Window's Folder View Settings Changing Depending on Route Taken

Windows Folder View Settings Changing Depending on Route Taken

Have you ever noticed that the view settings for a particular folder in Windows seem to change depending on how you navigate to it? This can be frustrating, especially if you prefer a specific view setting for a particular folder and find yourself constantly having to change it back.

Understanding Windows Folder View Settings

Windows folder view settings allow you to customize how files and folders are displayed in Windows Explorer. You can choose from several different views, including Details, List, Thumbnails, Tiles, and Icons. You can also choose how files are sorted and grouped, as well as whether to show or hide various details such as file size, date modified, and author.

Why Folder View Settings Change

Folder view settings in Windows are stored in two places: in the registry and in a file called "desktop.ini" that is located in each folder. When you navigate to a folder, Windows checks both of these locations to determine the appropriate view settings for that folder. If it finds different view settings in the registry and in the "desktop.ini" file, it will use the settings from the "desktop.ini" file.

The problem is that when you navigate to a folder using a different route, Windows may use a different "desktop.ini" file. For example, if you navigate to a folder by clicking on a shortcut on your desktop, Windows will use the "desktop.ini" file in the folder that contains the shortcut. But if you navigate to the same folder by clicking on a link in a document or email, Windows will use the "desktop.ini" file in the folder that contains the link.

Keeping View Settings Constant for a Specific Folder

If you want to keep the view settings constant for a specific folder, you can do so by creating a "desktop.ini" file in that folder and setting the appropriate view settings in that file. Here's how:

1. Navigate to the folder for which you want to set the view settings.
2. Right-click on an empty space in the folder and choose New > Text Document.
3. Rename the text document to "desktop.ini" (including the quotes). When you rename the file, make sure that the "Hide extensions for known file types" option is turned off in the "Folder Options" dialog box. If the option is turned on, you will need to rename the file to "desktop.ini.txt" and then manually change the file extension to "desktop.ini".
4. Open the "desktop.ini" file in a text editor such as Notepad.
5. Add the following lines to the file:
   [ViewState] Mode=... Vid=...

   Replace the "..." with the appropriate values for the view settings you want to use. For example, if you want to use the Details view, set the Mode value to "3". If you want to use a custom view, set the Vid value to a unique identifier for that view.

6. Save the "desktop.ini" file and close the text editor.
7. Restart Windows Explorer or log off and log back on to apply the new view settings.

References

• Change folder options in Windows 10
• How to customize folders by using Desktop.ini
• How to prevent folder view settings from changing in Windows

By following these steps, you can keep the view settings constant for a specific folder, regardless of how you navigate to it. Happy computing!