There is a need to open hidden files and folders operating system, mainly to edit some important system documents.

To do this you need to know how to make visible hidden folders.

The fact is that in all modern versions of Windows OS, the default settings assume the so-called “fool protection”.

This means that an inexperienced user simply does not see most of the important system partitions and cannot make potentially dangerous changes to them.

But on the other hand, some fine settings The operating system may require editing of these hidden files.

This article will provide detailed guide, which allows you to implement this procedure in Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 10, which are on this moment occupy the lion's share of operating systems used in the commercial and private sector.

Secrets of the Windows 7 system partition

This version of the operating system from Microsoft has taken the palm of popularity from the legendary XP, support for which ended several years ago.

This success is primarily dictated user-friendly interface, in which it is easy to find the necessary settings.

This also applies to the option to show hidden folders and files, which is most easily activated through the taskbar.

• First you need in a standard way get to the taskbar: open Start and select “Control Panel”.

• Then click on the link “Design and personalization”.

Advice! For convenience, you need to select a display method by category.

• In the variety that opens, we need the “Folder Options” category, or, more precisely, its “Show hidden files and folders” option, which speaks for itself.

• In the window that opens called “Folder Options”, expand the “View” tab and at the very bottom of the list additional parameters we see the show/hide function special files. All that remains is to set the checkbox to the desired position.

You can get to the “Folder Options” window in Windows 7 in a simpler way: to do this, just open any directory and select “Folder and Search Options” from the “Arrange” drop-down menu.

Advice! If you decide to use this method, by default only hidden files in the current directory will be displayed. To apply this rule to all drives, you must activate the “Apply to folders” option.

Having dealt with the classics, you can move on to more modern systems.

We delve into the intricacies of Windows 8

This version of the operating system is significantly different from Windows 7, which at one time caused many complaints from users.

The changes also affected hidden directories: in Windows 8, there are two types of files and folders that are not visible to the user.

The first is the actual hidden sections. This status is enjoyed not only system files and folders, but also components of various third-party applications.

Moreover, the user himself can assign this type to any object on the disk.

However, this opportunity is often used by malware, which, for example, results in problems with files on a flash drive.

For these two types, the algorithm of actions will be different.

To open regular hidden files and folders, you need to do the following:

• First you need to open “Explorer”, for which you can use the standard shortcut in the “Taskbar”.

• In the opened folder in top panel settings, click on the “View” menu and select the “Show and Hide” function. In the list that opens, you must activate the “Hidden elements” checkbox.
  In the same way, you can assign hidden status to any selected file or folder.

In order to see particularly important system files, you need to make the following settings:

• In the same “View” menu, go to “Options” - “Change folder and search options.”

• As a result, the “Folder Options” settings window will appear, similar to that in Windows 7. Here you should go to the “View” tab and uncheck the “Hide” protected system files checkbox (recommended).

There is another way to get to this window:

• In Start, which in eight has an unusual Metro interface, click on the gear icon (Computer Settings).

• In the menu that opens, you need to click on the lowest link to open the Control Panel, which is familiar to most users.

• In the “Taskbar”, first select the function display method Large (or small) icons, and then click on the “Folder Options” link, which will ultimately give access to the settings window of the same name.

It is also worth considering separately the algorithm for enabling the display of hidden and system elements for Windows 10, since, despite its similarity to the eight, the settings of this OS have their own nuances.

Hidden files and folders in Windows 10

In the top ten, there is the same division of hidden files into regular system ones, therefore the methods for enabling their display are similar to those discussed in the previous section.

To see files and folders with the hidden attribute in the top ten, including on a flash drive or any other external storage device, do the following:

• Open “Start” and launch “Explorer”.

• The appearance of “Explorer” in the top ten is practically no different from Windows 8. Therefore, it operates according to the already known algorithm: View - Show and Hide - set the “Hidden Elements” checkbox to the active position.

In order to see system files and folders, we need to get to the “Explorer Options” function (analogous to the Folder Options option).

• The fastest way to do this is through the search, the icon of which can be found on the “Taskbar”.

Advice! You can also use a keyboard shortcut to access the search. Win+Q.

• Clicking on the result search results, we will be taken to the functions window, which we have already encountered several times in this article. Here we are interested in the option “Hide protected system files (recommended), which is located on the View tab.

In conclusion, it is worth saying once again that editing hidden files, especially system files, can cause serious harm to the computer’s software shell.

Therefore, such changes should be treated as responsibly as possible.

Thematic video:

How to open hidden files and folders in Windows 7/8/10 Free lesson

In this video I show how you can easily open hidden files and folders on operating systems. Windows systems 7/8/10.

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. 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 the computer with installed antivirus and with 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. Let me just note that most popular antivirus programs 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 click on it right click mice. 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 here 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 scanning 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 call 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

To show hidden files you can also use Total Commander or Far Manager. 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 left button mice. 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 setup), V original condition. 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 antivirus protection. This will protect against possible problems in future.

Please remember that hidden files are not always the result of an infection. 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 ways. Windows versions, but if you are using Windows 8, then in this case you need to watch the video tutorial below.

A hidden folder is a regular directory that has the Hidden attribute set. With this feature, specific directories are hidden from Windows interface, which is especially convenient in cases where some of them need to be hidden for some time when they will not be used. In other words, this mechanism allows you to significantly simplify the work with file content on your PC. However, in some cases, “disguised” directories can create a lot of trouble, especially if you don’t know how to work with them. Therefore, we will devote this article to an analysis of how to open hidden folders in Windows 8.

How to show hidden folders in Windows 8?

Working with invisible objects in Windows 8, in fact, is no different from similar processes in previous versions Windows. You can show hidden folders in Windows 8 in one of two ways: by directly entering the name of each of them or by turning on the display of all folders. Let's take a closer look at each of them.

Hidden files and folders in Windows 8. How to open: Video

Simply entering the name of an invisible object

If you know where the “masked” directory or file is located, and you know exactly its full name, then to see it, there is, frankly speaking, no need to enable the display of invisible files. All you need to do is just find the directory in which the desired object is located and enter address bar his name.

After entering the name of the searched element and pressing the enter button, a window with its file contents will open in front of the user. Agree, quite simple, convenient and quick way working with “hidden” components.

However, open hidden Windows folders 8, if their exact names are not known, will not succeed. In this case, you only need to enable the display of all content disk drives. Let's consider what actions need to be performed in more detail.

And so, to make all the file contents of the computer visible, you need to:

It should be noted that this attribute window can be accessed in other ways. For example, “Control Panel” - “Appearances and Personalization” - “Folder Options”. Windows 8 users can also use the search box. To do this you need to start screen Enter the appropriate query into the search field, after which the OS will prompt you to go to the appropriate window.

You can display invisible elements here by going to the “View” tab in the window that opens, where in the corresponding section, enable the “Show hidden files, folders and drives” function. If you need to display system files, you need to uncheck the “Hide protected system files” option.

How to open hidden folders and files on Windows 8: Video

IN 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.

On Windows files various types, not intended for public access, can be hidden, that is, they will not appear during standard viewing 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 different developers BY. 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

By using command line You can change the display mode of one specific selected folder. This method is more interesting than the first. Through special teams 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.

In Windows 8, as in all previous versions of Microsoft's OS, some files in folders are not displayed in the Explorer window. These files and folders are hidden. In most cases, it is not necessary for a user (especially a beginner) to see and open such files (and even harmful). However, in some cases (modifying system parameters, cleaning up garbage, etc.) the user may need to make hidden files visible.

There are two types of hidden files in Windows 8:

1. Actually hidden files (Hidden Files). These are files whose properties have the attribute +H, Hiden - Hidden). This attribute can be set by the user himself or by a certain program (viruses can also do this, which is described in more detail in the article ““)
2. System files(attribute +S, System), These are files that are necessary for the operation of the operating system and are hidden so that the user does not accidentally delete or change them.

Therefore, the Windows 8 developers have somewhat divided the ways in which regular user can display hidden and system files.

How to show hidden files in Windows 8

Showing hidden files in Windows 8 has become much easier, and if in previous versions of Windows you had to go into a deeply hidden menu, in the new OS you can make hidden files and folders visible directly from the Explorer interface. So, to show hidden files in Windows 8 you need:

How to show system files in Windows 8

If you also need to display system files in Win 8, you need to use the old and well-known method.

To do this, in the same Explorer window, click the button Options(Options) and select an option Change folder and search options. (Change folder and search options).

Then go to the tab View and in the window that appears, find and enable the option Show hidden files, folders, and drives(Show hidden files, folders and drives) and uncheck Hide protected operating system files(Hide protected system files).

The same window can be opened from the Control Panel: Control Panel->Appearance and Personalization->Folder Options->Show hidden files and folders.

Here are the ways to make hidden files visible in Windows 8.