My File Manager won't allow me to view my screenshots

Question

My File Manager won't allow me to view my screenshots

Zena Quixote 0

Hi, I am having a problem with my file manager, It does not allow me to view screenshots and just shows this.
I can still interact with the file, move, upload and see the thumbnail. Is there any solutions to this?

Neil D 34,455 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2026-09-28T14:35:33.5833333+00:00

So you save your screenshots to the Downloads folder. By default it is usually in C:\Users\[name]\Pictures\Screenshots.

Just checking that is correct.
Zena Quixote 0 Reputation points

2026-09-29T05:20:59.3+00:00

Yep I moved my screenshots to my downloads folder, since I thought that by moving it there it would solve the problem of what I was having

3 answers

Your answer

Neil D 34,455 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2026-09-28T14:35:33.5833333+00:00

So you save your screenshots to the Downloads folder. By default it is usually in C:\Users\[name]\Pictures\Screenshots.

Just checking that is correct.
Zena Quixote 0 Reputation points

2026-09-29T05:20:59.3+00:00

Yep I moved my screenshots to my downloads folder, since I thought that by moving it there it would solve the problem of what I was having

Answer 1

Craig Long 18,840

Your screenshots may be going to C:\Users\username\OneDrive\Pictures\Screenshots.

0 comments

Answer 2

DaveM121 939.2K Independent Advisor

1

Right click your Downloads folder and select properties.

On the resulting Properties dialog, select the Customize tab.

Set the 'Optimize this folder for' drop down menu to 'General Items'.

Save that setting and test if that resolves the problem.

2

If not, drag one of the image files out of that folder to some other folder, are you then able to view the thumbnail of that file.

0 comments

Answer 3

This usually means File Explorer can still show the thumbnail, but Windows is failing when it tries to open the actual file path.

Try these steps in order:

Restart File Explorer
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
- Find Windows Explorer in Processes.
- Right-click it and select Restart.
- Then try opening the screenshot again.
Confirm the file is really in that folder
- Open File Explorer and browse to the folder shown in the error.
- Check whether the screenshot file name exactly matches the one in the message.
- If the file was moved or renamed, Windows may still be showing an old thumbnail or stale entry.
Clear the thumbnail cache
- Press Windows + R, type cleanmgr, and press Enter.
- Select the C: drive.
- Check Thumbnails.
- Select OK to remove the cached thumbnails.
- Open the folder again and test the file.
Check whether the file is blocked
- Right-click the screenshot file and select Properties.
- If there is an Unblock option at the bottom of the dialog, select it.
- Apply the change and try opening the file again.
Verify thumbnail settings
- In File Explorer, select ... > Options.
- Open the View tab.
- Make sure Always show icons, never thumbnails is unchecked.
- Select Apply > OK.

If the file still shows a thumbnail but cannot open, the most likely cause is that the file entry or cache is stale, or the file path no longer matches the actual file location.