Microsoft Visual Studio Code
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
    1Password Password Manager
    Microsoft Sysinternals
    Amazon Kindle for PC
    Microsoft BitLocker
    Microsoft Copilot

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.8524
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14500
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M G P WIFI
    Memory
    64GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX 4060
    Sound Card
    Chipset Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG 45" Ultragear, Acer 24" 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    5120x1440, 1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB 2280 PCIe Gen4 3D NAND NVMe M.2 SSD (O/S)
    Silicon Power 2TB US75 NVMe PCIe Gen4 M.2 2280 SSD (backup)
    Crucial BX500 2TB 3D NAND (2nd backup)
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD archive files
    External off-line backup Drives: 2 NVMe 4TB drives in external enclosures
    PSU
    Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 750W
    Case
    LIAN LI LANCOOL 216 E-ATX PC Case
    Cooling
    Lots of fans!
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security
  • Operating System
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.8524
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14400
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M DS3H AX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Sound Card
    Realtek Embedded
    Monitor(s) Displays
    27" HP 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB 2280 PCIe Gen4 eD NAND PCIe SSD
    Samsung EVO 990 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung 2TB SATA SSD
    PSU
    Thermaltake Smart BM3 650W
    Case
    Okinos Micro ATX Case
    Cooling
    Fans
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security
That Dekstop is the root that shows system namespace junctions (what you see there). If you go to C:\Users\yourname\Desktop, they won’t show. You can remove that desktop root from the navigation pane by saving and running this registry file (if you dont know how, its attached as a .zip too):

Code: 
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\{B4BFCC3A-DB2C-424C-B029-7FE99A87C641}]
@="CLSID_ThisPCDesktopRegFolder"
"HiddenByDefault"=dword:00000001

@Gunner it is Windows File Explorer. It's just not listed under Quick Access.
 

Attachments

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
thanks Gary, gunrunnerjohn and dacrone! I will have a look into your suggestions and tips. Will post a reply any time soon. Kind regards, Kan
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
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