Windows 10: Create Recent Folders Shortcut in Windows 10

How to: Create Recent Folders Shortcut in Windows 10

How to Create a Recent Folders Shortcut in Windows 10


Information Recent Folders (aka: Recent Places) is a list of folders that you have used or opened recently. These recent folders are also included under "Frequent folders" in Quick access, and under "Recent" in jump lists on the Start menu and taskbar.

This tutorial will show you how to download or create a Recent Folders shortcut that opens directly to your Recent Folders folder in File Explorer in Windows 10.


CONTENTS:

• Option One: To Download a Recent Folders Shortcut
• Option Two: To Manually Create a Recent Folders Shortcut

EXAMPLE: Recent Folders










OPTION ONE [/i] To Download a Recent Folders Shortcut
1. Click/tap on the Download button below to download the .zip file below.
Recent_Folders_shortcut.zip

Download
2. Save the .zip file to your desktop.

3. Unblock the .zip file.

4. Open the .zip file, and extract (drag and drop) the shortcut to your desktop.

5. If you like, you can assign a keyboard shortcut to, or move this shortcut to where you like for easy use.

6. When finished, you can delete the downloaded .zip file if you like.







OPTION TWO [/i] To Manually Create a Recent Folders Shortcut
1. Right click or press and hold on an empty area on your desktop, and click/tap on New and Shortcut.

2. Copy and paste the location below into the location area, and click/tap on Next. (see screenshot below)
*Arrow %windir%\explorer.exe shell:::{22877a6d-37a1-461a-91b0-dbda5aaebc99}




3. Type Recent Folders for the name, and click/tap on the Finish button. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: You could name this shortcut anything you would like though.



4. Right click or press and hold on the new Recent Folders shortcut, and click/tap on Properties.

5. Click/tap on the Shortcut tab, then click/tap on the Change Icon button. (see screenshot below)



6. In the line under "Look for icons in this file", copy and paste the location below, and press Enter. (see screenshot below)
*Arrow %SystemRoot%\System32\shell32.dll




7. Select the icon highlighted in blue above, and click/tap on OK. (see screenshot above)
NOTE: You could use any icon that you would like instead though.

8. Click/tap on OK. (see screenshot below step 5)

9. If you like, you can assign a keyboard shortcut to, or move this shortcut to where you like for easy use.



That's it,
Shawn


Related Tutorials

• How to Create a Recent Items Shortcut in Windows 10
• How to Turn On or Off 'Recent Items' and 'Frequent Places' in Windows 10
• How to Reset and Clear Recent Items and Frequent Places in Windows 10

:)

 

Unable to see shortcuts in browse window

Hi Jomel,

I have only created this shortcut as an example since I shouldn't be posting pictures of the actual folder due to the information being private.

My shortcuts are all created via right click - create shortcut. Then I move them around to wherever I need them. Mostly into one folder with a number of projects.

In some programs I use the browse window to save things to these projects but the shortcuts don't show in the summary folder where I save all my project shortcuts. This didn't occur in Windows 7 - I have recently upgraded.

Any idea why the shortcut wouldn't show in the "browse" window?

Thanks

 

windows 10 shortcuts in shared folder

why does it make a difference if a shortcut is created on the windows 7 and placed in the sharefolder on the windows 10 rather than created by the windows 10 computer?

In other words, I have created and shared a folder on the windows 10 computer, then placed shortcuts in the folder to files that are on the windows 10 machine. Another computer on the network running windows 7 should be able to access this folder and the
files that the shortcuts point to. It can not. However, it can access the drive from selecting the computer and drive from the network, and then if the shortcuts are created with the window 7 machine and placed in the sharedfolder which is on the windows 10
machine then clicking on the shortcuts from the windows 7 machine will open the file. This is confusing. Why won't the shortcuts created on the windows 10 machine work with the windows 7 machine?

 

I have created the Recent Folders shortcut successfully, and it can pin to task bar and start menu, but Windows is denying me from pinning or copying to the Quick Access Menu, which is where i really need it. I also tried the instructions to pin it after entering the address in the address bar, to no avail. I don't know why I can't get it to work, when it looks like you all got it to work. I believe i am updated to the current version of windows 10. Thanks for any help, i so miss having my recent folders. Why o why would they get rid of that function??!!

 

Hello Jen, and welcome to Ten Forums. *Smile

I'm afraid that only folders can be pinned to Quick Access.

If you like, you could pin a folder to Quick Access, and save the shortcut in the folder.

 

I am also having a problem of getting the Recent Folders to show up in Quick Access when I try to "Save as" from IE 11 (which I have to use for certain corporate applications). The Recent Folders is not visible! I tried to solve this by putting the Recent folders icon created from your advice (%windir%\explorer.exe shell:::{22877a6d-37a1-461a-91b0-dbda5aaebc99} in a folder, then put the folder in Quick Access. Result: the Folder shows up in Quick Access, but when I click on it while trying to Save As, the folder is empty! I am baffled.

 

Hello Lanny, and welcome to Ten Forums. *Smile

Do you have Quick Access showing in the navigation pane in File Explorer?

https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/4...dows-10-a.html

If so, is it empty as well?

 

I do have Quick Access panel. And when I am in File Explorer, I can see the Recent folders, but not when I click on Quick Access from IE as I am trying to save a file. I can see Quick Access, and I can see a "Recent Folders Folder" I created to house the Recent folders shortcut, but I can't see the Recent Folders shortcut itself (or any recent folders!) I wanted to show you screen shots, but I can't seem to insert jpgs.

 

In your "Save as" screenshot, you have all the recent folders listed under "Frequent folders". Quick access is the new recent folders location.

If one is not there, you should be able to "Pin to Quick access" the folder to add it.

You won't see files or shortcuts in the "Save as" dialog since it's wanting you to select a folder location to save to.

If I'm not understanding you correctly, then please let me know. *Smile

 

Quick Access is NOT, as you know, the same as Recent Folders. It shows "Frequent Folders" which Win 10 somehow decides to display by some rule of which I am not aware. I created a Recent Folders per the instructions offered on this Forum and it is very valuable during a Save As operation, yet it doesn't appear to be possible to get easy access to those recent folders.

 

You could open the folder below to "Pin to Quick access" the Recent Items folder to help. It's not the same as only Recent Folders, but does include them.

%AppData%\Microsoft\Windows

 

Here's another option for "Recent Folders below. Hopefully it may work better for you. *Smile

1) Copy and paste the path below into the address bar of File Explorer.

shell:::{22877a6d-37a1-461a-91b0-dbda5aaebc99}

2) Drag and drop the "Recent folders" icon in the address bar to your desktop to create a shortcut, and save the shortcut where you like.

3) Right click on the shortcut, and "Pin to Quick access".

 

but this still doesn't show up when I'm trying to save a file! Is there no way to do that?!

 

Recent Folders is not really a valid place to save something to.

In your "Save as" screenshot below, it has a "Recent folders folder" listed. Is that this folder?

 

No. I'm attaching a screen shot of Recent Folders location in Quick Access, which I created by using a tip from this forum. I created a shortcut containing this: %windir%\explorer.exe shell:::{22877a6d-37a1-461a-91b0-dbda5aaebc99}
But, I repeat, this does not appear whenever I try to do any kind of "save as" operation---from any program....Word, IE, Excel, Acrobat.
It also didn't appear when I went to browse for the screen capture file I've uploaded. It seems like any file operation "on the fly" fails to see this Recent Folders thing.