How to Reset Preview Pane Size to Default in Vista and Windows 7

   Information
The preview pane shows you see the contents of a file, such as image or text files, without having to open it with an app.

You can adjust the width of the preview pane in Windows Explorer by dragging its left border to the left or right for the size you want. This is a global setting that gets applied to all explorer windows in only your user account.

This tutorial will show you how to reset the width size of the preview pane in explorer back to default for your account in Vista and Windows 7.

   Note
The downloadable .reg file below in this tutorial deletes the ReadingPaneSizer binary value in the registry key below to reset the width of the preview pane.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Modules\GlobalSettings\Sizer


EXAMPLE: Preview Pane default width size in Windows Explorer
Preview Pane Size - Reset in Vista and Windows 7-preview_pane_default_size.png



Here's How:

1. Click/tap on the Download button below to download the .reg file below.
Reset_Preview_Pane_width_in_explorer.reg


Download

2. Save the .reg file to your desktop.

3. Double click/tap on the downloaded .reg file to merge it.

4. If prompted, click/tap on Run, Yes (UAC), Yes, and OK to approve the merge.

5. If you currently have Windows Explorer open, then close and reopen it to apply.

6. You will need to turn on the preview pane again since resetting the size turns it off.

7. If you like, you can delete the downloaded .reg file if you like.



That's it,
Shawn




Related Tutorials