Can't change default opening location of File Explorer

AliAbela

New Member
Messages
15
A quick Google search did not turn up anything.

I want to change the Fie Explorer default opening location from the Libraries to 'This PC -> Desktop'. However, both 'Target' and 'Start In' fields in the File Explorer properties are greyed out.

I am an administrator, and as far as I can tell with my level of know-how, I have full permissions.


Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer
    CPU
    Intel i7-4710HQ
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce 840M
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Browser
    Chrome 64-bit

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
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    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
That worked, but in contrast to simply changing the Target opening path of File Explorer, this adds a shortcut icon to the taskbar, which opens a separate File Explorer window in the location specified (that is, two icon slots in the taskbar are being used instead of one).

Is there any other method where only the File Explorer icon needs to be pinned?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer
    CPU
    Intel i7-4710HQ
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce 840M
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Browser
    Chrome 64-bit
Not that I'm aware of. Any manner used to changed the default target would have it act the same way. :(
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
The file explorer that is pinned by default onto the taskbar, only opens the libraries by default, I don't think that can be changed, can it?.

But if you right click on the Libraries folder on the taskbar, it will show a history and also any Pinned Locations you have. To Pin a location there, all you have to do is right-click on any folder, and there should be "Pin to Start" - That pins it to the Libraries Folder. Unless they changed it in 8.1

This way, if you left click on the Libraries folder it opens the libraries, if you right click, shows the pinned and recent locations.

If you Drag the desired folder down onto the Taskbar, it will simply "Pin to Start" - In other words, it will pin to the Libraries Folder, which you can get to by right clicking.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro with Media Center/Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus § DualCore AMD Athlon 64 X2, 2300 MHz (11.5 x 200) 4400+ § Corsair Value Select
    CPU
    AMD 4400+/4200+
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus/Asus A8M2N-LA (NodusM)
    Memory
    2 GB/3GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce 8400 GS/GeForce 210
    Sound Card
    nVIDIA GT218 - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Hitachi 40" LCD HDTV
    Screen Resolution
    "1842 x 1036"
    Hard Drives
    WDC WD50 00AAKS-007AA SCSI Disk Device
    ST1000DL 002-9TT153 SCSI Disk Device
    WDC WD3200AAJB-00J3A0 ATA Device
    WDC WD32 WD-WCAPZ2942630 USB Device
    WD My Book 1140 USB Device
    PSU
    Works 550w
    Case
    MSI "M-Box"
    Cooling
    Water Cooled
    Keyboard
    Dell Keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Intellimouse
    Internet Speed
    Cable Medium Speed
    Browser
    Chrome/IE 10
    Antivirus
    Eset NOD32 6.x/Win Defend
    Other Info
    Recently lost my Windows 8 on my main PC, had to go back to Windows 7.
The file explorer that is pinned by default onto the taskbar, only opens the libraries by default, I don't think that can be changed, can it?.

But if you right click on the Libraries folder on the taskbar, it will show a history and also any Pinned Locations you have. To Pin a location there, all you have to do is right-click on any folder, and there should be "Pin to Start" - That pins it to the Libraries Folder. Unless they changed it in 8.1

This way, if you left click on the Libraries folder it opens the libraries, if you right click, shows the pinned and recent locations.

If you Drag the desired folder down onto the Taskbar, it will simply "Pin to Start" - In other words, it will pin to the Libraries Folder, which you can get to by right clicking.

Hey Jon,

You will notice that what the File Explorer pinned on your taskbar opens to by default will depend on if you set to show Libraries on the navigation pane or not. :p

Show Libraries = File Explorer opens to Libraries by default

Don't show Libraries = File Explorer opens to This PC by default
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Yeah, pinning to the Recent Locations jump list (or whatever it's officially called) still exists. It require 2 button presses, however. It would be nice to just click once and have it open wherever you want.

This is not particularly important; it's just that it seems weird that the field is there in Explorer properties but I can't change it.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer
    CPU
    Intel i7-4710HQ
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce 840M
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Browser
    Chrome 64-bit
The "Target" can't be changed on the default File Explorer pinned to the taskbar since it used a shell folder location instead of a normal path.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Ah, I don't have that "Hide/Show Libraries" yet. That would be irritating to have "My/This PC" open to Libraries.

I've always used the differences between the Taskbar Icon and "My/This Pc" to choose where I wanted to go, I would use My Computer to get to my drives and the taskbar to get into my libraries. Thats what I meant, it's a shell icon, can't be changed,
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro with Media Center/Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus § DualCore AMD Athlon 64 X2, 2300 MHz (11.5 x 200) 4400+ § Corsair Value Select
    CPU
    AMD 4400+/4200+
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus/Asus A8M2N-LA (NodusM)
    Memory
    2 GB/3GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce 8400 GS/GeForce 210
    Sound Card
    nVIDIA GT218 - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Hitachi 40" LCD HDTV
    Screen Resolution
    "1842 x 1036"
    Hard Drives
    WDC WD50 00AAKS-007AA SCSI Disk Device
    ST1000DL 002-9TT153 SCSI Disk Device
    WDC WD3200AAJB-00J3A0 ATA Device
    WDC WD32 WD-WCAPZ2942630 USB Device
    WD My Book 1140 USB Device
    PSU
    Works 550w
    Case
    MSI "M-Box"
    Cooling
    Water Cooled
    Keyboard
    Dell Keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Intellimouse
    Internet Speed
    Cable Medium Speed
    Browser
    Chrome/IE 10
    Antivirus
    Eset NOD32 6.x/Win Defend
    Other Info
    Recently lost my Windows 8 on my main PC, had to go back to Windows 7.
In windows 8 or above


  1. Pin the File Explorer to task bar
  2. Right click on the folder
  3. Right click on File Explorer
  4. Left click on properties
  5. Open the Shortcut tab at the top
  6. Change the "Target" field from the current directory to your desired location ( ie... C:\)
  7. Click apply

Hope that helps
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
Unpin the existing explorer icon from the taskbar.

Create a shortcut just to explorer.exe (no extra command line info to choose the default folder shown yet). Pin it to the taskbar and make sure it's showing the jump list recent items and such you want.


Then do this. Right-click the pinned Explorer icon to see the jump list, then right-click the Windows Explorer line inside the jump list (right above the "unpin this item" option) and go to Properties there. Edit this shortcut's properties to include the folder you want it to open, and save. Now the taskbar shortcut will open to the folder.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 10
IIRC I could not change it because the one that comes pinned to the taskbar out of the box is the explorer app from the start screen. I unpinned that one and just pinned explorer.exe.

I use this Target line to open Favorites

C:\Windows\explorer.exe shell:::{323CA680-C24D-4099-B94D-446DD2D7249E}

See Brink's list of shell CLSIDs to open whatever system folder you like.

Edit: When I click it I don't get another taskbar icon. It just highlights the pinned Explorer icon.

Edit2: So I guess I am echoing the posters who suggested unpinning the current shortcut and setting it up afresh. But I do believe the reason for the inconsistency where Windows 7 and Vista you could just change the target line, is due to the explorer pin being from the Start Screen version or app. Just to clarify why I posted seemingly the same solution. :)
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.0 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Satelite C55D-A Laptop
    CPU
    AMD EI 1200
    Memory
    4 gb DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    Raedon 340 MB dedicated Ram
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Built in
    Screen Resolution
    1366 x 768
    Hard Drives
    640 GB (spinner) Sata II
    Keyboard
    Built in
    Mouse
    Touch pad
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