Share via

Pictures Folder Redirects to Documents Folder

Anonymous
2022-09-08T20:41:26+00:00

My Pictures folder redirects to my Documents folder and I'm unable to separate them--changing location for one affects the other (see screenshot).

Restoring the default path for my Documents changed the Pictures folder to the same path (see below):

Original Documents folder:

Duplicate Documents folder (Pictures)

Changing the path of "Pictures" folder to "C:\Users\drmar\Pictures" results in the following dialog:

So essentially, my Pictures folder is no longer accessible. How do I restore the link to my pictures folder?

The registry currently has these shell folder settings:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Files, folders, and storage

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments

4 answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2022-09-12T01:44:34+00:00

    May I ask what is the status of your question?If the problem persists, please feel free to let me know.

    *Let us know if you got the help you needed by clicking Yes or No.

    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2022-09-09T16:13:34+00:00

    That worked!! Many thanks.

    0 comments
  3. Ramesh 176K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2022-09-09T02:33:37+00:00

    Try the suggestion from Manson. Removing those two values should resolve the issue.

    See also: Accidentally Merged Music, Pictures, Videos, or Downloads Folders

    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2022-09-09T02:27:43+00:00

    Hi Mark Zinn,

    Welcome to Microsoft Community.

    In the Folder Redirection window you can click "Yes" to replace the "Documents" Folder with pictures. To prevent losing files, you can backup the files in the original "pictures" folder to a different path and click "Yes" to see if they are restored.

    In addition, I compared the registry key values you provided and found that in Figure 2 there are two paths that point to the key values of Documents, which may be the cause of the problem. I suggest you delete these two keys and restart your computer to see the effect.

    Disclaimer: Generally, modifying registry subkeys or work group is intended for advanced users, administrators, and IT Professionals. It can help fix some problems, however, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For further 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 here to view the article.

    Please feel free to let me know if you got any further updates, thanks.

    Best Regards,

    Manson - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

    0 comments