Windows Explorer Autorefresh

What to do when Windows Explorer doesn't refresh

Since the Vista era, Windows users have been suffering from one of the most annoying bugs in the history of Windows bugs. It's no bluescreen, it's no random driver freeze -- at least those always have a clear solution. It's a bug in Windows Explorer that prevents files and folders from properly updating until you perform a manual refresh. And it apparently has several solutions and workarounds but no concrete fix by Microsoft -- not for Windows Vista, Windows 7 (SP1) and not for the Windows 8 Consumer Preview. It's still there. These are the symptoms:

You empty the Recycle Bin, but the recycle bin is not shown as empty.

You delete files, but the files still appear in a folder or on the desktop. Whenever you try to double click or delete them (again), Windows Explorer keeps telling you it "Could not find this item".

You rename files, but the old name keeps appearing in Windows Explorer.

You create a new folder or a files, but it doesn't appear

You move or copy files, but the file doesn't appear on the target destination. This keeps happening especially on the desktop.

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Again, after a refresh (F5 or right click "Refresh") the files reappear -- or after restarting Windows Explorer or your machine. What started out as a minor annoyance became quite a disruptive bug: The problem is that you forget about the bug since it doesn't occur every time, but only in about 10-50% of all file operations. It's an erratic error that can't easily be reproduced. Here's an example: I would save an attachment to the desktop for later review and when I finally need it, I can't find it anymore. I fire up Outlook again, only to discover that it's already been saved. It messes with your folder structure and disrupts your workflow. I can honestly say that over the years this error has cost me not just hours but days of work, which is why (to me and many others), this can be more annoying than some BSOD or random app crash.

And believe me, I'm not the only one griping about this. It's probably one of the most read and commented issues on Microsoft's TechNet Forums: The error is split up into three parts now with the first two spawning a conversation of over 600 replies and several hundreds of thousands of views. Even loading up the massive thread will freeze some browsers (I'm not kidding).

Below, the solution that worked for me:

The icon cache in Windows Vista, 7 and 8 stores thumbnails of files -- if this cache has somehow reached its limit or got corrupted, you might need to rebuild it from scratch.

Here's how: Close all programs and Windows and run "Task-Manager" by using the CTRL + SHIFT + ESC key combo. Kill "Explorer.exe". Go to "File/Run New Task" and type in "cmd". Enter the following commands and hit Return after each one:

CD /d \AppData\Local

DEL IconCache.db /a

EXIT

http://www.itworld.com/windows/259222/what-do-when-windows-explorer-doesnt-refresh