How do I show hidden files and folders in Windows Explorer?
Hidden files and folders are invisible by default in Windows Explorer. Fix it by toggling the Explorer registry values for Hidden and ShowSuperHidden.
What this covers
Windows hides files and folders that have the hidden attribute or that are protected operating system files. If you need to see them (for troubleshooting, cleanup, or development), you can change the view setting. The graphical option is in File Explorer > View > Options, but you can also toggle it from the command line by editing the registry. This guide walks through diagnosing, fixing, and verifying the change.
Symptom
Check if hidden items exist with PowerShell
This command lists empty folders, but it uses -Force so hidden items are counted. Replace 'C:\Data' with the path you want to check (for example, 'C:\Users\YourName'). If the output includes folders that you don't see in File Explorer, those folders are hidden—confirming the problem is the Explorer view setting, not missing data. If no hidden folders appear, the issue may be something else.
List every folder that contains nothing (hidden files included) using Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Directory and a count check.
$ Get-ChildItem 'C:\Data' -Recurse -Directory |
Where-Object { (Get-ChildItem $_.FullName -Force | Measure-Object).Count -eq 0 } |
Select-Object -ExpandProperty FullNameEnable hidden and protected files via registry
These two reg add commands set Hidden to 1 (show hidden files) and ShowSuperHidden to 1 (show protected operating system files). They affect the current user only. After running them, restart Explorer or sign out and back in for the change to take effect. You can confirm the setting took by opening File Explorer Options—the 'Show hidden files, folders, and drives' radio button should now be selected.
Toggle Windows' 'show hidden files' and 'show protected OS files' options by editing the Explorer Advanced registry values with reg add.
$ reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v Hidden /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f
reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v ShowSuperHidden /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f▾ Undo
$ reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v Hidden /t REG_DWORD /d 2 /f && reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v ShowSuperHidden /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /fOpen Explorer and confirm hidden items are visible
Use explorer . to open File Explorer at the current folder, or explorer /select,"C:\path\to\file" to highlight a specific file. Navigate to the folder you checked in step 1. Hidden items should now appear with a faded icon. If they are still missing, try restarting Explorer again or check that the registry values were applied correctly.
Launch Explorer at the current directory or highlight a specific file using explorer.exe command-line switches.
$ explorer .
explorer /select,"C:\Users\me\Downloads\file.zip"How to confirm it worked
Open File Explorer to a folder that should contain hidden items. They now appear with a faded icon. If you enabled ShowSuperHidden, protected operating system files also appear (usually with a warning icon).
Undo everything
Every command above can be reverted. Run these in order to undo all of it.
$ reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v Hidden /t REG_DWORD /d 2 /f && reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v ShowSuperHidden /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /fReview before running — some steps may not be independent.
Sources
- Get-ChildItemEvidence: Get-ChildItem -Directory lists folders; testing whether a folder contains any items (with -Force) identifies empty ones.
- reg addEvidence: reg add writes a value to a registry key with /v (value name), /t (type) and /d (data), which is how the Explorer Advanced options are toggled.
- Get-ChildItem - SS64Evidence: Documents -Force to include hidden items and -Directory to restrict results to folders.
- Reg - SS64Evidence: Documents reg add syntax for changing HKCU Explorer Advanced values such as Hidden to show hidden files.
- Explorer.exe command-line options - SS64Evidence: Documents explorer . to open the current folder and explorer /select,path to open the parent folder with a file selected.
Last verified: 2026-09-22
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