Windows Explorer - Navigation Pane - Expand to Open Folder

mojorising · Oct 23, 2023

Windows Explorer - Navigation Pane - Expand to Open Folder

Windows Explorer>Options>View>Navigation Pane>Expand to Open Folder

I have always had this checked and it always worked until recently.

Now it does not work when I browse into Documents or Pictures or Music or Videos or anything pinned to Quick Access

It still works OK if I browse into
>This PC>C:
>This PC>D:

But I cannot access my Documents or Pictures folder via this route without digging down into the Users folder

Currently on:

22H2
22621.2428
Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.22674.1000.0

Have tried unsetting applying, resetting applying.
Have tried rebooting.

Does anybody have this option working in Quick Access pins on this build?

Or can I get Document/Pictures etc to be quickly accessible from outside the Quick Access area?

I tried creating a shortcut to Pictures and putting it on my desktop. The shortcut works but it does not expand the navigation pane.

mojorising · Oct 23, 2023

I have found a weird semi-solution but not ideal

If you tick the 'Show all folders' option then many new options appear including a 'libraries' option. Under libraries you can find Documents and Pictures and the tree does expand to open folder.

However the navigation pane becomes a crowded mess with 'Show all folders' checked.

There is also a separate option to just 'show libraries'

If you uncheck 'Show all folders' and instead just check 'show libraries' that also causes the 'libraries' option to appear and the navigation pane in this case is not a crowded mess. But in this case the Documents and Pictures folders under Libraries do not expand to open folder!

Crazy!

AndreTen · Oct 23, 2023

Sadly, this is a new reality. It started in Insider builds almost a year ago, and MS didn't fix it

Report in Feedback hub. I did, didn't help. Maybe they'll listen to you.

Any folder under User folders (Documents, Pictures, Videos etc) won't make Explorer to Expand to in navigation pane. Still works for other folders when pinned to Quick access.

So, a messy solution would be to move your documents etc to a folder like Doc under D: and include it in Library.

Berton · Oct 23, 2023

And if checking Properties of items in Home [Quick Access] and Libraries should see the defaults are only shortcuts to the folders in C:\Users\USERNAMEHERE\.

AndreTen · Oct 23, 2023

Berton said:
And if checking Properties of items in Home [Quick Access] and Libraries should see the defaults are only shortcuts to the folders in C:\Users\USERNAMEHERE\.

same shortcuts, but if they are pinned, they loose some functionality.

Don't ask us to put all that shortcuts on the Desktop, or Taskbar...

glasskuter · Oct 23, 2023

mojorising said:
Does anybody have this option working in Quick Access pins on this build?

It works same for me as it does you but that is my preference anyway as I work with 2 instances of explorer open at once rather than one..

Rather than using pinned folders, you might see if @Brink's tutorial can do what you want.

Add or Remove Folders in File Explorer Navigation Pane in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to add or remove the Desktop, Documents, Downloads, Libraries, Music, Pictures, and/or Videos folder(s) in the File Explorer navigation pane when using "Show all folders" for all users in Windows 11. The navigation pane is the far left pane in File Explorer used...

www.elevenforum.com

johnlgalt · Oct 23, 2023

It gets weirder.

I have Documents, Pictures, Music, Videos, and Desktop saved to my OneDrive account (paid Microsoft 365 account). If I go to Documents in Home, or anywhere else but in the Libraries section, and then click on a folder in Documents in the main pane, it takes me to the Documents folder under One Drive and expands to that folder. (while showing all the other folders in the nav tree as well).

Same with Music.

With my Pictures folder, though, it only shows the one folder I entered under Pictures.

It's like it is totally random as to when it wants to work and when it does not lol.

Even more weird, Pictures does not expand no matter where I click it from - Libraries, Pinned, Home, OneDrive, nothing. Documents, Music and Videos expand. I have no folders on the desktop so....

AndreTen · Oct 24, 2023

johnlgalt said:
It gets weirder.

I have Documents, Pictures, Music, Videos, and Desktop saved to my OneDrive account (paid Microsoft 365 account). If I go to Documents in Home, or anywhere else but in the Libraries section, and then click on a folder in Documents in the main pane, it takes me to the Documents folder under One Drive and expands to that folder. (while showing all the other folders in the nav tree as well).

Same with Music.

With my Pictures folder, though, it only shows the one folder I entered under Pictures.

It's like it is totally random as to when it wants to work and when it does not lol.

Even more weird, Pictures does not expand no matter where I click it from - Libraries, Pinned, Home, OneDrive, nothing. Documents, Music and Videos expand. I have no folders on the desktop so....

My shortcuts (pinned) to Documents on Onedrive (business and private - free version) also expand to current folder.
Will check about Pictures ..

Phil_C · Nov 11, 2023

This is driving me nuts! I use SystemTrayMenu with shortcuts to several folders on my SSD and on my NAS. The Nav pane no longer expands to the current folder when I arrive at the shortcut destination. This is disorienting, to say the least. All standard FE settings are correct. I'm on Win 11 22361.2506.

I just fired up my older laptop, which is on 25621.2428, and the Nav pane works as it should. I don't know if it's 2506 or some other in-between update that caused the issue. But I hate it!

johnlgalt · Nov 11, 2023

It would drive me nuts as well - except I've been using a 3rd party file manager for over 20 years now, particularly because I prefer a multi-paned FM. I've used quite a few of them, but my power user FM is Xplorer², and my new favorite, every day use / daily driver is OneCommander. I also have Files as a backup backup.

Even with tabs, the new Explorer only ever runs on my system once a week, if that lol.

Phil_C · Nov 12, 2023

Taking a look at OneCommander. There's a lot there, if I want to make the big change.

A bonus: No longer to suffer the plague of the FE jumping Nav pane.

Berton · Nov 12, 2023

I've used the TotalCommander for several years [paid version] but also have the freeware MultiCommander, FreeCommander and OneCommander on various Notebooks.
Several programs at Download File Managers Tools for Windows - MajorGeeks.

johnlgalt · Nov 12, 2023

Phil_C said:
Taking a look at OneCommander. There's a lot there, if I want to make the big change.

A bonus: No longer to suffer the plague of the FE jumping Nav pane.

johnlgalt said:
and my new favorite, every day use / daily driver is OneCommander.

I use this literally every single day. Which is why Windows Explorer opens maybe once a week lol.

Kadee · Nov 19, 2023

Installation of 22H2 update is the culprit.
Adding a third-party file manager, activating "show all folders", or playing with Libraries/Shortcuts are just poor work-arounds. Best solution would be for the thing to work properly !
Apparently only folders behind C:\Users\USERNAME\ are affected. Ctrl+Shift+E will temporarily restore your left tree, but this tree is not "updated" when moving folders in the right pane - pretty useless to me.
VERY ANNOYING !!!
Hope someone will find a solution to this...

johnlgalt · Nov 21, 2023

Or you can realize that Windows native apps are feature limited because 3rd party apps are most times going to be superior because they have the time to bake in what users want and leave out what they don't need.

Do I need a #Q@%$^@#$%#@$ Home tab in Explorer? Nope.

So, I choose to use a file manager that doesn't incorporate that. Because that is what Microsoft wants in their FM.

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