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Hello all. I have been researching this issue for a while, but none of the suggested fixes I have found and tried have had any effect. I've tried numerous setting change suggestions with indexing, File Explorer options, etc, but nothing has improved this issue even slightly. Even a complete clean install when I recently upgraded my SSD had no effect.
The issue is that my file explorer starts out normally fast when first opened. For example, opening my downloads folder(located on my desktop) and fully populating all thumbnails, etc, takes about a second the first time you do it. However, within a few seconds that speed is replaced by EXTREMELY slow performance. For example, if I open a subfolder under downloads, then attempt to return to the downloads folder, it will take 45 seconds to 2 minutes to perform the same action is just did in less than 2. During this time, CPU load never exceeds 10%, Disk usage never exceeds 1%, and Memory usage never exceeds 25%. The second or third navigation request within Windows Explorer will start the issue every time. It will stay this way until you restart Windows Explorer from the Task Manager, upon which it will be normal speed again for a few seconds, then immediately revert to the exceptionally slow behavior. It is so slow that the fastest way to navigate is to constantly restart the process every time you need to change folders. All other programs and features operate perfectly normally.
This is not a hardware speed issue, as Windows 10 ran perfectly fine on this machine. It's an i7 8700K with 32 Gigs of RAM on a Gigabyte Z390 with a Samsung Evo 980 M.2 SSD. This should be lightning quick at such tasks.
I could really use a hand here, this is a completely unacceptable situation.
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
I got so fed up with these issues - taskbar icons disappearing, windows explorer running at a snail's pace etc. that I deleted my account, set up a new one and copied across all my data. That worked, but took for ages. The new account is behaving itself, icons have returned and explorer seems to be back to Windows 10 performance. But I should not have had to do this! Microsoft managed to corrupt some user accounts with an upgrade over a year ago and never posted a fix.
Windows 10 user here. In desperation, I have emptied my downloads folder on my C: drive, hoping the green bar goes away.
Windows does not care how full or empty a folder is. The green bar still appears.
I have tried every possible fix found on the internet, but nothing works.
The pc and explorer have worked perfectly since 2019. Then, a few months ago, I would say Feb 2024, there was a Windows update, and ever since, this green bar problem has plagued (some folders).
Funnily enough, it does not affect folders on my external drives that are full of pictures. It only affects my two C and D drives inside the pc.
My external drives are typically very slow because they are USB drives. My internal drives should be blistering fast since they are NVME drives.
Windows does not care.
About a month ago, I tried that registry fix (deleting the bags keys and recreating them), I thought that had worked for a few days, but now the green bar has returned.
I have same issues on fast machine (i9-12900 64m M2). In addition often my USB keyboard is not
very responsive. Have used resource manager and Process Lasso and a 3rd party replacement for file manager, all with little success. I rarely tax this machine above 10%cpu primarily for my ham radio programs. It also occurs when I am running nothing!
Grrrrrr!
Not sure what it is in your case but I just tested a folder with over 2,200 stock images to be used with graphic design on Windows 11 and it loads fine.
To note, thumbnails at extra large require about 600MB of RAM for about 2,200 images. This increases the size of Windows thumbnails cache on the drive by 100MB.
It also must reload all the thumbnails from storage every time you go back into the folder and cache it all in RAM so drive speed (SSD verses HDD, etc), drive free space (including drives over 50% full hitting a speed loss, TRIM issues, low on space, etc), RAM free space, RAM speed, CPU speed, page file being used too much, even GPU as Windows uses that to function unless you disable it), and possibly more will all play a part in how well it goes for you.
Also, if any cleaning tool wipes out the cache file then thumbnails will have to be recreated. If any storage issue causes loss of caching then thumbnails will have to be recreated.
There's a lot more here that it may not be File Explorer at fault. Not saying it can't be as they have fixed in the past other issues triggered by doing certain events or things in a certain order or way.
Should also note that if you happen to use OneDrive than that there will certainty slow things down. Its the catch 22 on that.
However, I'm a programmer and File Explorer's infinite scrolling file list and its caching is working correct. Its quickly pulling in the thumbnails from the drive cache as the view is being scrolled and is caching them all into memory to keep it fluid and smooth as well as dynamically loading them into each file holder of the list. Then flows even faster after that as scrolling is done because its all in RAM. It then unloads as the folder is left and upon going back it repeats to the top of this paragraph. That is how this stuff works and its indeed doing it as it should.
Hope the best :)
Here's a great deal on 32gb USB drive:
https://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Ultra-Transfer-S...
Once you create bootable media on a flash stick, you can add other files to it as long as you don't delete any of the 7 files it places in the root.
