How can I prevent the scroll bar on the right in "Pictures" on File Explorer from jumping back to the top?

Dear Joe Morgan

Thank you for reaching out. I'm Haien from Q&A Forum. Welcome to Microsoft Q&A Forum.

You've described a classic and incredibly frustrating File Explorer behavior where the scroll bar jumps back to the top, often accompanied by flickering, making it difficult to select files. This issue, especially in the "Pictures" folder, frequently points to specific underlying problems. To help you further, please allow me to ask a few questions to provide to you suitable solutions:

• The “file name” bar at the bottom could be the icon on the taskbar?

• Did you install any Windows updates, third-party software (e.g., OneDrive, image editors), or driver updates around mid-June 2025 when this started?

• Have you tried a new user account, and did the problem persist?

Here are some effective ways that you can try to fix the camera's problem:

Solution 1: Reset Folder Views and Optimize Folder for Pictures

Reset Folder Views:

• Open File Explorer and navigate to any folder (not necessarily Pictures). >View" tab at the top, then "Options" (far right). > "Folder Options" window > "View" tab. > "Reset Folders. > Click "Yes" to confirm > Click OK.

• Navigate to your "Pictures" folder. > Right-click on an empty space within the "Pictures" folder > select "Properties." > Go to the "Customize" tab. > "Optimize this folder for:", ensure "Pictures" is selected in the dropdown menu. > Check the box "Also apply this template to all subfolders." > Click "Apply" > "OK."

Solution 2: Check Disk for Errors

• Open File Explorer. > "This PC." > Right-click on the drive where your "Pictures" folder is located (usually C:) > Select "Properties." > Go to the "Tools" tab. > Under "Error checking," > click "Check." > Click "Scan drive" if prompted. If errors are found, follow the prompts to repair them (this might require a restart).

Solution 3: Test with a New User Profile

• Go to Settings > Accounts > Family & other users. > Under "Other users," > "Add someone else to this PC." > Follow the prompts to create a new local user account.

• Log out of your current account and log in to the new user account.

• Try navigating to the "Pictures" folder from the new user account and observe if the issue persists. If it does not occur in the new profile, it strongly indicates a problem with your original user profile, in which case you might consider migrating your data to a new profile.

Solution 4: Try clean bot system

• Open "System Configuration" In Window Search bar > "Services" tab > Check the box "Hide all Microsoft services." > Click "Disable all." > Go to the "Startup" tab. > Click "Open Task Manager."

• In Task Manager's Startup tab > disable all startup items one by one (right-click > Disable) > Close Task Manager > click "OK" in System Configuration > restart your PC.

• Retest again

For know how to perform a clean bot, please check this article: How to perform a clean boot in Windows - Microsoft Support

Solution 5: Uninstall and reinstall the new File Explorer

• Open the Task Manager using the search or Ctrl + Shift + Esc keyboard shortcut. > click on the More details button if you see the smaller version of the Task Manager > Under the Processes tab > Right-click the Windows Explorer process > click the Restart option to restart the File Explorer.

For additional information of this topic about Explorer, please check this article: File Explorer in Windows - Microsoft Support

• If you've already tried these steps and are still encountering issues, please reply to this thread with the requested details so we can investigate further and ensure your subscription is activated properly. Also, please keep me updated with anything new that you were try to each option.
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We appreciate your patience and look forward to resolving this quickly for you.

Warm regards,

Haien - MSFT | Microsoft Q&A Support Specialist