I have discussed in detail how you can use Tags in Windows to enhance your search. One of the basic problems with Windows Tags is that it is not available for every type of files. In this post, we will learn How to Enable Tags for unsupported files in Windows 11/10 formats using File Meta Association Manager.
What is interesting to know is that Windows supports tags for every file type, internally. Say for example if you create a PDF file from Word, the PDF file will have the same set of tags as the word document. It will not be visible in the properties section of that PDF file, but when you search for those tags, the PDF file appears in search results.
Enable Tags for Unsupported files in Windows 11/10
File Meta Association helps you make those TAGS visible in the Properties section for any file. The tool might look a little complex, but it’s fairly simple once you know how to use it. You can download the file from here and then look at the image of how to use it. I have numbered the steps for you.
- Select “Simple” profile from the drop-down.
- Then find, and select the extension for which you want to enable tags. (PDF is the example above).
- Next click on Enable File Meta handler.
- The extension will become bold.
Once done, when you get into details tab of the file, it will let you add tags. See the image below:
Advanced Usage:
The software lets you create custom profiles. Here you can create new properties by using properties from different files types or want to copy a complete set of properties. This comes in handy only for specific requirements, and I will suggest only to use it when you really need it.
Why didn’t Microsoft enable it for all?
It is such a powerful way to find files, the question why Microsoft didn’t enable it is very obvious. According to the developer of this software, these tags are lost when files are moved between different types of file systems. In simple words, if you move between NTFS and FAT, these properties will be lost. If you stay on in the same file system, then the tags stay, else you will lose them.
File Meta Association free download
To counter this problem, File Meta Association does help exporting, the properties of files, and then reapply to the original file. You can use it if you are going to move between the file system. You can download the software from Github.
How do I enable Windows tags?
As Windows doesn’t have an in-built option to tag files, you need to take the help of third-party apps. File Meta Association Manager is one of the best options that you can download for Windows 11, Windows 10, or any other older versions. Whether you want to tag files, folders, or anything else, you can make use of File Meta Association Manager.
How do I add tags to Windows files?
To add tags to Windows files, you can utilize the app named File Meta Association Manager. It is an open-source application that is compatible with Windows 11, Windows 10, and some other older versions. You can download the app from GitHub and install it on your PC. Following that, you need to allow the app to access your files and folders. Next, you can set things up according to your requirements.
Great contribution. I finally could add properties to txt files. Many thanks and nice work.
Hi, this worked fine for me for pdfs, but after I added file meta handler for png and then msg Outlook email files, my Windows 10 File Explorer started crashing (ie window just closes automatically) when I tried to view tags or change tags in new folders. The folders I had already set tags for were OK.
Ie for new folder, setting view tags at top of File Explorer crashed it, or selecting a file or files then clicking details tab crashed it, is this a known issue or any tips? I downloaded 30/10/18 version
I work in a shared file server environment. I downloaded and tested the file meta association app on a stand-alone computer and it worked as described. I do have a couple of questions:
1. Will the file meta association app work on a file server? If so, can it only be applied once to the file structure on the server (say, by an Admin user) so that all other users will be able to see and use the tags?
2. On my standalone system, I tried using multiple tags but the “group by” view option failed to sort accordingly. With only one tag, no problem. Are multiple tags allowed?
Also don’t forget to enable “Details pane” under View tab of the Windows Explorer for easy one click tagging and Batch tags (eg. by selecting multiple files and applying tags at once).