How to Turn “Expand to Open Folder” On or Off in File Explorer’s Navigation Pane in Windows 11 Navigate your File Explorer however you like. Here’s how to toggle the “Expand to Open Folder” option on or off in File Explorer’s navigation pane. Before we begin, be sure to subscribe to NinjaOne’s IT Video Hub and our YouTube channel for more tech content like this. How to Toggle On or Off “Expand to Open Folder” on File Explorer At times, users may want to know which part of File Explorer they are currently browsing. Fortunately, Windows includes an option called “Expand to open folder” that automatically expands the Navigation pane to match your current location, and you can turn it on or off at any time. To toggle it instantly, open File Explorer, right-click on an empty area of the Navigation pane, and select “Expand to current folder.” Click it again to turn the feature off. Alternatively, you can manage this setting through Folder Options. Open File Explorer, click the three-dot menu, select Options, and then go to the View tab. Under Advanced settings, check or uncheck “Expand to open folder.” How to Show or Hide Navigation Panel on File Explorer Users typically want this option enabled for navigational purposes. Others, however, may find this distracting and want a cleaner look for their File Explorer. If you’re one of the latter, you can take it a step further by hiding the Navigation Pane altogether. Method 1: File Explorer In File Explorer, click the View menu on the top toolbar, hover over “Show,” and select “Navigation Pane” to show or hide it. Method 2: Registry Editor For advanced users or IT administrators, you can control the Navigation pane’s auto-expand behavior through the Windows Registry. Open Registry Editor, navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced then double-click on the DWORD value named NavPaneExpandToCurrentFolder, and set the value to 1 to enable auto-expand or 0 to disable it. Restart File Explorer if the change doesn’t apply immediately. Method 3: PowerShell Lastly, you can also automate this setting using PowerShell. Run PowerShell as an administrator and type in this command to enable... or this command to disable the feature... File Explorer will restart automatically to apply the change. With these methods, you can navigate your File Explorer more easily to find the files you need. For step-by-step instructions, registry paths, and ready-to-use PowerShell scripts, check out our official blog post on How to Turn Expand Folder On in File Explorer's Navigation Pane in Windows 11, linked in the description below.