› 
To easily identify currently selected folder in the Windows Explorer navigation pane, you can change the default open folder icon using a registry edit. This works fine in Windows XP as well as in Windows Vista.
Change the Open Folder icon in Windows Explorer
1. Launch Regedit.exe and navigate to the following location:
2. From the Edit menu, click New, click String Value..
3. Type 4 as the name of the new String Value, and then press ENTER
4. Double-click 4 and set its Value data to:
Note: You can also assign a custom icon file (.ico) as the Value data, instead of referencing the shell32.dll icon.
5. Exit the Registry Editor and restart Windows.
Registry Fix
To automate the above setting, download openfolder.zip and save to Desktop. Unzip the files to a folder and double-click openfolder.reg to run it. To reverse the changes to switch back to the default icon, run openfolder-undo.reg.
Screenshots
Open Windows Explorer and select a folder in the navigation pane. The folder icon should change to a green arrow, as in figure below:
Fig1: Folder pane in Windows Vista
Fig 2: Folder pane in Windows XP
Also note that in Windows Vista, the change will be seen in Registry Editor as well.
Fig 3: Registry Editor in Windows Vista
Bookmark this Page!
BlinkList | del.icio.us | Digg it | Furl | reddit | Spurl | StumbleUpon |
Related Posts
- The Default View Source Editor Has Changed in Internet Explorer 8
- How to Remove “Always Use the Selected Program” Option From Open With Dialog
- Windows Explorer Defaults to Libraries Folder in Windows 7
- How to Make Folders Appear as Cascading Menu in the Quick Launch Toolbar
- Add “Explore Here” To the Right-Click Menu in Internet Explorer
- Change the Default Editor for BAT Files in Windows 2000/XP/Vista
- Edit the Information Displayed in the “Type” Column of Details View in Folders
- Open in RegEdit Add-on for Mozilla Firefox
- Fix: Change Analysis Diagnostic Does Not Install in Windows XP SP3
- “Browse for More Pictures…” Link in the Vista User Accounts Applet Does Not Work
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to our RSS feed! We feature Tips, Troubleshooting information, Scripts and Utilities for Microsoft Windows Operating Systems!
Prefer an E-mail subscription?
it doesnt work for me.. I repaired Icon using tweak-ui, and verified the registry, and doesnt work…. help?
And away we go. After the repair, it worked even without a reboot.
Thanks.
@JR: Repairing the icons (WXP) should help. See article: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/repair-icons-windows-xp-using-tweak-ui/
It doesn’t seem to work for me. XP Pro SP3.
Verified the Reg and no go.
Appreciate UR efforts, thanks.