How to enable hidden files in windows 8. How to show hidden folders. Cool way to hide a folder in Windows

In the modern world, every person has an inalienable right to personal space. Each of us has information on our computer that is not intended for the overly curious eyes of others. The problem of confidentiality arises especially acutely if, in addition to you, several other persons have access to the PC.

In Windows, various types of files that are not intended to be shared can be hidden, meaning they will not appear in the standard view in Explorer.

As in previous versions, in Windows 8, the display of hidden elements is disabled by default. But if, for example, someone made changes to the operating system settings, then hidden folders will be visible in Explorer as translucent objects. How to get them out of sight? Nothing could be simpler.

By the way, you can hide any folder on your computer by installing third-party specialized software from different software developers. Using the links below, you can familiarize yourself with the list of such programs and read detailed instructions on hiding individual directories in Windows.

Method 1: System Settings

Windows 8 has a built-in ability to configure the visibility of hidden directories. The view can be changed for folders with user-assigned hidden status, and for system closed files.
And of course, any settings can be canceled and changed.

Method 2: Command Line

Using the command line, you can change the display mode of one specific selected folder. This method is more interesting than the first. Using special commands, we change the folder attribute to hidden and system. By the way, for some reason, most users undeservedly ignore the extensive capabilities of the Windows command line.

In conclusion, I would like to remind you of one simple truth. Assigning hidden status to a directory and changing its display mode in the system will not reliably protect your secrets from the attempts of an experienced user. To seriously protect sensitive information, use data encryption.

Before you open hidden folders in Windows 8 (make them visible), you must understand that “joking” with them is dangerous - these are usually system files.

You can show and display hidden folders in Windows 8 (8.1) in the same way as in Windows 7, only you need to enter the control panel differently, and you will need it.

However, in Windows 8 you can open hidden folders in another way, but the method described here is simple and accessible to everyone.

The standard way to open hidden folders in Windows 8 (8.1)

To show (make visible) hidden files and go to the "folder options" section.

A small window will appear. In it, check the box next to the line “display all folders” and open the “view” tab.

In the “View” tab, put a round checkmark next to the line (at the very bottom): “show hidden files and folders” - as above in the figure.

You can also uncheck the boxes next to the lines:

— hide extensions for registered... .;

— hide empty files;

What do you get out of it? Now you can make changes to system files, and the eight needs it.

Without this intervention, you will only be able to see a few extensions on the C drive. Now there will be many of them.

You won’t have access to some at all, but you can get it using the “take ownership” utility.

It allows you to become the owner of even an entire directory, changes permissions and gives access to them to the computer administrator. Good luck.

The eighth version of the operating system from Microsoft tried to incorporate the advantages of both mobile and computer operating systems. On the one hand, it introduced the Modern interface, which is unique to Windows Phone, and on the other hand, functions from Windows 7 and the ribbon method of forming menus in classic programs that appeared there also received further development.

However, precisely because of this mixture of two different “worlds” - mobile and classic - for many users, using Windows 8 has become a real challenge. Firstly, access to the classic Control Panel, which previously could be opened with the button of the same name in the Start menu, has become more difficult. Secondly, to change computer settings there is now a new system partition, in which, however, not all OS parameters are available.

One of the common problems faced by users was the change in the setting that allowed them to show hidden folders in Windows 8. In fact, the setting itself has not gone away and is still available both in Explorer itself and in the Control Panel, only the method of opening has changed specified sections with settings.

Quick navigation through the article

Control Panel

To open the Control Panel in Windows 8 and go to the folder appearance settings, you will need:

• Call up the side menu with system buttons by moving the mouse up from the bottom right edge of the screen.
• Select "Options".
• Click on the “Control Panel” button.
• Switch to Large Icons view mode using the drop-down list at the top of the window.
• Find “Folder Options” (or “File Explorer Options”, depending on the OS version and the installed version of the language pack) in the list of applications.
• Go to the “View” tab.
• Scroll down the list of options and set the switch to the “Show hidden files” option.
• Save the changes by clicking the “Apply” button.

It is important to know that you can open the Control Panel in other ways. For example, if you click on the Win + X buttons, the context menu of the Start button will appear. Also, if you go to the home screen and use the search function, you can easily go to any section of the system settings by simply entering its name.

Conductor

Quick access to setting the display of hidden elements is also implemented in the Explorer itself. To disable hiding files directly from the folder you are viewing, you need to click on the View tab in Explorer. Next, you need to use the “Show or Hide” drop-down menu. Among the available items from the list, you need to check the box next to “Hidden elements”. Enabling this item will refresh the page you are viewing and display previously hidden files and directories, if any.

It is important to remember that if any add-on is installed for Windows Explorer that disables the ribbon menu, then this setting will only be available from the Control Panel. The only solution to the problem to gain quick access to the settings is to remove all third-party utilities that are used, which may be OldNewExplorer or ClassicShell.

Today, most of us prefer to use flash drives instead of the usual laser media. The advantages of flash drives over disks are obvious: reusable, small size and data exchange speed. But these advantages give rise to one serious drawback: a high susceptibility to infection by viruses. By connecting a flash drive to different computers, we risk catching a virus, since not all computers and laptops have effective anti-virus protection. Below we will look How to solve a common problem, often associated with virus infection, namely: how to open hidden folders in Windows 7 and 8, which can be located on a flash drive or computer.

It happens that the next time you use a flash drive to transfer data, you discover that some of the recorded files have disappeared somewhere. This is the first sign that a virus has entered the flash drive and you should immediately begin treating it.

Update your antivirus or connect a USB flash drive to the computer where the antivirus is installed

Connect the flash drive to a computer with an installed antivirus and updated virus databases. Choosing an antivirus program for treatment is a purely personal matter, so I will not touch on this topic in the context of this article. I will only note that most popular antivirus programs are able to cope with this task. To be absolutely sure that you will not waste time checking, it is better to use paid antiviruses: Dr.Web, Nod 32, Kaspersky, etc.

You need to connect the flash drive, go to the Computer and right-click on it. Then, in the context menu, find the virus scan item. If you are an inexperienced user, then pay attention to the program icons that are in the menu. If, for example, Dr.Web is installed, then you will see a spider icon in the “Check Dr.Web” item.

If no viruses are detected after scanning, then try this free utility. To save time, you can check only your flash drive, but as you understand, this does not guarantee that there are no viruses on your computer, for example, on the D:\ drive.

Windows Setup (Hidden Files)

If, after checking and cleaning the flash drive from viruses, the files are still not visible, it means that the viruses managed to delve into the properties of these files and set the Hidden attribute. Let's check if this is true. Let's turn on the display of hidden files in Explorer. To do this, while in the Explorer window, call up the menu by pressing the Alt key and select “Tools” - “Folder Options”.

In the window that opens, on the “View” tab, uncheck “Hide protected system files” and select “Show hidden files, folders and drives.” Confirm the changes made by clicking the “Ok” button.

All that remains is to return the files and folders on the flash drive to their original appearance. To do this, select the desired object with the right mouse button to open the context menu. Select the “Properties” item.

In the properties window that opens, uncheck the “Hidden” option and click the “Ok” button. Problem solved.

Total Commander and Far Manager

You can also use Total Commander or Far Manager to show hidden files. Let me show you how, using one of these programs, you can display your files. To download Total Commander, go to and select the desired version.

After downloading, run the file and install the program. There is nothing remarkable in the installation, just click “Next” and “OK” everywhere. Run the program and select the desired value, in my case this number is 2.

After launch, a settings window will open in front of you, go to “Contents of panels” and check 2 checkboxes: “Show hidden files” and “Show system files”.

Now go to your flash drive and mark all the files that are currently hidden. You can mark with the right mouse button or hold down the “Ctrl” key + press the left mouse button. After that, go to “Files” - “Change attributes...”.

Now we have reached the necessary procedure, select the “Hidden” and “System” checkboxes, click “OK”.

After all the “missing” files and folders have been restored, I recommend restoring the visibility settings changed above (Windows settings) to their original state. This will help prevent possible erroneous actions with system files for which the “Hidden” attribute is specifically set, thereby limiting the access of ordinary users. And knowing how to open hidden folders in Windows 8 and 7, you can always access them at any time.

To prevent flash drives, I strongly recommend that before connecting a flash drive to an unfamiliar computer, make sure that it has anti-virus protection. This will protect you from possible problems in the future.

It should be remembered that hidden files are not always the result of infection with computer viruses. Often, users set this attribute on their own files and folders to provide a minimum level of protection.

If you notice the loss of your files on a flash drive after connecting it to your computer or laptop, be sure to do a full virus scan. If you couldn’t see the files on the flash drive, you can try to restore them using the Recuva program. She has helped me out more than once and therefore I can confidently recommend her to you. I wrote about her in the article “”.

Your described methods solve the problem in different versions of Windows, but if you are using Windows 8, then in this case you need to watch the video tutorial below.

Privacy is constantly under threat, especially when it comes to a computer, and the danger is especially strong when you have to share a PC with other family members or friends. Perhaps you have files that you don't want to show to others and prefer to keep them in a hidden place. This guide will look at three ways to quickly and easily hide folders in Windows 7 and Windows 8.

It's worth noting that none of these solutions will allow you to hide your folders from an experienced user. For truly important and secret information, I would recommend more advanced solutions that not only hide the data, but also encrypt it - even an archive with a password to open it can be more secure than hidden Windows folders.

A much more convenient way to hide folders in Windows is to use a special program called Free Hide Folder, which you can download for free here: http://www.cleanersoft.com/hidefolder/free_hide_folder.htm. Do not confuse this program with another product - Hide Folders, which also allows you to hide folders, but is not free.

After downloading, simply installing and launching the program, you will be asked to enter a password and confirm it. The next window will ask you to enter an optional registration code (the program is free and you can also get a key for free), you can skip this step by clicking “Skip”.

Now, to hide a folder, click the Add button in the main program window and specify the path to your secret folder. A warning will appear that, just in case, you should click the Backup button, which will save the backup information of the program in case it is accidentally deleted, so that after re-installation you can access the hidden folder. Click OK. The folder will disappear.

Now, the folder hidden using Free Hide Folder is not visible anywhere in Windows - it cannot be found through search and the only way to access it is to run the Free Hide Folder program again, enter the password, select the folder you want to show and click "Unhide" causing the hidden folder to appear in its original location. The method is much more effective, the only thing is that you should save the backup data that the program asks for so that if it is accidentally deleted, you can again gain access to hidden files.

Cool way to hide a folder in Windows

And now I’ll tell you about another, quite interesting way to hide the Windows folder in any picture. Let's say you have a folder with files that are important to you and a photo of a cat.

Do the following:

• Zip the entire folder with your files into a zip or rar archive.
• Place the picture with the cat and the created archive in one folder, preferably closer to the root of the disk. In my case - C:\remontka\
• Press Win + R, enter cmd and press Enter.
• On the command line, navigate to the folder where the archive and photo are stored using the cd command, for example: cd C:\remontka\
• Enter the following command (the file names are taken from my example, the first file is an image of a cat, the second is the archive in which the folder is located, the third is a new image file) COPY /Bkotik.jpg +secret-files.rarsecret-image.jpg
• After the command is executed, try opening the created secret-image.jpg file - the same cat will open as in the first image. However, if we open the same file through an archiver, or rename it to rar or zip, then when we open it we will see our secret files.

Hidden folder in the picture

Here is an interesting way that allows you to hide a folder in an image, while the photo for those who don’t know will be an ordinary photo, and you can extract the necessary files from it.

If you found this article useful or interesting, please share it with others using the buttons below.