{"id":1066,"date":"2009-08-06T09:39:14","date_gmt":"2009-08-06T04:09:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/198.58.113.91\/blog\/?p=1066"},"modified":"2024-05-05T21:54:21","modified_gmt":"2024-05-05T16:24:21","slug":"fix-folders-open-new-window","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/fix-folders-open-new-window\/","title":{"rendered":"[Fix] Folders Open in New Window Every time"},"content":{"rendered":"

When you open File Explorer and double-click a folder, it may open a new Explorer window rather than showing the folder contents in the existing window.<\/p>\n

This issue may occur even though the “Open each folder in the same window” setting is selected in Control Panel \u2192 Folder Options.<\/p>\n

\"folders<\/p>\n

Cause<\/h2>\n

Folders may always open in a new window due to the wrong folder association settings in the registry. For example, the (default)<\/code> registry value data in the following key may be incorrectly set to “opennewwindow<\/code>”<\/p>\n

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\\Folder\\shell<\/pre>\n
Or, an unwanted registry value named LaunchExplorerFlags<\/code> may be present in the following registry location:<\/p>\n
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\\Folder\\shell\\open<\/pre>\n
If the LaunchExplorerFlags value exists and its data is a non-zero value (i.e., not equal to 0x0), then this value overrides the “Open each folder in the same window” setting. Due to the incorrect registry setting, the default double-click action folders is set to “Open in new window”.<\/em><\/p>\n
\"folders<\/p>\n
Another possible cause is that the “DelegateExecute<\/code>” registry value may be missing in the above location.<\/p>\n
These incorrect registry settings force Windows to open folders in a new window when you double-click on them. Let’s see how to fix this problem.<\/p>\n
The fixes #1 and #2 below apply to all versions of Windows, including Windows 11.<\/p>\n
Resolution<\/h2>\n
Step 1: Resetting the Default Double-click Action<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Open an admin Command Prompt<\/a> window.<\/li>\n
  2. Type the following commands one by one and press Enter<\/kbd> after each command. Ignore the “unable to find<\/em>” error messages if any.\n
    reg delete HKCR\\Folder\\shell \/ve \/f\n\nreg add HKCR\\Directory\\shell \/ve \/d none \/f\n\nreg delete HKCR\\Folder\\shell\\open \/v \"LaunchExplorerFlags\" \/f\n\nreg add HKCR\\Folder\\shell\\open\\command \/v \"DelegateExecute\" \/d \"{11dbb47c-a525-400b-9e80-a54615a090c0}\" \/f<\/pre>\n
    \"folders<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    That resets the default double-click action to “open”, thereby fixing the problem.<\/p>\n
    \n
    Step 2: Resetting the NavPane registry settings<\/h3>\n
      \n
    1. Close all folder windows.<\/li>\n
    2. Start the Registry Editor (regedit.exe<\/code>)<\/li>\n
    3. Navigate to the following registry branch:\n
      HKEY_CURRENT_USER\\SOFTWARE\\Microsoft\\Windows\\CurrentVersion\\Explorer\\Modules\\NavPane<\/pre>\n<\/li>\n
    4. Right-click NavPane<\/strong><\/code> and choose Delete<\/li>\n
    5. Exit the Registry Editor.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
      If that doesn’t help, download and run the folder and directory association fixes from the following links. Choose the one for the version of Windows you’re using:<\/p>\n
      File Association Fixes<\/h4>\n
      Windows 7<\/a> | Windows 8<\/a> | Windows 10<\/a><\/p>\n
      (This article was last updated on May 05, 2023.)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
      When you open File Explorer and double-click a folder, it may open a new Explorer window rather than showing the folder contents in the existing window. This issue may occur even though the “Open each folder in the same window” setting is selected in Control Panel \u2192 Folder Options. Cause Folders may always open in … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[441],"class_list":["post-1066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-windows","tag-registry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2445,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/open-excel-folder-hyperlink-without-navigation-pane\/","url_meta":{"origin":1066,"position":0},"title":"How to Open Excel Hyperlinks (to Folders) Without Showing the Navigation Pane in Explorer","author":"Ramesh","date":"March 28, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"When you click on a hyperlink in Excel that points to a folder location, it always opens the folder with navigation pane enabled, even if the user has disabled the navigation pane. This is because Excel invokes the \"explore\" verb instead of \"open\", when launching a hyperlink to a folder.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Office"","block_context":{"text":"Office","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/office\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":25947,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/drag-and-drop-not-working-file-explorer\/","url_meta":{"origin":1066,"position":1},"title":"[Fix] Drag and Drop not working in File Explorer","author":"Ramesh","date":"January 26, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"On your Windows 10\/11 computer, you may unexpectedly find that the drag and drop functionality has stopped working in File Explorer. This issue may occur only when dragging files or folders to a folder in the Explorer navigation pane. When dragging a file to a folder in the navigation pane,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows 10"","block_context":{"text":"Windows 10","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/windows-10\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"drag and drop not working in windows 10\/11","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/drag-drop-w10-broken.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/drag-drop-w10-broken.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/drag-drop-w10-broken.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/drag-drop-w10-broken.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4594,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/show-hide-shell-folder-namespace-windows-10\/","url_meta":{"origin":1066,"position":2},"title":"New Ways to Show or Hide Shell Namespace Folders in Windows 10","author":"Ramesh","date":"November 17, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"From Windows 2000\/XP through Windows 10, you can add custom shell folders as well as hide specific shell folders from appearing in Explorer environment or Desktop using the Registry Editor or with GPOs. There are two new ways to do exactly the same task, in Windows 10. What is a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows 10"","block_context":{"text":"Windows 10","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/windows-10\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"show or hide shell namespace","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/whitelist-shell-objects-6.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/whitelist-shell-objects-6.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/whitelist-shell-objects-6.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1116,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/hidden-registry-settings-sendto-menu-windows-7\/","url_meta":{"origin":1066,"position":3},"title":"Hidden Registry Settings for “Send To” Menu in Windows","author":"Ramesh","date":"December 26, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"The Send To menu in Windows allows you to quickly send a file to different locations, including a CD\/DVD, USB drive, or a third-party application. We've covered a few articles on the \"Send To\" menu before, and here are the three new and undocumented registry edits that can be used\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows"","block_context":{"text":"Windows","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/archived\/w7-sendto-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/archived\/w7-sendto-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/archived\/w7-sendto-1.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9397,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/desktop-or-folders-not-refreshing-automatically-in-windows\/","url_meta":{"origin":1066,"position":4},"title":"Folders not refreshing automatically in Windows 10","author":"Ramesh","date":"May 19, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"In File Explorer or on the desktop, when you create, delete, rename, or move a file or folder, the folder view does not refresh automatically to reflect the action. To see the changes, the user must press the F5 button on the keyboard, or right-click on the desktop or folder\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows 10"","block_context":{"text":"Windows 10","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/windows-10\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"cleanly restart explorer via task manager","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/exit-restart-explorer-task-manager.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/exit-restart-explorer-task-manager.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/exit-restart-explorer-task-manager.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2433,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/cascading-menu-jump-lists-issue-windows-10\/","url_meta":{"origin":1066,"position":5},"title":"Cascading Menu and File Explorer Jump Lists Issue in Windows 10","author":"Ramesh","date":"March 28, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"When you implement Cascading Menus in File Folders (Directory) using the SubCommands or ExtendedSubCommands registry keys in Windows 10, an interesting thing happens. The last item in your Cascading menu gets executed when you right-click Pinned File Explorer shortcut in the Taskbar, and click on a folder in the Jump\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Windows 10"","block_context":{"text":"Windows 10","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/category\/microsoft\/windows\/windows-10\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/w10\/cascade1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/w10\/cascade1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/w10\/cascade1.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1066","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1066"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1066\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}