How do I disable grouping by file type in the downloads folder

Dengekiko · 20 Jan 2020

Hello everyone! So I recently re installed windows 10 1909 and every time i download a file it goes into a folder based on its file type so lets say i download a .zip file it will go into the main downloads folder then a sub folder called archives where the .zip is located. Same thing happens for exe's they go into a folder called installers. It's really annoying and I was wondering if anyone has a fix for this. Thank you so much!

dmholt57 · 20 Jan 2020

Select View in the ribbon at top and choose None under Group by

Dengekiko · 20 Jan 2020

dmholt57 said:

Select View in the ribbon at top and choose None under Group by

Sadly that is not my problem which is why I posted it.

Image

As you can see date grouping and all other explorer based grouping is off. It's more of a file type grouping. Inside that installer folder is a freshly downloader exe that went there automatically.

Try3 · 20 Jan 2020

I think those subfolders are set by the webpage you are downloading from and Windows cannot do anything about it. You'd also see subfolders created for many downloads from the MS Update catalog and, again, Windows cannot do anything about it [but your subfolder naming seems more consistent than I have seen].

As a test, download the latest NirSoft SearchMyFiles. They are zip files but I think they will go straight into your chosen folder with no subfolders created. If the test fails then please post a screenshot of your downloads folder.

Denis

Bree · 20 Jan 2020

Dengekiko said:

As you can see date grouping and all other explorer based grouping is off. It's more of a file type grouping. Inside that installer folder is a freshly downloader exe that went there automatically.

Where you download to is a choice available in the browser you are using to download, it's not a W10 thing. Which browser do you use? The location of these settings vary by browser. In Firefox, for example, they are in the General settings page: about:preferences#general

Dengekiko · 20 Jan 2020

Try3 said:

I think those subfolders are set by the webpage you are downloading from and Windows cannot do anything about it. You'd also see subfolders created for many downloads from the MS Update catalog and, again, Windows cannot do anything about it.

As a test, download the latest NirSoft SearchMyFiles. They are zip files but I think they will go straight into your chosen folder with no subfolders created.

Denis

So the searchmyfiles.zip went into a sub folder called archives. Was that the intended outcome?

Bree · 20 Jan 2020

Dengekiko said:

So the searchmyfiles.zip went into a sub folder called archives...

Windows 10 would not do this on its own. Do you have any 3rd-party download manager installed?

Dengekiko · 20 Jan 2020

Bree said:

Windows 10 would not do this on its own. Do you have any 3rd-party download manager installed?

I mean i have megasync thats it tho

- - - Updated - - -

I figured it out a had a chrome extension called regex downloader or something like that. Thank you!

Try3 · 20 Jan 2020

Dengekiko said:

So the searchmyfiles.zip went into a sub folder called archives. Was that the intended outcome?

No. I had just downloaded the latest version myself and the NirSoft zip files were saved straight in my downloads folder. I think your result indicates that you have, as Bree suggests, some third-party utility 'helping' you with your downloads and it is that utility that is managing these subfolder creations.

If you cannot remember download management being part of any of your third-party utilities, have a look at Control panel, Programs & features to remind yourself [and post a screenshot of the list if you are really stumped - perhaps Bree or dmholt might spot a name they know.

Dengekiko said:

I figured it out a had a chrome extension called regex downloader or something like that. Thank you!

We posted at the same time. If it does not have an obvious settings item in its menu that you can change then try searching Chrome support & user forums [if they exist] for guidance.

Denis