Customize File Explorer Columns and Apply Details Views to Folders in Windows 10 & 11

Prerequisites and How Windows Folder Templates Work​

Before customizing columns, it is important to understand how Windows stores view layouts so your changes do not appear to vanish when you switch directories:

Quick walkthrough

• Details view requirement: Column headers only display and function when a folder is set to the Details layout. Switching a folder to Icons, Tiles, List, or Content hides the column bar, though Windows retains your underlying column selection if you switch back to Details later.
• Folder templates (Optimization types): Windows does not use a single global column configuration for the entire operating system out of the box. Instead, it categorizes every standard directory into one of five folder optimization templates: General items, Documents, Pictures, Music, and Videos. When you save a custom column layout as the default, Windows applies it only to other folders that use that same template.
• Special system views: Special virtual folders and locations—such as Quick access (or Home in Windows 11), Recycle Bin, This PC, library roots, and active Search Results—maintain independent view states and do not inherit standard template defaults.
• Account scope: All column layouts, widths, and template defaults are stored in your local user profile registry (HKEY_CURRENT_USER). Customizations you make will not affect other user accounts on the same PC.

Switch a Folder to Details View​

If the folder you want to customize is currently displaying icons or thumbnails, switch it to Details view first.

In Windows 11​

• Open File Explorer (Win + E) and navigate to the target folder.
• On the top command bar, click View and select Details.
• Alternatively, press Ctrl + Shift + 6 on your keyboard, or click the Details icon (the list with horizontal lines) in the bottom-right corner of the File Explorer status bar.

In Windows 10​

• Open File Explorer (Win + E) and open the target folder.
• Click the View tab on the top ribbon.
• In the Layout group, click Details (or press Ctrl + Shift + 6).

Add, Remove, and Reorder Columns in Details View​

You can manage columns directly from the column header bar at the top of the file list or through the Choose Details dialog box.

Quick-Toggle Common Columns and Access Metadata Properties​

• Right-click anywhere on the column header bar (for example, directly on Name, Date modified, Type, or Size).
• In the context menu that appears, check or uncheck any of the quick-access properties pinned to the top of the list to immediately show or hide them. These defaults depend on the current folder's template (for example, a Pictures folder lists Dimensions and Tags, whereas a General items folder lists Date created and Authors).
• To add properties that are not on the short menu—such as Bit rate, Frame rate, File extension, Owner, or Attributes—click More... at the bottom of the right-click context menu.
• Note for Windows 10 users: You can also open this dialog from the top ribbon by clicking the View tab, clicking the Add columns dropdown arrow in the Current view group, and selecting Choose columns.
• In the Choose Details dialog box, scroll through the alphabetical list inside the Details: pane. You can click any item in the list and type the first few letters of the property name (such as bit for Bit rate or dim for Dimensions) to jump directly to it.
• Check the box next to each metadata column you want to add, and uncheck any column you want to remove.
• Note: If you uncheck the Name column, File Explorer will hide the filename column, which makes identifying files difficult until you re-enable it in the same dialog.
• Click OK to apply your selection to the active folder.

Reorder Columns​

You can change the left-to-right order of your displayed columns using either drag-and-drop or the Choose Details dialog:

• Drag and drop (Fastest): In the File Explorer file pane, click and hold the column header you want to move, drag it horizontally to its new position (a subtle vertical divider highlights where it will land), and release the mouse button.
• Using the Choose Details dialog: Right-click any column header and select More.... Highlight a checked property in the list and click the Move Up or Move Down buttons on the right side of the window. Moving an item higher in this list places it further to the left in File Explorer. Click OK when finished.

Sort and Group by Your New Columns​

Once a metadata column is visible, you can organize your files by that property:

• Sort: Click any column header once to sort the folder by that property (for example, sorting by Dimensions or Bit rate). Click the same header a second time to reverse the sort order between ascending and descending. An small caret arrow on the column header indicates the active sort column and direction.
• Group or filter: Click the small dropdown arrow that appears on the right edge of a column header when you hover over it, or right-click inside an empty space in the folder and select Group by, to group files into collapsible categories based on your displayed columns.

Adjust and Auto-Fit Column Widths​

When you add columns or browse folders with long filenames, text is frequently truncated with an ellipsis (...). You can resize columns individually, auto-fit all of them at once, or set exact pixel widths.

Resize or Auto-Fit With the Mouse and Keyboard​

• Manual drag: Move your mouse pointer to the vertical divider line on the right edge of the column header you want to resize. When the cursor changes into a double-headed horizontal arrow, click and drag left or right.
• Size a single column to fit: Double-click the vertical divider line on the right edge of a column header, or right-click the column header and select Size column to fit. The column immediately expands or shrinks to match the longest visible entry in that column.
• Size all columns to fit: Right-click any column header and select Size all columns to fit, or press Ctrl + Numpad + (hold the Ctrl key and press the plus key on a dedicated numeric keypad). Every displayed column in the active folder will auto-adjust its width to fit its current contents.

Set Exact Pixel Widths​

If you prefer uniform column measurements across folders:

• Right-click any column header and click More... to open the Choose Details dialog.
• Click the name of a checked column to highlight it (avoid clicking the checkbox itself so you do not accidentally uncheck it).
• In the Width of selected column (in pixels): box near the bottom of the dialog, enter your desired numeric pixel width (for example, 280 for Name or 100 for Size).
• Click OK.

Apply Your Custom Column Layout to All Folders of the Same Type​

By default, column changes apply only to the single folder you are viewing. To propagate your layout to all other folders that share the same optimization template, check the folder's template type and then push the view through Folder Options.

Step 1: Verify or Set the Current Folder's Template Type​

• Open the folder you just customized. Right-click an empty area in the file pane (do not right-click on a file or subfolder) and select Properties. (In Windows 11, if you do not see Properties immediately, you can also press Alt + Enter with no files selected, or click the three-dot See more menu on the command bar and select Properties.)
• Switch to the Customize tab at the top of the Properties window.
• Under What kind of folder do you want?, examine the Optimize this folder for: dropdown menu. It will show one of the five templates:
• General items
• Documents
• Pictures
• Music
• Videos
• If the folder is set to the wrong category (for example, a folder of MP3 files is set to General items instead of Music), select the appropriate template from the dropdown.
• Check Also apply this template to all subfolders if you want nested directories inside this folder to use the same category, then click Apply and OK.
• Note: If changing the template reset your columns to that template's defaults, quickly re-add your desired columns before proceeding to Step 2.

Step 2: Apply the View to All Folders Using That Template​

In Windows 11​

• With your customized folder still open and active in File Explorer, click the three-dot See more button (...) on the top command bar and select Options.
• In the Folder Options dialog box, switch to the View tab.
• Under the Folder views section at the top, click the Apply to Folders button.
• When prompted "Do you want all folders of this type to match this folder's view settings?", click Yes.
• Click OK to close the Folder Options window.

In Windows 10​

• With your customized folder open and active in File Explorer, click the View tab on the top ribbon.
• Click the Options button on the far right of the ribbon (or click the dropdown arrow under Options and select Change folder and search options).
• In the Folder Options window, select the View tab.
• Under Folder views, click Apply to Folders.
• Click Yes at the confirmation prompt, then click OK.

If you want the exact same column layout across every folder on your PC regardless of whether it holds documents, photos, or music, repeat this two-step process once for each of the five folder template types (General items, Documents, Pictures, Music, and Videos). Note that Windows will not overwrite the view of special system shells like Recycle Bin or This PC, nor will it override the Downloads folder unless you customize the Downloads folder itself.

Verify Your Column Customization​

To verify that your custom layout and template defaults are working properly:

• Close and reopen File Explorer (Win + E), then return to the original folder you customized. Confirm that your added columns (such as Dimensions or Bit rate), column order, and widths remain intact.
• Navigate to a different folder on your drive that uses the same folder template—or create a brand-new folder inside a directory of that type—and open it.
• Confirm that the second folder automatically opens in Details view with the exact same columns, column order, and sort arrangement you applied via Apply to Folders.

Troubleshooting and Resetting Folder Views​

Symptom: Custom Columns Do Not Appear in Certain Other Folders​

If you clicked Apply to Folders in a folder optimized for General items, folders that Windows automatically classified as Pictures, Music, Videos, or Documents will continue using their own respective templates.

• Fix: Right-click inside the unaffected folder, choose Properties > Customize, and check the Optimize this folder for: setting. Either change that folder's template to match the one you customized, or configure your preferred columns inside that folder and click Apply to Folders to update that template type as well.

Symptom: Columns Like Dimensions, Bit Rate, or Authors Are Blank​

Metadata columns display embedded properties read by Windows property handlers from the file header (such as EXIF data in JPEG images or ID3/container tags in MP3 and MP4 files).

• Fix: If a column is blank for specific files, either the file format does not support that metadata property (for example, a plain .txt file has no Dimensions or Bit rate), the file lacks embedded tags, or Windows does not have a native property handler registered for that container format. You can test whether Windows can read a file's metadata by right-clicking the file, selecting Properties, and checking the Details tab.

Symptom: Cloud-Synced Folders (OneDrive) Keep Reverting or Showing Status Columns​

Folders managed by OneDrive or other cloud storage providers using the Windows Cloud Files API automatically inject a Status column (showing cloud, checkmark, or sync icons) into Details view.

• Fix: While you can reorder or uncheck the Status column in a OneDrive folder, OneDrive client updates or sync-engine restarts may periodically re-enable the Status column inside synced directories. Keep the Status column enabled in OneDrive directories and place your custom columns to the right of it.

Symptom: Windows Randomly Forgets Folder Views After Customizing Many Folders​

Windows stores individual folder view overrides in the user registry under keys known as ShellBags (BagMRU and Bags). By default, Windows 10 and Windows 11 cap this cache at 5,000 remembered folder views. Once you have opened and customized more than 5,000 individual folders over the life of your Windows profile, Windows stops saving new folder views or overwrites older ones, causing custom column layouts to revert.

You can resolve this in two ways: reset the folder view cache via the Folder Options interface, or clear/expand the ShellBags cache in the Registry.

Rollback Method 1: Reset a Single Folder Template to Factory Defaults​

If you only want to undo your Apply to Folders changes for a specific folder template (such as reverting Pictures back to Large Icons or restoring the default four columns in General items):

• Open any folder that uses the template you want to reset.
• Open Folder Options (click See more (...) > Options in Windows 11, or View > Options in Windows 10).
• Switch to the View tab.
• Under Folder views, click the Reset Folders button.
• Click Yes to confirm, then click OK. This restores only the active folder template type to its default Windows view without erasing customizations in the other four template categories.

Rollback Method 2: Clear Corrupted ShellBags or Increase the 5,000-Folder Cache Limit​

Warning: Editing the Windows Registry incorrectly can cause interface or profile issues. Back up the target registry keys before deleting or modifying them, and stay strictly within the HKEY_CURRENT_USER paths listed below. Clearing the BagMRU and Bags keys will erase all previously saved per-folder view customizations and window sizes for your user account, returning all folders to their default views.

Click to expand...

• Close all open File Explorer windows.
• Press Win + R, type regedit, and press Enter to open the Registry Editor.
• In the address bar at the top of Registry Editor, paste the following path and press Enter:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell
• To back up your current settings first: Right-click the Shell key in the left pane, select Export, choose a save location (such as your Desktop), name the file ShellBags-Backup.reg, and click Save.
• If you want to increase the 5,000-folder view limit so Windows stops forgetting views:
• Select the Shell key in the left pane.
• In the right pane, look for a DWORD value named BagMRU Size. If it does not exist, right-click an empty area in the right pane, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it exactly BagMRU Size.
• Double-click BagMRU Size, select Decimal under Base, enter 20000 in the Value data: box, and click OK.
• If your folder views are already corrupted and refusing to save:
• Expand the Shell key in the left pane.
• Right-click the BagMRU subkey, select Delete, and click Yes to confirm.
• Right-click the Bags subkey, select Delete, and click Yes to confirm. (Windows automatically recreates both keys the next time you open File Explorer.)
• To apply the changes immediately without signing out, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager, locate Windows Explorer in the Processes list, right-click it, and select Restart.
• To restore your backup if needed: Double-click the ShellBags-Backup.reg file you saved in Step 4, click Yes at the prompts, and restart Windows Explorer in Task Manager.