How to stop folders from automatically adding into Quick access please?

Anonymous
2023-03-29T03:42:54+00:00

There is no "view ribbon". So please don't tell me to go there. Microsoft goes out of it's way to make things more difficult and less private with every new update.

There is no view tab nor view ribbon anywhere in file explorer so please miss me with the stock answers.

There is a view pulldown and a sort pulldown and three dots. Those are the only things clickable on file explorer and none of them have anthing to do with quick access or any other intrusion of privacy.

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Files, folders, and storage

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Anonymous
2023-03-29T04:38:06+00:00

Hi! I'm Laurice, an Independent Advisor. I am more than happy to help you out. :)

File Explorer adds these folders that you often use. To stop the folders from showing in Quick Access:

  1. Click the See more menu (the three dots icon) and select Options.
  2. On the Folder Options dialog, make sure the General tab is active.
  3. In the Privacy section, uncheck the Show frequently used folders and Show recently used files in Quick Access in Quick Access box.
  4. Click Clear next to Clear File Explorer history.

Click OK.

Please let me know if you need any further assistance.

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  1. Anonymous
    2025-05-06T00:48:55+00:00

    I have completed this procedure as suggested. But when I go file save as in Word all the teams folders that I rarely use show up. How do I get rid of these? It is a really complicated process showing 9 year olds to save to their Onedrive without this visual overload of folders in quick access during the saving process

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  2. Anonymous
    2025-05-06T21:29:04+00:00

    This worked for me. Windows 11.

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  3. Anonymous
    2025-05-07T02:13:59+00:00

    I have already done this. The file saving process was still a really complicated view.

    I have found that there are two types of Quick Access and they do not control each other. There is the Quick Access in File Explorer view which is changeable. Then there is Quick Access in the file saving view when you are in Microsoft Office products -this is not changeable and it appears the two are not related.

    So my file explorer view Quick Access has been changed to be more simple for the children. Yay

    To get around Quick Access in file saving, you need to separately go into excel, word and Powerpoint and transfer over the 'Save As' icon onto the ribbon (under Options/Save in the File menu). Clicking this icon or using F12 reverts the File Save As view back to classic and Quick Access does not get shown.

    Microsoft bloat. Calling two different functions the same thing is really confusing. In addition, in the process of file saving, this Quick Access shows Teams folders which you cannot save directly to anyway! Stupid!

    No wonder teaching good file saving techniques into folders is so tricky at Primary School level. It has taken me hours to figure this out.

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  4. Anonymous
    2025-05-16T03:29:19+00:00

    Thanks. It worked

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