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Changes to the size, view, icon or position of a folder are lost

Article ID: 813711 - View products that this article applies to.

SYMPTOMS

The changes to the size, view, icon or position of a folder are lost on a computer that is running Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7.

For example, you may experience one or more of the following issues:

Microsoft Windows does not remember the View settings for a folder when you reopen the folder.

Note The View settings include Thumbnails, Tiles, Icons, List, Details, and so on.
Windows does not remember the size or the position of a folder window when you reopen the folder.
An incorrect thumbnail image is displayed for a folder.
The thumbnail image does not appear for a folder.

Note This issue may occur in Windows XP or in Windows Vista even if you select the Remember each folder's view settings check box under the Advanced settings menu on the View tab of Folder Options in Control Panel.

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CAUSE

This issue occurs because the registry settings for folder options are incorrect.

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RESOLUTION

Diagnose and fix the problem automatically

The Diagnose and repair Windows File and Folder Problems automatically troubleshooter may automatically fix the problem described in this article.
This troubleshooter fixes many problems.Learn moreRun now

Fix the problem manually

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

322756

(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322756/ )

How to back up and restore the registry in Windows

To fix this problem, reset the registry settings for folders. To do this, follow the appropriate steps for your operating system:

Windows XP

Delete the following registry subkeys:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\BagMRU
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\Bags
Re-create the following registry subkeys:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam
Create and then set the BagMRU Size registry value to 5000 in the registry subkeys that you created in Step 2.

Windows Vista or Windows 7

Delete the following registry subkeys:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\Bags
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\BagMRU
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
For x64-based versions of Windows Vista or Windows 7, delete the following registry subkeys:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Wow6432Node\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Wow6432Node\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
Re-create the following registry subkeys:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
For x64-based versions of Windows Vista or Windows 7, re-create the following registry subkeys:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Wow6432Node\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Wow6432Node\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
Create and then set the BagMRU Size registry value to 5000 in the registry subkeys that you created in Step 2.

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MORE INFORMATION

How the MATS package works to fix this problem

The MATS package scans your computer and detects if the computer is running Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7.

If the computer is running Windows XP, the MATS package verifies that one of the following conditions is true:
- The BagMRU Size registry value in the following registry subkey does not exist or is less than 5000:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell
- The highest subkey number in the following registry subkey is greater than 20% of the BagMRU Size registry value:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\Bags
  
  Note During this process, a dialog box appears. This dialog box gives you the option to fix the issue automatically (this is the recommended option) or to manually select individual issues to fix. If you manually select individual issues to fix, you have to select the Icon and folder customizations or the Others or I don’t know option from the dialog box.
If the computer is running Windows Vista or Windows 7, the MATS package verifies that one of the following conditions is true:
- The NoSaveSettings registry value in the following registry subkey does not equal to 1:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
  Additionally, the BagMRU Size registry value in the following registry subkey does not exist or is less than 5000:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
- The highest subkey number in the following registry subkey is greater than 20% of the BagMRU Size registry value:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
  
  Note During this process, a dialog box appears. This dialog box gives you the option to fix the issue automatically (This is the recommended option) or to manually select individual issues to fix. If you manually select individual issues to fix, yot have to select the Icon and folder customizations or the Others or I don’t know option from the dialog box.
The MATS package verifies that registry settings and the customizations for folders are reset correctly.