Windows 10 Image Thumbnails Flash then Disappear in Explorer

Anonymous
2017-12-05T17:15:02+00:00

I'm running Windows 10 Pro, Version 1703. Basically, whenever I open a folder, the image thumbnails will flash then disappear, and I've maid sure my "Always show Icons, Not Thumbnails" is unchecked. I have no idea what the problem is, as that was the only solution I could seem to find. Thank you!

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Files, folders, and storage

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Anonymous
2018-01-01T13:46:04+00:00

I just learned that if you deactivate the OneDrive "save space and download files as you use them" feature (i.e. leave all OneDrive files on your PC) then the thumbnail problem is fixed.  In addition, the Photos app now shows these files (which it did not do before, even though the files were locally "always" stored on the PC).

There is clearly a bug in the change to OneDrive -- don't get me wrong, the selective sync feature is nice, but it is affecting the thumbnail process somehow.

Moderator's note:

You can disable OneDrive Files On-Demand feature using these steps:

  1. Right click OneDrive icon on taskbar, select Settings.
  2. In Settings tab, under Files On-Demand, uncheck Save space and download files as you use them option.
  3. Click OK.

Note: Microsoft has updated the information in this reply, to benefit users facing this issue.

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  1. Anonymous
    2017-12-19T23:14:06+00:00

    I have a similar issue (Win 10 Enterprise, 1709) and I've been trying to troubleshoot it. My symptoms are similar: opening a folder full of images, viewing as extra large/large/medium icons, all of the thumbnails will flash in sequence, then be replaced by the system icon.  I've made sure thumbnail images are set to always display, I tried the disk cleanup tool, I've tried deleting the thumbnail cache., I also tried restricting system permissions to prevent deleting thumbnails. I also tried using the old Windows photo viewer as my default photo viewer. None of these solutions seemed to work.

    Occasionally, I'll have folders where some thumbnails load and some don't, like this:

    I'll refresh the folder a few times or change the icon size, and sometimes a few more thumbnails will load:

    A few other users in my organization have this issue, but I haven't found a common theme between us; we're using different hardware, different editions of Windows 10, and accessing images stored on different drives. Let me know if you have any other solutions or suggested mitigations.

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  2. Anonymous
    2018-04-14T22:54:55+00:00

    Thank you for the reply.

    I tried the suggested solution which didn't work. However, I cleared my disk space and this seems to have solved the problem. I was close to the limits, so I decided this was a moment to free up a few GB. I don't know if this is what fixed it but it seems to have.

    Thanks 

    Rob

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  3. Anonymous
    2017-12-10T14:13:46+00:00

    We appreciate the information that you have provided. Since the issue still persists, we recommend that you clear and reset the thumbnail cache of your PC. Here's a simple guide on how to do it:

    1. Press the Windows key + R.
    2. Type cleanmgr on the Run dialog box, and then press OK.
    3. If you have more than one drive or partition on your PC, then select the Windows C: drive or the drive letter you wanted to clean, and click OK.
    4. Uncheck all the files that have a check beside it, but make sure there's a check on Thumbnails.
    5. Press the OK button.
    6. Click on Delete Files to confirm.

    When Disk Cleanup has finished, kindly restart your device for changes to take effect.

    Let us know how it goes and if you need further assistance, feel free to post back.

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  4. Anonymous
    2017-12-24T23:11:38+00:00

    I am having the exact same problem with my Microsoft Surface.  All is well on a Dell XPS13.  

    One wrinkle to add is that the folders are in OneDrive.  Still I would think that shouldn't matter.  

    Again, I tried all of the steps above multiple times.  In addition:

    1. I followed instructions to stop File Explorer, delete the Thumbnailxx.db files.  And then re-start File Explorer.  Still no success.
    2. I follow someone else's guidance to upgrade Windows 10 Professional (my version) with the same version.  While doing so I asked it to preserve the files and applications.  Still no success.  

    This is super frustrating.  Any guidance will be helpful.

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