Q: Why do some file and folder names show up in blue instead of black in Microsoft Windows?
A: If file names or folder names show up in blue, it is because file compression or encryption is enabled on that file or folder. Windows automatically compresses files that do not get used frequently, and displays those files in blue. You can change this behavior with the following steps:
Windows 10, 8, 7, & Vista
- Open “Control Panel“.
- Select “Appearance and Personalization“.
- Select “File Explorer Options” or “Folder Options“.
- Under the “View” tab, uncheck the “Show encrypted or compressed NTFS files in color” setting in the “Advanced settings” area.
Windows XP
- From the file explorer, select the Tools and choose Folder Options.
- Click the “View” tab and uncheck the Show encrypted or compressed NTFS files in color setting in the Advanced settings area. Click OK when finished.
Encryption and Compression Settings
If you want to access the encryption and compression settings on a file or folder, you can right-click the file, then select “Properties” > “Advanced…”
Rodex Rodgers says
wao that’s superb it helped me so much , my folders looked so weird
S Hunter Simpson says
in the same boat you aman; ran “sfc /scannow” (elevated) to no avail
(and speaking of elevated, tried ‘compact /u C:\Windows\System32\somefilehere’ to no avail–quote the path\file if it has spaces)
win server, so can’t ‘compact /compactos:query’ (or was going to ‘never’ instead of ‘query’
I have other servers, and none had the files (that I was worried about) as compacted (aka compressed, but not to be confused with .zip), so I moved away from worrying; note to see what is compacted (which all my servers had some), in powershell:
gci -r c:\windows | ? {$_.attributes -match “compressed”}
(but there will be a bunch, so be prepared to ctrl c)
I guess my point aman is to check your other servers (or computers) and perhaps concede that they can be compacted and it’s normal
aman says
even after following the steps, I cant decrypt the files, it says admin permission is declined, when I am loged in as admin. please help
MA says
Good information! Very much appreciated!
cmills says
perfect expanation!
SpirriX says
From what I could find, blue text means the file/folder is compressed. But if the file/folder is encrypted, the text will be green.
Thuan says
So helpful. Thanks!
Mark Emmert says
Concise, to the point and not geeky! BRAVO!
Mehul says
Thanks it’s working
krishna says
Thank you so much
Venkatesh Kumar R says
Very good explaination
Adjie P. Natra says
Thanks! Finally it’s very helpful.
TheBreezus says
This was very helpful!