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How to see hidden files and extensions in Windows

By Codrut Nistor

Posted in How-to

Seeing hidden files in Windows might help you in different situations such as deleting temporary files or if needed hiding different folders of yours. Hidden doesn't mean they are stocked on external servers they are still in your computer. If you have a 10GB folder and hide it it will still be counted as on the hard disk but no one will be able to see it until they activate an option from the Folder Options window. First step is going to Control Panel. You can access it from the start bar. You have to choose Folder Options.

Then you fo to the View tab and search for Hidden files and folders. You have to tick the Show hidden files folders and drives and now you can see every hidden file on your computer.

Right from the same spot you can make each file types showing their extensions by unticking Hide extensions for known file type. If this is ticket the only extensions you will see are the ones unknown but you won't have many of those. You can use this second option to see extensions and to modify them if needed. I once had a program which ripped music and made it smaller for it to have enough place on my mobile phone. But the program changed the music and the extension as well to some strange one. Then I could just untick this option and modify the extension to .mp3 by myself and the music worked.