How to disable Windows Thumbs.db files from being created

If you want to disable Windows Thumbs.db files from being created on Windows 11/10, here is how you can do that. It is possible to prevent this particular file from being created with the help of the Local Group Policy Editor and the Registry Editor.

Thumbs.db files get created in your computer when you view a folder in thumbnail view. It helps you store the thumbnail so that you can view files without delay in the future. The problem with this system is that Windows keeps those files in your computer even if you switch to other viewing modes. If you do not want Windows to create the Thumbs.db files, here is how you can prevent that.

Disable Windows Thumbs.db files from being created

To disable Windows Thumbs.db files from being created using Group Policy Editor, follow these steps:

1. Press Win+R to open the Run prompt.
2. Type gpedit.msc and click the OK button.
3. Navigate to File Explorer in User Configuration.
4. Double-click on the Turn off the caching of thumbnails in hidden thumbs.db files setting.
5. Select the Enabled option.
6. Click the OK button.

To learn more about these steps, continue reading.

To get started, you must open the Local Group Policy Editor on your computer. For that, press Win+R to display the Run prompt, type gpedit.msc, and click the OK button.

Once it is opened, navigate to the following path:

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > File Explorer

Here you can find a setting called Turn off the caching of thumbnails in hidden thumbs.db files on the right-hand side. You need to double-click on it and select the Enabled option.

Click the OK button to save the change.

However, if you want to allow Windows to create the Thumbs.db files in your computer, you need to open the same setting and choose either the Not Configured or Disabled option.

Note: You can also open the Turn off the display of thumbnails and only display icons setting and choose the Enabled option.

Stop or prevent Windows Thumbs.db files from being created

To stop or prevent Windows Thumbs.db files from being created using Registry Editor, follow these steps:

1. Search for regedit and click the individual search result.
2. Click the Yes option in the UAC prompt.
3. Navigate to Windows in HKCU.
4. Right-click on Windows > New > Keyand name it Explorer.
5. Right-click on Explorer > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
6. Set the name as DisableThumbsDBOnNetworkFolders.
7. Double-click on it to set the Value data as 1.
8. Click the OK button.
9. Restart your computer.

First, you need to open the Registry Editor. To do that, you can search for regedit in the Taskbar search box, click on the individual search result, and click the Yes button in the UAC prompt.

Then, navigate to the following path:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows

Right-click on Windows > New > Key and name it Explorer.

Then, right-click on Explorer, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and set the name as DisableThumbsDBOnNetworkFolders.

You need to double-click on it and set the Value data as 1.

Then, click the OK button to save the change and restart your computer. However, if you want to revert this change, you can delete the REG_DWORD value. For that, right-click on DisableThumbsDBOnNetworkFolders, select the Delete option and click the Yes button.

How to delete Thumbs.db files from Windows 11/10

If you want to delete Thumbs.db files from your computer, you can use any junk cleaner like the Disk Cleanup Tool, CCleaner – or the Free Thumbs.db Remover tool. It is freeware and lets you remove all the Thumbs.db files as per your requirements. To use it, download and install the app first. Then, you can choose the drive and click the Scan button.

Once it finds all the files, you can click on each of them and select the Delete button. However, if it doesn’t display any such file, it implies that your computer has not generated any Thumbs.db file as of now. In that case, there is no need to delete anything from your system.

This app comes with some settings or options as well. For example, you can delete Thumbs.db files permanently or temporarily. For that, you need to check the Permanently delete files checkbox. Other than that, you can find these options:

• Reduce memory usage while scanning
• Notify me when a new version is available
• Play a sound when done

You can find all these options in the Settings tab. If you like, you can download it from dvdavitools.com.

Read: How to delete Thumbs.db Files in Network folder in Windows

How do I stop Windows from creating thumbs.db files?

There are mainly two ways to stop Windows from creating thumbs.db files and both methods are mentioned in this article. You can open the Local Group Policy Editor and double-click on the Turn off the caching of thumbnails in hidden thumbs.db files setting. Then, choose the Enabled option and click the OK button.

How do I disable thumbs.db file generation on network folders?

To disable thumbs.db file generation on network folders, you can use the Registry Editor method. For that, navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows in the Registry Editor and create a key named Explorer. Then, create a REG_DWORD value named DisableThumbsDBOnNetworkFolders and set the Value data as 1.

That’s all! Hope this guide helped.