operating room Windows system allows for a huge variety of actions related to technical processes. Today we will talk about hiding folders and files on your computer. About why this is done and how to find them.
Let's start with the fact that in some cases the concealment of certain documents is provided for by the developers of this system. Default some important elements are hidden so that the user cannot accidentally find them delete And damage normal functioning of the system. Sometimes users hide them to hide personal data from prying eyes or simply important information. In any case, sometimes there is a need to find them, let's look at how to do this.
Displaying folders in Windows 7
First you need to find the shortcut " My computer", in the window that opens, select the menu item " Arrange“Opening this menu, click on the section “ Folder and search options» and left-click.
After which a new window ““ will open. You need to go to the section " View", scroll the menu to the very bottom, where you will find the item " Hidden files and folders". Next, just switch to the point where hidden files will be shown, apply and click “ OK«. 
All documents that are not displayed will be shown after this operation. They will stand out in a slightly duller color. 
Hidden folders in Windows 8
A similar operation needs to be repeated in Windows 8. First, you should open the same shortcut “ My computer“, and then find the checkmark at the top and open additional section if it is not open by default. 
In the menu that opens, select “ View" and click on the icon " Options« 
In the window that appears, we repeat the same steps as in the previous algorithm, and you can also uncheck the “ Hide protected system files“if you need it for a specific purpose. After this, all non-displayed folders will become visible, but different in color. 
Display in Windows 10
The actions are absolutely the same as in Windows 8, all sections and items are saved in their places, so there is no need to describe them.
Show hidden folders in Total Commander
It is much easier, in my opinion, to display hidden documents using third party program, For example, Total Commander. In the program, find the section “ Configuration". In it select the item “ Settings«. 
In the menu that opens, select the subsection “ Panel Contents" and then just check the boxes " Show hidden files
" and, if necessary, " Show system files«. 
Apply and click " OK". All documents are displayed, which is what we wanted.
It’s worth mentioning that developers hide system elements for a reason. Their removal, alteration and damage may result in crash and errors in the system, so they should be treated with special care and caution. If you are trying to find hidden files on someone else's computer, a moral question arises. The user hid these files for a reason, which means viewing them is wrong - respect everyone’s privacy.
For a variety of purposes, but the user should be interested in how to find a hidden folder. The function of removing files from prying eyes is available in each of the operating systems. As a rule, various important files are hidden. These are, for example, elements of the system that the creators tried to make invisible for the benefit of the users themselves. At times, computer owners themselves make sure that outsiders cannot look at certain information. Be that as it may, such files are available on any computer, regardless of their purpose.
So how to find a hidden folder? The most common option is to make it visible. To do this, just open an explorer window, look in the “Tools” menu, and then select folder properties. In the next section, you will need to go to the "View" tab. Next - “additional materials”, and there check the box - “show hidden files and folders”. Then you need to confirm. That's it, after this, in most cases you will be able to see previously hidden documents and programs.
It happens that viruses are blocked this opportunity, and people wondering how to find the folder become desperate. Don't panic, this is done through change certain values in the registry. Just find lines in the vastness that return everything to normal, change it - and that’s it.
There is an alternative to this process. Any file manager, for example, Total Commander. With it, the question of how to find a hidden folder will completely and quickly disappear.
You just need to press a special star-shaped button, which will show you everything that was hidden.
There are other methods. For example, you need to understand that hidden folders- these are the ones that really exist, that is, if you know what they are called, getting into them is not at all difficult. Of course, you still need to have an idea of where they are located. If you know all this, then just type the text in address bar guide manually - and you will instantly get where you need to go. In this case, whether the folder is hidden or not does not matter.
How can I find a hidden folder in another way? Can be connected HDD with them to the computer on which it is installed operating system another type - not Windows. It doesn't matter what the properties of the folder are, because it still remains on the hard drive. That is why, after connecting it to another PC, you will be able to see all the contents. And not only - it will be possible to delete or change it.
You can resort to another technique to see hidden folders. Often, in order to recover this or that information, people resort to using a variety of LiveCDs. From these drives a specific operating system is loaded, which provides the user with access to certain devices connected to this computer. Thus, you can easily go to any hard drive and view in detail all the files and folders located there, regardless of what attributes are set in the properties.
Actually, as you can see, there are quite a lot of options for seeing hidden documents. The question is whether you really need it. If you are planning to gain access to system files for the purpose of making any changes or deleting them, think twice beforehand. Careless deletion of folders vital to the system can lead to irreversible consequences. Do not forget about this before any manipulations. Perhaps everything will end with a reinstallation. Be that as it may, if you are confident in your actions, then go for it. Maybe you can find something interesting on your friend's computer or change your Windows files for the better. Moreover, it is a good experience.
Today I will tell you how to hide a folder in Windows 7. There are several hiding methods to accomplish this task and all of them are simple. After reading this article, you will know at least 2 ways how to do this.
Hiding a folder using standard Windows 7 tools
If you are not familiar with any method to hide a folder, then I recommend this method to you, because it differs from others in its simplicity and speed, as well as the absence of the need to install any additional programs.
First you need to set the “Hidden” property for the folder itself that you want to make invisible to others. Click right key mouse over the folder icon and click on “Properties”. A window will open in which, in the “General” tab, at the bottom, check the box next to “Hidden”, as in the picture below.
When you click OK, you will see that the folder icon has become paler than usual. But this is what you see now. But if you do not have settings specified to see hidden folders, then the folder that you made hidden will disappear completely.
How to permanently hide a folder? You need to go to the “Control Panel” menu and select “Folder Options”. If this option is not there, select “View: Small Icons” at the top right. Next, look in the “View” tab, check the “Do not show hidden files, folders and drives” checkbox and click “OK”.
When this is done, your folder with the Hidden attribute will become invisible, and now I will tell you how to find the hidden folder in this case. All you need is to go back to the “Control Panel” menu and the “Folder Options” item and in the “View” tab, select “Show hidden files, folders and drives”. In the screenshot above, this item is below. Now you will be able to see the folder again in the same place where it was before. If you want to make the folder visible again, then go to “Properties” again and uncheck “Hidden”, that’s all you need to know about how to view hidden folders.
Hiding folders using the command line
Contrary to the name, this option to hide a folder is no less simple. To learn how to do this using the Command Prompt, you first need to launch Command Prompt, which lets you specify commands for Windows using special sets of commands and parameters. Windows will decipher the commands and execute required action. Click on the “Start” menu and enter cmd in the search bar and click on the program that appears with the same name.
Now you need to enter the command in the window that opens.
attrib +h “Folder address”
The folder address must be replaced with your path to the folder; to find it out, you need to go to the folder and click once on the empty space in the top line of Explorer. The path that appears needs to be selected and copied, then you can paste it into command line path without typing on the keyboard, click right click mouse on the command line and select "Paste". The Ctrl+V combination does not work here, so you can only paste the address using the mouse.
Press “Enter” and now you need to select “Do not show hidden files and folders”, as in the previous case, so that the folder is completely invisible. And you can also make it visible, as in the previous case. Now you know how you can hide folders and files, but to make it visible you can type the command:
attrib -h “Folder address” and press "Enter".
Here we have looked at another way to make hidden folders visible.
Making an invisible folder on the desktop
Now I will tell you how to hide a folder on the desktop without changing its properties. Although you can hide a folder on your desktop using the method described above. To do this, you need to place the folder on your desktop, right-click on it and select “Properties”. In the window that opens, in the “Settings” tab, select “Change icon”.
From all the icons, select transparent, click “OK” and “OK” again.
If this does not happen, copy the folder with the changed icon to another drive, delete it on the desktop, and then move it back and the icon will disappear. Now we need to remove the title. To do this, right-click on the folder icon and click “Rename”. Erase the name and type 255 while pressing ALT. This will allow you to set the folder name to a space, which means the name will no longer be visible.
Finding this folder will be easy only if you know that it exists, and everyone else will only see an empty space on the screen!
Sometimes, when setting up a system, you need to have access to hidden system folders, which are hidden from inexperienced users. Namely, they hide them so that they are not accidentally deleted or moved, because this could affect the operation of the system.
But every day various viruses appear that can hide your files and folders, which you can only see in by enabling the display of hidden folders and files. But removing viruses is not the only situation in which you will need to open access to display such folders. Just recently, I described solutions to a problem where it was necessary to copy a file to a folder that was system and was invisible to the average user.
Of course, it’s better not to go into these folders, but sometimes you can’t do without it, so now you’ll find out how to open hidden folders and files.
How to open hidden folders in Windows XP
Let's start with Windows XP. Open " Start" and click on " Control Panel».
So, as we will open invisible files, we will need to go to “ Folder properties»
Also, you can use alternative way folder settings. To do this, go to any window and top menu select " Properties» –> « Folder properties».
In any case, the settings window will open. Here we go to the tab “ View" and in the additional parameters go down to the very bottom to the item " Hidden files and folders" We note “ Show hidden files and folders" and click " Apply».
In some cases, even after setting to show hidden folders, some still remain inaccessible. To display them, you can use one more item in the settings: “ Hide protected system files s". Simply by unchecking and saving, some more folders will appear that are considered system, perhaps among them there will be the folder that you needed. But, I want to warn you right away, if you come across some unfamiliar folder, do not write to delete it, perhaps it is one of the system ones that is needed for proper operation OS or applications.
How to show hidden folders in Windows 7
In Windows 7, to enter folder settings, also go to “Control Panel” and then “Folder Options”
To enter the settings through the window of any folder, click on “Arrange”, and then select “Folder and Search Options”.
In the window itself, check “Show hidden files, folders and drives” and save the settings.
How to show hidden folders in Windows 8
In the new Windows 8 OS, go to any folder, click on “View”, then select “Options” and then “Change folder and search options”.
In the folder settings menu, as in the examples described above, we simply mark the same item as on other OSes, and then click “OK”
I repeat once again, you will come across a hidden folder with a name unknown to you, you should not delete it, and after finishing working with hidden files, do not forget to return everything back, this is done in the same order, just check the box, do not show hidden files and folders. You may also be interested in the article about setting up extensions for registered file types.
The Windows operating system supports the function of hiding objects on your computer. Thanks to this feature, developers hide system files, thereby protecting them from accidental deletion. In addition, hiding elements from prying eyes is also available to the average user. Next, we will take a detailed look at the process of searching for hidden folders on your computer.
There are two ways to search for hidden folders on your computer - manually or using special program. The first is suitable for those users who know exactly which folder they need to find, and the second - when they need to view absolutely all hidden libraries. Let's look at each of them in detail.
Method 1: Find Hidden
Find Hidden's functionality focuses specifically on finding hidden files, folders, and drives. It has a simple interface and even an inexperienced user can understand the controls. To find the information you need, you only need to perform a few steps:
Now you can go to the location where the folder is located, edit it, delete it and perform other manipulations.
It is worth noting that deleting hidden system files or folders can lead to system crashes or a complete stop of Windows.
Method 2: Hidden File Finder
Hidden File Finder not only allows you to find hidden folders and files on your entire computer, but also, when turned on, constantly scans hard drive for threats disguised as hidden documents. Searching for hidden folders in this program is carried out as follows:
Method 3: Everything
When you need to perform an advanced search for hidden folders using certain filters, then the Everything program is best suited. Its functionality is focused specifically on this process, and setting up a scan and launching it is done in just a few steps:
Method 4: Manual Search
Windows OS allows the administrator to access all hidden folders, but he will have to search for them himself. Performed this process It’s not difficult, you just need to do a few steps:
All that remains is to search necessary information on the computer. To do this, it is not necessary to view all partitions of the hard drive. The easiest way is to use the built-in search function:
Unfortunately, this method only suitable if the user knows the name, size, or modification date of the hidden folder. If this information is not available, manually reviewing each location on the computer will take a lot of time; it will be much easier to search through a special program.
There is nothing complicated in searching for hidden folders on a computer; the user only needs to perform a few steps to get necessary information. Special programs further simplify this process and allow it to be completed much faster.
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