By default, the Windows operating system is configured not to display hidden files. The reason some files and folders are marked as hidden is that they are not the files that you should be accessing or altering, deleting or moving around.
These files are essential files related to the operating system that helps run Windows applications. Both Windows and macOS computers have hidden files.
If you are unable to view the Show Hidden Files option in Windows, that’s probably because some of your Windows system files are corrupted or damaged and need an immediate fix.
How to View Hidden Files/Folders on Windows?
There are times when you may need to show these hidden files and folders. You can follow the below-mentioned steps to see hidden files and folders on different Windows Versions.
Note: If you have accidentally deleted or formatted the hidden files and folders trying to view the files won’t be useful. Therefore, initially recover the hidden files and folders and try opening it.
For Windows 11/10 users
- Access the folder location.
- Click on View (located in the top ribbon), click on Show, and select the Hidden Items option.
For Windows 8.1 users
- Go to Search, type Folder. Click on Show Hidden Files and Folders
- Select the View tab.
- Under Advanced settings, select Show hidden files, folders, and drives, then click Apply
For Windows 7 users
- Click the Start button, then select Control Panel
- Click on Appearance and Personalization.
- Select Folder Options, and then select the View tab.
- Under Advanced settings, select Show hidden files, folders, and drives, then click Apply.
If the above-mentioned option is not available or not working as it’s supposed to, we recommend that you follow next shown methods.
Also Read: How to fix Computer Randomly Restarting issue?
How to Fix Show Hidden Files and Folders Not Working
Method 1: Use CMD to fix Windows hidden files not showing problem
Step 1: Click Start → Enter cmd.
Step 2: Right-click Command Prompt → Run as administrator.
Step 3: In Command Prompt, enter attrib -h -r -s /s /d G:*.*
Note: Replace G with the drive letter of the partition that contains the hidden files
Method 2: Run System File Checker (SFC) Tool
IF you cannot fix the problem Hidden files and folders not working using CMD, there might be chances of Windows files being corrupt. Therefore, in such a situation running SFC to check for errors would be helpful.
SFC tool is a built-in Windows tool that helps in repairing and fixing corrupted system files including the problem Show hidden files and folders not working.
Step 1: Right Click on Windows icon, select Command Prompt as Administrator
Step 2: Enter the following command lines in order.
The DISM command is used to make a Windows image to protect your data.
DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth
sfc /scannow
Now, restart the computer and verify whether the problem still exists.
Method 3: Adjusting the Registry keys
Registry is a hierarchical database that stores the significant data needed by Windows to operate the applications and services that run on Windows.
Hence, when you perform any actions on registry keys you need to be more careful as improper commands can lead to severe system file errors.
Step 1: Press Windows + R keys and enter Regedit. In the prompt, click OK.
Step 2: Give the Path as shown below:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\Folder\Hidden\SHOWALL
Step: Double-click CheckedValue and set the Value data as 1
Now, Reboot your computer and verify if the problem shows hidden files not working still present
If you have tried all the above methods to fix the problem, show hidden files and folders not working, and are still unable to open the files, all that you have to do is recover data from the hidden folders.
How to Recover Hidden Files and Folders in Windows PC?
SFWare Data Recovery Software is the best choice to recover hidden files and folders from the computer. The tool supports the recovery of more than 300 plus file types from the all Windows version including Windows 10.
To recover hidden files and folders, download SFWare Data Recovery software on your Windows computer. Launch the application on your PC and follow the steps.
Step 1: Select Recover Files from the main screen and Deleted File Recovery or Lost File Recovery from the next screen based on your data lost scenarios.
Step 2: Choose the drive/partition to start the process. Now the tool runs the advanced scanning algorithm to find the hidden files and folders.
Step 3: Once the scan completes, you can view recoverable files in Data View or File Type View.
Select the files you want to recover from the list of files located and click on Next. After the completion of the recovery process, save the recovered files at any location on your computer.
To Conclude
I hope that you were able to gain access to your hidden files and folders with the help of this article. Files and folders that are hidden by default usually shouldn’t be tampered with so proceed with caution as any mistakes could cause big issues. For any feedback or related queries, please feel free to reach out!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why Some Files and Folders Are Hidden in Windows?
Some files are folders are hidden by default, as they are usually important, tampering with them can usually lead to major issues with their respective program or operating system.
2. How to View Hidden Files/Folders on Windows?
You can view hidden files or folders by following the steps below
- Access the folder location.
- Select Show hidden files and folders from the search results.
- In the Advanced settings column, select Show hidden files, folders, and drives, then click Apply.
