Windows 10: Quick Access layout changed; no longer separating folders and recent files

Not sure if an update or some ui/ux "improvement" broke it, but i have been annoyed by this for several days. First screenshot found online shows the old layout, with pinned folders and recent files separate into two sections. Second screenshot is my current Quick Access folder, with recent opened files shown between system folders and my pinned folders, messy as hell. Is there any way I can revert to the old layout style? I have checked folder options. Turn it on/off, clear file explorer history and restore defaults all does nothing.

:)

 

Recent folders / frequent folders / recent files / quick access

Ok, this is driving me mad.

Until recently there was a fantastic feature in Windows called Recent Places (or something like that). It's no longer available and this must cost me 5 minutes per hour (for which I will invoice Microsoft.)

Now there is the Quick Access menu, which performs a somewhat similar function, but very, very poorly.

Here's what was good about the Recent Places:

• As soon as I used a folder, it was available in recent places
• As soon as I used a FILE, it was available in recent places
• Recent Places was always available - in searches, in context menus and in Save As
• When I was working in three different applications (say, creating a graph in Excel, image-editing it in Illustrator then dropping it into PowerPoint) I was instantly able to access the place I had saved it in each application, because saving the Excel file
  triggered that folder to appear in Recent Places.
• I could also open a file in a different application (save it in Gimp and then open it in Photoshop) by finding the file in the recent places folder.

Here's what doesn't work about the Quick Access menu

• It does not automatically add the folder to the window until it has been used a certain number of times.
• This is hopeless, because if I need to access the folder, say, 5 times between my three applications, then by the time the folder is in Quick Access I NO LONGER NEED IT! I need the same folder immediately after I have used it, not 25 minutes later when
  the system realises "hey - you seem to use that folder a lot".
• It does not keep files - only folders.

What I want to happen

• 10 out of 10 solution: I want the old system back.
• 9 out of 10 solution: Quick Access tracks files and folders and immediately adds them when saved
• 8 out of 10 as a workaround. Even if files can't get to Quick Access, it would be great to be able to tweak the algorithm that gets a
  folder into the Quick Access location. The sensitivity for getting a folder into Quick Access should be settable, even with just two settings: "place folders in Quick Access immediately when used" and "Place folders in Quick access when used
  often."

Please please please return this functionality. It was a major, major timesaver, particularly when working at the end of a long folder path.

 

Recent folders / frequent folders / recent files / quick access

Hi,



Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.



I understand your query related to accessing recent items that you have accessed on your PC.



Usually, when you access a file or folder on your PC it shows in the Quick Access menu as recent files.



However, if you are looking for the most recent files that you have accessed from the PC then the simplest way is to access the recent items using the run command.

1. Press Windows key + R. This will open
   Run. Alternatively, you can go to Start and search for
   Run.
   
2. In Run dialog box, type
   shell:recent and hit Enter.
   

This will open a window with all the recent items that you have accessed. You can also pin this folder in the Quick Access menu so that it will be easier for you to access once again.



Kindly follow the steps to pin the recent items on the Quick Access menu.

1. Right click on the Quick Access menu on the left hand pane.
   
2. Select Pin current folder to Quick access.
   

Once you pin the folder you should be able to access the recent items. Refer the screenshot for more information.





Regards,

Prakhar Khare

Microsoft Community – Moderator

 

Win 10 Quick Access mixes frequent folders and recent files


Hello,

I've learned to like the "Quick Access" feature of Win 10. Recently it has shown a strange trait. That is, instead of listing my "frequent folders" in a list in a pane at the top of the window and "recent files" in a pane at the bottom at the bottom of the window (in a separate pane), both "frequent folders" and "recent files" show up on the same detail list (in a single pane).

Likewise, the entries are all sorted by name instead of (recent) date, as I would like.

See image:




Here is a sample (imaged grabbed from Internet) of how it should look. ("Recent folders" in a separate pane at the top and "recent files" at the bottom. This is how I want my Quick Access window to look again.





How can I get Quick access to once again separate the "recent folders" from the "recent files"... and make them sort by "most recent date first"?

By the way, I tried "restore defaults" but that was to no avail.

Thanks!

cbi