Windows Explorer Not Refreshing in 10 or 8.1 – Permanent Fix

Fix file explorer refresh error in windows, windows has a File Explorer to help us manage files and folders. If the Windows 10 explorer gets confusing sometimes when edits are made or saved, it becomes difficult to tell which version of the file is most current.

Clicking “refresh” in File Explorer every time you need to view the contents of a folder is not what it was made for. That’s why on Windows 10 it displays the contents of a folder automatically when its structure changes.

Deleting files, saving files, renaming files, and adding new files to a drive should all be visible in any given explorer window.

Saved image/video files can be automatically seen in File Explorer. Windows 10/8.1 has the new interface of Windows Explorer.

It’s easy to edit these files or folders and then upload them to the necessary websites.

One great file explorer is called the File Explorer and it’s a good choice. Another great program you might want to try out is known as Free File Explorer

Why is the Settings window missing for some Windows 10 PC users?

This silly error can be fixed, by right-clicking the content box and select “Refresh.”

Yes, as it can be time consuming to place content on our server.

With regards to File Explorer, an automatic refresh will be made to check if the other systems on your network have been updated.

Windows 10 File Explorer Not Refreshing – Why?

This can happen when you connect to LAN or a local network in your office. The network folders are listed in your Quick Access area so that whenever the other computer is available and connected, one can easily access the files.

But if the computer or network that contains files, folders, images, videos, or documents goes offline or has been deleted, Windows 10 doesn’t recognize that it cannot access them.

In Windows 10, the File Explorer checks network folders for changes continuously.

This can break Explorer’s capability to automatically refresh whenever you save, delete or update content in your local drive, folders and files.

Windows 10 Explorer Not Refreshing – Best Solution

To refresh File Explorer in Windows 10, you can delete some cache files, which is a good trick if you have just recently reinstalled Windows and are missing the Refresh button.

  1. Press Win + R to open the Run dialog.
  2. Enter the following path.

%AppData%\Microsoft\windows\recent\automaticdestination 1 pic

  1. Delete all the files in that folder.
  2. Next, enter this path.

%AppData%\Microsoft\windows\recent\customdestinations 2 pic

  1. Delete these files also completely.
  2. Restart your PC.

This process should remove your File Explorer Refresh error.

Note:

If you can’t see the above locations after the April 2018 Windows Update (version 1803), you can make “hidden items” visible in File Explorer.

Otherwise, you can use a third-party app like Locate32 to find the above folders in Windows 10. Next, do what is necessary.

Solution #2 – Folders not Refreshing Automatically in Windows 10

This fix works if you’re having trouble navigating File Explorer on any recent version of Windows 10. You just need to disable the cache using a third-party app. Go to the ‘View’ tab in the app and drag the slider until it is set to 0%.

I generally use C-Cleaner. Fix file explorer refresh error in windows This is a free software program that I download and run on my Windows computer periodically.

The latest version as of Sept 2021 is 5.85 (64bit). The “Easy Clean” option is the default method to clean the basic junk files. If you want to deep clean, you can use the “Custom Clean” option. 3 pic

On the left hand side, Windows Explorer gives you several options to clean.

  1. Recent Documents
  2. Run (in Start Menu) – Default
  3. Other Explorer MRUs
  4. Thumbnail Cache – Default
  5. Taskbar Jump Lists – Default
  6. Network Passwords

Try to clean the registry using the same tool first of all. Restart the PC and check if the error is cleared or not. 4 pic

Solution #3 – How to Refresh File Explorer using Windows Update

I faced this issue back when I was using the 1903 version of Nov, but after I updated to the latest version, it turned out that the problem was resolved. This is a good sign.

I might have accidentally removed the junk or cache folders. Fix file explorer refresh error However, after updating to build 1909, the problem appears to be gone. 5 pic

After applying the fix, you can try updating Windows 10 to the latest builds. This should hopefully fix any errors related to File Explorer.

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