'Choose folder' dialog missing sidebar

Question

Hi,

This has since forever occasionally been an issue for me, so I decided to finally see if there is a solution to it. My problem is that in some dialogs when a software needs you to select a folder for example, there is no sidebar present, so I can't use the folder tree or even access the Quick access list, which is crucial so I do not have to click step by step through my folder hierarchies every time it needs to be done. Attached screenshot is from when running a plugin through After effects, though this issue is not at all related to those software, but seems to be that Windows for some reason has multiple different versions of these dialogs and one is just too basic. So my question is if there is a way to force these dialogs to always show the sidebar, or at least show the Places bar?

Many thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Hello Sprutt,

Thank you for responding.

I have tried replicating this concern here in our end and I found out that, most of the apps in Windows have its default "Choose Folder" dialog, and those third-party applications have different interface.

Yes, you are correct, this would depend on how the developer designed their software.

You may reach out to the developer so that they can maybe update this in the future.

Thank you for choosing Microsoft. Have a great day and stay safe! 

Best regards,Mara May MMicrosoft Community Moderator

Answer 2

Thanks for your reply Mara!

My version is Windows 10 version 21H1 (OS build 19043.1415). I do not think it's a bug in Windows, more that the software used to open the dialog uses a version of the dialog that is very basic. Am I correct in that there are different types of these dialogs? And is there a way to force all software to use the "full" version?

Answer 3

Hello Sprutt,

Thank you for reaching Microsoft Community Forums.

I hope you are doing well. We really appreciate your time in bringing this concern to us. Let us work together to sort this out. To have a better understanding of the issue, please help us with the following information:

• Is the issue occur to other applications built-in in Windows?
• Were you able to get this working before?
• Can we ask the exact edition and version of Windows running on this device? Like if it is Windows 10 Home version 21H2?  
  1. To check, you can open WINVER:
  2. Press Windows Key + R
  3. At the Run dialog box, type WINVER
  4. Hit OK or Enter
  5. It should show the Windows information.

We look forward to your response. 

Best regards,  Mara May MMicrosoft Community Moderator