Microsoft restores File Explorer Folder Options that it removed in Windows 11

Last week, Microsoft released a new development build for Windows 11 that removed nine preferences from File Explorer’s Folder Options menu. Today, Microsoft released a new build which restored the removed Folder Options.

Folder Options may be accessed by selecting the three dots menu in File Explorer on Windows 11, selecting Options, and then switching to the View tab in the Folder Options window that opens.

The configuration menu offers some important preferences for Windows 11 users. There, Windows 11 users may disable the hiding of hidden files, folders or drives and the hiding of extensions for known file types among other things.

Microsoft removed nine different options in the previous build, but only in the Folder Options window. We published nine Registry tweaks back then, as it remained possible to edit the Registry directly to make these tweaks.

Windows 11 build 23486 restores the functionality

Microsoft published Windows 11 Insider Preview build 23486 today, which restores the removed Folder Options. The company writes on the official blog post of the release: “Thank you to all the Windows Insiders who gave us feedback on the Folder Options changes in File Explorer that removed a handful of old settings in Build 23481. We’ve rolled back this change. As is normal for the Dev Channel, we will often try things out and get feedback and adjust based on the feedback we receive.”

Windows 11 testers and developers who install the new build, either as an upgrade or by installing it from scratch, will notice that the missing options have been restored.

Development builds are used for testing and Microsoft is asking for active feedback. While it does not happen often that Microsoft restores features that it removed in previous builds, it has happened in this case. Microsoft mentions user feedback specifically as a driving factor for making the decision.

The new Windows 11 build features another File Explorer related change. Microsoft is testing transparent background menus for some use cases in File Explorer.

Closing Words

Folder Options help Windows users customize File Explorer. At least one of the settings there, the option to display file extensions for all files all the time, is considered an essential security tweak by many experts in the field.

The removed and then restored preferences may not be on the same level as it, but it is still good to see that Microsoft is not hellbent on removing more and more options from the operating system.

Now You: do you use Folder Options?

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