February 23, 2010

Windows XP: Disable creation of Thumbs.db

In windows explorer, when you choose to view a folder in the Thumbnail or Filmstrip mode, it creates a file Thumbs.db in that folder. This file stores all the thumbnails generated in the folder, so that next time when you open the same folder, Windows do not have to generate thumbnails all over again. This saves CPU power and as Windows do no have generate thumbnails again, opening the same folder would be faster the next time.

But this file Thumbs.db becomes an headache for many reasons. It gets copied everywhere, uploaded everywhere and even when you make backup it gets included in it. It may also claim some disk space over time. This article tells you how you can disable creation of Thumbs.db whenever you view a folder in Thumbnail or Filmstrip mode.

Method 1 :

Open Control Panel • Folder Options. Select the View tab by clicking on it. Check the checkbox labeled Do not cache thumbnails and save settings by clicking on OK.

 

Method 2 :

Open command prompt window by opening Start Menu • Run, typing cmd and pressing Enter. In the command prompt window, type the following line exactly as shown and press Enter :

REG ADD "HKCR\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v DisableThumbnailCache /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

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