Windows 10: File explorer slow/Never loading solution

This worked GREAT for me! Thanks.

 

You, sir, deserve a million thanks

 

I had the same problem this week. Opening explorer to "this PC" was slow. I suspected bad handling of an offline network drive, or something in quick access. After reading here about the search indexer, that has been a pain since Vista, but improved in 7, and that I haven't had any problem with for years, I dropped some indexed folders and now explorer opens at once without the 10 second delay.

For those that aren't familiar with the search indexer it has to be said: You don't need to flush the baby out with the bathwater. Don't just shut off the search and everything bad that leads to.

Do like this:
1. Press start and type "index" and press enter. This opens control panel - Indexing options. There you have all folders and special folders that the search indexer cares about.
2. Click "modify" button and uncheck everything that you don't need indexed. Selecting a folder in the lower view will highlight it in the browser above so you don't have to guess where it is. You don't have to index files on a SSD, except for start menu if you use it much.
3. When all your heavy files (my problem was 30000 photos on my HDD) are unchecked, click Ok. Then it will rebuild the index when you let it idle.
4. Optionally, to speed the process up - click "advanced" button and then click "rebuild" to build the index from scratch.
5. Done.

Now you have both a lean index and the search capabilities intact. Unindexed items will be slower to search.

 

I was having the same problem and was searching online for an answer but didn`t find a good one as I don`t want to turn search off because I use the service to search for documents, etc fast.

So here it goes at least in my case the solution was simple and figured it out on my own:

1. Click on the slow loading File explorer icon from the taskbar and let it load.
2. Check if in the "Frequent folders" you have listed a folder which is on a network location not on your own pc. If you do, just right click on the "Frequent folders" text and click on "Remove from quick access".

After the remote folder is no longer in the Frequent folders list everything will be fast as before.

Regards!

 

Check windows search as previously stated under msconfig and also double check this
Go to control panel Administrative tools Services
Go window search and see if window search was running, mine was not
Tried to start
And then recieved the fix error 1053
So next
Under control panel
Indexing options then advance and then rebuild
Seems to fix problem

Better fix than just turning of windows search under msconfig as it did fix the problem
but with windows search unchecked received a search warning in outlook 2016
although Searching still seemed to work?????

 

I bought a new HP laptop from Amazon and was facing the same issue (Windows Explorer loading forever) and was on the verge of returning it
Then I tried your solution. WORKED LIKE A DREAM ! Thank you

 

It really worked!! i faced this problem after updating to creator update in windows 10 and seriously after disabling it it worked , i just made an account to thank you cause this problem was killing me and i was about to reinstall windows! so thanks!!

 

It worked well. Thank you

 

Thank you! That problem was making me so annoyed. I literally was about to start crying out of frustration.

 

I wanted to try this, but under Services I do not see Windows Search. I am sorting alphabetically and go from Windows Remote Management to Windows Time.

 

Open Admin Tools > System Configuration (msconfig.exe)

 

In Task Manager, it shows up as WSearch



--Ed--

 

Ed thanks I see it in task manager as Wsearch with the description Windows Search status stopped.
If I right click on it and try to start I get the error message :

The operation could not be completed.
The service cannot be started, either the because it is
disabled or because it has no enabled devices
associated with it.

 

Thank you, legend! After about a dozen recommended fixes from various forums this is the one that did it for me.

 

This search disable worked for me a couple of months ago and i thought my troubles were over but now, after the latest updates I am back to the never ending loading with green progress bar and some, or sometimes no thumbnails. I have tried every fix on every forum, a fix will work for a while and then the problem re occurs. There's no corrupt files. There must be some inherent flaw but nobody has been able to pinpoint it. Microsoft seem to know less about their product than their customers, or perhaps they are just keeping quiet about it. Their suggestions have been time wasters. I will seriously consider a mac (and I've never owned one) next time i buy a new computer, this windows 10 fiasco has wasted many hours of my life which in turn costs me $$. I must spend 1-2 days a month trying to remedy this problem. Anyone know if this might be caused by an AI mimic? I believe they are following all of us, learning from our responses to situations. This problem started for me last year about the time singularity rolled out. Coincidence? Could be, I know this problem has a history way prior. I don't know what to try next, and can't justify too many more hours on it, any lateral thinkers out there with suggestions?