How to hide the contents of a folder in Windows 7. Three ways to hide folders in Windows: simple, advanced and cool. Using the Command Line

Let's start with the fact that hidden files and folders in Windows 7 became so without the malicious intent of Windows developers. Vice versa. This is done in order to protect important information from accidental deletion. The data protection rule dates back to the earliest versions of Windows. Another reason for hiding folders is to avoid cluttering your desktop with unnecessary information in daily use.

Important! By assigning the hidden flag to regular folders, the user makes them invisible to view.

Display using built-in win 7 tools

Let's figure out how to display hidden files and folders in Windows 7 using built-in OS tools. There are three ways:

By changing the Folder Options settings.
Through Explorer, “Arrange” tab.
Through Explorer, “Service” menu.

All methods lead to one menu with settings for folder attributes.

Another method involves using third-party programs, for example, Total Commander. We'll look at this below.

Let's start with the first method

Go to Control Panel and open Folder Options.

Click on the tab and a folder management menu will open. Open the “View” tab, scroll to the end, until you set the display of hidden folders. Select "Display...". Click OK to close.

Folders opened this way will appear translucent in Explorer.

Let's move on to the second method

Open Explorer, click on “Arrange”, select the “Folder and Search Options” tab. Click on it, the same folder settings menu will open.

We perform the same manipulations on the “View” tab as in the first method, click OK.

Third way

In Explorer, select, for example, drive C, click on “Tools” -> “Folder Options”.

In the window, find “View”, check to show hidden folders and files, as was done in the previous methods. Click OK.

How to show hidden windows 7 files and folders in Windows Commander

Download Commander from a reliable torrent storage and launch it. If the directory does not display system folders in red with a “!” sign, then the display option is disabled.

How to enable it

Open the “Configuration” toolbar, we need the settings tab.

Here you need to open the “Panel Contents” menu, checking the option to show hidden and system files, “Apply”, OK.

From now on, the hidden folder can be seen with all its contents.

Commander provides such a useful feature as changing a folder attribute. That is, we even turn the system directory into a regular one. Open the “Files” menu and select “Change Attributes”.

A window will appear where you need to select the “Load from file under the cursor” option, then uncheck the “System” and “Hidden” attributes. Next, we note, as shown in the screenshot, the processing of directory contents. After this change, folders, subfolders, and files will be affected. Click OK.

The same procedure is done in the Windows environment. To do this, open Explorer, select the desired folder, right-click to open Properties. Click on them; by default, a window with the “General” menu will open. Uncheck the “Hidden” property, click “Apply”, OK.

This folder will become normal. To return the hidden attributes, you just need to check the appropriate box.

Important! When changing an attribute in Seven, only the directory is visible, without displaying the contents.

How to make a folder visible via the command line

To finish what we started and open the contents of such a folder, we will use the command line. Administrator rights are required.

Win + R bring up the line, enter the cmd command to open the console.
Next, enter the command attrib -s -h с:* /s /d, where instead of с: indicate the path to the folder or disk. The remaining command parameters remove the hidden and system attribute, start processing files, and allow display of processed folders.

The command takes some time to complete. When it completes, system and previously hidden folders can be seen in Explorer.

How to open hidden files on a flash drive

Working with a flash drive in the Windows 7 environment is no different from working with a disk. Therefore, to open hidden files, it is enough to use all three methods of the built-in Windows tools described at the beginning of the article, including Total Commander.

Important! When starting a flash drive, do not forget to scan the flash drive for viruses

How to show hidden folders through the registry

We must immediately warn you that the built-in Windows tools are sufficient for manipulating folder attributes. Tampering with the registry can end disastrously for an inexperienced user. If the risks are taken into account and the actions are thought out, we proceed.

We do it as shown in the screenshot:

The best thing to do is reboot your computer.

What to do if there is no Folder Options menu in Explorer

This is a clear sign that your computer is infected with viruses. Viruses are often disguised as attributes of Windows system files. If they penetrated the hard drive, then most likely the antivirus could not cope with them, so disabling folder properties is a direct result of malicious code.

How to restore access? It’s sad that even after cleaning your computer from viruses, hiding folder settings remains.

We carry out the restoration as shown in the screenshot:

This parameter is forced by the virus, which is why the folder properties are hidden and inaccessible.

We consider ways to enable display of system hidden folders and files, how to return the hidden attribute, and how to correctly make changes to the registry after a virus attack. What can be done with the capabilities of Total Commander in this regard. We warn once again against interfering with the registry if you are not confident in your abilities. In case of erroneous entries, this may lead to reinstallation of the OS

Hidden system documents mean those directories that are not displayed when the computer is running. The purpose of such “secrecy” is to preserve elements important for work that can be accidentally deleted by the user.

This material will tell you how to make hidden folders visible. The methods will be described for versions 7 and 10 of the Windows operating system.

Types

In this operating system, there are two categories of hidden documentation:

Just hidden elements. Their attribute is set to "Hidden". In this way, you can hide any elements yourself by changing the state in the properties.

Attention! But sometimes, folders and documents containing viruses can be hidden in this way!

System folders and files. Their properties contain the S attribute. This means that they are system elements and deleting or changing them can lead to an error in the operation of the computer. You can only display their contents using the following options.

How to perform the procedure on Windows 7

This type of operating system is quite popular compared to others. Therefore, it would be logical to start with it. So, how can you make hidden folders visible?

Go to the Start panel and launch File Explorer. Two standard lists will appear.
You need to activate the “Control Panel” line.
Go to the subsection called “Design and Personalization”.

Attention! To make the search convenient, you need to set the sections to be displayed by category.

After going inside the personalization settings system, you need to find a paragraph named “Folder Options”.
Activate the option to show hidden system elements. Before you can make hidden folders visible, you need to change a couple of important details.
After clicking on the line to display hidden elements, the settings window will open. It will be called "Folder Options".
Now you need to move to the subsection called “View” and in the line about hidden files and folders, allow them to be displayed.

Additional method

Another much simpler option for making hidden folders visible in the Windows 7 operating system:

Open any directory.
At the top of the window, activate the section called “Arrange”.
Select the line “Folder and Search Options”.
As soon as a new window appears, launch the “View” subsection and activate the “Apply to folders” line. Thus, hidden directories can be made visible both in this section and in all others.

How to show hidden folders on Windows 10

Quite a simple way. Allows you to display only part of the hidden documentation.

You need to launch Explorer through the Start panel.
Next, you need to go to any directory and activate the “View” tab, on the top line under the window name.

In the subsection that opens, place a marker in the field next to the “Hidden elements” function.

Additional method

This paragraph will tell you how to make hidden folders visible through the options in Explorer.

First you need to open the search bar. This is done using the keyboard shortcut Win + Q.

In the window that appears, you need to enter “Explorer Options”.
After going to this section, you need to open a tab called “View”.
Mark the line that allows display of hidden elements.

It is also recommended to allow the display of system directories. To do this, you need to remove the marker before the line responsible for hiding system documentation.
In the warning that appears, you must confirm your choice.

How to get a hidden folder back

In the event that the folder was hidden by the user and its location was lost, you must:

Open a window with the directory in which the document is located.
In the top line, activate the “Arrange” section. In the context menu that appears, click on “Search Options”.
As soon as the window appears, switch to the tab called “View”. Activate the line to show hidden files and folders.
Apply changes.

Results

As you may have noticed, displaying hidden files and hiding your own documents in the same way is quite simple. The given algorithms will help not only to find any important components of the system, but also to hide your own documents from unauthorized users.

Windows developers have provided many ways to protect the OS from illiterate user actions - for example, hiding important files from view, the deletion of which may require a complete reinstallation of the system. However, in many cases, users still need to open hidden folders in Windows 7.

Purpose of hidden files

The function of hiding important elements appeared along with the first operating systems and was initially used only by developers. In later versions of Windows and MacOS, users also have the ability to remove their own files from public access. Most often this option is used for the following purposes:

hide personal information from colleagues who have access to a computer;
protect children from age-inappropriate content;
make invisible folders that are not currently needed so that they do not interfere with work.

To protect important information, you can set a password on the folder, but this method has two significant drawbacks: firstly, a closed directory can be hacked, and secondly, the presence of a password does not protect against the possibility of deletion.

Therefore, hiding folders is one of the most effective methods for ensuring data safety.

System folders in a tester's work

Beta testers are users who volunteer to test early versions of software and operating systems. Such users are faced with the task of identifying possible errors in the functioning of the test object and reporting them to developers. During the installation process of the software under test, a huge number of hidden folders are created, the contents of which are necessary for conducting checks and generating reports:

When testing computer games, it often becomes necessary to replace your own saves with those provided by the developer. And since the necessary files are usually stored not in the application folder, but in the hidden “AppData” directory, it will not be possible to replace them without additional actions.
To check the installation process, the installation procedure must be carried out many times, using various settings options and each time making sure that not a single file created at the previous stage remains on the computer. Most installers create data in hidden temporary directories, without access to which correct testing will be impossible.
When mobile applications fail, developers usually ask testers to provide a crash log - a file containing technical information about the situation that occurred on the user's device. This data is also saved in invisible folders - “ProgramData” or “AppData”.

View invisible directories

Information on how to see hidden folders in Windows 7 may be useful not only to a tester, but also to an ordinary user. You can view them in two ways: by changing the appropriate system settings or by using special applications.

System settings

The easiest way to enable the display of hidden files is in the Folder Options menu. To enter it, you need to perform the following operations:

You can also access the options menu by opening any folder and pressing the Alt key. After this, an additional panel will appear at the top of the screen, where you will need to select the “Service” item and open the corresponding category in the drop-down menu.

Third party software

You can show hidden folders in Windows 7, as in most operating systems of this family, using the Total Commander file manager. To do this you will need to perform very simple manipulations:

All the methods described will allow you to view both hidden folders on Windows 7 and files created by the system or users on removable drives. However, it is necessary to remember that thoughtlessly changing system information can lead to the most unpleasant consequences, including the need to completely reinstall the OS.

Creating secret folders

As already mentioned, creating directories invisible in Explorer is an almost sure-fire way to protect confidential information from prying eyes. Therefore, it is very useful to know not only how to open hidden files on a flash drive or HDD drive, but also how to hide them yourself.

The easiest way to make a folder invisible is to change its properties:

Right-click on the directory you want to hide and go to the “Properties” section in the pop-up menu.
In the window that opens, check the box next to the “Hidden” attribute.
Click on the “Other” button and uncheck the “Allow file contents to be indexed...” item.
Confirm the changes made by pressing the “Apply” and “OK” keys.
In any convenient way, enter the “Folder Options” menu, check the “Do not show hidden files...” attribute and apply the settings.

After performing the described manipulations, the marked directory will no longer be displayed in Explorer. Of course, the method also has disadvantages - after all, making a folder visible is just as easy as hiding it.

Special utilities can also help hide important information - for example, Free Hide Folder is free and easy to use:

Download, install and run the program, enter the password you created earlier and confirm it.
Click the "Add" button and specify the path to the directory you want to hide.
Click OK.

Information hidden in this way cannot be found, even if you enable the display of invisible files in the system settings. The only way to restore access to it is to reopen the utility, enter the correct password, select the hidden directory and click the “Unhide” button. Before hiding files in this way, you need to take care of creating a backup copy - this is necessary so that if you accidentally uninstall the program, you do not lose data.

All ways to open hidden files on Windows 7 are extremely simple and understandable even for inexperienced users.

But you need to remember that important system folders are usually invisible, and to work with them you need to be clearly aware of your actions and understand the possible risks.

How to open hidden folders in Windows 7

Surely, every personal computer user has sooner or later encountered such a phenomenon as disappearance some files or folders from a hard drive or other storage device. You cannot find them where they simply must be.

In such a situation, most ordinary PC users immediately have only one thought - someone deleted the data. However, their sudden disappearance may be associated with more than just this. Often they just invisible.

Later in the article we will look at the main ways to show hidden folders and files using the operating system as an example Windows 7(however, this will also work in XP, Vista, 7 and 8). But first, let’s tell you why such situations arise.

Attributes of files and folders or how data becomes hidden

As you know, any modern operating system has many options for managing files and folders. These are not only well-known operations for creating, deleting, copying and moving data, but also operations for setting them up. Each file or folder can be assigned a so-called attribute, responsible for certain properties of an object. For example, a file can be assigned an attribute such as " Only reading", and the user will no longer be able to edit it, since the system itself will not allow him to do this.

These also include the attribute - “ Hidden" As the name suggests, it will make the object invisible. And if the system is not configured to display such objects, the user will not see elements hidden in this way.

Making files or folders invisible is quite simple. To do this you just need to go to properties the desired object and assign this attribute to it.

This suggests conclusion - Any user can make any element hidden.

But if I didn’t hide my files and folders and no one else uses my computer, what then?

If in your case any elements from the disk disappeared on their own, then the answer is obvious - virus programs were at work.

Unfortunately, manage attributes files can not only be used by users, but also any programs. There are many different virus programs on the network that, once they get into the system, can do whatever they want with its settings and data stored on the disk. If in your case such viruses have hidden some of your folders or files, then do not be upset - there are more of them can I return.

There are many ways to open hidden folders in Windows 7. Let's look at the simplest of them.

Setting up the system

Each operating system (including all versions of Windows from XP and even earlier to 10) has internal settings that are responsible for displaying any data stored on the disk and any other media. So, to make files and folders visible, you need to do the following:

This method is suitable if files and folders hidden on your computer only had the attribute “ Hidden" Usually when they are working viruses, they additionally make objects systemic, which will still be impossible to see even if you enable viewing in this way. To detect such files, in the menu " Folders settings"You need to additionally uncheck the box " Hide protected system files", as it shown on the picture:

If you try to uncheck this item, the system will issue a warning that this is not recommended. It's okay - we just agree.

Unfortunately, and it doesn't always help, since some viruses can easily change system settings immediately after the user tries to enable or disable certain OS parameters. In such cases, programs that can “see” hidden objects come to the rescue. One of these is Total Commander. This is a file manager, very similar in functionality to the standard " Windows Explorer».

Using Total Commander

Finding this program on the Internet is not difficult. Although it is paid, you can use it for free for a while - this is more than enough to see all the hidden folders or files on the system.

To get started, download Total Commander and install the application. After launching it, you will see a window divided into two panels - they display the folders and files on the disk.

Initially, the program does not allow you to view hidden elements - you must enable this function. To do this, open the menu “ Configuration" (at the top of the window), and then click on the item " Setting...».

All that remains is to find the item “ Panel Contents" We go into it and put a tick on “ Show hidden files" And " Show system files", then click Apply. Now the program will see hidden objects.

In the image below, you may notice that some folders are displayed with a red " ! ».

These are the hidden folders.

Video on the topic

How to hide folders and files in Windows 7

Publication date: 2013-09-15

In this tutorial you will learn how to make hidden files and folders on a Windows 7 computer, as well as how to see them.

This can be useful in cases where you want to hide your personal files from other users, or vice versa - see hidden system folders.

See detailed instructions in the video and text below:

Text version of the lesson.

In order to hide a folder or file, right-click on the folder (file) and select from the context menu "Properties":

On the tab "Are common" set the attribute (folder property) to "Hidden" and press "OK":

We confirm the change in the folder's attributes, and you can choose what exactly to hide - just the folder, or the folder and its subfolders and files.

The folder is now hidden.

If you have the display of hidden files and folders enabled in your settings, the hidden folder will look like this:

The hidden folder is a little lighter regular folders.

In order to completely hide a folder, go to "Control Panel".

To do this, click "Start - Control Panel":

And choose "Folders settings":

If your control panel is displayed in the form of categories, then you need to go to the section "Design and personalization"

and choose "Folders settings":

In folder options, go to the tab "View".

IN "additional parameters" go down and to the menu "Hidden files and folders" select “Do not show hidden files, folders and drives”:

Click " apply" and the folder that we hid is now not visible in Explorer:

If, on the contrary, you need to see hidden folders, then go to "control Panel" and in "folder options" turn on "Show hidden files, folders and drives":

So, we looked at how to hide folders and files from other users.

But it is not advisable to use this method to hide important files - to protect personal information, use more reliable methods, for example, create encrypted virtual disk.

You will learn how to do this in one of the following lessons.

Hiding hidden file system elements in Windows 7

The file system on a computer actually looks completely different from how the average user sees it. All important system elements are marked with a special attribute "Hidden"- this means that when a certain parameter is activated, these files and folders will be visually hidden from Explorer. When enabled "Show hidden files and folders" These elements are visible as slightly faint icons.

Despite all the convenience for experienced users who often access hidden files and folders, the active display option jeopardizes the existence of this very data, because it is in no way protected from accidental deletion by an inattentive user (excluding items with the owner "System"). To increase the security of storing important data, it is strongly recommended to hide it.

Visually remove hidden files and folders

These locations typically store files that are necessary for a running system, its programs, and components. These could be settings, caches, or license files that are of particular value. If the user does not access the contents of these folders very often, then to visually free up space in the windows "Conductor" and to ensure the security of storing this data, it is necessary to deactivate a special parameter.

This can be done in two ways, which will be discussed in detail in this article.

Method 1: "Explorer"

On your desktop, double-click the shortcut "My computer". A new window will open "Conductor".

In the upper left corner, select the button "Arrange", then in the context menu that opens, click on the item "Folder and Search Options".

After this, check for a checkmark in the parameter just above - "Hide protected system files". It must be installed to ensure maximum safety of critical objects. This completes the setup; at the bottom of the window, click on the buttons one by one "Apply" And "OK". Check the display of hidden files and folders - they should no longer be in Explorer windows.

Method 2: Start Menu

Settings in the second method will occur in the same window, but the method of accessing these parameters will be slightly different.

"Start"

"Show hidden files and folders"

Menu "Start" will close, and the user will immediately see the parameter window from the method above. All you have to do is scroll down the slider and configure the above parameters.

For comparison, below is a screenshot showing the difference in display for various parameters in the root of the system partition of a regular computer.

Included display hidden files and folders, included display of protected system elements.
Included displaying system files and folders, disabled display of protected system files.
Disabled display all hidden elements in "Explorer".

Thus, absolutely any user can edit the display parameters of hidden elements in just a few clicks. "Explorer". The only requirement for this operation is that the user has administrative rights or permissions that allow him to make changes to the settings of the Windows operating system.

Users of Windows 7 and other OS editions from Microsoft can set the attributes of any folder, except for some system ones.

What is an attribute

An attribute is metadata describing additional parameters of a file/directory. Compared to other metadata related to folders, the concept of “attribute” does not include the date of creation and modification of the directory, or access rights to it.

For the average user, the presence of such metadata means that he will be able to make directories in Windows invisible in Explorer and file managers, archive and index files located in the directory, as well as compress data to save disk space and encrypt the contents of the directory. From the entire list, we are interested in the ability to hide a folder.

How to assign attributes

In any Windows released in the last 15 years, creating hidden directories is extremely easy, so any user can handle the task. Let's look at how this is done, in several ways.

Using the proposed method to hide confidential data is unreliable: any user will be able to detect hidden folders and the information they contain. Therefore, the method can only be used to temporarily hide data from users who are less knowledgeable about the intricacies of the Windows file system, for example, very young users.

Launch Explorer and open the folder or drive where the target directory (which we want to hide) is located.
Using the context menu or the “Alt+Tab” combination, call up its context menu.

In the window that opens, on the first tab “General”, find the “Attributes” field located at the bottom and check the box next to “Hidden”.

Click “Apply”.
When a window appears to confirm the change of attributes, select a satisfying condition and click “OK”.

We go back to the folder where our hidden object is located, or update the contents of the explorer by clicking F5.

Folders are painted in a less bright color. This symbolizes that everything worked out.

Activate the option to not display hidden directories

To ensure that directories assigned the “Hidden” attribute are not visible in Windows Explorer, you must disable the option to show hidden objects.

Call up the Explorer window by going to any directory, disk, or launching “My Computer”.
Call the main menu item called “Arrange”.

If it is not there, press the hardware “Alt” key.

Activate the “View” tab and move down the list of additional parameters.
Move the checkbox to the “Do not show...” position so that hidden directories become invisible to the user.

To make Windows start visualizing objects with the “Hidden” attribute again, move the switch to “Show...”.

Save the new settings for displaying hidden objects by clicking “Apply”.
We get acquainted with the information in the warning dialog and take note of the information provided.

Close the settings window.

Working with hidden directories in Total Commander

When using a file manager on a computer as an alternative to a primitive explorer, Total Commander and other analogues also allow you to change the attributes of directories and files located in them.

Move the cursor to the required directory or select it.
Call the dialog for changing object attributes in Total Commader.
Check the “h Hidden” option.

Click "OK". The catalog display color has changed.

To enable the option of not displaying hidden objects, call “Settings”, located in the “Configuration” item of the main menu.

On the “Panel Contents” tab, deactivate the “Show hidden files” option and save the new configuration.

We will not consider working with attributes via the command line due to the fact that this method of hiding folders will seem difficult to the vast majority of beginners.

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Good day! Lately, I have been increasingly asked how to hide a folder on a computer from children or unwanted eyes, so I decided to write a short article on how to independently make your folder disappear from visibility and not provoke anyone to look into it.

Regardless of where it is located, and without resorting to third-party programs, which in the future we will definitely consider how to use them, but now about the important things. There are a lot of options for hiding a folder, but we will look at the two simplest methods.

Keep in mind that none of the considered methods for hiding a folder on a computer will hide your data from a user who is good at using a computer.

How to hide a folder on your computer in Windows 7 without resorting to third-party programs.

Using this method, you can hide absolutely any folder, regardless of its location on the computer. We will look at how to hide a folder on the desktop using Windows 7.

Step 1. Click right click on the folder that you want to hide from prying eyes, then select Properties

Step 2. On the General tab at the bottom check the Hidden box and press the button OK or Apply and then on OK.

Your folder has all disappeared.

How to hide a folder on your computer in Windows 7 using a life hack

To hide a folder in this way, we also do not need additional programs; you and I can hide the folder on the computer using a little trick.

So, let's get started.

Step 1. Create a new folder on your desktop, or select your existing folder.

Step 2. Click right click on the newly created folder, select Rename, press on the keyboard Alt key while holding down the Alt key, dial 0160 on the additional numeric keypad, release the Alt key and press the Enter key. Our folder's name has disappeared, but the folder is still visible. Next, what we need to do with this folder is to change the stash of this folder. Let's move on.

Step 3. Click right click on our untitled folder, then select in the context menu Properties, in the window that opens, go to the top menu - Settings

Click on the button Change icon. We scroll to the right the shortcuts offered to us, looking for the transparent icon we need, in our case this is an empty area, select it with the left mouse button, then we need click on the OK button, as shown in the figure below.

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