How to view hidden files and folders in Windows? How to view the history of recent computer activities.
By default, in any version of Windows, the ability to see hidden files. This is necessary so that inexperienced “dummies” do not accidentally delete anything and disrupt the operation of the OS. The solution is quite logical, since these folders are rarely needed. And even then - only to a few users. But sometimes there is a need to look at hidden files.
For example, during Windows optimization and waste cleaning. Many programs ( Microsoft Word, Skype) create hidden files during operation. Over time, they become unnecessary, but are stored on disk and take up extra space.
Very often the need to include hidden folders and files occurs among gamers. After all, they are where saves from many games are stored.
Also, displaying hidden files is required by users who want to hide documents on a flash drive, but do not yet know how to find them later. In general, there are a lot of reasons.
Let me immediately note that in different Windows versions This setting is done in different ways. Although some methods may be the same. Therefore, below are several instructions on how to enable hidden files in all Windows - “seven”, “eight”, “ten” and XP. Plus given universal method, running on all OS.
Most quick way see hidden files in Windows 7:
Ready. You will now be able to open hidden files on Windows 7 because they have become visible.
If you need to disable their display, then in the same window, check the box “Do not show...”.
Second way:
And the third way to enable the display of hidden files in Windows 7:
As you can see, there is nothing complicated here. Choose any method that suits you best and use it at the right time.
How to view hidden files on a flash drive? Similar. When you enable viewing of hidden files in Windows 7 using any of the methods described above, they will be visible everywhere. Including on a flash drive. You just need to connect it to your PC or laptop - and you will see the hidden folders (provided that they are there). The same applies to an external HDD.
We've sorted out the "seven", now let's move on to the "eight".
How to enable hidden files in Windows 8?
How do you configure the display of hidden files in Windows 8? There are also 3 options to choose from. The first two are described above in the instructions for Windows 7. That is, you can enable hidden files in Windows 8 by writing control command folders. Or by selecting the “Folder Options” shortcut in the Control Panel.
But there is another way to show hidden files in Windows 8:
- Open any folder you like.
- Select the "View" section.
- Click on “Show or hide”, and then check the “Hidden elements” checkbox.
Ready. Now you can see hidden files on Windows 8. And not only in the current folder, but also in others. The same methods will help display hidden files on a flash drive or external HDD disk– you just need to connect them to your computer or laptop.
Show hidden files in Windows 10
The last method, which works on Windows 8, is also suitable for the “ten”. To enable hidden files in Windows 10:
- Open any folder.
- Select the "View" section.
- Check the "Hidden Elements" box.
After this you will be able to see hidden folders and documents in any section hard drive or on a flash drive (it must be connected to the PC).
If you want to hide the folders again, uncheck this box.
There is also another way to enable the display of hidden files in Windows 10:
Ready. Now you can open any hidden files on Windows 10. As you can see, the methods on different versions of the OS are quite similar, but differ in minor nuances.
How to show hidden files and folders in Windows XP?
Not many users use Piggy today, but we’ll still consider it. You can view hidden files in XP like this:
That's it - now you can open or delete hidden folders and documents.
Show hidden files in Total Commander
If you don't want to understand the differences different versions Windows, you can use the universal method. IN in this case you just need to install the file Total manager Commander (download link). The program sees hidden documents and works on all Windows.
How to see hidden files in Total Commander? To do this you need to do the following:
Now all folders and documents in Total Commander will be visible. And you don’t even have to go to the Windows settings and change folder display options.
Need to see hidden documents? Launch Total Commander and go to the desired hard section disk. Or connect the USB flash drive and then open it through this file manager.
As you can see, all ingenious is simple. Now you know how to show hidden files and make them visible. And if necessary, you can easily find them. My only advice: if you find any unfamiliar folders, do not delete them. After all, they may contain important system files, the removal of which will break Windows.
Flash drives are now the main means for transferring and storing information, surpassing previously popular ones. optical discs And external hard drives. Some users, however, have problems viewing the contents of USB media, particularly on laptops. Our material today is intended to help such users.
First of all, we note that the procedure for opening a flash drive for further viewing of files on it is the same for both laptops and desktop PCs. There are 2 options to view the data recorded on the flash drive: using third-party file managers and Windows system tools.
Method 1: Total Commander
One of the most popular file managers for Windows, of course, has all the necessary functionality for working with flash drives.
As you can see, there is nothing complicated - the procedure takes just a few mouse clicks.
Method 2: FAR Manager
Another outsider "Conductor", this time from the creator of the archivist Evgeniy Roshal. Despite its somewhat archaic appearance, it is also perfect for working with removable drives.
There are also no difficulties in this method, except for the interface that is unusual for the modern user.
Method 3: Windows System Tools
On operating systems from Microsoft official support flash drives appeared in Windows XP (on previous versions it is necessary to install additional updates and drivers). Consequently, on current Windows operating systems (7, 8 and 10) there is everything necessary for opening and viewing flash drives.
This method suitable for users who are accustomed to the standard "To the conductor" Windows doesn't want to install additional software on their laptops.
Possible problems and methods for eliminating them
Sometimes when connecting a flash drive or trying to open it for viewing, various types of failures occur. Let's look at the most common of them.
- The flash drive is not recognized by the laptop
The most common problem. It is discussed in detail in the corresponding article, so we will not dwell on it in detail. - When connecting, an error message appears: “The folder name is incorrectly specified.”
An infrequent but unpleasant problem. Its appearance can be caused by: software glitch, and hardware failure. Check out the article below for more details. - The connected flash drive requires formatting
Probably during previous use you removed the flash drive incorrectly, causing its file system to fail. One way or another, you will have to format the drive, but it is possible to extract at least some of the files. - The drive is connected correctly, but the inside is empty, although there should be files there
This problem also arises for several reasons. Most likely, the USB drive is infected with a virus, but don't worry, there is a way to get your data back. - Instead of files on the flash drive there are shortcuts
This is definitely the work of a virus. It's not too dangerous for your computer, but it can still cause trouble. However, you can protect yourself and return files without much difficulty.
To summarize, we note that, subject to use safe removal drives, after working with them, the likelihood of any problems arising tends to zero.
Experienced users of various operating systems Windows family It is known that in computers under their control there are always special files and folders that are not visible by default and which are therefore called hidden. As a rule, important system files and folders are made hidden, which, if accidentally deleted by the user, can disrupt the operation of the operating system. To prevent this from happening and to prevent them from cluttering the interface and making them hidden. But, in some cases, there is a need to gain access to this data. For example, in the process of fighting viruses and malicious code.
In such cases, knowledge of how to view hidden files and folders in Windows comes in handy. However, the methods for displaying hidden files and folders may vary depending on the operating system. We will describe all the methods below.
How to View Hidden Files and Folders in Windows XP.
In order to open hidden files and folders in Windows XP, you need to do the following.
Open “My Computer”, go to the “Tools” menu, from which select “Folder Options”. In the window that opens, go to the “View” tab. You should see the window shown in the image below. In the list at the very bottom, find the option “Show hidden files and folders” and enable it by clicking on it and saving changes made by clicking the “Ok” button in this window.
After this, you will be able to view hidden files and folders, which can be distinguished from normal ones by their lighter color, as shown in the image below.
How to view hidden files and folders in Windows Vista and Windows 7.
There are two different ways to show hidden files and folders in Windows Vista or Windows 7.
The first way to show hidden files.
Second way.
It is similar to the previous one and differs only in how you get to the “Folder Options” settings from step 4 of the first method. And you can get there this way. Double click on the “Computer” or “My Computer” icon. In the window that opens, click the “Arrange” button at the top left, and in the menu that opens, select “Folder and Search Options.” The window from step 4, already familiar from the previous method, called “Folder Options,” will open in front of you, only on the “General” tab. You go to the “View” tab and do everything as described in the fourth step of the first method.
Read, how to find files that have been recently modified, and how to save the results of these searches for quick access to them at any time. If you have a correctly configured operating system Windows, then this is definitely present powerful application like "Search" is wonderful effective tool to determine the location of any files and folders on your disk space.
We will look at an example of working with search directly from the application "Conductor"(File Explorer) in this article, although this is just one way to search for files in "Windows". There are times when you will need to find files that have been recently created or modified. Or perhaps you changed a file but can't remember where you saved it. Or maybe you accidentally allowed the installation of third-party software and want to quickly find those files. Whatever the reason, it's fairly easy to find files based on their timestamps.
General information about files
Every file on the system "Windows" has one or more timestamps. With them, the operating system notes any changes that have occurred to a file or folder. The three primary tags we will look at and work with include:
date of creation: The date and time the current instance of the file was created. This value is recorded by the operating system "Windows" initially once and does not change during operation. However, there are third party tools that allow you to change this value.
: Date and time when the file last time has been overwritten (that is, the point at which its contents were last modified). The timestamp does not change if you renamed the file, or opened it but did not make any changes to it.
Access date: Date, and in volumes from file system NTFS date and time when it was last access to a file to read or write it.
IN "Windows" There are also other timestamps that are used only for certain types of files or under certain circumstances. For example, timestamp "Date of shooting" recorded when the image was created by a camera or other camera capable of taking pictures. Other timestamps can be created and used certain applications. For example, software For Reserve copy can use timestamp "Archive date", and in some office applications timestamp is used "Date of completion" for marking the finished document.
View timestamps in File Explorer
You can easily view timestamp information for items in File Explorer. To view details for a single file, click on it right click mouse and select "Properties" in the context menu.
In the window that opens "Properties" go to the tab and then scroll down for all the information.
If you want to view timestamp information for all items at once, you can select the appropriate file view. In the Explorer window, on the tab, click the button in the cell "Table". You will see all the files in the Explorer window with the selected labels in a table.
By default, only the column is displayed. To add other timestamps, right-click anywhere in the column header and then select the option.
In the window, scroll down the list and you will see many entries starting with the word "Date of". Select the ones you want and then click the button "OK". Here, for example, we simply select the main timestamps "Access date" And "Date of creation" to add them to existing columns in the table in the Explorer window.
When you return to the File Explorer window, you will see that new columns have been added. You can rearrange the column headings by simply dragging them in the table to rearrange their position. Or click on a column header to arrange the files according to the timestamp value specified in the selected column name. Structuring the table this way makes it easier to find files that have been recently opened or modified.
Adding timestamp columns works great if you remember well which folder a particular file was saved in, or don't mind required file search a little. But there are situations when you don’t know where you saved the document you’re currently working on? Or you just want to get a better idea of the latest files. To do this we will go to the function "Search" V "Windows".
View recently modified files using the search function
If you want to see all the latest modified files on your system, then you need to use the tool "Search".
To begin, open File Explorer in the folder you want to search. For example, when selecting a folder "Documentation", searches for files in this folder and all its subfolders. When you select drive C:, it searches that drive. And finally, when choosing "This computer" All your drives are searched.
"Conductor" It has convenient way search for recently changed files. This is a built-in tab "Search" on the main feed. Go to this tab, click the button and select the time range you need to search. If there is a tab on the main Explorer ribbon "Search" is not displayed, then click once in the search field and it will appear.
As an example, we searched for files that were changed in the last week.
Please note that when you select this command, the search term is automatically entered into the search field in the line below the main Explorer ribbon (highlighted in red in the screenshot above). You can also use this search bar if you prefer to enter parameters to search for files manually.
In the Explorer search field, enter "Date of change:". You can also enter other timestamp search criteria: "date of creation:" or "access date:" if you want to search for these values. The moment you enter a colon, a pop-up window appears that you can use to refine your search. Select a specific date in the calendar or by holding down "Ctrl" Check the required date range. Or you can choose one of the pre-configured time ranges listed in the calendar.
You can also continue to enter your dates or time ranges instead of using the pop-up window. For example, enter any of these pre-configured ranges (today, yesterday, this week, etc.) immediately after your search term "Date of change:". Example search query will look like this:
Or you can enter a specific date using official date formats. The specific formats you can use depend on how your operating system is configured. There are usually several options. For example, to search for files modified on February 9, 2018, you could enter the following search query:
You can also use:
or even:
If you want to use a date range, just use two dates separated by two dots. For example, to find files modified between February 10 and February 13, 2018, you would use:
Save search terms for later use
The procedure for finding recently modified files is quite simple. But to make things even easier, you can save your search so you can repeat it later. Once your search is complete, return to the tab "Search" in the main ribbon of the file explorer and click the button.
By default, saving occurs in a folder named "Search", which you can find in the user's folder on system disk. Typically the path looks like this: "C:\Users\<имя пользователя>\Search"– although you can save your search to a location of your choosing. (IN "Windows 7" they are saved in a folder "Favorites".)