When I try to rename a drive, File Explorer renames the one above it instead!

miloshapiro · Mar 28, 2023

Recently, a problem started that was not happening when I bought this Win 11 PC in Jan of 2022.
I like to rename flash drives in File Explorer, so that when I insert them, a logical-sounding name tells me what's on it.
About a month ago, something odd started happening and I'm wondering if it's just me or if others are experiencing this:
...
When I right-click on the drive, choose "More Options", and select "Rename", it opens the drive ABOVE the one I select for renaming, not the one I clicked on.
So if I have drives called C, D, E, F, G, and H and I want to rename F, I now have to click on G to do it! Frustrating and potentially error prone.
Rebooting hasn't fixed it. Any ideas? Attaching an image that shows what I mean. I right-clicked on "Google Drive (G:)" but what got highlighted was "WD-External (E:)" for renaming. (I have no F: at the moment). It's so bizarre.

Please know that while I know more than the average user about a PC, i'm not a super techie type so if it's a Super Techy kind of answer, I'm going to need you to really walk me through steps carefully. Thank you!

Milo
Win 11 user Version 22H2 , OS Build 22621.1413

Brink · Mar 28, 2023

Hello Milo,

Odd bug. Are you able to rename the drive using a different option below instead?

Rename Drive or Volume Label in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you different ways to rename a drive or volume label to what you want in Window 11. A volume label is the friendly name for a connected drive or volume. An internal drive will usually be assigned Local Disk as its volume label by default. A USB flash drive will usually...

www.elevenforum.com

miloshapiro · Mar 28, 2023

Yes, if I go via "This PC" and either follow the same steps OR just select and use F2, it allows renaming of the right drive. I pushed in a flash drive which became "F:" and I can rename it that way. So it's doable, but not my normal routine so I could mess something up if I don't take this approach.
....
Ooo! Just tried something...this gets weirder. If I select the drive in File Explorer and do the "rename" steps, it screws up as I told you. But if I instead press F2, it opens the right one for renaming! So the F2, which is supposed to be a shortcut not having to say "More options/Rename" is doing something different than the steps it's supposed to be equivalent to!
...
And is it just me? Did you try following the steps I detailed, Brink?

idgat · Mar 28, 2023

Right click drive (drive/folder) > Properties > {rename} > OK (you may have to refresh File Explorer)

miloshapiro · Mar 28, 2023

Yes, that works, too, Idgat, and it's one fewer step than I've been doing, so thanks.
But it still doesn't explain the weirdness I'm getting when I DO choose the actual option "Rename".
Still wondering if it's just me or if any of you experience this, too.

TVeblen · Mar 28, 2023

Yes, I experienced that problem also.
I solved it by disabling the new Windows 11 Context Menu. Doing so brings back the old Windows 10 Context Menu - and that works correctly.
See here:

Disable "Show more options" context menu in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to enable or disable having to click on "Show more options" to see the full context menu for your account or all users in Windows 11. When you right click on an item in Windows 11, you will see a new modern condensed context menu with Show more options...

www.elevenforum.com

miloshapiro · Mar 28, 2023

TVeblen, I LOVE this! I just did the disable you recommended through the Shell (which I had to learn about; new for me) and, while it did require a reboot, shazam! All my old options are back without the annoying extra step of "See more".

In particular, I create shortcuts a lot and now it's one click away instead of two. Curious if there's an "F"-key for creating shortcuts like F2 (I learned from Brink above) is "rename".

LesFerch · Mar 29, 2023

miloshapiro said:
When I right-click on the drive, choose "More Options", and select "Rename", it opens the drive ABOVE the one I select for renaming, not the one I clicked on.

Yes, I see the same behavior (bug) using the standard Windows 11 right-click menu. ~~Note that I needed to have two or more removable drives shown in order to replicate the issue. It does not happen with fixed drives~~.

I cannot find a single report of this issue on Feedback Hub. I'll report it. I suggest you do the same.

Changing to the classic right-click menu (as discussed) restores the correct behavior.

miloshapiro · Mar 29, 2023

Loving the classic menu so I'm set on this issue. If you tell me how to find this Feedback Hub, I'll be glad to report it too. Not sure what that is.

LesFerch · Mar 29, 2023

miloshapiro said:
Loving the classic menu so I'm set on this issue. If you tell me how to find this Feedback Hub, I'll be glad to report it too. Not sure what that is.

Feedback Hub is built into Windows. Type feedback (probably fee will do) into the Windows search bar. It will come right up.

Try3 · Mar 29, 2023

It sounds to me as though the display is imperfectly calibrated.
I'd try looking for a display control dialog of some kind or just reinstall its driver.
If it's a touchscreen then the touch driver might be responsible [I have seen this cause display calibration problems but have never seen them with a non-touch display].

Best of luck,
Denis

LesFerch · Mar 29, 2023

Try3 said:
It sounds to me as though the display is imperfectly calibrated.

Nope. It only happens with the Windows 11 context menu ~~and only when there are two or more removable drives~~. It's a Windows 11 bug.

miloshapiro · Mar 29, 2023

yes, dennis. It seems repeatable by enough of us that it's not calibration. Plus, I'm using a mouse and, as you can see in the example, it's highlighting the right one. It's only after I chose "Rename" that it picked the wrong one. Of course, I can't even test it now anymore because i followed the recommendation to go back to the Win 10 format and rename works perfectly there. As LesFerch says, it must be a Win11 bug. Hardly the first.

TVeblen · Apr 2, 2023

On mine it did it with just fixed drives.
It's nice we can just avoid it altogether.

LesFerch · Apr 2, 2023

TVeblen said:
On mine it did it with just fixed drives.
It's nice we can just avoid it altogether.

I stand corrected. I retested and it happens for me on both fixed and removable drives. I'm not sure why I missed that previously.

miloshapiro · Apr 2, 2023

Reported to Speaker Hub as per LesFerch's instructions, thanks. Let's all do so til they fix it so others don't accidentally rename their Google Drive like I accidentally did one day!

But I like the Win10 option.

LesFerch · Apr 12, 2023

Further to this, while in the Navigation pane, renaming folders has the same issue and frequently selecting Rename does nothing at all.

When I try to rename a drive, File Explorer renames the one above it instead!

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