6 Easy Fixes to Files or Folders on Desktop Not Opening

Why can’t I open documents on my desktop?

Files on desktop not opening! Why can’t I open files/folders on my computer? There are some common reasons, such as incorrect mouse settings or desktop display settings, virus affection, mouse’s hardware failure, system file issues, etc.

How to fix the issue of files or folders on desktop not opening

Fix 1. Change incorrect mouse settings

When it comes to reasons, incorrect settings usually are the root of many issues. If your file folder won’t open, it’s necessary for you to check the settings of the mouse first.

Step 1. Press “Win + E” to open Windows File Explorer and select a folder at random.

Step 2. Under the “View” tab, click the “Folder Options” button.

Step 3. In the Folder Options window, click General > Double-click to open an item (single-click to select) > OK.

Please pay attention that this option will modify the mouse usage habits and take some minutes/hours to get used to.

Fix 2. Adjust Double-click speed of the mouse

Why can’t I open files on my computer? The Windows operating system may not recognize the speed of the mouse if you never correctly set the mouse speed. Please refer to these steps to adjust it.

Step 1. Type “Mouse settings” in the search bar on your PC and hit “Enter” to open it.

Step 2. Go to Mouse Settings and click the “Addition mouse options” at the bottom.

Step 3. In the Mouse Properties window, locate the “Double-click speed“ section. Then adjust the indicator at a fast speed. Please click “OK” to close the window.

Try to open your desktop files/folders with your mouse. If your selected files on the desktop still not opening, please try the next solution.

Fix 3. Check the Registry entries 

If you fail to open the desktop icons, it may be some keys have been altered in the Login Profile. To resolve the aforementioned issue, you need to modify the Login Profile.

Step 1. Type “Regedit” in the search bar and hit “Enter” to open it.

Step 2. Go to the Regedit Editor window and locate HKEY-CURRENT-USER\Control Panel\Mouse in the left panel.

Step 3. Find “DoubleClickHeight” and “DoubleClickWidth” on the right. Doubel-click them and change the data value to 4. 

Fix 4. Run system file checker

One possible reason for files or folders on desktop not opening is related to your system files. You can try system file checker or DISM utility to find and replace corrupted system files.

Step 1. Type “cmd“ in the search box and select “Run as administrator“.

Step 2. Type “sfc /scannow“ in the command prompt window and press “Enter“ to scan for corrupted system files and replace them.

Fix 5. Perform a clean boot

Sometimes, third-party software or services may interfere with your desktop. You can attempt to boot Windows with only essential services and drivers. Here's how:

Step 1. Press "Win + R" and type "msconfig" in the Run box. Press "Enter" to continue.

Step 2. In the System Configuration window, go to the "Services" tab and check the "Hide all Microsoft services" box. Then click "Disable All".

Step 3. Go to the "Startup" tab and click on "Open Task Manager". 

Step 4. In Task Manager, right-click on each entry of the startup item and select "Disable".

Step 5. After disabling all startup items, close Task Manager and go back to the System Configuration window. Click "OK" and restart your computer.

After the reboot, check if the issue is resolved. If it is, you can gradually enable services and startup items to identify the culprit.

Fix 6. Files/folders are encrypted

Sometimes, your files/folders on desktop not opening because they’re encrypted. In this case, you need to decrypt your desktop files/folders if you have certifications.

Step 1. Right-click on your selected desktop file/folder and select the “Properties” option.

Step 2. Under the General tab, click the “Advanced” button.

Step 3. Don’t tick the “Encrypt contents to secure data” button. Please remember to click the “OK” button.

Bonus tips: Recover deleted files/folders from desktop

In addition, users may delete files on desktops but find they are still useful. Or experience data loss due to virus infection, disk formatting, Windows Updates, etc. Generally speaking, after the first deletion, you can go to the Recycle Bin to recover recently deleted files. 

However, it becomes useless if the files are permanently deleted. In this case, the most efficient solution is to recover them using professional data recovery software like MyRecover.

Download MyRecover and perform desktop data recovery quickly on your Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, or Windows Server computers.

Step 1. After running this software on your Windows PC. Hover the mouse over the drive and click Scan to scan.

Step 2. It will automatically run Quick Scan & Deep Scan methods to find all the recoverable data. You can choose to search, e.g. Type file or folder name, file extension in the search box or use the filter feature to lock data type, or wait to see all the deleted and other missing files as you need.

Step 3. You can then select the deleted or lost files and click “Recover x files” to restore your desktop files. Or go to the original path by expanding the Deleted Files/Recycle Bin/Other Missing Files folder. Please remember to save these recovered files in a new location.

Relevant Q & A about Recycle Bin and desktop files