How to Show Hidden Files and Folders in Windows 11 [Tutorial]
Hidden files are usually hidden for good reason—they're often very important files and being hidden from view makes them harder to change or delete.
Windows hides many files and folders by default, preventing users from deleting or modifying files they shouldn’t touch. But you can make Windows show these hidden files by changing a single setting.
But what if you want to see those hidden files?
There are many good reasons you might want to show hidden files and folders in your searches and folder views, but most of the time it's because you're dealing with a Windows problem and you need access to one of these important files to edit or delete.
On the other hand, if hidden files are, in fact, showing but you instead want to hide them, it's just a matter of reversing the toggle.
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By default, Microsoft Windows 11 hides certain files from view when you explore them on your hard drive. This protects important files from being deleted so that the system isn’t damaged. Follow these steps to show hidden files.
This tutorial will apply for computers, laptops, desktops, and tablets running the Windows 11 operating system (Home, Professional, Enterprise, Education) from all supported hardware manufactures, like Dell, HP, Acer, Asus, Toshiba, Lenovo, and Samsung.