Windows Explorer Auto Arrange - Disable

How to Disable Auto Arrange in Windows 7 Explorer to have Free Sorting​

   Information

In Windows 7, auto arrange is enabled by default so that all file and folder names in Windows Explorer are sorted alphabetically no matter what folder view you used.

This is basically like having how you can arrange icons how you like on your desktop in every folder in Windows Explorer now.

This will show you how to disable Auto Arrange in Windows 7 to be able to sort your files and folders in any random order and position you like in each opened folder in Windows Explorer and in the Pin to Start Menu area at the top of the Start Menu without it having to be sorted alphabetically by name. Windows 7 will also remember these random folder sortings (order and position), and open as how they were when the folder window was last closed.

   Note

When You Disable Auto Arrange:

• While using Extra Large Icons, Large Icons, Medium Icons, Small Icons, and Extended Tiles folder views, you can arrange files/folders in any random order and position.
• While using Details folder view, you can only arrange files/folders in any order and not in any random position.
• While using Extra Large Icons, Large Icons, Medium Icons, Small Icons, and Extended Tiles folder views, you can click on View (Menu bar) and check Auto arrange to have the black indicator line back inbetween files/folders when arranging files/folders in any order. This turns off the ability to arrange files/folders by random positions though.
• While using Extra Large Icons, Large Icons, Medium Icons, Small Icons, and Extended Tiles folder views, you can click on View (Menu bar) and uncheck Auto arrange to be able to arrange files/folders in any order and random positions.
• The Auto arrange and Align to grid options can be turned on and off at will in the View (Menu bar and right click context menu) when available (not grayed out) while using Extra Large Icons, Large Icons, Medium Icons, Small Icons, or Extended Tiles folder views.
• If you have items arranged by random positions and switch from a Extra Large Icons, Large Icons, Medium Icons, Small Icons, and Extended Tiles folder view to a List, Details, Extended Tiles, or Content folder view, the random positions will be reset but still placed in a order of arrangement instead.
• If you unzip a file in a folder, move a folder, or rename a folder, it will refresh and auto arrange the files in that specific folder only after each time you do this. Auto arrange is still disabled for that folder, but you will need to arrange the files back to whatever non-auto arranged order you like again after unzipping a file in a folder, move a folder, or rename a folder.

   Warning

DO NOT USE this tutorial in any other OS than Windows 7.

• While this tutorial will allow you to disable auto arrange in the main Libraries folder itself, it will not disable auto arrange in any of the other library folders (ex: Documents, Music, Pictures, Videos).
• Free sorting is not available if you use "Group by" folder views instead of only "Sort by" folder views.
• Free sorting is not available in the List and Content folder views.
• When you disable Auto Arrange, you will have Extend Tiles folder view instead of Tiles available in all folders except the Computer windows.

EXAMPLE: Auto Arrange Enabled and Disabled
NOTE: Notice in the screenshot with Auto Arrange disabled, the files can be dragged around the Windows Explorer window to sort how you like without having to be in alphabetical order.

OPTION ONE

To Disable Auto Arrange in Windows 7 Windows Explorer

   Warning

It is also recommended to create a restore point before doing this option in case you would like to undo any unwanted unknown side affects that OPTION TWO may not undo. This way, you could also do a system restore with this restore point to undo this option completely.

1. Click on the Download button below to download the BAT file below.
Disable_Windows_7_Explorer_Auto_Arrange.bat

Download


2. Save the .bat file to your desktop.

3. Close everything that you have running first, then run the downloaded .bat file.

4. If prompted, click on Run.
NOTE: If you like, you can stop getting the Run prompt by unblocking the downloaded .bat file.

5. You will now notice your screen flicker and a command prompt open as the explorer process is restarted.

6. Let the command prompt count down to finish on it's own without pressing a key.

7. When it's finished, you will see the Computer window open.

8. Auto arrange in Windows Explorer is now disabled.

OPTION TWO

To Enable Auto Arrange in Windows 7 Windows Explorer

NOTE: This is the default setting.
1. Click on the Download button below to download the BAT file below.
Enable_Windows_7_Explorer_Auto_Arrange.bat

Download


2. Save the .bat file to your desktop.

3. Close all opened explorer windows first, then run the downloaded .bat file.

4. If prompted, click on Run.
NOTE: If you like, you can stop getting the Run prompt by unblocking the downloaded .bat file.

5. You will now notice your screen flicker and a command prompt open as the explorer process is restarted.

6. When it's finished, you will see the Computer window open.

7. Auto arrange in Windows Explorer is now enabled again.
That's it,
Shawn

Related Tutorials

---

• How to Back Up and Restore Your Folder View Settings in Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8
• How to Disable Auto Arrange in Vista Windows Explorer to have Free Sorting
• Make Windows 7 Start Menu User Folder Buttons Open to Users Instead of Libraries Location
• How to Enable or Disable Numerical Sorting in Windows Explorer
• How to Reset All Folder View Settings to Default in Windows 7
• How to Reset the Folder View Settings for All Folders with Same Folder Template in Windows 7
• "Apply to Folders" a Specific Folder View to All Folders with Same Folder Template in Windows 7
• How to Change a Folder Template in Windows 7
• How to Set a Default Folder Template for All Folders in Windows 7
• How to Change the File and Folder View Arrangement in Windows 7 Explorer
• How to Change the Icon Size in a Windows 7 Explorer Window
• How to Change the Group by, Sort by, and Arrange by Folder View in Windows 7 Explorer
• How to Set a Default Folder View for All Folders in Windows 7
• How to Add or Remove Windows Explorer Columns
• How to Change the Width of Columns in Windows Explorer
• How to Enable or Disable Start Menu Auto Arrange by Name in Vista and Windows 7
• How to Arrange Folders Included in a Library in Any Order in Windows 7 and Windows 8

 

[magicmanbarot]

Thanks ill give it a go, but yeh your screenshot posted above is exactly what im after.

 

[magicmanbarot]

Nope still no luck. I cant find any option or website that knows how to fix the problem.

 

[rob4hello]

Somehow i managed to do this with How to Disable Full Row Select in Explorer in Windows 7? - The Winhelponline Blog theres a file there to download and I also had this download described in this page. So the link above does it but it removes tiles and replaces them with extended tiles... i only noticed when in "computer" in explorer).. it didnt the hard drive size. just labed as (small pic and c drive) without the animation usually on the bottom. Anyways, I removed the bags"" from the link""" and added the bags"" on this page download. Now it works and it shows the free space tile view in computer!.. But the moving of files works best opening drive c: users and files there!.. Library and favorites dont work well.. but it works! name of the file in link is w7-fullrowsel.zip.

 

[RezaKoochooloo]

Guys, you solution screwed my list view. I Ran the batch file and now columns in list view are fixed to a default width and no longer according to the longest file name on that column. Then, I ran "Enable_Windows_7_Explorer_Auto_Arrange.bat" hoping it'll be back to its previous setting, but my list view is still screwed over. Can someone help me? Here's a shot:

 

[Brink]

Hello Reza, and welcome to Eight Forums.

You'll need to first select "Details" or "Small icons" view, then directly to "List" view to not have the space. It's the same whether you used this tutorial or not. I don't know why it works like that, but that's how it is.

 

[RezaKoochooloo]

Hi, Brink. I did that and my list view is still screwed. Here are two more shot to illustrate what I'm talking about. The first one is from my computer which I ran the solution presented in this topic, and the other one from a another computer.

As you can see, my list view behaves completely different. When I hover my mouse over the free space in front of the "folder.jpg" file for example, it behaves like this:

It should not behave like that. And it never did, until I applied the bat file presented here. It's really annoying, coz the free space is interactive. Especially when I'm working in folders that has lost of files. Please, help me. I just wanted to get rid of the goddamn "auto-sort" whenever I unzip a zip file.

 

[Brink]

It all looks perfectly normal to me. The only difference is that the highlight shows all the way across the width instead now, but the width is still the same.

The width of all columns in list view is defined by the longest file name.

Look in your screenshots at the file with the longest name. You will see that the width of all columns in the list is the same width as the file with the longest name.

 

[RezaKoochooloo]

Brink, the free space is interactive. It was not before this solution.

The width of all columns in list view is defined by the longest file name.

And no, look at the first shot. And here's another:

I had the mouse far from the file and it still behaves like I had the mouse on the file. And as you can see the column width is way larger than the length of the longest file name in that specific column. Please, can you tell me what exactly that bat file did, so, I can undo it. I don't want to install a fresh copy of windows for this. God, no...

 

[Brink]

Sorry, but if you look on the right column in your screenshot below, you'll notice the width of the file name that I boxed in red is what defined the width of all columns including the left one.

If it's different on the other computer, then please post comparison screenshots of the same folder and files from both computers.

 

[RezaKoochooloo]

As I told you before the width of a column used to be as long as the length of the longest file name in that specific column. And here are two shots:

 

[Brink]

Ok. Thank you. I couldn't confirm what you said since none of your screenshots before were comparing the same folders and files until now. Telling and showing is two different things.

As a test, use the tutorial below to reset folder views to default to see if that may help.
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/15692-folder-view-settings-reset-all-default.html
If not, then you could also do a system restore using a restore point (if available) dated before you applied the .bat files here to go back to that state.

 

[RezaKoochooloo]

It worked!!! Resetting all to default worked!!! Ha ha ha. Thank you, man. You saved my a$$. I'm so freaking happy. Especially because I've disabled system restore. Ha ha ha...

 

[Brink]

You're most welcome. That's great news.

The Enable_Windows_7_Explorer_Auto_Arrange .bat and Windows_7_Reset_All_Folders_To_Default_Folder_Views.bat files are identical and do the same thing, so I'm not sure why it didn't work for you before unless you may have made some little mistake prior or just needed to run it twice.

 

[rob4hello]

The information i wrote before didnt work .. sorie..
The link below and .

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/92758-windows-explorer-auto-arrange-disable.html

download and save then run. make sure the auto arrange option from right click view is checked

 

[Brink]

Hello Rob,

I'm sorry, but I'm not quite sure what this is suppose to be for?

In your previous post, you mention "Tiles" vs "Extended Tiles", but it still shows "Extended Tiles" in your video. It appears to being able to use "Disable Full Row Select" along with "Disable Auto Arrange".

Could you give more details about what it's for to be sure?

 

[rob4hello]

No problem.. just that I was having trouble with the computer view. The Disable Auto Arrange shows Tiles and the w7full row select doesnt have the tiles view,, only extended tiles,, making the computer drive view weird looking... I was having trouble ,, by not having the auto arrange option checked after the download,, they were overlapping and thought something was wrong with the Hkeys,..i observed the difference of Hkeys between the two downloads and totally wasted my time exporting and mixing the bagMRU and the bag files.. Trying to find the code of the tile" view from one. But the Disable Auto arrange was the winner,, I just didnt notice quick enough.... thought i messed my computer up with the download. So i made a video for youtube.. Im a fan of vista explorer.. cooool ty Brink

 

[Brink]

Yeah, I haven't found a way to keep "Tiles" view for all folder views either yet.

Luckily, it has "Tiles" view instead of "Extended Tiles" available in Windows 8 though.

 

[Imold]

I figured out how disable auto arrange and Tiles/Extended Tiles works.
It's all controlled by the FFlags dword value. It works like this (41000011=Tiles veiw) (43000001=Auto arrange [ON] Align to grid[OFF]) (43000004=Auto arrange [OFF] Align to grid[ON]) (43000005=Auto arrange & Align to grid [ON]).
If you know a folders number in the registry you can pick if you want to disable auto arrange or have Tiles view. (If you want to know the folder number I can't help you)
To trade Tiles view for disable auto arrange in all folders but computer save these files to the desktop View attachment Disable_Auto_Arrange.reg View attachment restart_explorer.bat run Disable_Auto_Arrange.reg then run restart_explorer.bat. The computer folder will open, close it. You'er done. You may need to reassign the correct folder templates to your folders. Only computer will have Tiles view, auto arrange can be disabled everywhere else.

 

[rfws2001]

To Brink: I have just registered to ask a question in the Software forum, but I want to take the opportunity to thank you for this. The inability to arrange files manually in Windows 7 sickened me! It is as though Microsoft took pleasure in doing indefensible things just to annoy their customers. By itself it turned Windows 7 from a good OS into a mediocre OS.

I've downloaded your fix today and, fingers crossed, so far it seems to be working. So thank you very much. If this stays good, it will be a massive help to me.

 

[Brink]

You're most welcome rfws, and welcome to Seven Forums. I'm happy to hear it's helped you to enjoy your Windows 7 more.