Windows 11 is fast… until you open Explorer: The cache trick that really speeds it up

Is Windows running fast… until you open File Explorer? If this happens to you, take comfort in knowing you're not alone. In fact, the problem is so common that advanced users have encountered and shared it. very effective solutionsIn this post, we'll tell you about the caching trick that really speeds up Windows Explorer.

Windows 11 is fast… until you open Explorer

If we like something about Windows 11In addition to its revamped design and universal compatibility, it's also the fluidity with which it performs all kinds of tasks. Microsoft has worked hard to deliver an elegant, functional, and fast operating system. However, there's a recurring complaint among advanced and casual users alike: File Explorer takes several seconds to open folders.

It's like traveling at 150 km/h in a Ferrari and suddenly hitting a bottleneck. Windows boots up with enviable fluidity, menus open instantly, and everything seems to run smoothly. But when you open File Explorer to search for an urgent document, the magic stops. Files take a long time to appear, the interface freezes for a few seconds…You feel like, no matter how much hardware advances, there are things in Windows that never change. Why is this?

Why does it happen?

It has nothing to do with your SSD or the amount of RAM installed. File Explorer is a world within a world, a complex application. Before we talk about the caching trick that really speeds it up, let's look at Why File Explorer slows down your Windows experience. Basically, it's because it has to perform many background operations, one after the other:

• Detect whether a folder contains images, videos, documents, etc., and adjust its view and cache accordingly.
• Upload icons and metadata, such as previews.
• If you use OneDrive, it should also sync and update the status of your files.
• If you have external storage drives or access to shared networks, Explorer should connect and list their contents.
• Some programs add additional tabs and options to Explorer, so you may also need to spend time and resources loading them.

The problem is that if one of these tasks is delayed, even by half a second, the entire process blocks waiting. And things get worse if you have multiple storage drives (physical and online) with many folders, subfolders and filesIn these cases, it's most necessary to apply some caching trick to speed up processes or even disable them. Let's get to it.

The cache trick that really speeds up File Explorer

If Windows 11 is running fast… until you open Explorer, you can apply a cache trick that really speeds it up. Why cache? Because that's the root of the problem. You probably already know that the cache is like a memory where copies of data are stored to load them more quickly. The trick is that Windows, by default, doesn't trust the Explorer cache enough.And he does it for good reason.

If Windows were to blindly rely on cached copies of data, it could display outdated information. Therefore, prefers to go to the source of these again and again to make sure that no files have been added or deletedThis back and forth ensures data integrity, but sacrifices speed.

So what's the caching trick to speed up File Explorer? It's called "Allow searches in the file system cache", and it's located deep within Windows. To access it, you have to open the Group Policy Editor, something you can only do with an Administrator profile. Let's take a step-by-step look.

Cache trick to speed up Explorer: step by step

What this cache trick does is tell Windows to be more trusting in its use of the Explorer cache. So, instead of doing real-time checks to detect changes, The Explorer will load the information from the cache instantlyOf course, if there have been any changes to the files, these changes will be reflected shortly after.

The Steps to apply this cache trick that really speed up Windows Explorer are:

1. Press Win + R, writes gpedit.msc and press Enter. (See what to do when Cannot find gpedit.msc in Windows 10).
2. In the left panel, expand the route Equipment setup - Administrative Templates - System - File System.
3. Now, in the right pane, double-click on the entry Allow searches in the file system cache.
4. Select option enabled.
5. In the section Options, unfold and choose Force file system cache lookups for all directories.
6. Click Apply and Accept.

And if you want to go further? Advanced Registry Tweaks

The described cache trick is more than enough to speed up File Explorer in Windows 11. But there's still something else you can do to give it a little more speed. It consists of disable automatic detection of folder content types each time they are opened.

Remember: Every time you open Explorer, Windows tries to guess what file types each folder contains. This is time-consuming, especially if you have many folders with many files in different formats. But if you apply this advanced setting, You prevent Windows from scanning each folder every time you open it.. Do it like this:

1. Press Win + R, write regedit and hit Enter.
2. Navigate to this location: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell
3. If the Shell key does not exist, create it.
4. Within shell, creates a new string value called FolderType.
5. Then, assign the value NotSpecified. And that's it!

With this caching trick, Windows will treat all folders as generic, without taking the time to figure out what types of files they contain. You'll notice a significant improvement in the opening time of each folder. However, keep in mind that modifying the registry is dangerous, so It is advisable to create a backup or set a restore pointIf you do this right, Windows 11 won't experience the Explorer bottleneck anymore, and you'll enjoy a truly fluid experience.