Unable to remove Recent files from File Explorer


tony359

tony359

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6:57 PM
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Windows 10
Hi all,

I have noticed that I have a bunch of old Onedrive files under "Recents" in File Explorer. If I clear File Explorer history, they don't go away. If I manually select them and select "Remove from list", they don't go away.

Some of those files are tagged as "accessed in 2014", something's fishy here.

The Recents folder on the FS is empty and so is the relevant place in the registry.

Can someone please help me?
Thanks
 

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To stop OneDrive from syncing, right-click the OneDrive icon in the taskbar, select "Settings," then go to the "Account" tab to choose "Unlink this PC" or adjust which folders to sync under the "Choose folders" option. You can also pause syncing temporarily if needed.

Browse to C:\Users\UserName\OneDrive are your files there?
Also do a search for any of those files.
You can move them to your Documents folder or delete them, if you have already backed them up.
 

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Thanks but I'm not sure what your point is. I have some "recent files" in File Explorer which I am unable to remove from the list - I didn't really check whether they are actually linked to files, I would like to clear the "Recent files" list.

I have tried booting without onedrive and they're still there.

I'm not looking for those files - I'm talking about the "recent files" list.

Am I missing something?
 

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    Windows 10Ryzen 5800X32GBRTX 3070
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    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    Ryzen 5800X
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    MSI B550 Tomahawk
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    RTX 3070

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 24H1Ryzen 6800HS32GB
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    Ryzen 6800HS
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If you remove the files from their original location, when you clear Recent Files, they will not return

To clear recent files in Windows 11, open File Explorer, click on the three dots at the top, select Options, and then click the 'Clear' button at the bottom of the dialog. You can also uncheck the option to show recently used files to prevent them from appearing in the future.
 

My Computer My Computer

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Windows 11 Pro Insider 64 bit 25H2 26200.5742Intel Core i7 9700K 3.6016 GBnVidia GEForce RTX 2060 Super
OS
Windows 11 Pro Insider 64 bit 25H2 26200.5742
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Gigabyte Z390 UD
CPU
Intel Core i7 9700K 3.60
Motherboard
Gigabyte Z390 UD
Memory
16 GB
Graphics Card(s)
nVidia GEForce RTX 2060 Super
Sound Card
onboard
Monitor(s) Displays
Two 27" Dell 4K monitors
Screen Resolution
3840 x 2160
Hard Drives
M.2 NVME SSD, 500 GB; Two 2TB Mechanical HDD's
PSU
850w PSU
Case
Cyberpower PC
Cooling
Water cooled
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Backlit Cyberpower gaming keyboard
Mouse
Backlit Cyberpower gaming mouse
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1 GB mbps
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Windows Security
If it's just particular entries you want removed, delete the shortcuts manually from your temps.

Press Win + R, type %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Recent\, and press Enter.
Select and delete.
 

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Linux Debain
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Spunk said:
To clear recent files in Windows 11, open File Explorer, click on the three dots at the top, select Options, and then click the 'Clear' button at the bottom of the dialog. You can also uncheck the option to show recently used files to prevent them from appearing in the future.
Click to expand...
@Spunk see my first post

> If I clear File Explorer history, they don't go away. If I manually select them and select "Remove from list", they don't go away.

Northy said:
Press Win + R, type %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Recent\, and press Enter.
Select and delete.
Click to expand...
@norty see my first post


>The Recents folder on the FS is empty and so is the relevant place in the registry.
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 10Ryzen 5800X32GBRTX 3070
    OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    Ryzen 5800X
    Motherboard
    MSI B550 Tomahawk
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    RTX 3070

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 24H1Ryzen 6800HS32GB
    Operating System
    Windows 11 24H1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo
    CPU
    Ryzen 6800HS
    Memory
    32GB
Adding some more evidence:

Recent folder is empty
Screenshot 2025-11-15 165652.webp

This is what I select to clear the list
Screenshot 2025-11-15 165800.webp

Note that all files in the list are Onedrive files. They do exist.
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 10Ryzen 5800X32GBRTX 3070
    OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    Ryzen 5800X
    Motherboard
    MSI B550 Tomahawk
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    RTX 3070

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 24H1Ryzen 6800HS32GB
    Operating System
    Windows 11 24H1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo
    CPU
    Ryzen 6800HS
    Memory
    32GB
In the Registry, User shell folders
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders
Does the Recent entry match its common value?
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Recent


Denis
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Home x64 Version 26H2 Build 26300....
OS
Windows 11 Home x64 Version 26H2 Build 26300.9457
Yes it does

Screenshot 2025-11-15 171614.webp

AI suggests that those are Onedrive Recent files which will disappear if I disable "office recent" files (it's true) and cannot be removed.

Is that right??
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 10Ryzen 5800X32GBRTX 3070
    OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    Ryzen 5800X
    Motherboard
    MSI B550 Tomahawk
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    RTX 3070

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 24H1Ryzen 6800HS32GB
    Operating System
    Windows 11 24H1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo
    CPU
    Ryzen 6800HS
    Memory
    32GB
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