How to fix Windows 10 not showing thumbnails

Fix Windows 10 not showing thumbnails

Windows 10 displays thumbnails for all files by default. This isn’t a feature that you have to enable; however, the Windows 10 not showing thumbnails from time to time. This can happen after installing a Windows update or after customizing Windows 10 with themes, skins, or apps. Try the solutions listed below.

Related: How to fix Potentially unwanted app found on Windows 10

1.  Enable thumbnails

It’s possible that thumbnails on your Windows 10 system have been disabled, and all you have to do now is enable them again.

1. Open File Explorer.
2. Go to the View tab.
3. Click Options.
4. Select ‘Change folder and search options’.
5. In the window that opens, go to the View tab.
6. Uncheck the ‘Always show icons, never thumbnails’ option.
7. Click Apply.

2. Clear thumbnail cache

Windows 10 may have trouble generating thumbnails for files if the thumbnail cache is corrupted or has grown too large. The issue will be resolved by clearing it.

1. Open File Explorer.
2. Enter the following in the location bar, and tap Enter.

%LocalAppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer

3. Delete the files with the .db file extension.
4. Restart the system, and the thumbnails should start showing.

3. Add thumbnail support

There could be two reasons why thumbnails don’t appear for a specific file type. It’s possible that the file doesn’t have a default app assigned to it, or that File Explorer doesn’t support thumbnails for it like it does for PNGs.

To make the file type’s default app:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Go to the Apps group of settings.
3. Go to the Default Apps tab.
4. Click ‘Choose default apps by file type’.
5. Scroll through the list of file extensions, and click the plus button next to the file type that does not have a thumbnail.
6. Select an app that will open it.

You’ll need to find and install a File Explorer extension that can add thumbnail previews for the file if you want them.

4. Change folder view

If you change the folder view, thumbnails for specific files may appear.

1. Open File Explorer and navigate to the folder with the file(s) that do not have a thumbnail.
2. Go to the View tab.
3. In the Layout box, select a different view e.g., Large or Extra large icons.

Conclusion

Thumbnails aren’t commonly a source of frustration for users; they’re a simple UI element that makes it easier to browse files, and because they’re not a complicated feature, any issues with them are simple to resolve.