Please bring back the ability to freely arrange icons within folders "DISABLE AUTO ARRANGE"!

Hi Greg I'm Mark. Thank you so much for trying to help! The articles you linked to all do not do stop Windows from forced ordering.

  All I'm trying to do, which just seems common sense to me, is sort or arrange my files within folders in File explorer with large icon view the way I want them to. 

Windows forces their arrangement which makes no sense to me at all. When I got my computer a couple years ago Windows 10 DID show right click sort Auto Arrange with a disable/enable toggle. I always had this disabled on the whole computer. I do not want ANY auto arrange. My entire computer file/folder system is now completely messed up and I don't see those options to go back anywhere now.

An example is when I put many files or folders or apps into a folder, (I have them in Large icon view for convenience and best viewing), I sort or arrange them in my importance and how I use them and need them. I know exactly the order of and where they are within the folder window.    Now when I close the window and open it up again, or refresh the window, the files and folders are Completely in a different order, and position within the window!!  I have to look at every file name to find it again! With a large number of files in a window, as soon as I add a file it's lost, it moves somewhere else in a forced order and will not remain in place.

 I believe a Windows 10 update awhile ago messed the registry up to cause this.   Can you find or create a solution? Again, with fear of repeating myself, simply let you place the position and order of icons of any data in a window and LEAVE IT ALONE. When you go back to get the data it's Exactly the same.

I appreciate whatever you can suggest to allow a user to not have to constantly lose the data somewhere where you did not leave it. I'm about to give up on this crazy Windows forced behavior, losing to much time trying to find things. (what if you left your car keys on the kitchen table, left the room, then came back to the kitchen and the house put them in the bedroom, because it wanted to. )

I will do anything you ask to try to get this to work right. Thanks for being there! I'll keep up hope.

I just don't understand why they would possibly take away this fundamental and crucial OS behavior. It makes Windows so frustrating and not usable to me. I can't think of any reason for them to do this at all?

  I've tried the feedback Hub.  It goes somewhere into cyberspace and is lost forever, at least on my end as I never hear anything or see anything. 

  If you find an expert or a current day solution please relay that. I'm just too tired using Windows searching for my files. The issue was not on the computer I bought until Windows 10 update broke it without me being able to prevent it. It' not fair or reasonable at all. I hope to hear more from you as you are in the loop and may locate a savior to help all of us.

I AM very surprised you say many users don't use icon view. I've found the opposite. And there are so many users I've discovered that are angry that MS removed the option. Maybe programmers were lazy in the updates? It's only logical to me that the Desktop arrangement should be consistent with the rest of the computer file arrangement. Why different? This current arrangement seems so haphazard and patched.

This IS crucial to me.  I'm continually now fighting and searching for data and files that I KNOW where they were, but were changed behind my back when I go back to look for them. I don't regularly have memorized the name of a file or the date I created it. I myself like the freedom and control to locate my data and not have a modern computer dictate where they want it. Seems backward and crude, and very unfriendly. To me, data should stay exactly where you put it, period. Really hard to understand otherwise, but everyone is different.

I've looked into trying to revert to the (superior in my eyes) older Windows version, but I had been forced to update, (tried to stop it!), to the more current ones, and as you know, even if successful, many of your other apps and system functions will be adversely affected by trying to go back. It would probably more easy to start over with a new or reformatted computer.

  Putting up with this ridiculous forced arrangement and searching endlessly for my data is not an option for me.

I've been testing the Mac OS and reading many users and reviews now because of this Windows issue. Mac gives you freedom and choice and seems far superior and common sense when using it. I think it may be the best way to go since MS doesn't seem to care enough about it's users. So disappointed. Not worth struggling with a computer UI, better time spent doing what you want to do with your data.

   I am grateful and appreciate forums such as this that have real user opinions and suggestions. Thanks very much for your continued thoughts. I'll keep this conversation alive just in case one of the frustrated users does create a program to allow manual sorting again.

Okay. Spent entire morning trying everyone of these links. None of them work for this. Maybe they are older. They do not work on the current Windows 10 build 19044.1826 which I have and Microsoft forces you to update to.

  I even looked at all the alternatives to File Explorer, and none of those allow icon view sorting without forced arranging files. Want to keep built in File Explorer anyway to prevent other conflicts.

Please keep looking and investigating for the solution to manually arrange files/folders within the File Explorer system. I'm still in disbelief that a MS PC in year 2022 won't let you leave files in their place. With your links I've found that many many others have this issue and are angry at MS.  We can help them all if we find the answer.  Keep trying, I will not give up either.   Thanks again so much,  until the next test... 

P.S. Just to perhaps help your search, and to be clear, we are NOT talking about the Windows "desktop" (as the youtube link video you added pertains to). Windows has always allowed you to place folders anywhere on the desktop. What they broke badly was preventing that in Any other folder or file on your computer. File Explorer needs the right click View/auto arrange and align to grid "toggle" options as they HAD before to make it work again. Please see screenshot I attached that shows what USED to be on Windows 10! Then try your computer and see that it completely gone and not there or exist anymore. This is exactly the issue.

I am not a 10 years awarded Windows MVP, I am a guy who uses windows to to my job - like most users. This is such a simple question that I can't comprehend your response so I will simplify with a good example.

In previous versions of windows it was EXTREMELY simple to arrange desktop icons:

• right click

-select arrange icons

-pick "auto arrange" or "align to grid"

Literally 1.4 seconds to arrange desktop icons. MS seems to have removed that option and now there is some convoluted way to perform what was previously a 1.4 second task. Now, your "theme" has control over how desktop icons are arranged, pinning web shortcuts to the start menu no longer functions and rather than focusing on system files, the search bar defaults to web-based results, and the SNIP function now adds more steps.

MS adds steps to perform simple tasks, every extra click is lost productivity for no good reason.