= The Windows 10 file explorer (formerly known as Windows explorer) is the path to everything on our computer and one of the functions we use the most on a daily basis.
Regardless of whether you are looking for settings, files or installed peripheral devices, everything will start in the File explorer. But just because we wear something on a daily basis doesn’t mean we have to settle for what it looks like by default. Windows 10 offers you several options to customize certain aspects of this file manager.
Change the view of the quick access panel
One of the things you can change about the file explorer is the view of it. By default it will show recent folders and recent files in the quick access panel, but you can instead show the most important locations such as documents, desktop, downloads, etc.
To do this, open the file explorer. If you don’t have it pinned to the taskbar, type “file explorer” in the search box next to the Windows icon.
- At the top of the list of options, click on quick access
- You click the right mouse button
- Click on options
In the “General” tab, you will see the options “Show files recently in quick access” and “Show folders recently in quick access” checked. Uncheck both tabs and close this menu. You will see that a menu with the most important locations will now automatically appear. If you want to add a folder or location to this menu you have to do it manually.
- Find the folder you want to pin
- Hover over it and click the right mouse button
- Select “pin to quick access”
Hide or show the ribbon
The ribbon is the top menu that appears above the file explorer. This ribbon shows all the available options like copy, paste, open, modify. While it can be useful to have it in view on many occasions, in others it may be too busy and even annoying.
You can hide or show the ribbon whenever you want by clicking on the tab located on the right margin. You just have to press it and you will see how it appears and disappears automatically.
Resize icons
You can also choose the size and format of the icons that you want to appear in the browser. To do this, open it and on the ribbon (located at the top) click on the “View” option. Select from the available options the one that best suits your preferences.
- Very large icons
- Large icons
- Medium icons
- Small icons
- List
- Details
Make a folder always show with a certain view
Open the folder that you want to always show the same, for example in “Details” view. Click on the View tab, choose the layout of the view you want to configure and click on: Options> “Change folder and search options” . Within this menu, open the “View” tab and select the “Apply to folders” option. With this option activated, the view and the folder settings will also be applied to the folders inside it.
Reposition the toolbar
The Quick Access Toolbar is located in the title bar of the browser window. However, you can change its location so that it is displayed just below the ribbon. To do this, click on the icon on the toolbar and in the options displayed select ” Show under the ribbon” . You can also minimize the tape by following the same path and choosing the “minimize tape” option .
Modify the file explorer icon
To customize the icon, the first thing we have to do is pin it to the taskbar if you don’t already have it.
- To do this you have to open the browser
- Click on the right mouse button on the icon
- Press «Pin to taskbar»
Now that you have it pinned go to the taskbar.
- Click on the explorer icon with the right mouse button
- Choose “File Explorer” in the drop-down menu and press right-click again
- A small pop-up menu will appear.
- Select “Properties”
- Select Shortcut – «Change icon»
Here another pop-up window will open from which you can change the browser icon between several that will give you a choice.
- To change it, you just have to click on “Change icon”
- You will access the folder that contains it (they can only be .ICO files)
- Select the icon and click “Apply and OK”.
The icon change will not take effect until you have fully restarted your computer.
Open files with one click
Another customization possibility is that it allows us to open files with a single click instead of with two clicks as is established by default.
To do this, open the file explorer.
- At the top of the list of options, click on quick access.
- You click the right mouse button.
- Click on options.
Here in the general section you will see an option that says “Options when clicking on an item”. Mark the first of the options that says “One click to open it, point to select it” and press accept. From this moment, when you put the course on top of any element within the browser, it will be selected and you will be able to see the options without having to right-click on it. In addition, you only need to click one button to open the file or folder in question.
Open all folders in a different window
When opening a folder in Windows 10, for example from “Documents”, it opens in a new window. Everything you do from that window will always open within it. However, we have the option of opening the folders we open in new windows and not in the same one constantly. This is very useful when you have to copy or move files.
To do this, we open any folder and select the “View” tab on the ribbon . Within this menu, on the right, we click on the “Options” section. A new window will open here with the Windows file explorer settings. Choose ” Browse folders ” and activate the option ” Open each folder in different windows.” To reverse this change you just have to follow the same steps and click on the option “Open all folders in the same window”.
