Forum Discussion
Completely get rid of "Group By" anywhere in File Explorer
To disable Group By globally in File Explorer on Windows 11, use this method:
- Press Win+R, type regedit, and hit Enter.
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced
- Right-click in the right pane, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it UseAutoGrouping.
- Set the value of UseAutoGrouping to 0.
- Close the Registry Editor and restart File Explorer (or reboot your PC).
This will disable Group By globally for all folders.
To disable Group By globally in File Explorer on Windows 11, use this method:
- Press Win+R, type regedit, and hit Enter.
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced
- Right-click in the right pane, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it UseAutoGrouping.
- Set the value of UseAutoGrouping to 0.
- Close the Registry Editor and restart File Explorer (or reboot your PC).
This will disable Group By globally for all folders.
LukaBaylor​ Where did you find this setting? Your post above from Jan 2025 seems to be its first appearance on the Internet.
I monitored this registry value using SysInternals Process Explorer and found no access whatsoever. It's not read when Explorer starts up, not read when a new folder is created, and not read when any view changes, including grouping, are made to a folder. Practical testing also indicates that it does nothing.
Unless you can provide some verification steps that show a difference between having this setting and not having it, I have to conclude that it is not a valid.